Holy Cross Catholic Primary School, Harlow
Tracyes Road, Southern Way, Harlow, CM18 6JJ
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Academy converter
- Ages
- 5 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Roman Catholic
- Trust
- HOLY CROSS CATHOLIC PRIMARY ACADEMY
- Headteacher
- Mrs Alison Kerrell
- Diocese
- Diocese of Brentwood
- Constituency
- Harlow
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 436
- Pupils on roll
- 412
- URN
- 136967
- Local authority
- Essex
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01279424452
About this school
Holy Cross Catholic Primary School, Harlow is a Roman Catholic primary academy in Harlow. It teaches children aged 5 to 11 and has 412 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected Holy Cross Catholic Primary School, Harlow, 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
Confirmed by a short inspection, not a full one
Ofsted's most recent visit was a short inspection on 9 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 | 66 | 64 | 63 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 65% | 66% | 67% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 9% | 8% | 6% |
| Expected standard in reading | 83% | 88% | 90% |
| Expected standard in maths | 88% | 78% | 86% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 85% | 81% | 84% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 106.0 | 107.0 | 107.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 106.0 | 104.0 | 106.0 |
| Reading progress | 0.00 | - | - |
| Writing progress | -1.90 | - | - |
| Maths progress | +1.10 | - | - |
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 Holy Cross Catholic Primary School, Harlow has moved over recent years against the local and national picture. Every figure is shown in the table beneath its chart.
| Year | This school | Essex average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 65% | 58.9% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 66% | 59.5% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 67% | 60.7% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 4.4% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 4.6% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 4.4% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 422 |
| 2023/24 | 424 |
| 2024/25 | 421 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Holy Cross Catholic Primary School, Harlow compares
Holy Cross Catholic Primary School, Harlow ranked 184th of 388 primary schools in Essex for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 57% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 74% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 67% | 4.4% | 18.8% | 412 | — |
| Pear Tree Mead Academy | 62% | 5.1% | 28.6% | 460 | 0.2 miles |
| Purford Green Primary School | 72% | 4.5% | 32.7% | 229 | 0.3 miles |
| Potter Street Academy | 71% | 4.2% | 35.4% | 202 | 0.4 miles |
| William Martin Church of England Infant and Nursery School | — | 6.1% | 26.4% | 185 | 0.4 miles |
| Latton Green Primary Academy | 76% | 4% | 18.4% | 199 | 0.6 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)
- 18.76%
- English as an additional language
- 41.1%
- Overall absence
- 4.41%
- Persistent absence
- 9.07%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Pear Tree Mead Academy0.2 miles
Primary · Harlow
-
Purford Green Primary School0.3 miles
Primary · Harlow
-
Potter Street Academy0.4 miles
Primary · Harlow
-
William Martin Church of England Infant and Nursery School0.4 miles
Primary · Harlow
-
Latton Green Primary Academy0.6 miles
Primary · Harlow
Other schools in Harlow
Holy Cross Catholic Primary School, Harlow ranks 15th of the 30 ranked primary schools in Harlow.
- Abbotsweld Primary Academy Primary
- Church Langley Community Primary School Primary
- Churchgate Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School, Harlow Primary
- Cooks Spinney Primary Academy and Nursery Primary
- Freshwaters Primary Academy Primary
- Hare Street Community Primary School and Nursery Primary
- Harlowbury Primary School Primary
- Henry Moore Primary School Primary
- Jerounds Primary Academy Primary
- Katherines Primary Academy and Nursery Primary
- Kingsmoor Academy Primary
- Latton Green Primary Academy Primary
Common questions
- What ages does Holy Cross Catholic Primary School, Harlow teach?
- Holy Cross Catholic Primary School, Harlow teaches children aged 5 to 11. It is a primary school in Harlow.
- Who is the headteacher of Holy Cross Catholic Primary School, Harlow?
- The headteacher of Holy Cross Catholic Primary School, Harlow is Mrs Alison Kerrell, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has Holy Cross Catholic Primary School, Harlow been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Holy Cross Catholic Primary School, Harlow, 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 Holy Cross Catholic Primary School, Harlow?
- Holy Cross Catholic Primary School, Harlow has 412 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 5 to 11.
- Is Holy Cross Catholic Primary School, Harlow full?
- Holy Cross Catholic Primary School, Harlow has capacity for 436 pupils and 412 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 Holy Cross Catholic Primary School, Harlow a faith school?
- Yes. Holy Cross Catholic Primary School, Harlow is designated Roman Catholic, in the Diocese of Brentwood.
- Does Holy Cross Catholic Primary School, Harlow have a nursery?
- No. The schools register records Holy Cross Catholic Primary School, Harlow as having no nursery classes.
- Is Holy Cross Catholic Primary School, Harlow part of an academy trust?
- Holy Cross Catholic Primary School, Harlow is part of HOLY CROSS CATHOLIC PRIMARY ACADEMY. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have Holy Cross Catholic Primary School, Harlow's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 65% in 2022/23 and 67% in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Holy Cross Catholic Primary School, Harlow compare with other schools in Essex?
- Holy Cross Catholic Primary School, Harlow ranked 184th of 388 primary schools in Essex for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 57% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 74% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Holy Cross Catholic Primary School, Harlow's absence rate?
- Holy Cross Catholic Primary School, Harlow's overall absence rate is 4.4% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Holy Cross Catholic Primary School, Harlow's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Holy Cross Catholic Primary School, Harlow'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 1 July 2026.