St Mary's Church of England Academy
Trinity Avenue, Mildenhall, Bury St Edmunds, IP28 7LR
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Academy converter
- Ages
- 4 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Church of England
- Trust
- ST MARY'S CHURCH OF ENGLAND ACADEMY TRUST
- Principal
- Mrs Roxanne Rutter
- Diocese
- Diocese of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich
- Constituency
- West Suffolk
- Setting
- Urban: Further from a major town or city
- Capacity
- 420
- Pupils on roll
- 414
- URN
- 137419
- Local authority
- Suffolk
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01638713317
About this school
St Mary's Church of England Academy is a Church of England primary academy in Bury St Edmunds. It teaches children aged 4 to 11 and has 414 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected St Mary's Church of England 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
Overall judgement at the last full inspection
This inspection took place under the previous framework, which gave a single overall grade. Ofsted now publishes report cards instead, so newer inspections of other schools will look different. How Ofsted report cards work
- Quality of education
- Requires improvement
- Behaviour and attitudes
- Good
- Personal development
- Good
- Leadership and management
- Requires improvement
- Early years
- Requires improvement
- 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 | 60 | 58 | 59 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 30% | 47% | 31% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 0% | 2% | 0% |
| Expected standard in reading | 57% | 62% | 53% |
| Expected standard in maths | 48% | 59% | 49% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 48% | 67% | 54% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 102.0 | 101.0 | 99.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 100.0 | 100.0 | 98.0 |
| Reading progress | -1.90 | - | - |
| Writing progress | -7.10 | - | - |
| Maths progress | -3.40 | - | - |
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 Church of England 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 | Suffolk average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 30% | 54.3% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 47% | 55.4% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 31% | 57.1% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 7% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 6.2% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 5.8% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 412 |
| 2023/24 | 404 |
| 2024/25 | 405 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How St Mary's Church of England Academy compares
St Mary's Church of England Academy ranked 217th of 225 primary schools in Suffolk for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 7% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 43% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 31% | 5.8% | 20% | 414 | — |
| Great Heath Academy | 55% | 4.4% | 20.5% | 438 | 0.3 miles |
| Beck Row Primary Academy | 71% | 4.8% | 25.1% | 243 | 1.8 miles |
| West Row Academy | 67% | 5.2% | 15.4% | 208 | 2.5 miles |
| The Pines Primary School | 61% | 4.2% | 8.4% | 240 | 2.6 miles |
| St Christopher's CEVCP School | 77% | 6.1% | 18.2% | 389 | 3.1 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.
Inspection history
- 22 May 2024
-
Ungraded inspection report9 March 2023
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 20%
- English as an additional language
- 11.9%
- Overall absence
- 5.78%
- Persistent absence
- 13.08%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Great Heath Academy0.3 miles
Primary · Bury St Edmunds
-
Beck Row Primary Academy1.8 miles
Primary · Bury St Edmunds
-
West Row Academy2.5 miles
Primary · Bury St. Edmunds
-
The Pines Primary School2.6 miles
Primary · Bury St. Edmunds
-
St Christopher's CEVCP School3.1 miles
Primary · Bury St Edmunds
Other schools in Bury St Edmunds
St Mary's Church of England Academy ranks 24th of the 26 ranked primary schools in Bury St Edmunds.
- Abbots Green Primary Academy Primary
- All Saints' Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School, Lawshall Primary
- Bardwell Church of England Primary School Primary
- Barningham Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School Primary
- Barrow Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School Primary
- Beck Row Primary Academy Primary
- Cockfield Church of England Primary School Primary
- Elmswell Community Primary School Primary
- Great Barton Church of England Primary Academy Primary
- Great Heath Academy Primary
- Guildhall Feoffment Community Primary School Primary
- Hardwick Primary School Primary
Common questions
- What ages does St Mary's Church of England Academy teach?
- St Mary's Church of England Academy teaches children aged 4 to 11. It is a primary school in Bury St Edmunds.
- Who is the principal of St Mary's Church of England Academy?
- The principal of St Mary's Church of England Academy is Mrs Roxanne Rutter, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has St Mary's Church of England Academy been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected St Mary's Church of England 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 St Mary's Church of England Academy?
- St Mary's Church of England Academy has 414 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 4 to 11.
- Is St Mary's Church of England Academy full?
- St Mary's Church of England Academy has capacity for 420 pupils and 414 on roll (99%), 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 Mary's Church of England Academy a faith school?
- Yes. St Mary's Church of England Academy is designated Church of England, in the Diocese of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich.
- Does St Mary's Church of England Academy have a nursery?
- No. The schools register records St Mary's Church of England Academy as having no nursery classes.
- Is St Mary's Church of England Academy part of an academy trust?
- St Mary's Church of England Academy is part of ST MARY'S CHURCH OF ENGLAND ACADEMY TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have St Mary's Church of England Academy's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 30% in 2022/23 and 31% 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 Church of England Academy compare with other schools in Suffolk?
- St Mary's Church of England Academy ranked 217th of 225 primary schools in Suffolk for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 7% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 43% 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 Church of England Academy's absence rate?
- St Mary's Church of England Academy's overall absence rate is 5.8% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are St Mary's Church of England Academy's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, St Mary's Church of England 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.