Chilham, St Mary's Church of England Primary School
School Hill, Chilham, Canterbury, CT4 8DE
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Voluntary controlled school
- Ages
- 4 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Church of England
- Interim Executive Headteacher
- Miss Rebecca Dolan
- Diocese
- Diocese of Canterbury
- Constituency
- Weald of Kent
- Setting
- Smaller rural: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 105
- Pupils on roll
- 81
- URN
- 118665
- Local authority
- Kent
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01227730442
About this school
Chilham, St Mary's Church of England Primary School is a Church of England voluntary controlled primary school in Canterbury. It teaches children aged 4 to 11 and has 81 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. Numbers and a report only go so far, so visit in person before you apply.
Ofsted judgement
Confirmed by a short inspection, not a full one
Ofsted's most recent visit was a short inspection on 2 February 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 | 7 | 14 | 13 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 86% | 57% | 46% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 14% | 0% | 0% |
| Expected standard in reading | 86% | 71% | 62% |
| Expected standard in maths | 86% | 64% | 54% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 71% | 64% | 69% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 107.0 | 105.0 | 105.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 105.0 | 101.0 | 102.0 |
| Reading progress | +1.70 | - | - |
| Writing progress | +1.50 | - | - |
| Maths progress | +0.80 | - | - |
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 Chilham, 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 | Kent average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 86% | 58.3% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 57% | 60.2% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 46% | 60.8% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 6% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 9.1% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 7.8% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 79 |
| 2023/24 | 86 |
| 2024/25 | 86 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Chilham, St Mary's Church of England Primary School compares
Chilham, St Mary's Church of England Primary School ranked 375th of 427 primary schools in Kent for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 17% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 18% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 46% | 7.8% | 27.9% | 81 | — |
| Chartham Primary School | 63% | 5.7% | 31.1% | 380 | 2.1 miles |
| Selling Church of England Primary School | 38% | 5.8% | 41.3% | 86 | 2.6 miles |
| Boughton-under-Blean and Dunkirk Primary School | 74% | 4.5% | 21.2% | 209 | 3.8 miles |
| Sheldwich Primary School | 88% | 3.4% | 9.5% | 246 | 4.0 miles |
| Petham Primary School | 67% | 4.9% | 15.5% | 99 | 4.1 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.
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 27.91%
- English as an additional language
- 7%
- Overall absence
- 7.82%
- Persistent absence
- 23.38%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Chartham Primary School2.1 miles
Primary · Canterbury
-
Selling Church of England Primary School2.6 miles
Primary · Faversham
-
Boughton-under-Blean and Dunkirk Primary School3.8 miles
Primary · Faversham
-
Sheldwich Primary School4.0 miles
Primary · Faversham
-
Petham Primary School4.1 miles
Primary · Canterbury
Other schools in Canterbury
Chilham, St Mary's Church of England Primary School ranks 22nd of the 27 ranked primary schools in Canterbury.
- Adisham Church of England Primary School Primary
- Ash Cartwright and Kelsey Church of England Primary School Primary
- Aylesham Primary School Primary
- Barham Church of England Primary School Primary
- Blean Primary School Primary
- Bridge and Patrixbourne Church of England Primary School Primary
- Chartham Primary School Primary
- Chislet Church of England Primary School Primary
- Elham Church of England Primary School Primary
- Goodnestone Church of England Primary School Primary
- Hoath Primary School Primary
- Littlebourne Church of England Primary School Primary
Common questions
- What year groups does Chilham, St Mary's Church of England Primary School teach?
- Chilham, St Mary's Church of England Primary School teaches children aged 4 to 11. It is a primary school in Canterbury.
- Who is the interim executive headteacher of Chilham, St Mary's Church of England Primary School?
- The interim executive headteacher of Chilham, St Mary's Church of England Primary School is Miss Rebecca Dolan, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was Chilham, St Mary's Church of England Primary School last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Chilham, 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 Chilham, St Mary's Church of England Primary School?
- Chilham, St Mary's Church of England Primary School has 81 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 4 to 11.
- Is Chilham, St Mary's Church of England Primary School full?
- Chilham, St Mary's Church of England Primary School has capacity for 105 pupils and 81 on roll (77%), 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 Chilham, St Mary's Church of England Primary School a faith school?
- Yes. Chilham, St Mary's Church of England Primary School is designated Church of England, in the Diocese of Canterbury.
- Does Chilham, St Mary's Church of England Primary School have a nursery?
- No. The schools register records Chilham, St Mary's Church of England Primary School as having no nursery classes.
- How have Chilham, 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 86% in 2022/23 and 46% in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Chilham, St Mary's Church of England Primary School rank locally?
- Chilham, St Mary's Church of England Primary School ranked 375th of 427 primary schools in Kent for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 17% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 18% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Chilham, St Mary's Church of England Primary School's absence rate?
- Chilham, St Mary's Church of England Primary School's overall absence rate is 7.8% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Chilham, St Mary's Church of England Primary School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Chilham, 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.