Cliftonville Primary School
Northumberland Avenue, Cliftonville, Margate, CT9 3LY
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Academy sponsor led
- Ages
- 3 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Trust
- COASTAL ACADEMIES TRUST
- Headteacher
- Ms Claire Whichcord
- Religious ethos
- None
- Nursery provision
- Has Nursery Classes
- Sponsor
- Coastal Academies Trust
- Constituency
- East Thanet
- Setting
- Urban: Further from a major town or city
- Capacity
- 862
- Pupils on roll
- 845
- URN
- 140012
- Local authority
- Kent
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01843227575
About this school
Cliftonville Primary School is a primary academy in Margate. It teaches children aged 3 to 11 and has 845 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected Cliftonville Primary School, 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
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
- Good
- Behaviour and attitudes
- Outstanding
- Personal development
- Outstanding
- Leadership and management
- Good
- Early years
- Outstanding
- 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 | 105 | 111 | 114 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 51% | 50% | 44% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 3% | 3% | 9% |
| Expected standard in reading | 61% | 66% | 63% |
| Expected standard in maths | 64% | 62% | 59% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 60% | 55% | 59% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 103.0 | 101.0 | 103.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 102.0 | 101.0 | 100.0 |
| Reading progress | -0.80 | - | - |
| Writing progress | -1.30 | - | - |
| Maths progress | -1.30 | - | - |
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 Cliftonville 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 | 51% | 58.3% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 50% | 60.2% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 44% | 60.8% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 8% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 6.8% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 6.6% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 828 |
| 2023/24 | 839 |
| 2024/25 | 845 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Cliftonville Primary School compares
Cliftonville Primary School ranked 381st of 427 primary schools in Kent for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 15% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 30% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 44% | 6.6% | 51.7% | 845 | — |
| Northdown Primary School | 52% | 10.8% | 77.7% | 302 | 0.3 miles |
| Palm Bay Primary School | 59% | 5.8% | 30.2% | 407 | 0.6 miles |
| Drapers Mills Primary Academy | 51% | 12.7% | 70.8% | 246 | 0.7 miles |
| Margate, Holy Trinity and St John's Church of England Primary School | 31% | 7.5% | 59.7% | 397 | 0.9 miles |
| Salmestone Primary School | 66% | 9.9% | 51.9% | 216 | 1.2 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
- 25 June 2024
-
Ungraded inspection report18 January 2023
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 51.73%
- English as an additional language
- 27.7%
- Overall absence
- 6.55%
- Persistent absence
- 19.39%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Northdown Primary School0.3 miles
Primary · Margate
-
Palm Bay Primary School0.6 miles
Primary · Margate
-
Drapers Mills Primary Academy0.7 miles
Primary · Margate
-
Margate, Holy Trinity and St John's Church of England Primary School0.9 miles
Primary · Margate
-
Salmestone Primary School1.2 miles
Primary · Margate
Other schools in Margate
Cliftonville Primary School ranks 7th of the 8 ranked primary schools in Margate.
- Drapers Mills Primary Academy Primary
- Garlinge Primary School and Nursery Primary
- Margate, Holy Trinity and St John's Church of England Primary School Primary
- Northdown Primary School Primary
- Palm Bay Primary School Primary
- Salmestone Primary School Primary
- St Gregory's Catholic Primary School, Margate Primary
- Hartsdown Academy Secondary
- Enterprise Learning Alliance Local authority maintained schools
- Liberty College Other types
- Life Skills Enterprise Special schools
- St Anthony's School Special schools
Common questions
- What ages does Cliftonville Primary School teach?
- Cliftonville Primary School teaches children aged 3 to 11. It is a primary school in Margate.
- Who is the headteacher of Cliftonville Primary School?
- The headteacher of Cliftonville Primary School is Ms Claire Whichcord, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has Cliftonville Primary School been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Cliftonville 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 many pupils are at Cliftonville Primary School?
- Cliftonville Primary School has 845 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 3 to 11.
- Is Cliftonville Primary School full?
- Cliftonville Primary School has capacity for 862 pupils and 845 on roll (98%), 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 Cliftonville Primary School a faith school?
- No. Cliftonville Primary School has no designated religious character.
- Does Cliftonville Primary School have a nursery?
- Yes. The schools register records Cliftonville Primary School as having nursery classes.
- Is Cliftonville Primary School part of an academy trust?
- Cliftonville Primary School is part of COASTAL ACADEMIES TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have Cliftonville Primary School's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 51% in 2022/23 and 44% in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Cliftonville Primary School compare with other schools in Kent?
- Cliftonville Primary School ranked 381st of 427 primary schools in Kent for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 15% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 30% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Cliftonville Primary School's absence rate?
- Cliftonville Primary School's overall absence rate is 6.6% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Cliftonville Primary School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Cliftonville 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 1 July 2026.