St James' CofE Primary School
Tower Hamlets Road, Forest Gate, London, E7 9DA
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Voluntary controlled school
- Ages
- 3 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Church of England
- Headteacher
- Mrs Clare Barber
- Diocese
- Diocese of Chelmsford
- Nursery provision
- Has Nursery Classes
- Constituency
- Stratford and Bow
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 360
- Pupils on roll
- 190
- URN
- 102764
- Local authority
- Newham
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 02085344030
About this school
St James' CofE Primary School is a Church of England voluntary controlled primary school in London. It teaches children aged 3 to 11 and has 190 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected St James' CofE 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
Confirmed by a short inspection, not a full one
Ofsted's most recent visit was a short inspection on 22 March 2023, where inspectors confirmed the school remains Good. The school's last full inspection took place before September 2019, so its area grades are not part of Ofsted's current published data. Older reports are on the school's Ofsted page.
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 | 51 | 43 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 61% | 57% | 67% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 16% | 6% | 14% |
| Expected standard in reading | 75% | 73% | 74% |
| Expected standard in maths | 72% | 67% | 81% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 75% | 71% | 79% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 107.0 | 104.0 | 106.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 106.0 | 104.0 | 107.0 |
| Reading progress | -0.80 | - | - |
| Writing progress | 0.00 | - | - |
| Maths progress | -0.80 | - | - |
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 St James' CofE 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 | Newham average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 61% | 69.1% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 57% | 72.7% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 67% | 74.2% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 5.4% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 4% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 4.5% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 218 |
| 2023/24 | 204 |
| 2024/25 | 208 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How St James' CofE Primary School compares
St James' CofE Primary School ranked 50th of 66 primary schools in Newham for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 57% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 74% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 67% | 4.5% | 51.4% | 190 | — |
| Earlham Primary School | 84% | 3.9% | 42.2% | 450 | 0.1 miles |
| Maryland Primary School | 64% | 6.2% | 38% | 403 | 0.4 miles |
| Woodgrange Infant School | — | 6.3% | 19.8% | 378 | 0.5 miles |
| St Francis' Catholic Primary School | 77% | 4.6% | 45.5% | 256 | 0.5 miles |
| Park Primary School | 72% | 5.6% | 27.2% | 627 | 0.5 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.
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 51.44%
- English as an additional language
- 69.7%
- Overall absence
- 4.46%
- Persistent absence
- 11.01%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Earlham Primary School0.1 miles
Primary · London
-
Maryland Primary School0.4 miles
Primary · London
-
Woodgrange Infant School0.5 miles
Primary · London
-
St Francis' Catholic Primary School0.5 miles
Primary · London
-
Park Primary School0.5 miles
Primary · London
Other schools in London
St James' CofE Primary School ranks 643rd of the 943 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
Recorded changes at this school
Previous headteacher: Mrs Rose Boland - Bourne (until September 2026).
- Headteacher changed from Mrs Rose Boland - Bourne to Mrs Clare Barber recorded 12 Sep 2026
- School name changed from St James' CofE Junior School to St James' CofE Primary School recorded 5 Sep 2026
Common questions
- What ages does St James' CofE Primary School teach?
- St James' CofE Primary School teaches children aged 3 to 11. It is a primary school in London.
- Who is the headteacher of St James' CofE Primary School?
- The headteacher of St James' CofE Primary School is Mrs Clare Barber, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has St James' CofE Primary School been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected St James' CofE 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 St James' CofE Primary School?
- St James' CofE Primary School has 190 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 3 to 11.
- Is St James' CofE Primary School full?
- St James' CofE Primary School has capacity for 360 pupils and 190 on roll (53%), 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 St James' CofE Primary School a faith school?
- Yes. St James' CofE Primary School is designated Church of England, in the Diocese of Chelmsford.
- Does St James' CofE Primary School have a nursery?
- Yes. The schools register records St James' CofE Primary School as having nursery classes.
- How have St James' CofE Primary School's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 61% in 2022/23 and 67% in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does St James' CofE Primary School compare with other schools in Newham?
- St James' CofE Primary School ranked 50th of 66 primary schools in Newham for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 57% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 74% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is St James' CofE Primary School's absence rate?
- St James' CofE Primary School's overall absence rate is 4.5% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are St James' CofE Primary School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, St James' CofE 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 12 September 2026.