St James Church of England Primary Academy
High Street, Isle of Grain, Rochester, ME3 0BS
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Academy sponsor led
- Ages
- 3 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Church of England
- Trust
- MEDWAY ANGLICAN SCHOOLS TRUST
- Head of School
- Miss Fay Cordingley
- Religious ethos
- None
- Diocese
- Diocese of Rochester
- Nursery provision
- Has Nursery Classes
- Constituency
- Rochester and Strood
- Setting
- Larger rural: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 210
- Pupils on roll
- 176
- URN
- 138974
- Local authority
- Medway
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01634270341
About this school
St James Church of England Primary Academy is a Church of England primary academy in Rochester. It teaches children aged 3 to 11 and has 176 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected St James Church of England 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. 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 24 May 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 | 20 | 25 | 29 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 55% | 76% | 38% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 0% | 4% | 3% |
| Expected standard in reading | 70% | 84% | 41% |
| Expected standard in maths | 65% | 80% | 55% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 50% | 64% | 34% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 101.0 | 104.0 | 101.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 101.0 | 103.0 | 99.0 |
| Reading progress | -3.90 | - | - |
| Writing progress | +0.30 | - | - |
| Maths progress | -3.20 | - | - |
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 James Church of England 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 | Medway average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 55% | 56.2% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 76% | 60.6% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 38% | 59.8% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 5.4% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 6.7% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 5% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 199 |
| 2023/24 | 192 |
| 2024/25 | 190 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How St James Church of England Primary Academy compares
St James Church of England Primary Academy ranked 52nd of 57 primary schools in Medway for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 10% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 61% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 38% | 5% | 32% | 176 | — |
| St Edward's Catholic Primary School | 43% | 7.4% | 56.4% | 198 | 2.3 miles |
| Rose Street Primary School | 51% | 8.4% | 67.7% | 424 | 2.3 miles |
| West Minster Primary School | 66% | 7.7% | 66% | 473 | 2.5 miles |
| Richmond Primary School | 63% | 7.8% | 75.1% | 246 | 2.9 miles |
| Queenborough School and Nursery | 85% | 5.7% | 37.8% | 470 | 3.4 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)
- 31.95%
- English as an additional language
- 4.2%
- Overall absence
- 4.97%
- Persistent absence
- 8.86%
Location
Nearby schools
-
St Edward's Catholic Primary School2.3 miles
Primary · Sheerness
-
Rose Street Primary School2.3 miles
Primary · Sheerness
-
West Minster Primary School2.5 miles
Primary · Sheerness
-
Richmond Primary School2.9 miles
Primary · Sheerness
-
Queenborough School and Nursery3.4 miles
Primary · Queenborough
Other schools in Rochester
St James Church of England Primary Academy ranks 24th of the 25 ranked primary schools in Rochester.
- All Faiths Children's Academy Primary
- Balfour Infant School Primary
- Bligh Primary School (Infants) Primary
- Bligh Primary School (Juniors) Primary
- Burham Church of England Primary School Primary
- Cedar Children's Academy Primary
- Chattenden Primary School Primary
- Cliffe Woods Primary School Primary
- Crest Infant School Primary
- Cuxton Community Infant School Primary
- Cuxton Community Junior School Primary
- Delce Academy Primary
Common questions
- What ages does St James Church of England Primary Academy teach?
- St James Church of England Primary Academy teaches children aged 3 to 11. It is a primary school in Rochester.
- Who is the head of school of St James Church of England Primary Academy?
- The head of school of St James Church of England Primary Academy is Miss Fay Cordingley, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has St James Church of England Primary Academy been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected St James Church of England 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 St James Church of England Primary Academy?
- St James Church of England Primary Academy has 176 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 3 to 11.
- Is St James Church of England Primary Academy full?
- St James Church of England Primary Academy has capacity for 210 pupils and 176 on roll (84%), 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 St James Church of England Primary Academy a faith school?
- Yes. St James Church of England Primary Academy is designated Church of England, in the Diocese of Rochester.
- Does St James Church of England Primary Academy have a nursery?
- Yes. The schools register records St James Church of England Primary Academy as having nursery classes.
- Is St James Church of England Primary Academy part of an academy trust?
- St James Church of England Primary Academy is part of MEDWAY ANGLICAN SCHOOLS TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have St James Church of England Primary Academy's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 55% in 2022/23 and 38% 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 James Church of England Primary Academy compare with other schools in Medway?
- St James Church of England Primary Academy ranked 52nd of 57 primary schools in Medway for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 10% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 61% 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 James Church of England Primary Academy's absence rate?
- St James Church of England Primary Academy's overall absence rate is 5% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are St James Church of England Primary Academy's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, St James Church of England 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.