St Mary's Voluntary Controlled Church of England Junior School
Heath Drive, Ware, SG12 0RL
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Voluntary controlled school
- Ages
- 7 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Church of England
- Headteacher
- Mrs Hannah Orton
- Diocese
- Diocese of St Albans
- Constituency
- Hertford and Stortford
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 240
- Pupils on roll
- 231
- URN
- 117409
- Local authority
- Hertfordshire
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01920463641
About this school
St Mary's Voluntary Controlled Church of England Junior School is a Church of England voluntary controlled primary school in Ware. It teaches children aged 7 to 11 and has 231 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected St Mary's Voluntary Controlled Church of England Junior 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
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
- Safeguarding
- Effective
Exam results
Key stage 2 (end of primary school)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 2 | 59 | 57 | 60 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 66% | 60% | 65% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 2% | 5% | 2% |
| Expected standard in reading | 83% | 74% | 85% |
| Expected standard in maths | 78% | 79% | 75% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 76% | 79% | 82% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 105.0 | 104.0 | 106.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 104.0 | 104.0 | 103.0 |
| Reading progress | -2.20 | - | - |
| Writing progress | -1.80 | - | - |
| Maths progress | -2.90 | - | - |
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 Mary's Voluntary Controlled Church of England Junior 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 | 66% | 59.1% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 60% | 60.6% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 65% | 61% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 4.2% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 4.2% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 3.7% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 236 |
| 2023/24 | 234 |
| 2024/25 | 236 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How St Mary's Voluntary Controlled Church of England Junior School compares
St Mary's Voluntary Controlled Church of England Junior School ranked 180th of 339 primary schools in Hertfordshire 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 91% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 65% | 3.7% | 14% | 231 | — |
| Kingshill Infant School | — | 4.3% | 5.8% | 206 | 0.1 miles |
| Larkspur Academy | 82% | 8.9% | 59% | 64 | 0.4 miles |
| Christ Church CofE (VA) Primary School and Nursery | 54% | 5.9% | 18.4% | 332 | 0.6 miles |
| St Catherine's Church of England Primary School | 56% | 4.5% | 13.4% | 415 | 0.7 miles |
| Priors Wood Primary School | 48% | 5.5% | 20.4% | 231 | 0.8 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)
- 13.98%
- English as an additional language
- 4.7%
- Overall absence
- 3.65%
- Persistent absence
- 8.64%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Kingshill Infant School0.1 miles
Primary · Ware
-
Larkspur Academy0.4 miles
Primary · Ware
-
Christ Church CofE (VA) Primary School and Nursery0.6 miles
Primary · Ware
-
St Catherine's Church of England Primary School0.7 miles
Primary · Ware
-
Priors Wood Primary School0.8 miles
Primary · Ware
Other schools in Ware
St Mary's Voluntary Controlled Church of England Junior School ranks 5th of the 14 ranked primary schools in Ware.
- Christ Church CofE (VA) Primary School and Nursery Primary
- Hunsdon Junior Mixed and Infant School Primary
- Jenyns First School and Nursery Primary
- Kingshill Infant School Primary
- Larkspur Academy Primary
- Little Hadham Primary School Primary
- Little Munden Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School Primary
- Priors Wood Primary School Primary
- Puller Memorial, Church of England, Voluntary Aided Primary School Primary
- Roger De Clare First CofE School Primary
- Sacred Heart Catholic Primary School Primary
- St Andrew's Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School Primary
Common questions
- What ages does St Mary's Voluntary Controlled Church of England Junior School teach?
- St Mary's Voluntary Controlled Church of England Junior School teaches children aged 7 to 11. It is a primary school in Ware.
- Who is the headteacher of St Mary's Voluntary Controlled Church of England Junior School?
- The headteacher of St Mary's Voluntary Controlled Church of England Junior School is Mrs Hannah Orton, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has St Mary's Voluntary Controlled Church of England Junior School been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected St Mary's Voluntary Controlled Church of England Junior 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 Mary's Voluntary Controlled Church of England Junior School?
- St Mary's Voluntary Controlled Church of England Junior School has 231 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 7 to 11.
- Is St Mary's Voluntary Controlled Church of England Junior School full?
- St Mary's Voluntary Controlled Church of England Junior School has capacity for 240 pupils and 231 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 St Mary's Voluntary Controlled Church of England Junior School a faith school?
- Yes. St Mary's Voluntary Controlled Church of England Junior School is designated Church of England, in the Diocese of St Albans.
- Does St Mary's Voluntary Controlled Church of England Junior School have a nursery?
- No. The schools register records St Mary's Voluntary Controlled Church of England Junior School as having no nursery classes.
- How have St Mary's Voluntary Controlled Church of England Junior School's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 66% 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 Mary's Voluntary Controlled Church of England Junior School compare with other schools in Hertfordshire?
- St Mary's Voluntary Controlled Church of England Junior School ranked 180th of 339 primary schools in Hertfordshire 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 91% 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 Mary's Voluntary Controlled Church of England Junior School's absence rate?
- St Mary's Voluntary Controlled Church of England Junior School's overall absence rate is 3.7% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are St Mary's Voluntary Controlled Church of England Junior School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, St Mary's Voluntary Controlled Church of England Junior 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.