School Chooser

St Ambrose Barlow Catholic Primary School

Primary · ages 4-11MixedAcademyRoman Catholic204 pupilsBirmingham
School Chooser ScoreNot scoredThere isn't enough published data yet. To get a score, a school needs results or an inspection plus at least one other figure.
OfstedGoodLast Ofsted inspection, October 2022
Reached the expected level at 1180%England 63%
Attendance96.0%England 94.8%
Pupils from low-income families28%About the same as most schools in England
Places6 spare204 pupils, 210 places
Pupils per teacher22.6School workforce census

St Ambrose Barlow Catholic Primary School is a converter academy in Birmingham for boys and girls aged 4 to 11. It has 204 pupils and room for 210. About 28 in every 100 pupils come from a low-income family, about the same as most schools in England. Ofsted's last grade was good, back in 2022.

841 Shirley Road, Hall Green, Birmingham, B28 9JJ0121 464 2791sab.bham.sch.ukMr Jon Clinton headteacherAll details

What Ofsted found

Ofsted's last full inspection was on 18 October 2022, back when it gave schools one overall grade. Read the report on Ofsted's website.

Good overall.

TeachingOfsted calls this “quality of education”
Good
BehaviourOfsted calls this “behaviour and attitudes”
Outstanding
WellbeingOfsted calls this “personal development”
Good
LeadershipOfsted calls this “leadership and management”
Good
Early years
Good
Safeguarding
Effective
Yes

Results

Year 6 results (SATs), summer 2025

30 children took the tests. Here is how they did against every state primary in England. These are the results of St Ambrose Barlow Catholic Primary School, the school this one replaced.

Reached the expected level at 1180%
England 63%
Official name: Expected standard in reading, writing and maths
Working above the expected level10%
England 8%
Official name: Higher standard in reading, writing and maths
Reading score109.0
England 105.6
Official name: Reading average scaled score
Maths score106.0
England 104.6
Official name: Maths average scaled score
Trend
Reached the expected level at 11
2017 to 2025
2017: 77%77%20172018: 72%72%20182019: 77%77%20192023: 83%83%20232024: 77%77%20242025: 80%80%2025
Since 2017: +3%
All Year 6 measures, year by year
Measure2025†2024†2023†2019†2018†2017†BirminghamEngland
Pupils tested303030312930
Reached the expected level at 11Expected standard in reading, writing and maths80%77%83%77%72%77%65%63%
Working above the expected levelHigher standard in reading, writing and maths10%17%20%19%7%23%8%8%
Reading scoreReading average scaled score109.0107.0110.0106.0109.0109.0105.6105.6
Maths scoreMaths average scaled score106.0107.0107.0108.0106.0108.0104.9104.6
Grammar and spelling scoreGPS average scaled score108.0107.0109.0110.0109.0110.0106.5105.2
Expected level: readingReading expected standard93%83%93%77%90%83%
Expected level: mathsMaths expected standard90%87%90%97%76%93%
Expected level: writingWriting expected standard (teacher assessed)80%83%83%94%79%90%
Reading progressReading progress score+4.8+0.8+2.1+3.8
Maths progressMaths progress score+2.2+2.0+0.2+1.8
Expected level: low-income pupilsExpected standard, disadvantaged75%
Expected level: other pupilsExpected standard, non-disadvantaged82%

There are no progress figures for 2025. That year group missed their Year 2 tests during Covid, so there was no starting point to measure from. Progress figures come back with the December 2026 results. Tests were cancelled altogether in 2020 and 2021.

† These results are for St Ambrose Barlow Catholic Primary School, the school this one replaced in September 2025. Same building and the same children. It got a new registration number, usually because it joined an academy trust.

Does every child do well here?

A good school does well by every child, not just on average. Each row compares two groups of pupils here. The grey marks show the same two groups across England. 2 of the 3 gaps are smaller than the gap across England. When a group has fewer than about ten pupils, its figures jump around a lot from year to year.

At the end of primary school, 2025

Reached the expected level at 11Low-income pupils vs other pupils
75%82%
Gap 7 ptsEngland 21 pts
Reached the expected level at 11Boys vs girls
79%82%
Gap 3 ptsEngland 5 pts
Reached the higher level at 11Low-income pupils vs all pupils
0%10%
Gap 10 ptsEngland 5 pts
First groupSecond groupEngland, each group

Low-income means the child has had free school meals at some point in the last six years. A group's figure isn't published when it has fewer than six pupils.

Getting a place

Admissions policy not published. As a Roman Catholic school it may put families of that faith first. Check the school's own admissions rules.

Each council publishes its own figures on how many families applied and how far away the last child to get a place lived. We are adding councils one at a time. If you have a link to Birmingham council's admissions booklet, send it to us.

Who goes here

Who the school teaches, from the latest school census.

Pupils on roll204Census January 2026
Places21097% full
Pupils from low-income families28%28% have had free school meals at some point in the last six years
Pupils learning English10%First language is not English
Pupils getting extra support18%36 pupils with SEN support
Pupils with an EHC plan3%7 pupils with a plan
Average class size29.36 classes, January 2026; England 25.4
Classes with more than 30 pupils0%Infant classes are capped at 30 by law; England 10%
Pupils with extra funding (pupil premium)28%£89,900 extra funding in 2026/27; England 24%
Boys and girls102 / 102
White British pupils55%

Infant classes (Reception to Year 2) average 28.5 pupils (England 25.5); junior classes (Years 3 to 6) average 29.8 (England 27.3).

The most common needs among pupils getting extra support: emotional and mental health (13), Autistic spectrum disorder (10), Moderate learning difficulty (9), language and communications needs (4), Hearing impairment (3), Specific learning difficulty (3).

Attendance and behaviour

In 2024/25 pupils were in school 96.0% of the time. Across similar schools in England it was 94.8%.

Attendance96.0%
England 94.8%
Official name: 100 minus overall absence
Pupils missing a lot of school7.2%
England 12.8%
Official name: Persistent absence
Missed without permission0.8%of school time, 2024/25
Attendance year by year
Measure2024/25†2023/24†2022/23†2021/22†2020/21†2018/19†England
Sessions missedOverall absence4.0%3.9%3.8%5.2%2.4%2.7%5.2%
Missed with permissionAuthorised absence3.2%2.9%3.0%4.0%2.0%2.0%
Missed without permissionUnauthorised absence0.8%1.0%0.8%1.2%0.4%0.7%
Pupils missing a lot of schoolPersistent absence7.2%7.2%5.0%8.2%2.2%1.1%12.8%

† These attendance figures are for St Ambrose Barlow Catholic Primary School, the school this one replaced in September 2025. Same building and the same children. It got a new registration number, usually because it joined an academy trust.

Staff and money

From the government's count of school staff in November 2025 and the school's published accounts.

Teachers9.0full-time equivalent, 10 people
Pupils per teacher22.6Pupils for every full-time teacher
Fully qualified teachers100%hold qualified teacher status
Teaching assistants6.3full-time equivalent
Average teacher pay£51,148
Vacancies0

Money

From the council school accounts, year to March 2025. The per-pupil figures are compared with other primary schools in England that report their accounts the same way.

Spend per pupil£7,529England £7,738. Total £1.6m
Income per pupil£6,841England £7,697. Total £1.4m
Spent on teachers per pupil£2,852England £3,480
Money in reserve-8%In the red: -£109k, -£528 per pupil. England 6%
Money in against money out-£142kit spent more than it took in this year
Where the money goes£7,529spent per pupil

Reserves are the money left over at the end of the year, kept back for emergencies and big projects. Being in the red year after year is a warning sign. Very large reserves can mean money sitting in the bank instead of being spent on today's pupils. Academy figures are rounded to the nearest £1,000 and include a share of any money the trust holds centrally.

The area around the school

Crimes within 500 m33412 months to June 2026, mostly violence and sexual offences
Local crime rate56 per 1,000 people38% lower than the England average
Typical house price£235,000Birmingham

Crime figures come from police.uk. The police record each crime at the nearest of a fixed set of map points rather than the exact spot, so “within 500 m” is only rough. House prices are from HM Land Registry sales nearby over the last two years.

Nearby schools

The closest primary schools, nearest first. Hover over a row to see it on the map.

Well aboveAboveIn lineBelowWell belowNot scored
SchoolTypeDistancePupilsOfstedScore
Robin Hood AcademyAcademy260 m508Good 202224Compare
Lakey Lane Primary SchoolAcademy830 m435Not inspected88Compare
Hall Green Junior SchoolCouncil950 m482Report card 202672Compare
Hall Green Infant SchoolCouncil0.6 miles407Good 202353Compare
Chilcote Primary SchoolCouncil0.7 miles458No overall grade 202596Compare
Haslucks Green SchoolAcademy0.8 miles254Good 2024Compare
Severne Junior Infant and Nursery SchoolCouncil0.9 miles389Good 202238Compare
Tudor Grange Primary Academy LangleyAcademy0.9 miles484Good 202335Compare

Questions parents ask

Is St Ambrose Barlow Catholic Primary School a good school?

St Ambrose Barlow Catholic Primary School doesn't have a score yet. Ofsted rated it good at its last inspection in October 2022.

What is St Ambrose Barlow Catholic Primary School's Ofsted rating?

Ofsted rated St Ambrose Barlow Catholic Primary School good at its last full inspection on 18 October 2022.

How good are St Ambrose Barlow Catholic Primary School's SATs results?

In summer 2025, 80% of Year 6 children reached the expected level in reading, writing and maths. Across England it was 63%. 10% went further and reached the higher level.

How many pupils does St Ambrose Barlow Catholic Primary School have?

204 pupils aged 4 to 11 were on the roll in January 2026. It has 210 places, so it is 97% full.

What is attendance like at St Ambrose Barlow Catholic Primary School?

Pupils were in school 96.0% of the time in 2024/25. Similar schools in England managed 94.8%. 7% of pupils missed at least a tenth of the year.

How big are the classes at St Ambrose Barlow Catholic Primary School?

The average class had 29.3 pupils in January 2026. Across England it was 25.4. No class had more than 30 pupils.

These answers come straight from the figures on this page and update when new data comes out.

Contact and details

Address
841 Shirley Road, Hall Green, Birmingham, B28 9JJ
Telephone
0121 464 2791
Website
www.sab.bham.sch.uk
Headteacher
Mr Jon Clinton
Type of school
Converter academy (Academy converter, academies)
Phase
Primary school, ages 4-11
Gender
Mixed
Religious character
Roman Catholic, Archdiocese of Birmingham
Multi-academy trust
St Teresa of Calcutta Multi Academy Company (12 schools)
Local authority
Birmingham
Ward
Hall Green North
Constituency
Birmingham Hall Green and Moseley
Setting
Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
Opened
1 September 2025 (academy converter)
URN
151940 · LAESTAB 3303380 · UKPRN 10098599
Formerly
St Ambrose Barlow Catholic Primary School

Where these figures come from