Rathfern Primary School
Rathfern Road, Catford, London, SE6 4NL
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Community school
- Ages
- 3 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Headteacher
- Mrs Naheeda Maharasingam
- Nursery provision
- Has Nursery Classes
- Constituency
- Lewisham East
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 515
- Pupils on roll
- 484
- URN
- 100700
- Local authority
- Lewisham
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 02086903759
About this school
Rathfern Primary School is a community primary school in London. It teaches children aged 3 to 11 and has 484 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected Rathfern Primary School, and its latest judgement is set out below. Where the Department for Education has published them, its results and pupil characteristics appear below. Numbers and a report only go so far, so visit in person before you apply.
Ofsted judgement
Ofsted no longer gives schools a single overall grade. Each area of the school's work is graded on a five-point scale, and safeguarding is judged separately.
- Inclusion
- Strong standard
- Curriculum and teaching
- Strong standard
- Achievement
- Expected standard
- Attendance and behaviour
- Strong standard
- Personal development and wellbeing
- Strong standard
- Leadership and governance
- Strong standard
- Early years
- Strong standard
- Safeguarding
- Met
Exam results
Key stage 2 (end of primary school)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 2 | 57 | 59 | 60 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 67% | 53% | 82% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 5% | 5% | 8% |
| Expected standard in reading | 75% | 59% | 87% |
| Expected standard in maths | 79% | 69% | 85% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 75% | 75% | 87% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 106.0 | 104.0 | 111.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 106.0 | 105.0 | 110.0 |
| Reading progress | -2.00 | - | - |
| Writing progress | -0.90 | - | - |
| Maths progress | -0.50 | - | - |
Progress measures ended nationally after the 2022/23 school year, when the key stage 1 assessments they were based on were stopped. Blank progress figures in later years are not missing school data.
Trends over time
How Rathfern Primary School has moved over recent years against the local and national picture. Every figure is shown in the table beneath its chart.
| Year | This school | Lewisham average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 67% | 59.1% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 53% | 60.6% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 82% | 64.8% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 4.2% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 3.5% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 3.7% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 492 |
| 2023/24 | 499 |
| 2024/25 | 497 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Rathfern Primary School compares
Rathfern Primary School ranked 10th of 67 primary schools in Lewisham for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 90% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 89% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 82% | 3.7% | 24.3% | 484 | — |
| Kilmorie Primary School | 66% | 4.8% | 14.1% | 613 | 0.4 miles |
| St William of York Catholic Primary School | 72% | 4.1% | 22.7% | 207 | 0.4 miles |
| Dalmain Primary School | 71% | 6% | 22.3% | 381 | 0.5 miles |
| Rushey Green Primary School | 49% | 7.9% | 36.4% | 560 | 0.6 miles |
| Holbeach Primary School | 56% | 6.2% | 32.1% | 391 | 0.6 miles |
Results reflect each school's cohort as much as its teaching, and free school meals share is context, not a judgement. Small gaps between neighbouring schools are rarely meaningful on their own.
Inspection history
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 24.3%
- English as an additional language
- 35.4%
- Overall absence
- 3.71%
- Persistent absence
- 6.13%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Kilmorie Primary School0.4 miles
Primary · London
-
St William of York Catholic Primary School0.4 miles
Primary · London
-
Dalmain Primary School0.5 miles
Primary · London
-
Rushey Green Primary School0.6 miles
Primary · London
-
Holbeach Primary School0.6 miles
Primary · London
Other schools in London
Rathfern Primary School ranks 231st of the 948 ranked primary schools in London.
- Abacus Belsize Primary School Primary
- Acton Gardens Primary School Primary
- Adamsrill Primary School Primary
- Addison Primary School Primary
- Ainslie Wood Primary School Primary
- Akiva School Primary
- Albemarle Primary School Primary
- Albion Primary School Primary
- Alderbrook Primary School Primary
- Aldersbrook Primary School Primary
- Alderwood Primary School Primary
- Alexander McLeod Primary School Primary
Common questions
- What ages does Rathfern Primary School teach?
- Rathfern Primary School teaches children aged 3 to 11. It is a primary school in London.
- Who is the headteacher of Rathfern Primary School?
- The headteacher of Rathfern Primary School is Mrs Naheeda Maharasingam, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has Rathfern Primary School been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Rathfern Primary School, and its latest judgement is set out in the inspection section on this page, with the framework and the date it was made.
- How many pupils are at Rathfern Primary School?
- Rathfern Primary School has 484 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 3 to 11.
- Is Rathfern Primary School full?
- Rathfern Primary School has capacity for 515 pupils and 484 on roll (94%), so it has space against its published capacity. Places are allocated through the local authority's admissions process, so capacity alone does not tell you whether a place is available.
- Is Rathfern Primary School a faith school?
- No. Rathfern Primary School has no designated religious character.
- Does Rathfern Primary School have a nursery?
- Yes. The schools register records Rathfern Primary School as having nursery classes.
- How have Rathfern Primary School's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 67% in 2022/23 and 82% in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Rathfern Primary School compare with other schools in Lewisham?
- Rathfern Primary School ranked 10th of 67 primary schools in Lewisham for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 90% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 89% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Rathfern Primary School's absence rate?
- Rathfern Primary School's overall absence rate is 3.7% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Rathfern Primary School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Rathfern Primary School's key stage results are shown in the results section on this page, with the last three years so you can see the trend rather than a single year.
School details come from the Department for Education's Get Information About Schools register. Inspection outcomes come from Ofsted, and exam results from the Department for Education's school performance service. This page was last updated on 15 July 2026.