St Thomas Catholic Voluntary Academy
Church View, Ilkeston, DE7 4LF
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Academy converter
- Ages
- 4 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Roman Catholic
- Trust
- ST RALPH SHERWIN CATHOLIC MULTI ACADEMY TRUST
- Headteacher
- Mr Michael Sellors
- Diocese
- Diocese of Nottingham
- Sponsor
- St Ralph Sherwin Catholic Multi Academy Trust
- Constituency
- Erewash
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 230
- Pupils on roll
- 225
- URN
- 146145
- Local authority
- Derbyshire
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01159320550
About this school
St Thomas Catholic Voluntary Academy is a Roman Catholic primary academy in Ilkeston. It teaches children aged 4 to 11 and has 225 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 15 February 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 | 35 | 32 | 33 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 83% | 75% | 70% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 3% | 3% | 3% |
| Expected standard in reading | 91% | 84% | 82% |
| Expected standard in maths | 97% | 91% | 85% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 86% | 69% | 88% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 106.0 | 106.0 | 106.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 108.0 | 107.0 | 106.0 |
| Reading progress | -1.50 | - | - |
| Writing progress | -1.60 | - | - |
| Maths progress | +0.70 | - | - |
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 Thomas Catholic Voluntary 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 | Derbyshire average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 83% | 58.1% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 75% | 56.8% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 70% | 57.9% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 5.1% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 4.8% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 4.1% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 234 |
| 2023/24 | 229 |
| 2024/25 | 216 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How St Thomas Catholic Voluntary Academy compares
St Thomas Catholic Voluntary Academy ranked 78th of 246 primary schools in Derbyshire for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 66% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 83% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 70% | 4.1% | 21.3% | 225 | — |
| Field House Infant School | — | 5% | 31.6% | 201 | 0.3 miles |
| Kensington Junior Academy | 60% | 4.9% | 52.8% | 178 | 0.5 miles |
| Hallam Fields Junior School | 44% | 4.9% | 36.7% | 217 | 0.6 miles |
| Chaucer Infant School | — | 6.1% | 47.1% | 188 | 0.6 miles |
| Ladywood Primary School | 60% | 5.7% | 46.4% | 305 | 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.
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 21.3%
- English as an additional language
- 6.9%
- Overall absence
- 4.05%
- Persistent absence
- 5.5%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Field House Infant School0.3 miles
Primary · Ilkeston
-
Kensington Junior Academy0.5 miles
Primary · Ilkeston
-
Hallam Fields Junior School0.6 miles
Primary · Ilkeston
-
Chaucer Infant School0.6 miles
Primary · Ilkeston
-
Ladywood Primary School0.6 miles
Primary · Ilkeston
Other schools in Ilkeston
St Thomas Catholic Voluntary Academy ranks 2nd of the 15 ranked primary schools in Ilkeston.
- Charlotte Nursery and Infant School Primary
- Chaucer Infant School Primary
- Chaucer Junior School Primary
- Cotmanhay Infant and Nursery School Primary
- Cotmanhay Junior School Primary
- Dallimore Primary & Nursery School Primary
- Field House Infant School Primary
- Granby Junior School Primary
- Hallam Fields Junior School Primary
- Horsley Woodhouse Primary School Primary
- Kensington Junior Academy Primary
- Ladywood Primary School Primary
Common questions
- What year groups does St Thomas Catholic Voluntary Academy teach?
- St Thomas Catholic Voluntary Academy teaches children aged 4 to 11. It is a primary school in Ilkeston.
- Who is the headteacher of St Thomas Catholic Voluntary Academy?
- The headteacher of St Thomas Catholic Voluntary Academy is Mr Michael Sellors, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was St Thomas Catholic Voluntary Academy last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected St Thomas Catholic Voluntary 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 big is St Thomas Catholic Voluntary Academy?
- St Thomas Catholic Voluntary Academy has 225 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 4 to 11.
- Is St Thomas Catholic Voluntary Academy full?
- St Thomas Catholic Voluntary Academy has capacity for 230 pupils and 225 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 Thomas Catholic Voluntary Academy a faith school?
- Yes. St Thomas Catholic Voluntary Academy is designated Roman Catholic, in the Diocese of Nottingham.
- Does St Thomas Catholic Voluntary Academy have a nursery?
- No. The schools register records St Thomas Catholic Voluntary Academy as having no nursery classes.
- Who runs St Thomas Catholic Voluntary Academy?
- St Thomas Catholic Voluntary Academy is part of ST RALPH SHERWIN CATHOLIC MULTI ACADEMY TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have St Thomas Catholic Voluntary Academy's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 83% in 2022/23 and 70% 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 Thomas Catholic Voluntary Academy rank locally?
- St Thomas Catholic Voluntary Academy ranked 78th of 246 primary schools in Derbyshire for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 66% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 83% 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 Thomas Catholic Voluntary Academy's absence rate?
- St Thomas Catholic Voluntary Academy's overall absence rate is 4.1% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are St Thomas Catholic Voluntary Academy's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, St Thomas Catholic Voluntary 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 10 July 2026.