Ark Oval Primary Academy
98 Cherry Orchard Road, Croydon, CR0 6BA
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Academy sponsor led
- Ages
- 4 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- None
- Trust
- ARK SCHOOLS
- Principal
- Ms Pavan Chandhoke
- Admissions policy
- Non-selective
- Nursery provision
- Has Nursery Classes
- Sponsor
- ARK Schools
- Constituency
- Croydon East
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 630
- Pupils on roll
- 593
- URN
- 137114
- Local authority
- Croydon
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 02086883000
About this school
Ark Oval Primary Academy is a primary academy in Croydon. It teaches children aged 4 to 11 and has 593 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected Ark Oval Primary Academy, 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
Ofsted did not give an overall grade. Between September 2024 and September 2025 inspections graded each area of a school's work without a single overall judgement, ahead of the move to report cards. How Ofsted report cards work
- Quality of education
- Good
- Behaviour and attitudes
- Good
- Personal development
- Good
- Leadership and management
- Good
- Early years
- 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 | 76 | 85 | 85 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 64% | 67% | 66% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 11% | 12% | 4% |
| Expected standard in reading | 70% | 73% | 81% |
| Expected standard in maths | 74% | 72% | 71% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 72% | 64% | 74% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 104.0 | 103.0 | 106.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 105.0 | 104.0 | 104.0 |
| Reading progress | -0.80 | - | - |
| Writing progress | +1.10 | - | - |
| 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 Ark Oval Primary Academy has moved over recent years against the local and national picture. Every figure is shown in the table beneath its chart.
| Year | This school | Croydon average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 64% | 60.7% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 67% | 62.5% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 66% | 67.2% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 6.3% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 5.8% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 5.7% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 592 |
| 2023/24 | 595 |
| 2024/25 | 601 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Ark Oval Primary Academy compares
Ark Oval Primary Academy ranked 53rd of 77 primary schools in Croydon for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 55% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 45% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 66% | 5.7% | 33.8% | 593 | — |
| St Mary's Catholic Infant School | — | 3.1% | 17% | 193 | 0.3 miles |
| St. Mary's Catholic Junior School | 77% | 3.7% | 28.6% | 216 | 0.3 miles |
| Park Hill Infant School | — | 4.2% | 14.6% | 270 | 0.5 miles |
| Park Hill Junior School | 82% | 4.3% | 22.1% | 367 | 0.5 miles |
| John Wood School & Nursery | 56% | 6% | 29.5% | 310 | 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.
Inspection history
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 33.78%
- English as an additional language
- 53.7%
- Overall absence
- 5.69%
- Persistent absence
- 15.21%
Location
Nearby schools
-
St Mary's Catholic Infant School0.3 miles
Primary · Croydon
-
St. Mary's Catholic Junior School0.3 miles
Primary · Croydon
-
Park Hill Infant School0.5 miles
Primary · Croydon
-
Park Hill Junior School0.5 miles
Primary · Croydon
-
John Wood School & Nursery0.6 miles
Primary · Croydon
Other schools in Croydon
Ark Oval Primary Academy ranks 25th of the 33 ranked primary schools in Croydon.
- Aerodrome Primary Academy Primary
- Applegarth Academy Primary
- Beddington Park Academy Primary
- Broadmead Primary School Primary
- Castle Hill Academy Primary
- Chestnut Park Primary School Primary
- Courtwood Primary School Primary
- Elmwood Infant School Primary
- Elmwood Junior School Primary
- Fairchildes Primary School Primary
- Forest Academy Primary
- Forestdale Primary School Primary
Common questions
- What ages does Ark Oval Primary Academy teach?
- Ark Oval Primary Academy teaches children aged 4 to 11. It is a primary school in Croydon.
- Who is the principal of Ark Oval Primary Academy?
- The principal of Ark Oval Primary Academy is Ms Pavan Chandhoke, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has Ark Oval Primary Academy been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Ark Oval Primary Academy, 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 Ark Oval Primary Academy?
- Ark Oval Primary Academy has 593 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 4 to 11.
- Is Ark Oval Primary Academy full?
- Ark Oval Primary Academy has capacity for 630 pupils and 593 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 Ark Oval Primary Academy a faith school?
- No. Ark Oval Primary Academy has no designated religious character.
- Is Ark Oval Primary Academy a selective school?
- No. Ark Oval Primary Academy is recorded as non-selective in the schools register.
- Does Ark Oval Primary Academy have a nursery?
- Yes. The schools register records Ark Oval Primary Academy as having nursery classes.
- Is Ark Oval Primary Academy part of an academy trust?
- Ark Oval Primary Academy is part of ARK SCHOOLS. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have Ark Oval Primary Academy's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 64% in 2022/23 and 66% in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Ark Oval Primary Academy compare with other schools in Croydon?
- Ark Oval Primary Academy ranked 53rd of 77 primary schools in Croydon for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 55% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 45% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Ark Oval Primary Academy's absence rate?
- Ark Oval Primary Academy's overall absence rate is 5.7% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Ark Oval Primary Academy's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Ark Oval Primary Academy'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.