Ofsted: Outstanding trending_up Places Available emoji_events #365 in Kent public Top 78% UK

St Margaret's-at-Cliffe Primary School

verifiedData: DfE & Ofsted 2024/25

personMs Helen Comfort

location_onDover, CT15 6SS

language Visit Website phone 1304852639

verified

Ofsted

Outstanding

Inspected 2025

groups

Students

189

school

Expected Standard

52%

local_fire_department

Demand Ratio

0.9x

summarize

St Margaret's-at-Cliffe Primary School is a Community school primary school in Dover, serving ages 4-11. Rated Outstanding by Ofsted — the highest possible grade. Ranks in the top 78% of primary schools nationally.

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School Summary

St Margaret's-at-Cliffe Primary School is a community school in Dover, Kent, admitting pupils aged 4-11. The school has approximately 163 pupils on roll, of whom 7% are eligible for free school meals.

In 2025, 52% of pupils met the expected standard in Reading, Writing and Maths combined. The school ranks #365 of 424 primaries in Kent and #12,130 of 14,143 nationally.

Ofsted last inspected the school in 2025. The school's current overall rating is Outstanding. Inspectors assessed quality of education as Good, behaviour and attitudes Good, personal development Good, and leadership and management Good.

In the most recent admissions cycle, applications were at 0.9× capacity.

The pupil-to-qualified-teacher ratio is 19.9:1. There are no current teaching vacancies.

In the 2024/25 academic year, there were no permanent exclusions. The average suspension rate was 0.0 per 1,000 pupils per term.

verified Source: Department for Education 2024/25, Ofsted

Academic Performance

verified Data: UK Gov 2024/25

school

Primary Performance Trends (KS2)

2025

R/W/M Expected Standard

52%

LA 61%

Reading72% LA 74%

Writing80% LA 72%

Maths68% LA 70%

Read SS

104

Maths SS

103

GPS SS

102

Progress (0 = national avg)

Read

Write

Maths

2024

R/W/M Expected Standard

83%

LA 60%England 61%

Reading88% LA 75% · Eng 74%

Writing92% LA 73% · Eng 72%

Maths92% LA 69% · Eng 73%

Read SS

106

Maths SS

106

GPS SS

105

Progress (0 = national avg)

Read

Write

Maths

2023

R/W/M Expected Standard

86%

LA 58%England 60%

Reading90% LA 72% · Eng 73%

Writing95% LA 72% · Eng 71%

Maths100% LA 69% · Eng 73%

Read SS

111

Maths SS

111

GPS SS

109

Progress (0 = national avg)

3.7

Read

LA -0.4

1.0 to 6.4

0.9

Write

LA -0.2

-1.7 to 3.5

4.5

Maths

LA -1.2

2.0 to 7.0

2019

R/W/M Expected Standard

96%

LA 67%England 65%

Reading96% LA 75% · Eng 73%

Writing100% LA 81% · Eng 78%

Maths100% LA 77% · Eng 79%

Read SS

109

Maths SS

109

GPS SS

110

Progress (0 = national avg)

2.1

Read

LA 0.0

-0.3 to 4.5

1.3

Write

LA 0.1

-0.9 to 3.6

1.5

Maths

LA -0.6

-0.6 to 3.6

2018

R/W/M Expected Standard

68%

LA 65%

Reading82% LA 76%

Writing93% LA 80%

Maths75% LA 73%

Read SS

105

Maths SS

103

GPS SS

105

Progress (0 = national avg)

0.4

Read

LA 0.0

-2 to 2.8

2.3

Write

LA 0.4

0 to 4.6

-0.5

Maths

LA -0.5

-2.7 to 1.7

Ofsted History

Publication Timeline

Report Archive

21 January 2025

Inspection Report

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02 July 2015

Inspection Report

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15 January 2013

Inspection Report

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14 October 2009

Inspection Report

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24 April 2007

Inspection Report

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01 October 2001

Inspection Report

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Inspection Report

Inspection History

3 Evaluations

2025-01-21

S5 Inspection EIF

Not Judged

info

Why no overall grade?

From autumn 2024, Ofsted stopped issuing a single headline grade (Outstanding / Good / RI / Inadequate). Instead, each inspection area is graded individually. This follows a major review after the death of headteacher Ruth Perry in 2023. The overall effectiveness field is left as "Not judged" in the published data.

Education

Good

Behaviour

Good

Development

Good

Leadership

Good

2015-07-02

S5 Inspection EIF

Outstanding

Education

No Judgement

Behaviour

No Judgement

Development

No Judgement

Leadership

Outstanding

2009-10-14

None EIF

Good

Education

No Judgement

Behaviour

No Judgement

Development

No Judgement

Leadership

Good

Wellbeing, SEN & Pastoral Care

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Behaviour & Discipline (Suspensions & Exclusions)

Official Department for Education (DfE) data. Suspensions measure temporary removals due to behavior, while exclusions represent permanent removals.

Suspension Rate

0.0%per term

sentiment_satisfied Below Average (Good)

National average: 0.8% for this term (primary).

Pupils Suspended 1+ Times

0.0%(0 pupils)

Spring term 2025

Represents the proportion of unique students suspended at least once in this term.

Permanent Exclusions

0pupils

verified Excellent (Zero)

National average: 1.225% of pupils excluded per term.

Pastoral Context: In the Spring term of 2025, this school served a headcount of 163 pupils. During this period, there were 0 temporary suspensions. The school's suspension rate was 0.0%, which is below the termly national average of 0.8%.

View Historical Disciplinary Records (2017–2025)keyboard_arrow_down

Year / Term	Headcount	Suspensions	Susp. Rate	Nat. Avg
2024/25 (Spring term)	163	0	0.0%	0.8%
2024/25 (Autumn term)	165	0	0.0%	0.9%
2023/24 (Summer term)	174	0	0.0%	0.8%
2023/24 (Spring term)	176	3	1.7%	0.7%
2023/24 (Autumn term)	177	3	1.7%	0.8%
2022/23 (Summer term)	183	8	4.4%	0.7%
2022/23 (Spring term)	189	2	1.1%	0.6%
2022/23 (Autumn term)	193	1	0.5%	0.6%
2021/22 (Summer term)	194	1	0.5%	0.5%
2021/22 (Spring term)	200	1	0.5%	0.5%
2021/22 (Autumn term)	198	1	0.5%	0.5%
2020/21 (Summer term)	196	0	0.0%	0.4%
2020/21 (Spring term)	194	0	0.0%	0.1%
2020/21 (Autumn term)	196	0	0.0%	0.4%
2019/20 (Summer term)	194	0	0.0%	0.0%
2019/20 (Spring term)	194	0	0.0%	0.4%
2019/20 (Autumn term)	196	0	0.0%	0.6%
2018/19 (Summer term)	195	2	1.0%	0.4%
2018/19 (Spring term)	195	0	0.0%	0.5%
2018/19 (Autumn term)	194	2	1.0%	0.5%
2017/18 (Summer term)	198	1	0.5%	0.5%
2017/18 (Spring term)	194	0	0.0%	0.4%
2017/18 (Autumn term)	190	0	0.0%	0.5%
2016/17 (Summer term)	191	0	0.0%	0.4%
2016/17 (Spring term)	194	0	0.0%	0.4%
2016/17 (Autumn term)	197	0	0.0%	0.5%

Source: DfE Suspensions and Permanent Exclusions in England. Data represents termly statistics as published by the Department for Education.

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Supported Special Educational Needs (SEN)

Primary areas of need currently supported by the school. A high number often indicates specialized internal units or high staff experience in these areas.

Autistic Spectrum Disorder 5 pupils

Speech, Language & Communication 5 pupils

Specific Learning Difficulty 4 pupils

Moderate Learning Difficulty 4 pupils

Social, Emotional & Mental Health 2 pupils

Physical Disability 2 pupils

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St Margaret's-at-Cliffe Primary School

School Summary

Academic Performance

Primary Performance Trends (KS2)

Ofsted History

Publication Timeline

Inspection History

Admissions Insight

How Places Are Allocated

Distance to School

School Capacity

Primary Admission Trends

Students & School Environment

School Size

Language Diversity

Inclusive Support

Attendance

Ethnicity Breakdown

Wellbeing, SEN & Pastoral Care

Behaviour & Discipline (Suspensions & Exclusions)

Supported Special Educational Needs (SEN)

Funding & Staffing

School Funding Allocation

Funding Breakdown

Staffing

Teacher Turnover

Top Primary Schools in Kent

Westgate Primary School

Leigh Academy Cherry Orchard

Kingsdown and Ringwould Church of England Primary School

Thornden Wood Primary School

Leigh Academy Paddock Wood

The Discovery School