St John's Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School, Buckhurst Hill
High Road, Buckhurst Hill, IG9 5RX
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Academy converter
- Ages
- 5 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Church of England
- Trust
- EPPING FOREST SCHOOLS PARTNERSHIP TRUST
- Headteacher
- Mr Jonathan Furness
- Diocese
- Diocese of Chelmsford
- Sponsor
- Epping Forest Schools Partnership Trust
- Constituency
- Epping Forest
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 420
- Pupils on roll
- 412
- URN
- 145599
- Local authority
- Essex
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 02085042934
About this school
St John's Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School, Buckhurst Hill is a Church of England primary academy in Buckhurst Hill. It teaches children aged 5 to 11 and has 412 pupils on roll.
You can read Ofsted's latest judgement for the school 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
Confirmed by a short inspection, not a full one
Ofsted's most recent visit was a short inspection on 23 June 2022, 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 | 60 | 55 | 60 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 65% | 56% | 72% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 22% | 7% | 3% |
| Expected standard in reading | 72% | 87% | 93% |
| Expected standard in maths | 77% | 73% | 88% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 78% | 76% | 85% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 106.0 | 107.0 | 109.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 106.0 | 105.0 | 107.0 |
| Reading progress | -0.20 | - | - |
| Writing progress | +1.80 | - | - |
| Maths progress | +0.10 | - | - |
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 St John's Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School, Buckhurst Hill 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 | 56% | 59.5% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 72% | 60.7% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 4.5% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 4.1% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 4.7% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 410 |
| 2023/24 | 409 |
| 2024/25 | 414 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How St John's Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School, Buckhurst Hill compares
St John's Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School, Buckhurst Hill ranked 134th of 388 primary schools in Essex for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 71% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 69% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 72% | 4.7% | 5.6% | 412 | — |
| Buckhurst Hill Community Primary School | 64% | 5% | 18.9% | 389 | 0.9 miles |
| Wells Primary School | 87% | 3.8% | 6.1% | 341 | 0.9 miles |
| St Antony's Catholic Primary School | 72% | 3.8% | 5.5% | 438 | 1.0 miles |
| Whitehall Primary School | 72% | 5.3% | 26.7% | 452 | 1.0 miles |
| White Bridge Primary School | 64% | 3.8% | 17.3% | 434 | 1.1 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.
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 5.56%
- English as an additional language
- 12.6%
- Overall absence
- 4.67%
- Persistent absence
- 10.28%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Buckhurst Hill Community Primary School0.9 miles
Primary · Buckhurst Hill
-
Wells Primary School0.9 miles
Primary · Woodford Green
-
St Antony's Catholic Primary School1.0 miles
Primary · Woodford Green
-
Whitehall Primary School1.0 miles
Primary · London
-
White Bridge Primary School1.1 miles
Primary · Loughton
Other schools in Buckhurst Hill
- Buckhurst Hill Community Primary School Primary
- Loyola Preparatory School Independent schools
Common questions
- What year groups does St John's Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School, Buckhurst Hill teach?
- St John's Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School, Buckhurst Hill teaches children aged 5 to 11. It is a primary school in Buckhurst Hill.
- Who is the headteacher of St John's Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School, Buckhurst Hill?
- The headteacher of St John's Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School, Buckhurst Hill is Mr Jonathan Furness, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was St John's Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School, Buckhurst Hill last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected St John's Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School, Buckhurst Hill, and its latest judgement is set out in the inspection section on this page, with the framework and the date it was made.
- How big is St John's Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School, Buckhurst Hill?
- St John's Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School, Buckhurst Hill has 412 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 5 to 11.
- Is St John's Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School, Buckhurst Hill full?
- St John's Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School, Buckhurst Hill has capacity for 420 pupils and 412 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 St John's Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School, Buckhurst Hill a faith school?
- Yes. St John's Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School, Buckhurst Hill is designated Church of England, in the Diocese of Chelmsford.
- Does St John's Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School, Buckhurst Hill have a nursery?
- No. The schools register records St John's Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School, Buckhurst Hill as having no nursery classes.
- Who runs St John's Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School, Buckhurst Hill?
- St John's Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School, Buckhurst Hill is part of EPPING FOREST SCHOOLS PARTNERSHIP TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have St John's Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School, Buckhurst Hill'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 72% 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 John's Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School, Buckhurst Hill rank locally?
- St John's Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School, Buckhurst Hill ranked 134th of 388 primary schools in Essex for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 71% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 69% 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 John's Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School, Buckhurst Hill's absence rate?
- St John's Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School, Buckhurst Hill's overall absence rate is 4.7% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are St John's Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School, Buckhurst Hill's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, St John's Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School, Buckhurst Hill'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 10 July 2026.