St Margaret's CofE Primary School, Rottingdean
Whiteway Lane, Rottingdean, Brighton, BN2 7HB
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Voluntary aided school
- Ages
- 5 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Church of England
- Headteacher
- Mrs Rachel Kershaw
- Diocese
- Diocese of Chichester
- Constituency
- Brighton Kemptown and Peacehaven
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 210
- Pupils on roll
- 172
- URN
- 114537
- Local authority
- Brighton and Hove
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01273303109
About this school
St Margaret's CofE Primary School, Rottingdean is a Church of England voluntary aided primary school in Brighton. It teaches children aged 5 to 11 and has 172 pupils on roll.
You can read Ofsted's latest judgement for the school 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's most recent visit was a short inspection on 30 April 2025, where inspectors found that standards have been maintained. 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 | 33 | 24 | 26 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 67% | 63% | 65% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 9% | 4% | 8% |
| Expected standard in reading | 82% | 75% | 73% |
| Expected standard in maths | 70% | 75% | 81% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 79% | 79% | 77% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 108.0 | 108.0 | 107.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 106.0 | 105.0 | 107.0 |
| Reading progress | +1.20 | - | - |
| Writing progress | +1.40 | - | - |
| Maths progress | 0.00 | - | - |
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 Margaret's CofE Primary School, Rottingdean has moved over recent years against the local and national picture. Every figure is shown in the table beneath its chart.
| Year | This school | Brighton and Hove average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 67% | 55.8% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 63% | 56% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 65% | 55.3% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 6.2% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 6.7% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 7.3% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 180 |
| 2023/24 | 175 |
| 2024/25 | 176 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How St Margaret's CofE Primary School, Rottingdean compares
St Margaret's CofE Primary School, Rottingdean ranked 12th of 43 primary schools in Brighton and Hove for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 53% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 22% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 65% | 7.3% | 14.8% | 172 | — |
| Our Lady of Lourdes RC School | 48% | 5% | 12.2% | 210 | 0.2 miles |
| Saltdean Primary School | 52% | 4.6% | 17.9% | 533 | 0.7 miles |
| Rudyard Kipling Primary School & Nursery | 46% | 5.7% | 28.8% | 312 | 1.8 miles |
| Telscombe Cliffs Academy | 62% | 5.6% | 21.1% | 521 | 2.0 miles |
| Woodingdean Primary School | — | — | — | — | 2.2 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)
- 14.77%
- English as an additional language
- 4.5%
- Overall absence
- 7.3%
- Persistent absence
- 22.02%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Our Lady of Lourdes RC School0.2 miles
Primary · Brighton
-
Saltdean Primary School0.7 miles
Primary · Brighton
-
Rudyard Kipling Primary School & Nursery1.8 miles
Primary · Brighton
-
Telscombe Cliffs Academy2.0 miles
Primary · Peacehaven
-
Woodingdean Primary School2.2 miles
Primary · Brighton
Other schools in Brighton
St Margaret's CofE Primary School, Rottingdean ranks 9th of the 36 ranked primary schools in Brighton.
- Balfour Primary School Primary
- Benfield Primary School Primary
- Bevendean Primary School and Nursery Primary
- Brackenbury Primary School Primary
- Carden Nursery and Primary School Primary
- Carlton Hill Primary School Primary
- City Academy Whitehawk Primary
- Coldean Primary School Primary
- Coombe Road Primary School Primary
- Downs Infant School Primary
- Downs Junior School Primary
- Eastbrook Primary Academy Primary
Common questions
- What year groups does St Margaret's CofE Primary School, Rottingdean teach?
- St Margaret's CofE Primary School, Rottingdean teaches children aged 5 to 11. It is a primary school in Brighton.
- Who is the headteacher of St Margaret's CofE Primary School, Rottingdean?
- The headteacher of St Margaret's CofE Primary School, Rottingdean is Mrs Rachel Kershaw, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was St Margaret's CofE Primary School, Rottingdean last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected St Margaret's CofE Primary School, Rottingdean, and its latest judgement is set out in the inspection section on this page, with the framework and the date it was made.
- How big is St Margaret's CofE Primary School, Rottingdean?
- St Margaret's CofE Primary School, Rottingdean has 172 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 5 to 11.
- Is St Margaret's CofE Primary School, Rottingdean full?
- St Margaret's CofE Primary School, Rottingdean has capacity for 210 pupils and 172 on roll (82%), 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 Margaret's CofE Primary School, Rottingdean a faith school?
- Yes. St Margaret's CofE Primary School, Rottingdean is designated Church of England, in the Diocese of Chichester.
- Does St Margaret's CofE Primary School, Rottingdean have a nursery?
- No. The schools register records St Margaret's CofE Primary School, Rottingdean as having no nursery classes.
- How have St Margaret's CofE Primary School, Rottingdean'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 65% 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 Margaret's CofE Primary School, Rottingdean rank locally?
- St Margaret's CofE Primary School, Rottingdean ranked 12th of 43 primary schools in Brighton and Hove for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 53% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 22% 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 Margaret's CofE Primary School, Rottingdean's absence rate?
- St Margaret's CofE Primary School, Rottingdean's overall absence rate is 7.3% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are St Margaret's CofE Primary School, Rottingdean's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, St Margaret's CofE Primary School, Rottingdean'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 30 June 2026.