St John Payne Catholic School, Chelmsford
Patching Hall Lane, Chelmsford, CM1 4BS
- Phase
- Secondary
- School type
- Voluntary aided school
- Ages
- 11 to 18
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Roman Catholic
- Headteacher
- Mr Thomas Coen
- Admissions policy
- Non-selective
- Diocese
- Diocese of Brentwood
- Constituency
- Chelmsford
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 1,220
- Pupils on roll
- 1,241
- URN
- 115238
- Local authority
- Essex
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01245256030
About this school
St John Payne Catholic School, Chelmsford is a Roman Catholic voluntary aided secondary school in Chelmsford. It teaches children aged 11 to 18 and has 1,241 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
Confirmed by a short inspection, not a full one
Ofsted's most recent visit was a short inspection on 20 June 2024, 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 4 (GCSEs)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 4 | 187 | 192 | 189 |
| Attainment 8 score | 48.1 | 49.8 | 49.9 |
| Progress 8 score | -0.07 -0.28 to +0.14 | +0.10 -0.11 to +0.31 | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 49% | 50.5% | 50.8% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 72% | 75% | 76.2% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | 12% | 9.9% | 10.1% |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | 3.9 | 4.0 | 4.1 |
Progress 8 is paused nationally for the 2024/25 and 2025/26 school years. Those pupils sat no key stage 2 tests during the Covid pandemic, so there is no starting point to measure progress from. A blank figure here is not missing school data.
Trends over time
How St John Payne Catholic School, Chelmsford has moved over recent years against the local and national picture. Every figure is shown in the table beneath its chart.
| Year | This school | Essex average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 48.1 | 43.8 | 39.8 |
| 2023/24 | 49.8 | 41.6 | 39.5 |
| 2024/25 | 49.9 | 42.2 | 39 |
Department for Education KS4 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 7.5% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 6.7% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 6.1% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 1,197 |
| 2023/24 | 1,178 |
| 2024/25 | 1,210 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How St John Payne Catholic School, Chelmsford compares
St John Payne Catholic School, Chelmsford ranked 16th of 78 secondary schools in Essex for Attainment 8 in 2024/25. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 75% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 36% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | Attainment 8 (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 49.9 | 6.1% | 18.1% | 1,241 | — |
| Chelmsford County High School for Girls | 80.7 | 4.6% | 5.1% | 1,275 | 0.6 miles |
| King Edward VI Grammar School, Chelmsford | 83.3 | 4.3% | 2.5% | 1,153 | 0.8 miles |
| The Boswells School | 48.4 | 7.2% | 16.6% | 1,423 | 1.2 miles |
| Chelmer Valley High School | 45.3 | 7% | 20.4% | 1,200 | 1.4 miles |
| Hylands School | 37.8 | 12.3% | 44.4% | 614 | 1.9 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)
- 18.1%
- English as an additional language
- 10.2%
- Overall absence
- 6.1%
- Persistent absence
- 14.65%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Chelmsford County High School for Girls0.6 miles
Secondary · Chelmsford
-
King Edward VI Grammar School, Chelmsford0.8 miles
Secondary · Chelmsford
-
The Boswells School1.2 miles
Secondary · Chelmsford
-
Chelmer Valley High School1.4 miles
Secondary · Chelmsford
-
Hylands School1.9 miles
Secondary · Chelmsford
Other schools in Chelmsford
St John Payne Catholic School, Chelmsford ranks 6th of the 11 ranked secondary schools in Chelmsford.
- Chelmer Valley High School Secondary
- Chelmsford County High School for Girls Secondary
- Great Baddow High School Secondary
- Hylands School Secondary
- King Edward VI Grammar School, Chelmsford Secondary
- Moulsham High School Secondary
- The Boswells School Secondary
- The Sandon School Secondary
- William de Ferrers School Secondary
- Tanglewood Nursery School Nursery
- Woodcroft Nursery School Nursery
- Baddow Hall Infant School Primary
Common questions
- What year groups does St John Payne Catholic School, Chelmsford teach?
- St John Payne Catholic School, Chelmsford teaches children aged 11 to 18. It is a secondary school in Chelmsford.
- Who is the headteacher of St John Payne Catholic School, Chelmsford?
- The headteacher of St John Payne Catholic School, Chelmsford is Mr Thomas Coen, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was St John Payne Catholic School, Chelmsford last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected St John Payne Catholic School, Chelmsford, 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 John Payne Catholic School, Chelmsford?
- St John Payne Catholic School, Chelmsford has 1,241 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 11 to 18.
- Is St John Payne Catholic School, Chelmsford full?
- St John Payne Catholic School, Chelmsford has capacity for 1,220 pupils and 1,241 on roll (102%), so it is at or above 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 John Payne Catholic School, Chelmsford a faith school?
- Yes. St John Payne Catholic School, Chelmsford is designated Roman Catholic, in the Diocese of Brentwood.
- Is St John Payne Catholic School, Chelmsford a selective school?
- No. St John Payne Catholic School, Chelmsford is recorded as non-selective in the schools register.
- How have St John Payne Catholic School, Chelmsford's results changed over recent years?
- Its Attainment 8 score was 48.1 in 2022/23 and 49.9 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 John Payne Catholic School, Chelmsford rank locally?
- St John Payne Catholic School, Chelmsford ranked 16th of 78 secondary schools in Essex for Attainment 8. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 75% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 36% 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 John Payne Catholic School, Chelmsford's absence rate?
- St John Payne Catholic School, Chelmsford's overall absence rate is 6.1% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are St John Payne Catholic School, Chelmsford's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, St John Payne Catholic School, Chelmsford'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.