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St Mary's Catholic Primary School, Sunderland

Primary · Sunderland · SR2 7QN

Data updated

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No current grade

Ungraded inspection: no current grade

Ofsted's most recent visit was an ungraded inspection; its outcome was “Improved significantly”. Since September 2024 these outcomes no longer confirm a named grade. No graded inspection appears in Ofsted's records for this school since 2015 either, so SchoolFacts shows no grade rather than guessing. Any earlier grade is on the school's Ofsted report page.

Inspected 18 December 2024

Read the Ofsted report ↗

At a glance

472 pupils · 112% of 420 capacity (over capacity) (January 2026 census)

School type
Academy converter
Age range
3–11
Gender
Mixed
Religious character
Roman Catholic
Free school meals
6.8% of pupils (January 2026)
English as additional language
8.7% of pupils (2024/2025)
SEN support
16.7% of pupils (2024/2025)
EHC plan
1.5% of pupils (2024/2025)
Nursery
Yes
Website
www.smrc.school
URN
148781

In figures

For September 2026 entry, 71 families named it first for 60 Reception places, 1.18 first choices per place. Its last Reception place offered on distance for 2026 entry went to 0.736 miles; distance decided places in 3 of the 5 years of Reception rounds we hold, 2022 to 2026. In the 2025/26 autumn and spring terms its pupils missed 4.3% of sessions, against 6.6% across England.

Admissions demand: Reception entry, September 2026

1.18 first-choice applications per place

60 places offered · 71 first-choice applications · oversubscribed

First-choice applications per place, by entry year

22/23
23/24
24/25
25/26
26/27

Source: DfE applications and offers on national offer day · how demand is measured

Catchment area

Catchment area: not named in the council's figures. Places by distance, last offered at 0.736 miles for 2026 entry.

Admissions cutoff distance: Reception

Last child offered a place under the distance criterion (2026 entry) lived within 0.736 miles

measurement method not stated by the council.

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Source: the admissions authority's published figures · how cutoffs work

Key stage 2 results (2024/2025)

59 pupils at the end of key stage 2 in 2024/2025

Reaching the expected standard in reading, writing & maths
95%
England 62%
Reaching the higher standard
31%
England 8%
Average scaled score (reading)
110
England 106
Average scaled score (maths)
113
England 105

Source: DfE performance tables 2024/2025 · what “suppressed” means

Schools with a similar intake

Meeting the expected standard in reading, writing and maths, 2024/2025

This school95%
Median of its 12 closest peers64%
Sunderland average66.6%
England62%

On meeting the expected standard in reading, writing and maths, this school is ahead of the schools that teach a comparable intake.

They are matched on intake, not location, so most are not local: see nearby schools for those you could apply to.

SchoolOfstedResult
St Wilfrid's CofE Primary SchoolHaywards Heath · 275 miles awayNo current grade63%
The Radstone Primary SchoolBrackley · 197 miles awayGood58%
Our Lady of the Wayside Catholic Primary SchoolSolihull · 173 miles awayGood79%
St Matthew's Church of England Primary and Nursery AcademyPlymouth · 330 miles awayExpected standard54%
Commonswood Primary & Nursery SchoolWELWYN GARDEN CITY · 221 miles awayGood65%
Southwater Junior AcademyHorsham · 271 miles awayGood69%
Ninelands Primary SchoolLeeds · 76 miles awayGood62%
Smithy Bridge Foundation Primary SchoolLittleborough · 92 miles awayGood59%
Sheredes Primary SchoolHoddesdon · 224 miles awayOutstanding78%
Falkland Primary SchoolNewbury · 243 miles awayGood65%
The Avenue Primary SchoolMiddlesbrough · 27 miles awayGood73%
Park Mead PrimaryCranleigh · 262 miles awayGood58%

It is not a ranking. Source: DfE performance tables 2024/2025 · how the matching works

Pupils by ethnicity (January 2026)

White British 79% (Sunderland 82%, England 60%) · Black African 14% (Sunderland 6%, England 5%) · Mixed White and Asian 1% (Sunderland 1%, England 2%) · Any other White background 1% (Sunderland 2%, England 7%) · Asian Indian 1% (Sunderland 1%, England 4%) · Any other Asian background 1% (Sunderland 2%, England 2%) · Asian Pakistani 1% (Sunderland 1%, England 5%) · other groups together 2%

Source: DfE schools, pupils and their characteristics, January 2026 census · how to read these figures

Attendance (2025/26 autumn and spring terms)

Sessions missed (overall absence)
4.3%
England 6.6%
Pupils missing 10%+ of sessions (persistent absence)
8.8%
England 17.5%

Suspensions and permanent exclusions (2024/25)

0.21 suspensions per 100 pupils and 0 permanent exclusions · England, primary schools: 2.47 suspensions and 0.03 permanent exclusions per 100 pupils · Sunderland: 1.64 suspensions and 0.06 permanent exclusions per 100 pupils

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Source: DfE pupil absence data, autumn and spring terms, and DfE suspensions and permanent exclusions, school-level file · how absence is measured · how to read exclusions

Staffing

Pupils per qualified teacher
26.1
England 18.5

Full-time-equivalent, 2025/26.

Teacher retention (2024/25)

94% of teachers stayed at the school the following year · 6% left the state-funded sector

Vacancies (November 2025)

0% of teaching posts vacant, 0% filled temporarily · England, primary academies: 0.3% vacant, 0.32% temporary

Teacher sickness absence (reported in the November 2024 census)

61.1% of teachers took sickness absence, 3.7 days each on average · England, all state-funded schools: 61.8%, 8.1 days

Teacher pay (November 2025)

Mean salary of full-time qualified teachers £52,721; 15% on the leadership pay range · England, primary schools: £50,856, 17.3%

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Source: DfE School Workforce Census · how these figures are counted

Spending per pupil (2024-25)

This school£5,552
Typical primary school£7,202

Where the money went (2024-25)

Share of spending, with the median for primary schools in brackets: Staff 74% (77%) · premises 6% (5%) · occupation (energy, rates, cleaning) 10% (8%) · supplies and services 10% (9%) · educational supplies 3% (4%) · bought-in professional services 3% (2%) · catering 7% (5%)

Reserves (2024-25)

Revenue reserve £303,000; in-year balance +£127,000

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Higher spending is not a measure of quality. Source: academy finance return, 2024-25, DfE · how spending is compared

Inspection history since 2015

Source: Ofsted management information · ungraded visits and the two inspection systems

The area around the school

Child poverty (IDACI)
8/10less deprived than most of England
Overall deprivation (IMD)
7/10less deprived than most of England
Census 2021This areaEngland
Adults with a degree or higher38.9%33.9%
Adults with no qualifications14%18.1%
In managerial or professional work41.3%33.2%
Households deprived in two or more ways13.6%18.1%
Residents in very good health49.2%48.5%
Homes owned by the occupier86.2%62.3%
Social housing0.6%17.1%
Privately rented13.2%20.5%
Detached houses7.1%22.9%
Flats8.1%22.2%
Homes with four or more bedrooms30%21.1%
Households with no car or van15.9%23.5%

These figures describe the area, not the pupils. Source: Census 2021 (ONS) and English Indices of Deprivation 2025 (MHCLG) for small area E01008781 · how to read area figures

What homes cost nearby

Median sale price
£163,000586 sales within 1 km, January 2024 to September 2026
Typical range
£117,000–£230,000the middle half of sales
England median
£300,000all sales over the same period
Detached (32)£337,500
Semi-detached (201)£210,000
Terraced (244)£147,500
Flat (109)£84,000

Homes around this school are cheaper than three quarters of school neighbourhoods in England, comparing the median within 1 km across every state school.

Source: HM Land Registry sales within 1 km since January 2024 · how sales are counted. Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. This data is licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Postcodes located with OS Code-Point Open: contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026; contains Royal Mail data © Royal Mail copyright and database right 2026; contains National Statistics data © Crown copyright and database right 2026.

Roads around the school

Child pedestrian casualties
5an urban school averages 2.0
Collisions at school-run times
8an urban school averages 5.7
All reported collisions
29an urban school averages 30.5
Of those, serious or fatal
9an urban school averages 6.1

A high count usually reflects traffic, not an unsafe school. Source: DfT road casualty statistics (STATS19), collisions within 500 m, 2021–2025 · what is counted

Nearby schools