Ofsted: Good trending_up Places Available emoji_events #327 in Essex public Top 84% UK

St James the Great Church of England Primary School

verifiedData: DfE 2024/25–2025/26 · Ofsted

personMrs Belynda Fellows

corporate_fareTHE DIOCESE OF CHELMSFORD VINE SCHOOLS TRUST

location_onColchester, CO1 2RA

language Visit Website phone 1206865747

verified

Ofsted

Good

Inspected 2019

groups

Students

437

school

Expected Standard

48%

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Demand Ratio

0.8x

summarize

St James the Great Church of England Primary School is a Academy sponsor led primary school in Colchester, serving ages 2-11. Rated Good by Ofsted. Ranks in the top 84% of primary schools nationally.

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School Summary

St James the Great Church of England Primary School is an academy sponsor led in Colchester, Essex, admitting pupils aged 2-11. It is part of THE DIOCESE OF CHELMSFORD VINE SCHOOLS TRUST. The school has approximately 456 pupils on roll, of whom 27% are eligible for free school meals.

In 2025, 48% of pupils met the expected standard in Reading, Writing and Maths combined, with 8% achieving the higher standard. The school ranks #327 of 387 primaries in Essex and #12,063 of 14,143 nationally.

Ofsted last inspected the school in 2019. The school's current overall rating is Good. 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 0.8× capacity.

The pupil-to-qualified-teacher ratio is 26.7:1. There are no current teaching vacancies.

In the 2024/25 academic year, there were no permanent exclusions. The average suspension rate was 0.7 per 1,000 pupils per term.

verified Source: DfE 2024/25–2025/26 · Ofsted

Academic Performance

verified Data: UK Gov 2024/25

school

Primary Performance Trends (KS2)

2025

R/W/M Expected Standard

48%

LA 61%

Reading79% LA 74%

Writing51% LA 70%

Maths70% LA 72%

Read SS

107

Maths SS

103

GPS SS

105

Progress (0 = national avg)

Read

Write

Maths

2024

R/W/M Expected Standard

40%

LA 60%England 61%

Reading60% LA 73% · Eng 74%

Writing67% LA 70% · Eng 72%

Maths45% LA 71% · Eng 73%

Read SS

103

Maths SS

100

GPS SS

101

Progress (0 = national avg)

Read

Write

Maths

2023

R/W/M Expected Standard

53%

LA 59%England 60%

Reading78% LA 72% · Eng 73%

Writing53% LA 71% · Eng 71%

Maths78% LA 72% · Eng 73%

Read SS

107

Maths SS

105

GPS SS

108

Progress (0 = national avg)

2.2

Read

LA -0.1

0.4 to 4.1

-4.2

Write

LA 0.0

-5.9 to -2.4

1.2

Maths

LA -0.3

-0.5 to 2.9

2019

R/W/M Expected Standard

62%

LA 64%England 65%

Reading71% LA 73% · Eng 73%

Writing76% LA 77% · Eng 78%

Maths75% LA 77% · Eng 79%

Read SS

104

Maths SS

103

GPS SS

106

Progress (0 = national avg)

0.9

Read

LA -0.5

-0.8 to 2.6

1.1

Write

LA -0.2

-0.4 to 2.7

-1.2

Maths

LA -0.6

-2.8 to 0.3

2018

R/W/M Expected Standard

53%

LA 63%

Reading88% LA 75%

Writing82% LA 77%

Maths61% LA 73%

Read SS

107

Maths SS

102

GPS SS

104

Progress (0 = national avg)

2.3

Read

LA -0.3

0.6 to 4

0.9

Write

LA -0.2

-0.7 to 2.5

-1.7

Maths

LA -0.6

-3.2 to -0.2

Ofsted History

Publication Timeline

Report Archive

14 January 2025

Inspection Report

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18 September 2019

Inspection Report

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Inspection Report

Inspection History

3 Evaluations

2019-09-18

Academy First Section 5 EIF

Good

Education

Good

Behaviour

Good

Development

Good

Leadership

Good

2016-01-20

Requires Improvement S5 Reinspection Visit 1 EIF

Inadequate

Education

No Judgement

Behaviour

No Judgement

Development

No Judgement

Leadership

Inadequate

2013-11-21

None Legacy

Requires improvement

Education

Requires improvement

Behaviour

Development

Leadership

Requires improvement

history Predecessor Link

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

0.4%per term

sentiment_satisfied Below Average (Good)

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

Pupils Suspended 1+ Times

0.4%(2 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 456 pupils. During this period, there were 2 temporary suspensions. The school's suspension rate was 0.4%, 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	Perm. Excl.
2024/25 (Spring term)	456	2	0.4%	0.8%	0
2024/25 (Autumn term)	435	4	0.9%	0.9%	0
2023/24 (Summer term)	455	7	1.5%	0.8%	0
2023/24 (Spring term)	448	3	0.7%	0.7%	0
2023/24 (Autumn term)	435	3	0.7%	0.8%	0
2022/23 (Summer term)	456	11	2.4%	0.7%	0
2022/23 (Spring term)	437	3	0.7%	0.6%	0
2022/23 (Autumn term)	419	2	0.5%	0.6%	0
2021/22 (Summer term)	444	5	1.1%	0.5%	0
2021/22 (Spring term)	447	8	1.8%	0.5%	0
2021/22 (Autumn term)	441	8	1.8%	0.5%	0
2020/21 (Summer term)	444	9	2.0%	0.4%	0
2020/21 (Spring term)	442	3	0.7%	0.1%	0
2020/21 (Autumn term)	442	11	2.5%	0.4%	0
2019/20 (Summer term)	445	0	0.0%	0.0%	0
2019/20 (Spring term)	445	5	1.1%	0.4%	0
2019/20 (Autumn term)	445	7	1.6%	0.6%	0
2018/19 (Summer term)	452	3	0.7%	0.4%	0
2018/19 (Spring term)	452	3	0.7%	0.5%	0
2018/19 (Autumn term)	451	5	1.1%	0.5%	0
2017/18 (Summer term)	464	4	0.9%	0.5%	1
2017/18 (Spring term)	453	3	0.7%	0.4%	0
2017/18 (Autumn term)	445	7	1.6%	0.5%	0
2016/17 (Summer term)	409	4	1.0%	0.4%	0
2016/17 (Spring term)	409	2	0.5%	0.4%	0
2016/17 (Autumn term)	407	0	0.0%	0.5%	0

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.

Moderate Learning Difficulty 31 pupils

Autistic Spectrum Disorder 29 pupils

Speech, Language & Communication 28 pupils

Social, Emotional & Mental Health 28 pupils

Visual Impairment 1 pupils

Multi-Sensory Impairment 1 pupils

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St James the Great Church of England Primary School

School Summary

Academic Performance

Primary Performance Trends (KS2)

Ofsted History

Publication Timeline

Inspection History

Admissions Insight

How Places Are Allocated

Faith Priority (Church of England)

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 Essex

Kingston Primary School

Lift Westerings

Quilters Junior School

Lee Chapel Primary School

Hereward Primary School

Perryfields Junior School