St Mary Magdalen's Catholic Primary School
Dene House Road, Seaham, SR7 7BJ
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Academy converter
- Ages
- 4 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Roman Catholic
- Trust
- BISHOP CHADWICK CATHOLIC EDUCATION TRUST
- Headteacher
- Mrs Andrea Goodwin
- Diocese
- Diocese of Hexham and Newcastle
- Sponsor
- Bishop Chadwick Catholic Education Trust
- Constituency
- Easington
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 315
- Pupils on roll
- 308
- URN
- 149165
- Local authority
- County Durham
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01915813055
About this school
St Mary Magdalen's Catholic Primary School is a Roman Catholic primary academy in Seaham. It teaches children aged 4 to 11 and has 308 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. Numbers and a report only go so far, so visit in person before you apply.
Ofsted judgement
Ofsted's most recent visit was a short inspection on 12 March 2025, where inspectors found the school has improved significantly. 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 | 42 | 43 | 37 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 57% | 79% | 76% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 7% | 16% | 14% |
| Expected standard in reading | 79% | 81% | 81% |
| Expected standard in maths | 81% | 86% | 92% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 81% | 86% | 86% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 107.0 | 106.0 | 108.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 104.0 | 106.0 | 106.0 |
| Reading progress | +1.30 | - | - |
| Writing progress | -0.60 | - | - |
| Maths progress | -0.60 | - | - |
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 Mary Magdalen's 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 | County Durham average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 57% | 58% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 79% | 58.4% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 76% | 60% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 4.4% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 4.3% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 3.5% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 304 |
| 2023/24 | 307 |
| 2024/25 | 306 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How St Mary Magdalen's Catholic Primary School compares
St Mary Magdalen's Catholic Primary School ranked 32nd of 185 primary schools in County Durham for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 80% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 94% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 76% | 3.5% | 15.4% | 308 | — |
| Seaham Trinity Primary School | 54% | 7.7% | 47.6% | 349 | 0.3 miles |
| Ropery Walk Primary School | 68% | 4.3% | 35.2% | 219 | 0.6 miles |
| Seaview Primary School | 64% | 7.7% | 53.5% | 256 | 0.8 miles |
| New Seaham Academy | 94% | 4.2% | 10.8% | 216 | 1.1 miles |
| St Cuthbert's Catholic Primary School, Seaham | 75% | 4% | 20.9% | 206 | 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)
- 15.36%
- English as an additional language
- 1.3%
- Overall absence
- 3.49%
- Persistent absence
- 6.06%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Seaham Trinity Primary School0.3 miles
Primary · Seaham
-
Ropery Walk Primary School0.6 miles
Primary · Seaham
-
Seaview Primary School0.8 miles
Primary · Seaham
-
New Seaham Academy1.1 miles
Primary · Seaham
-
St Cuthbert's Catholic Primary School, Seaham1.1 miles
Primary · Seaham
Other schools in Seaham
St Mary Magdalen's Catholic Primary School ranks 3rd of the 9 ranked primary schools in Seaham.
- New Seaham Academy Primary
- Ribbon School Primary
- Ropery Walk Primary School Primary
- Seaham Trinity Primary School Primary
- Seaview Primary School Primary
- St Cuthbert's Catholic Primary School, Seaham Primary
- St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Murton Primary
- Westlea Primary School Primary
- Seaham Harbour Nursery School Nursery
- Seaham High School Secondary
Common questions
- What year groups does St Mary Magdalen's Catholic Primary School teach?
- St Mary Magdalen's Catholic Primary School teaches children aged 4 to 11. It is a primary school in Seaham.
- Who is the headteacher of St Mary Magdalen's Catholic Primary School?
- The headteacher of St Mary Magdalen's Catholic Primary School is Mrs Andrea Goodwin, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was St Mary Magdalen's Catholic Primary School last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected St Mary Magdalen's 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 big is St Mary Magdalen's Catholic Primary School?
- St Mary Magdalen's Catholic Primary School has 308 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 4 to 11.
- Is St Mary Magdalen's Catholic Primary School full?
- St Mary Magdalen's Catholic Primary School has capacity for 315 pupils and 308 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 Mary Magdalen's Catholic Primary School a faith school?
- Yes. St Mary Magdalen's Catholic Primary School is designated Roman Catholic, in the Diocese of Hexham and Newcastle.
- Does St Mary Magdalen's Catholic Primary School have a nursery?
- No. The schools register records St Mary Magdalen's Catholic Primary School as having no nursery classes.
- Who runs St Mary Magdalen's Catholic Primary School?
- St Mary Magdalen's Catholic Primary School is part of BISHOP CHADWICK CATHOLIC EDUCATION TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have St Mary Magdalen's Catholic Primary School's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 57% in 2022/23 and 76% 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 Mary Magdalen's Catholic Primary School rank locally?
- St Mary Magdalen's Catholic Primary School ranked 32nd of 185 primary schools in County Durham for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 80% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 94% 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 Mary Magdalen's Catholic Primary School's absence rate?
- St Mary Magdalen's Catholic Primary School's overall absence rate is 3.5% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are St Mary Magdalen's Catholic Primary School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, St Mary Magdalen's 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.