Ponsbourne St Mary's Church of England Primary School
Newgate Street Village, Hertford, SG13 8RA
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Voluntary controlled school
- Ages
- 3 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Church of England
- Headteacher
- Mrs Sarah Bridgman
- Diocese
- Diocese of St Albans
- Nursery provision
- Has Nursery Classes
- Constituency
- Hertsmere
- Setting
- Smaller rural: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 115
- Pupils on roll
- 110
- URN
- 117396
- Local authority
- Hertfordshire
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01707872395
About this school
Ponsbourne St Mary's Church of England Primary School is a Church of England voluntary controlled primary school in Hertford. It teaches children aged 3 to 11 and has 110 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. Seeing a school for yourself shows what no page can, so arrange a visit before you apply.
Ofsted judgement
Overall judgement at the last full inspection
This inspection took place under the previous framework, which gave a single overall grade. Ofsted now publishes report cards instead, so newer inspections of other schools will look different. How Ofsted report cards work
- Quality of education
- Good
- Behaviour and attitudes
- Good
- Personal development
- Good
- Leadership and management
- Good
- Early years
- Good
- Safeguarding
- Effective
A short monitoring inspection followed on : inspectors found that standards have been maintained.
Exam results
Key stage 2 (end of primary school)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 2 | 13 | 10 | 12 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 54% | 50% | 83% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 0% | 10% | 0% |
| Expected standard in reading | 85% | 60% | 92% |
| Expected standard in maths | 100% | 60% | 100% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 100% | 50% | 83% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 105.0 | 105.0 | 107.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 107.0 | 99.0 | 108.0 |
| Reading progress | +1.80 | - | - |
| Writing progress | -1.00 | - | - |
| Maths progress | +3.30 | - | - |
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 Ponsbourne St Mary's Church of England 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 | Hertfordshire average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 54% | 59.1% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 50% | 60.6% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 83% | 61% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 7.2% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 6.7% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 6.6% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 103 |
| 2023/24 | 103 |
| 2024/25 | 112 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Ponsbourne St Mary's Church of England Primary School compares
Ponsbourne St Mary's Church of England Primary School ranked 30th of 339 primary schools in Hertfordshire for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 91% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 29% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 83% | 6.6% | 6.9% | 110 | — |
| Goffs Oak Primary & Nursery School | 50% | 5.1% | 9% | 235 | 1.4 miles |
| Cuffley School | 83% | 4.7% | 6.9% | 449 | 1.7 miles |
| Woodside Primary School | 76% | 5.4% | 15.9% | 229 | 1.9 miles |
| Northaw Church of England Primary School | 44% | 7.7% | 11.6% | 101 | 2.1 miles |
| Bayford Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School | 23% | 7.2% | 11.8% | 87 | 2.1 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
-
Ungraded inspection report11 December 2024
- 9 October 2019
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 6.86%
- English as an additional language
- 2.7%
- Overall absence
- 6.6%
- Persistent absence
- 17.24%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Goffs Oak Primary & Nursery School1.4 miles
Primary · Waltham Cross
-
Cuffley School1.7 miles
Primary · Potters Bar
-
Woodside Primary School1.9 miles
Primary · Waltham Cross
- 2.1 miles
-
Bayford Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School2.1 miles
Primary · Hertford
Other schools in Hertford
Ponsbourne St Mary's Church of England Primary School ranks 2nd of the 12 ranked primary schools in Hertford.
- Abel Smith School Primary
- Bayford Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School Primary
- Bengeo Primary School Primary
- Hertford Heath Primary and Nursery School Primary
- Hertford St Andrew CofE Primary School Primary
- Hertingfordbury Cowper Primary School Primary
- Hollybush Primary School Primary
- Mill Mead Primary Academy Primary
- Morgans Primary School & Nursery Primary
- St Joseph's Catholic Primary School (Hertford) Primary
- Stapleford Primary School Primary
- Watton-at-Stone Primary and Nursery School Primary
Common questions
- What year groups does Ponsbourne St Mary's Church of England Primary School teach?
- Ponsbourne St Mary's Church of England Primary School teaches children aged 3 to 11. It is a primary school in Hertford.
- Who is the headteacher of Ponsbourne St Mary's Church of England Primary School?
- The headteacher of Ponsbourne St Mary's Church of England Primary School is Mrs Sarah Bridgman, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was Ponsbourne St Mary's Church of England Primary School last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Ponsbourne St Mary's Church of England 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 big is Ponsbourne St Mary's Church of England Primary School?
- Ponsbourne St Mary's Church of England Primary School has 110 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 3 to 11.
- Is Ponsbourne St Mary's Church of England Primary School full?
- Ponsbourne St Mary's Church of England Primary School has capacity for 115 pupils and 110 on roll (96%), so it is close to full. Places are allocated through the local authority's admissions process, so capacity alone does not tell you whether a place is available.
- Is Ponsbourne St Mary's Church of England Primary School a faith school?
- Yes. Ponsbourne St Mary's Church of England Primary School is designated Church of England, in the Diocese of St Albans.
- Does Ponsbourne St Mary's Church of England Primary School have a nursery?
- Yes. The schools register records Ponsbourne St Mary's Church of England Primary School as having nursery classes.
- How have Ponsbourne St Mary's Church of England Primary School's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 54% in 2022/23 and 83% in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Ponsbourne St Mary's Church of England Primary School rank locally?
- Ponsbourne St Mary's Church of England Primary School ranked 30th of 339 primary schools in Hertfordshire for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 91% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 29% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Ponsbourne St Mary's Church of England Primary School's absence rate?
- Ponsbourne St Mary's Church of England Primary School's overall absence rate is 6.6% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Ponsbourne St Mary's Church of England Primary School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Ponsbourne St Mary's Church of England 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 30 June 2026.