St Mary's CofE Primary School, Northchurch
Northchurch, Berkhamsted, HP4 3QZ
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Voluntary aided school
- Ages
- 3 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Church of England
- Headteacher
- Miss Sarah Gray
- Diocese
- Diocese of St Albans
- Nursery provision
- Has Nursery Classes
- Constituency
- Harpenden and Berkhamsted
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 240
- Pupils on roll
- 226
- URN
- 117424
- Local authority
- Hertfordshire
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01442389040
About this school
St Mary's CofE Primary School, Northchurch is a Church of England voluntary aided primary school in Berkhamsted. It teaches children aged 3 to 11 and has 226 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
Confirmed by a short inspection, not a full one
Ofsted's most recent visit was a short inspection on 10 March 2023, 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 2 (end of primary school)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 2 | 27 | 24 | 30 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 70% | 71% | 53% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 11% | 8% | 10% |
| Expected standard in reading | 96% | 83% | 77% |
| Expected standard in maths | 74% | 92% | 67% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 96% | 83% | 53% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 109.0 | 107.0 | 106.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 104.0 | 105.0 | 103.0 |
| Reading progress | +1.90 | - | - |
| Writing progress | -0.10 | - | - |
| Maths progress | -2.80 | - | - |
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 CofE Primary School, Northchurch 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 | 70% | 59.1% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 71% | 60.6% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 53% | 61% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 4.9% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 5.4% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 4.9% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 206 |
| 2023/24 | 219 |
| 2024/25 | 225 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How St Mary's CofE Primary School, Northchurch compares
St Mary's CofE Primary School, Northchurch ranked 260th of 339 primary schools in Hertfordshire for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 26% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 61% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 53% | 4.9% | 10.1% | 226 | — |
| Westfield Primary School | 30% | 8.4% | 29.1% | 140 | 0.3 miles |
| Bridgewater Primary School | 75% | 3% | 6.4% | 459 | 0.6 miles |
| St Thomas More Roman Catholic Primary School, a Voluntary Academy | 58% | 3.8% | 10.8% | 144 | 0.9 miles |
| Greenway Primary and Nursery School | 79% | 3.7% | 2.4% | 229 | 0.9 miles |
| Victoria Church of England Infant and Nursery School | — | 4.3% | 4.4% | 141 | 1.3 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)
- 10.14%
- English as an additional language
- 6.7%
- Overall absence
- 4.91%
- Persistent absence
- 8.29%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Westfield Primary School0.3 miles
Primary · Berkhamsted
-
Bridgewater Primary School0.6 miles
Primary · Berkhamsted
-
St Thomas More Roman Catholic Primary School, a Voluntary Academy0.9 miles
Primary · Berkhamsted
-
Greenway Primary and Nursery School0.9 miles
Primary · Berkhamsted
-
Victoria Church of England Infant and Nursery School1.3 miles
Primary · Berkhamsted
Other schools in Berkhamsted
St Mary's CofE Primary School, Northchurch ranks 7th of the 8 ranked primary schools in Berkhamsted.
- Bridgewater Primary School Primary
- Greenway Primary and Nursery School Primary
- Little Gaddesden Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School Primary
- Potten End CofE Primary School Primary
- St Thomas More Roman Catholic Primary School, a Voluntary Academy Primary
- Swing Gate Infant School and Nursery Primary
- The Thomas Coram Church of England School Primary
- Victoria Church of England Infant and Nursery School Primary
- Westfield Primary School Primary
- Ashlyns School Secondary
- Berkhamsted Prep and Pre-Prep School Independent schools
- Berkhamsted School Independent schools
Common questions
- What year groups does St Mary's CofE Primary School, Northchurch teach?
- St Mary's CofE Primary School, Northchurch teaches children aged 3 to 11. It is a primary school in Berkhamsted.
- Who is the headteacher of St Mary's CofE Primary School, Northchurch?
- The headteacher of St Mary's CofE Primary School, Northchurch is Miss Sarah Gray, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was St Mary's CofE Primary School, Northchurch last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected St Mary's CofE Primary School, Northchurch, 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 Mary's CofE Primary School, Northchurch?
- St Mary's CofE Primary School, Northchurch has 226 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 3 to 11.
- Is St Mary's CofE Primary School, Northchurch full?
- St Mary's CofE Primary School, Northchurch has capacity for 240 pupils and 226 on roll (94%), 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 Mary's CofE Primary School, Northchurch a faith school?
- Yes. St Mary's CofE Primary School, Northchurch is designated Church of England, in the Diocese of St Albans.
- Does St Mary's CofE Primary School, Northchurch have a nursery?
- Yes. The schools register records St Mary's CofE Primary School, Northchurch as having nursery classes.
- How have St Mary's CofE Primary School, Northchurch's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 70% in 2022/23 and 53% 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 CofE Primary School, Northchurch rank locally?
- St Mary's CofE Primary School, Northchurch ranked 260th of 339 primary schools in Hertfordshire for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 26% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 61% 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 CofE Primary School, Northchurch's absence rate?
- St Mary's CofE Primary School, Northchurch's overall absence rate is 4.9% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are St Mary's CofE Primary School, Northchurch's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, St Mary's CofE Primary School, Northchurch'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.