School Chooser

St Lawrence's Church of England Primary School

Primary · ages 3-11MixedAcademyChurch of England137 pupilsNurseryYork
School Chooser Score
50
In line with
similar schools
Likely range 25 to 76, so it could be “above”
Out of 100. Better than 76% of the 50 schools most like it. Slipping year on year.
OfstedGoodLast Ofsted inspection, November 2023
Reached the expected level at 1161%England 63%
Attendance93.0%England 94.8%
Pupils from low-income families63%Far more than most schools
Places73 spare137 pupils, 210 places
Pupils per teacher19.5School workforce census

St Lawrence's Church of England Primary School is a sponsored academy in York for boys and girls aged 3 to 11. It has 137 pupils and room for 210. About 63 in every 100 pupils come from a low-income family, far more than at most schools in England. We give it 51 out of 100. That puts it in line with schools like it, ahead of 76% of the 50 schools most like it. Ofsted's last grade was good, back in 2023.

Heslington Road, York, YO10 5BW01904 806486stlawrencesschool.orgMrs Helen Coles headteacherAll details

What Ofsted found

Ofsted's last full inspection was on 29 November 2023, 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”
Outstanding
LeadershipOfsted calls this “leadership and management”
Good
Early years
Outstanding
Safeguarding
Effective
Yes

Results

Year 6 results (SATs), summer 2025

18 children took the tests. Here is how they did against every state primary in England. With a year group this small, a couple of children can move the percentages a long way.

Reached the expected level at 1161%
England 63%
Official name: Expected standard in reading, writing and maths
Working above the expected level6%
England 8%
Official name: Higher standard in reading, writing and maths
Reading score104.0
England 105.6
Official name: Reading average scaled score
Maths score107.0
England 104.6
Official name: Maths average scaled score
Trend
Reached the expected level at 11
2017 to 2025
2017: 32%32%20172018: 50%50%20182019: 47%47%20192023: 72%72%20232024: 75%75%20242025: 61%61%2025
Since 2017: +29%Declining overall
All Year 6 measures, year by year
Measure202520242023201920182017†YorkEngland
Pupils tested182425192425
Reached the expected level at 11Expected standard in reading, writing and maths61%75%72%47%50%32%62%63%
Working above the expected levelHigher standard in reading, writing and maths6%13%4%5%8%0%8%8%
Reading scoreReading average scaled score104.0108.0104.0100.0100.0100.0105.8105.6
Maths scoreMaths average scaled score107.0109.0105.0101.0103.0100.0104.6104.6
Grammar and spelling scoreGPS average scaled score104.0108.0106.0103.0101.0101.0104.9105.2
Expected level: readingReading expected standard78%83%80%58%54%52%
Expected level: mathsMaths expected standard83%92%88%58%67%52%
Expected level: writingWriting expected standard (teacher assessed)78%79%80%89%75%76%
Reading progressReading progress score-0.2+1.1-1.8-3.7
Maths progressMaths progress score+1.1+1.7+1.6-5.0
Expected level: low-income pupilsExpected standard, disadvantaged50%75%57%33%50%44%
Expected level: other pupilsExpected standard, non-disadvantaged75%75%78%71%50%25%

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 Saint Lawrence's Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School, the school this one replaced in February 2017. 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. None of the gaps is 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
50%75%
Gap 25 ptsEngland 21 pts
Reached the expected level at 11Boys vs girls
67%56%
Gap 11 ptsEngland 5 pts
Reached the higher level at 11Low-income pupils vs all pupils
0%6%
Gap 6 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 Church of England school it may put families of that faith first. Check the school's own admissions rules.

Catchment area

York council has drawn an official catchment area for this school. You can see it on the map below; it covers about 0.8 square kilometres. Living inside it moves your child up the queue when there are more applicants than places. It doesn't guarantee a place: the council's admissions rules decide the order.

Set your home postcode at the top of the page to see whether you live inside it.

Plenty of spare places122 pupils for 210 places, 2024/25
58% full

88 places were empty (42% of the total), so almost everyone who applies gets in. Pupil numbers have fallen by 20% since 2021/22, so places are getting easier to find.

Will my child get a place?

The last child to get a place lived 0.7 miles away in 2026. Children in care, brothers and sisters of current pupils, faith and other priority groups are placed first. After that, the closer you live, the better your chances. Type in your postcode to see how far away you are.

We measure in a straight line from the middle of your postcode to the school. The council measures its own way, and the cut-off changes every year. Use this as a rough guide, and read the council's admissions booklet before you apply.

How places were given out for September 2026. More children applied than there were places. The last place went to a child living 0.7 miles from the school. Living closer than that didn't guarantee a place, but living much further away meant missing out that year.

EntryPlacesGot a placeHow far the last child livedSource
2026 Primary15150.7 milesLA
2025 Primary1515LA
2024 Primary3022all offeredLA

What a home inside the catchment costs

Typical sale price inside the catchment£216,750half sold for £194k to £250k
Homes sold92December 2023 to December 2025, Land Registry
Compared with the district-30%a typical home in the district sells for £307,500

Every home sold inside the council's catchment area, of any type, from HM Land Registry records. If homes here cost more than the district average, that is the price people pay to live close enough to get in.

Who goes here

Who a school teaches matters. That is why our score compares it with schools that take in a similar mix of children, not with every school in the country.

Pupils on roll137Census January 2026
Places21065% full
Pupils from low-income families61%63% have had free school meals at some point in the last six years
Pupils learning English24%First language is not English
Pupils getting extra support20%28 pupils with SEN support
Pupils with an EHC plan8%11 pupils with a plan
Average class size21.05 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)62%£113,150 extra funding in 2026/27; England 24%
Boys and girls73 / 64
White British pupils61%

The most common needs among pupils getting extra support: language and communications needs (13), emotional and mental health (7), Autistic spectrum disorder (6), Moderate learning difficulty (5), Physical disability (5), Specific learning difficulty (2).

How the mix of pupils has changed
Census202620252024202320222021
Pupils on roll137142159159178168
Pupils from low-income familiesFree school meals61%54%47%40%37%27%
Pupils learning EnglishEnglish as an additional language24%28%33%34%29%21%
Pupils getting extra supportSEN support22%19%19%20%23%
Pupils with an EHC planEducation, health and care plans4%4%4%3%2%

Attendance and behaviour

In 2024/25 pupils were in school 93.0% of the time. Across similar schools in England it was 94.8%.

Attendance93.0%
England 94.8%
Official name: 100 minus overall absence
Pupils missing a lot of school20.4%
England 12.8%
Official name: Persistent absence
Suspensions per 100 pupils0.02024/25, no permanent exclusions
Missed without permission2.5%of school time, 2024/25
Attendance year by year
Measure2024/252023/242022/232021/222020/212018/19England
Sessions missedOverall absence7.0%6.8%6.2%7.3%3.5%5.5%5.2%
Missed with permissionAuthorised absence4.5%5.0%4.5%4.7%2.3%3.4%
Missed without permissionUnauthorised absence2.5%1.9%1.7%2.6%1.2%2.1%
Pupils missing a lot of schoolPersistent absence20.4%25.4%17.5%21.6%6.0%13.0%12.8%
SuspensionsSuspension rate0.00.00.61.10.6
Permanent exclusionsPermanent exclusions00000

Staff and money

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

Teachers6.7full-time equivalent, 10 people
Pupils per teacher19.5Pupils for every full-time teacher
Fully qualified teachers100%hold qualified teacher status
Teaching assistants9.5full-time equivalent
Average teacher pay£52,364
Teachers who left in the year3%2024/25, for any reason including retirement
Vacancies0
Sick days per teacher1.42024/25

Money

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

Spend per pupil£8,772England £7,128. Total £1.2m
Income per pupil£9,397England £7,587. Total £1.3m
Spent on teachers per pupil£3,574England £3,405
Money in reserve3%Not much put by: £39k, £289 per pupil. England 9%
Money in against money out+£85kit took in more than it spent this year
Where the money goes£8,772spent 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 m46412 months to June 2026, mostly violence and sexual offences
Local crime rate94 per 1,000 peopleabout the England average
Typical house price£307,500York
Nearest bus stop130 mThe Retreat, 18 stops within 500 m

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
St George's Catholic Primary School - a Catholic Voluntary AcademyAcademy620 m204Good 202359Compare
Fishergate Primary SchoolCouncil680 m291Good 202348Compare
Tang Hall Primary AcademyAcademy0.8 miles227Good 202313Compare
St Wilfrid's Catholic Primary School - a Catholic Voluntary AcademyAcademy0.9 miles261Good 202281Compare
Osbaldwick Primary AcademyAcademy1.0 miles259No overall grade 202562Compare
St Aelred's Catholic Primary School - a Catholic Voluntary AcademyAcademy1.0 miles175Good 202435Compare
Badger Hill Primary AcademyAcademy1.0 miles200Not inspected73Compare
Lord Deramore's Primary SchoolVoluntary1.0 miles219Outstanding 202497Compare

Compared with schools like it

Our score compares St Lawrence's Church of England Primary School with the 46 schools in England whose pupils are most like its own. We match on family income, how many children are learning English, special needs, the neighbourhood, the size of the school and how it admits pupils. Those 46 schools are dotted all over the country, so we don't list them. What matters is where this school sits among them.

Beats76%of schools with a similar mix of pupils
In the top quarter of its group. Its score of 51 is 32 points above the typical school in the group.
0Lowest of the group 2 · middle 19 · highest 88100

How the score was worked out

The score is out of 100. A 51 means that once everything below is added up, this school comes out ahead of 51% of primary schools in England. Results bounce around from year to year, especially in small schools, so we also show a likely range: 25 to 76. That range is wide enough that the school could sit in the next band, so take the band as a rough guide rather than a verdict. Every part is judged against schools with a similar mix of pupils. For small schools we pull each part towards the group average, so one unusual year can't swing the score too far.

What we looked atHow much it countsAgainst schools like itEffect on the scoreBased on
Results over three years25%in line
-0.04
2025, 2024 and 2023 results; 18 pupils
Ofsted inspection20%in line
+0.01
Ofsted grade, 2.8 years old
Progress pupils make20%in line
+0.02
DfE progress measure; 18 pupils
Direction of travel over five years10%below
-0.06
results and attendance falling year on year
Attendance and behaviour10%well below
-0.12
2024/25; 113 pupils
Results, allowing for the mix of pupils10%well above
+0.19
Attainment relative to schools with a similar intake; 18 pupils
What parents say0%no data

Worked out on 13 September 2026 (method v1). Read how the score works, including every weight and the checks we run. Think a number is wrong? Tell us.

Questions parents ask

Is St Lawrence's Church of England Primary School a good school?

It is about average. St Lawrence's Church of England Primary School scores 51 out of 100. That is in line with schools that take in a similar mix of pupils, and ahead of 76% of the 50 schools most like it in England. The score could fairly be anywhere from 25 to 76, so a few points either way between schools doesn't mean much. Its results have been slipping over the last five years.

What is St Lawrence's Church of England Primary School's Ofsted rating?

Ofsted rated St Lawrence's Church of England Primary School good at its last full inspection on 29 November 2023.

How good are St Lawrence's Church of England Primary School's SATs results?

In summer 2025, 61% of Year 6 children reached the expected level in reading, writing and maths. Across England it was 63%. 6% went further and reached the higher level. The year group was small, so the percentages jump around a lot from year to year.

How many pupils does St Lawrence's Church of England Primary School have?

137 pupils aged 3 to 11 were on the roll in January 2026. It has 210 places, so it is 65% full.

Is St Lawrence's Church of England Primary School oversubscribed, and how far away can you live?

Yes. For September 2026 the last place went to a child living 0.7 miles away. Children in care, brothers and sisters of current pupils and other priority groups come before distance, so the cut-off moves every year.

What is attendance like at St Lawrence's Church of England Primary School?

Pupils were in school 93.0% of the time in 2024/25. Similar schools in England managed 94.8%. 20% of pupils missed at least a tenth of the year.

How big are the classes at St Lawrence's Church of England Primary School?

The average class had 21.0 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
Heslington Road, York, YO10 5BW
Telephone
01904 806486
Website
stlawrencesschool.org
Headteacher
Mrs Helen Coles
Type of school
Sponsored academy (Academy sponsor led, academies)
Phase
Primary school, ages 3-11, with nursery
Gender
Mixed
Religious character
Church of England, Diocese of York
Multi-academy trust
Pathfinder Multi Academy Trust (20 schools)
Local authority
York
Ward
Fishergate
Constituency
York Central
Setting
Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
Opened
1 February 2017 (new provision)
URN
143863 · LAESTAB 8162020 · UKPRN 10062300
Formerly
Saint Lawrence's Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School

Where these figures come from