Holy Rood Catholic Primary School
Greenbank Road, Watford, WD17 4FS
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Academy converter
- Ages
- 3 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Roman Catholic
- Trust
- ALL SAINTS CATHOLIC ACADEMY TRUST
- Headteacher
- Mrs Emma Braund
- Diocese
- Archdiocese of Westminster
- Nursery provision
- Has Nursery Classes
- Constituency
- Watford
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 390
- Pupils on roll
- 454
- URN
- 146903
- Local authority
- Hertfordshire
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01923223785
About this school
Holy Rood Catholic Primary School is a Roman Catholic primary academy in Watford. It teaches children aged 3 to 11 and has 454 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected Holy Rood Catholic 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. 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
- Outstanding
- Behaviour and attitudes
- Outstanding
- Personal development
- Outstanding
- Leadership and management
- Outstanding
- 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 | 60 | 64 | 64 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 80% | 77% | 84% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 20% | 11% | 17% |
| Expected standard in reading | 88% | 91% | 97% |
| Expected standard in maths | 90% | 91% | 94% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 88% | 88% | 91% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 109.0 | 110.0 | 111.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 108.0 | 109.0 | 110.0 |
| Reading progress | +2.20 | - | - |
| Writing progress | +1.20 | - | - |
| Maths progress | +2.00 | - | - |
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 Holy Rood Catholic 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 | Hertfordshire average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 80% | 59.1% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 77% | 60.6% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 84% | 61% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 5.3% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 4.2% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 4% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 452 |
| 2023/24 | 453 |
| 2024/25 | 456 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Holy Rood Catholic Primary School compares
Holy Rood Catholic Primary School ranked 24th of 339 primary schools in Hertfordshire for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 93% 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 | 84% | 4% | 4% | 454 | — |
| The Orchard Primary School | 70% | 4% | 18.5% | 434 | 0.6 miles |
| St Paul's Church of England Primary School, Langleybury | 86% | 5.6% | 9.2% | 226 | 0.9 miles |
| Beechfield School | 72% | 6.2% | 24.6% | 444 | 0.9 miles |
| Cherry Tree Primary School | 48% | 6.5% | 23.3% | 445 | 0.9 miles |
| Cassiobury Infant and Nursery School | — | 4.2% | 3.4% | 310 | 1.0 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)
- 4%
- English as an additional language
- 11.8%
- Overall absence
- 4.01%
- Persistent absence
- 5.99%
Location
Nearby schools
-
The Orchard Primary School0.6 miles
Primary · Watford
-
St Paul's Church of England Primary School, Langleybury0.9 miles
Primary · Kings Langley
-
Beechfield School0.9 miles
Primary · Watford
-
Cherry Tree Primary School0.9 miles
Primary · Watford
-
Cassiobury Infant and Nursery School1.0 miles
Primary · Watford
Other schools in Watford
Holy Rood Catholic Primary School ranks 4th of the 29 ranked primary schools in Watford.
- Alban Wood Primary School and Nursery Primary
- Ascot Road Primary School Primary
- Beechfield School Primary
- Bromet Primary School Primary
- Cassiobury Infant and Nursery School Primary
- Cassiobury Junior School Primary
- Central Primary School Primary
- Chater Infant School Primary
- Chater Junior School Primary
- Cherry Tree Primary School Primary
- Coates Way JMI and Nursery School Primary
- Field Junior School Primary
Common questions
- What ages does Holy Rood Catholic Primary School teach?
- Holy Rood Catholic Primary School teaches children aged 3 to 11. It is a primary school in Watford.
- Who is the headteacher of Holy Rood Catholic Primary School?
- The headteacher of Holy Rood Catholic Primary School is Mrs Emma Braund, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has Holy Rood Catholic Primary School been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Holy Rood Catholic 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 Holy Rood Catholic Primary School?
- Holy Rood Catholic Primary School has 454 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 3 to 11.
- Is Holy Rood Catholic Primary School full?
- Holy Rood Catholic Primary School has capacity for 390 pupils and 454 on roll (116%), so it is at or above 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 Holy Rood Catholic Primary School a faith school?
- Yes. Holy Rood Catholic Primary School is designated Roman Catholic, in the Archdiocese of Westminster.
- Does Holy Rood Catholic Primary School have a nursery?
- Yes. The schools register records Holy Rood Catholic Primary School as having nursery classes.
- Is Holy Rood Catholic Primary School part of an academy trust?
- Holy Rood Catholic Primary School is part of ALL SAINTS CATHOLIC ACADEMY TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have Holy Rood Catholic Primary School's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 80% in 2022/23 and 84% in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Holy Rood Catholic Primary School compare with other schools in Hertfordshire?
- Holy Rood Catholic Primary School ranked 24th of 339 primary schools in Hertfordshire for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 93% 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 Holy Rood Catholic Primary School's absence rate?
- Holy Rood Catholic Primary School's overall absence rate is 4% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Holy Rood Catholic Primary School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Holy Rood Catholic 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 10 July 2026.