School Chooser

St Mark's CofE Primary School

Primary · ages 2-11MixedChurch of England231 pupilsNurseryLondonIslington
School Chooser Score
72
Above
similar schools
Likely range 39 to 90, so it could be “in line”
Out of 100. Better than 90% of the 50 schools most like it. Slipping year on year.
Reached the expected level at 1175%England 63%
Attendance93.9%England 94.8%
Pupils from low-income families66%Far more than most schools
Places21 spare231 pupils, 252 places
Pupils per teacher19.2School workforce census
Pupils on roll231Census January 2026

St Mark's CofE Primary School is a Church of England school (voluntary aided) in London for boys and girls aged 2 to 11. It has 231 pupils and room for 252. About 66 in every 100 pupils come from a low-income family, far more than at most schools in England. We give it 72 out of 100. That puts it above schools like it, ahead of 90% of the 50 schools most like it.

Sussex Way, Islington, London, N19 4JF020 7272 5967st-marks.islington.sch.ukMs Martha Braithwaite headteacherAll details

Ofsted

Ofsted hasn't published an inspection for this school yet.

Results

Year 6 results (SATs), summer 2025

28 children took the tests. Here is how they did against every state primary in England.

Reached the expected level at 1175%
England 63%
Official name: Expected standard in reading, writing and maths
Working above the expected level14%
England 8%
Official name: Higher standard in reading, writing and maths
Reading score108.0
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: 82%82%20172018: 83%83%20182019: 55%55%20192023: 81%81%20232024: 76%76%20242025: 75%75%2025
Since 2017: -7%Declining overall
All Year 6 measures, year by year
Measure202520242023201920182017IslingtonEngland
Pupils tested282521313028
Reached the expected level at 11Expected standard in reading, writing and maths75%76%81%55%83%82%67%63%
Working above the expected levelHigher standard in reading, writing and maths14%12%10%3%7%7%13%8%
Reading scoreReading average scaled score108.0106.0106.0104.0106.0108.0106.8105.6
Maths scoreMaths average scaled score106.0103.0106.0104.0108.0106.0105.8104.6
Grammar and spelling scoreGPS average scaled score104.0103.0105.0104.0109.0109.0106.7105.2
Expected level: readingReading expected standard86%84%86%77%90%93%
Expected level: mathsMaths expected standard79%80%90%84%90%93%
Expected level: writingWriting expected standard (teacher assessed)86%88%86%65%87%82%
Reading progressReading progress score+1.7+2.8+3.2+4.4
Maths progressMaths progress score+2.8+2.9+6.0+4.7
Expected level: low-income pupilsExpected standard, disadvantaged68%69%91%39%76%77%
Expected level: other pupilsExpected standard, non-disadvantaged89%83%70%77%100%100%

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.

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
68%89%
Gap 21 ptsEngland 21 pts
Reached the expected level at 11Boys vs girls
85%67%
Gap 18 ptsEngland 5 pts
Reached the expected level at 11Pupils learning English vs all pupils
88%75%
Gap 13 ptsEngland 4 pts
Reached the higher level at 11Low-income pupils vs all pupils
0%14%
Gap 14 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.

A few spare places193 pupils for 210 places, 2024/25
92% full

About 17 places were empty, so most families who apply get in, though a popular year group can still fill up. Pupil numbers have stayed about the same since 2021/22.

Will my child get a place?

The last child to get a place lived 720 m away in 2026, 620 m away in 2025, 1.1 miles away in 2024. 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 720 m from the school. Living closer than that didn't guarantee a place, but living much further away meant missing out that year.

EntryHow far the last child livedSource
2026 Primary720 mLA
2025 Primary620 mLA
2024 Primary1.1 milesLA

The distances are the council's own, usually measured in a straight line from home to the school gate. If the distance is getting shorter each year, the school is getting harder to get into. See which councils we have this data for.

What a home within 720 m of the school costs

Typical sale price within 720 m of the school£580,000half sold for £425k to £816k
Homes sold449December 2023 to December 2025, Land Registry
Compared with the district-13%a typical home in the district sells for £669,772

Every home sold within that distance of the school (the typical cut-off over the last three years), 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 roll231Census January 2026
Places25292% full
Pupils from low-income families68%66% have had free school meals at some point in the last six years
Pupils learning English31%First language is not English
Pupils getting extra support27%62 pupils with SEN support
Pupils with an EHC plan7%16 pupils with a plan
Average class size29.06 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)63%£192,200 extra funding in 2026/27; England 24%
Boys and girls111 / 120
White British pupils23%

Infant classes (Reception to Year 2) average 29.7 pupils (England 25.5); junior classes (Years 3 to 6) average 28.3 (England 27.3).

The most common needs among pupils getting extra support: language and communications needs (29), emotional and mental health (19), Autistic spectrum disorder (15), Other difficulty or disability (13), Moderate learning difficulty (1), SEN support but no specialist assessment of type of need (1).

How the mix of pupils has changed
Census202620252024202320222021
Pupils on roll231228216224228228
Pupils from low-income familiesFree school meals68%55%58%51%40%38%
Pupils learning EnglishEnglish as an additional language31%31%28%28%26%26%
Pupils getting extra supportSEN support26%30%33%15%16%
Pupils with an EHC planEducation, health and care plans8%8%8%5%3%

Attendance and behaviour

In 2024/25 pupils were in school 93.9% of the time. Across similar schools in England it was 94.8%.

Attendance93.9%
England 94.8%
Official name: 100 minus overall absence
Pupils missing a lot of school20.9%
England 12.8%
Official name: Persistent absence
Suspensions per 100 pupils1.32024/25, no permanent exclusions
Missed without permission1.8%of school time, 2024/25
Attendance year by year
Measure2024/252023/242022/232021/222020/212018/19England
Sessions missedOverall absence6.1%7.7%5.9%5.0%3.6%3.4%5.2%
Missed with permissionAuthorised absence4.3%5.0%4.0%4.1%2.6%2.6%
Missed without permissionUnauthorised absence1.8%2.7%1.9%0.9%0.9%0.8%
Pupils missing a lot of schoolPersistent absence20.9%23.8%17.2%12.3%9.7%7.4%12.8%
SuspensionsSuspension rate1.32.80.00.00.0
Permanent exclusionsPermanent exclusions00000

Staff and money

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

Teachers11.6full-time equivalent, 12 people
Pupils per teacher19.2Pupils for every full-time teacher
Fully qualified teachers83%hold qualified teacher status
Teaching assistants13.3full-time equivalent
Average teacher pay£56,105
Teachers who left in the year9%2024/25, for any reason including retirement
Vacancies0
Sick days per teacher2.62024/25

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£9,631England £7,738. Total £2.1m
Income per pupil£9,899England £7,697. Total £2.2m
Spent on teachers per pupil£3,593England £3,480
Money in reserve12%A healthy amount put by: £268k, £1,216 per pupil. England 6%
Money in against money out+£59kit took in more than it spent this year
Where the money goes£9,631spent 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 m2,09112 months to June 2026, mostly anti-social behaviour
Local crime rate172 per 1,000 people89% higher than the England average
Typical house price£665,000Islington
Nearest bus stop110 mTollington Park Holloway, 11 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
Duncombe Primary SchoolCouncil340 m378Good 202381Compare
Christ The King Catholic Primary SchoolRoman Catholic470 m240No overall grade 202512Compare
Grafton Primary SchoolCouncil600 m435Good 202366Compare
Pooles Park Primary SchoolAcademy600 m184Inadequate 20220Compare
Yerbury Primary SchoolCouncil740 m453Outstanding 202397Compare
Pakeman Primary SchoolCouncil780 m338Report card 202630Compare
St John's Upper Holloway CofE Primary SchoolChurch of England860 m206Good 202254Compare
Ashmount Primary SchoolCouncil0.7 miles390Good 202346Compare

Compared with schools like it

Our score compares St Mark's CofE Primary School with the 48 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 48 schools are dotted all over the country, so we don't list them. What matters is where this school sits among them.

Beats90%of schools with a similar mix of pupils
In the top quarter of its group. Its score of 72 is 45 points above the typical school in the group.
0Lowest of the group 2 · middle 27 · highest 96100

How the score was worked out

The score is out of 100. A 72 means that once everything below is added up, this school comes out ahead of 72% of primary schools in England. Results bounce around from year to year, especially in small schools, so we also show a likely range: 39 to 90. 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
+0.02
2025, 2024 and 2023 results; 28 pupils
Ofsted inspection0%no data
Progress pupils make20%above
+0.13
DfE progress measure; 28 pupils
Direction of travel over five years10%below
-0.05
results and attendance falling year on year
Attendance and behaviour10%below
-0.12
2024/25; 177 pupils
Results, allowing for the mix of pupils10%well above
+0.29
Attainment relative to schools with a similar intake; 28 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 Mark's CofE Primary School a good school?

Yes, going by the figures. St Mark's CofE Primary School scores 72 out of 100. That is above schools that take in a similar mix of pupils, and ahead of 90% of the 50 schools most like it in England. The score could fairly be anywhere from 39 to 90, so a few points either way between schools doesn't mean much. Its results have been slipping over the last five years.

How good are St Mark's CofE Primary School's SATs results?

In summer 2025, 75% of Year 6 children reached the expected level in reading, writing and maths. Across England it was 63%. 14% went further and reached the higher level.

How many pupils does St Mark's CofE Primary School have?

231 pupils aged 2 to 11 were on the roll in January 2026. It has 252 places, so it is 92% full.

Is St Mark's CofE Primary School oversubscribed, and how far away can you live?

Yes. For September 2026 the last place went to a child living 720 m 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 Mark's CofE Primary School?

Pupils were in school 93.9% of the time in 2024/25. Similar schools in England managed 94.8%. 21% of pupils missed at least a tenth of the year.

How big are the classes at St Mark's CofE Primary School?

The average class had 29.0 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
Sussex Way, Islington, London, N19 4JF
Telephone
020 7272 5967
Website
www.st-marks.islington.sch.uk
Headteacher
Ms Martha Braithwaite
Type of school
Church of England school (voluntary aided) (Voluntary aided school, local authority maintained schools)
Phase
Primary school, ages 2-11, with nursery
Gender
Mixed
Religious character
Church of England, Diocese of London
Local authority
Islington
Ward
Tollington
Constituency
Islington North
Setting
Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
URN
100444 · LAESTAB 2063501 · UKPRN 10076253

Where these figures come from