The Cathedral Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School, Chelmsford
Victoria Road, Chelmsford, CM1 1PA
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Voluntary aided school
- Ages
- 4 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Church of England
- Headteacher
- Mrs Gemma Smith
- Diocese
- Diocese of Chelmsford
- Constituency
- Chelmsford
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 315
- Pupils on roll
- 314
- URN
- 115289
- Local authority
- Essex
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01245354459
About this school
The Cathedral Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School, Chelmsford is a Church of England voluntary aided primary school in Chelmsford. It teaches children aged 4 to 11 and has 314 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected The Cathedral Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School, Chelmsford, 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
- Expected standard
- Curriculum and teaching
- Expected standard
- Achievement
- Strong standard
- Attendance and behaviour
- Strong standard
- Personal development and wellbeing
- Strong standard
- Leadership and governance
- Expected standard
- Early years
- Expected 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 | 47 | 45 | 47 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 68% | 71% | 74% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 9% | 11% | 4% |
| Expected standard in reading | 85% | 84% | 94% |
| Expected standard in maths | 81% | 91% | 94% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 83% | 87% | 94% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 109.0 | 109.0 | 110.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 107.0 | 108.0 | 109.0 |
| Reading progress | +3.60 | - | - |
| Writing progress | +1.00 | - | - |
| Maths progress | +3.60 | - | - |
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 The Cathedral Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary 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 | 68% | 58.9% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 71% | 59.5% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 74% | 60.7% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 4% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 4.1% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 3.9% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 316 |
| 2023/24 | 318 |
| 2024/25 | 313 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How The Cathedral Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School, Chelmsford compares
The Cathedral Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School, Chelmsford ranked 110th of 388 primary schools in Essex for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 76% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 85% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 74% | 3.9% | 9.6% | 314 | — |
| Trinity Road Primary School | 56% | 5.7% | 25.1% | 387 | 0.4 miles |
| Our Lady Immaculate Catholic Primary School | 69% | 3.9% | 8.8% | 216 | 0.6 miles |
| Maltese Road Primary School | 74% | 5.2% | 10.9% | 211 | 0.6 miles |
| Oaklands Infant School | — | 3.5% | 4.1% | 168 | 0.8 miles |
| Kings Road Primary School | 58% | 6.7% | 40.7% | 403 | 0.9 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.
Inspection history
-
Graded inspection report3 March 2026
- 2 November 2021
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 9.58%
- English as an additional language
- 21.7%
- Overall absence
- 3.9%
- Persistent absence
- 7.22%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Trinity Road Primary School0.4 miles
Primary · Chelmsford
-
Our Lady Immaculate Catholic Primary School0.6 miles
Primary · Chelmsford
-
Maltese Road Primary School0.6 miles
Primary · Chelmsford
-
Oaklands Infant School0.8 miles
Primary · Chelmsford
-
Kings Road Primary School0.9 miles
Primary · Chelmsford
Other schools in Chelmsford
The Cathedral Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School, Chelmsford ranks 15th of the 46 ranked primary schools in Chelmsford.
- Baddow Hall Infant School Primary
- Baddow Hall Junior School Primary
- Barnes Farm Primary School Primary
- Beehive Lane Community Primary School Primary
- Boreham Primary School Primary
- Broomfield Primary School Primary
- Chancellor Park Primary School, Chelmsford Primary
- Christchurch Church of England Primary School Primary
- Cold Norton Primary School Primary
- Collingwood Primary School Primary
- East Hanningfield Church of England Primary Academy Primary
- Elmwood Primary School Primary
Common questions
- What ages does The Cathedral Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School, Chelmsford teach?
- The Cathedral Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School, Chelmsford teaches children aged 4 to 11. It is a primary school in Chelmsford.
- Who is the headteacher of The Cathedral Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School, Chelmsford?
- The headteacher of The Cathedral Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School, Chelmsford is Mrs Gemma Smith, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has The Cathedral Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School, Chelmsford been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected The Cathedral Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary 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 many pupils are at The Cathedral Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School, Chelmsford?
- The Cathedral Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School, Chelmsford has 314 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 4 to 11.
- Is The Cathedral Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School, Chelmsford full?
- The Cathedral Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School, Chelmsford has capacity for 315 pupils and 314 on roll (100%), 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 The Cathedral Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School, Chelmsford a faith school?
- Yes. The Cathedral Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School, Chelmsford is designated Church of England, in the Diocese of Chelmsford.
- Does The Cathedral Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School, Chelmsford have a nursery?
- No. The schools register records The Cathedral Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School, Chelmsford as having no nursery classes.
- How have The Cathedral Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School, Chelmsford's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 68% in 2022/23 and 74% in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does The Cathedral Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School, Chelmsford compare with other schools in Essex?
- The Cathedral Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School, Chelmsford ranked 110th of 388 primary schools in Essex for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 76% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 85% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is The Cathedral Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School, Chelmsford's absence rate?
- The Cathedral Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School, Chelmsford's overall absence rate is 3.9% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are The Cathedral Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School, Chelmsford's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, The Cathedral Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary 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.