St Nicholas CofE VA Primary School
Church Green, Harpenden, AL5 2TP
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Voluntary aided school
- Ages
- 4 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Church of England
- Headteacher
- Mrs Rizelle Crouch
- Diocese
- Diocese of St Albans
- Constituency
- Harpenden and Berkhamsted
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 154
- Pupils on roll
- 149
- URN
- 117434
- Local authority
- Hertfordshire
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01582623620
About this school
St Nicholas CofE VA Primary School is a Church of England voluntary aided primary school in Harpenden. It teaches children aged 4 to 11 and has 149 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected St Nicholas CofE VA Primary School, and its latest judgement is set out 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 24 March 2022, 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 | 24 | 25 | 22 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 79% | 68% | 91% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 8% | 4% | 5% |
| Expected standard in reading | 83% | 92% | 100% |
| Expected standard in maths | 96% | 84% | 95% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 88% | 96% | 100% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 109.0 | 109.0 | 114.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 109.0 | 107.0 | 110.0 |
| Reading progress | +2.80 | - | - |
| Writing progress | +1.10 | - | - |
| Maths progress | +3.50 | - | - |
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 Nicholas CofE VA 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 | 79% | 59.1% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 68% | 60.6% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 91% | 61% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 4.1% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 3.4% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 3.1% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 147 |
| 2023/24 | 147 |
| 2024/25 | 154 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How St Nicholas CofE VA Primary School compares
St Nicholas CofE VA Primary School ranked 5th of 339 primary schools in Hertfordshire for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 98% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 97% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 91% | 3.1% | 3.9% | 149 | — |
| Harpenden Academy | 81% | 3.9% | 6.5% | 216 | 0.2 miles |
| St Dominic Catholic Primary School | — | — | — | 232 | 0.5 miles |
| Roundwood Primary School | 69% | 4.4% | 2.6% | 338 | 0.6 miles |
| Manland Primary School | 91% | 2.4% | 3% | 204 | 0.6 miles |
| Crabtree Infants' School | — | 2.8% | 2.2% | 178 | 0.7 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)
- 3.9%
- English as an additional language
- 16.2%
- Overall absence
- 3.14%
- Persistent absence
- 4.79%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Harpenden Academy0.2 miles
Primary · Harpenden
-
St Dominic Catholic Primary School0.5 miles
Primary · Harpenden
-
Roundwood Primary School0.6 miles
Primary · Harpenden
-
Manland Primary School0.6 miles
Primary · Harpenden
-
Crabtree Infants' School0.7 miles
Primary · Harpenden
Other schools in Harpenden
St Nicholas CofE VA Primary School ranks 2nd of the 10 ranked primary schools in Harpenden.
- Crabtree Infants' School Primary
- Crabtree Junior School Primary
- Harpenden Academy Primary
- High Beeches Primary School Primary
- Manland Primary School Primary
- Roundwood Primary School Primary
- Sauncey Wood Primary School Primary
- St Dominic Catholic Primary School Primary
- The Grove Infant and Nursery School Primary
- The Grove Junior School Primary
- The Lea Primary School and Nursery Primary
- Wood End School Primary
Common questions
- What ages does St Nicholas CofE VA Primary School teach?
- St Nicholas CofE VA Primary School teaches children aged 4 to 11. It is a primary school in Harpenden.
- Who is the headteacher of St Nicholas CofE VA Primary School?
- The headteacher of St Nicholas CofE VA Primary School is Mrs Rizelle Crouch, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has St Nicholas CofE VA Primary School been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected St Nicholas CofE VA 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 many pupils are at St Nicholas CofE VA Primary School?
- St Nicholas CofE VA Primary School has 149 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 4 to 11.
- Is St Nicholas CofE VA Primary School full?
- St Nicholas CofE VA Primary School has capacity for 154 pupils and 149 on roll (97%), 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 Nicholas CofE VA Primary School a faith school?
- Yes. St Nicholas CofE VA Primary School is designated Church of England, in the Diocese of St Albans.
- Does St Nicholas CofE VA Primary School have a nursery?
- No. The schools register records St Nicholas CofE VA Primary School as having no nursery classes.
- How have St Nicholas CofE VA Primary School's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 79% in 2022/23 and 91% 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 Nicholas CofE VA Primary School compare with other schools in Hertfordshire?
- St Nicholas CofE VA Primary School ranked 5th of 339 primary schools in Hertfordshire for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 98% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 97% 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 Nicholas CofE VA Primary School's absence rate?
- St Nicholas CofE VA Primary School's overall absence rate is 3.1% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are St Nicholas CofE VA Primary School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, St Nicholas CofE VA 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.