School Chooser

St Michael's CofE (C) First School

Primary · ages 3-9MixedChurch of England184 pupilsNurseryStoneStaffordshire
School Chooser Score
53
In line with
similar schools
Likely range 26 to 78, so it could be “above”
Out of 100. Better than 29% of the 50 schools most like it. Slipping year on year.
OfstedGoodConfirmed by Ofsted, January 2023
Attendance95.7%England 94.8%
Pupils from low-income families10%Far fewer than most schools
Places142 spare184 pupils, 326 places
Pupils per teacher19.6School workforce census
Pupils on roll184Census January 2026

St Michael's CofE (C) First School is a Church of England school (voluntary controlled) in Stone for boys and girls aged 3 to 9. It has 184 pupils and room for 326. About 10 in every 100 pupils come from a low-income family, far fewer than at most schools in England. We give it 53 out of 100. That puts it in line with schools like it, ahead of 29% of the 50 schools most like it. Ofsted's last grade was good, back in 2023.

Weavers Lane, Off Lichfield Road, Stone, ST15 8QB01785 334930st-michaels-stone.staffs.sch.ukMrs Julia Wass headteacherAll details

What Ofsted found

A shorter visit on 12 January 2023 found nothing to change the school's grade. Read the report on Ofsted's website.

Good overall. A shorter follow-up visit found nothing to change that. The last full inspection was before September 2019, which is as far back as Ofsted's public records go, so we can't show its date or the grades for each area.

Results

No published results yet for this school.

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.

Plenty of spare places195 pupils for 300 places, 2024/25
65% full

105 places were empty (35% of the total), so almost everyone who applies gets in. Pupil numbers have fallen by 11% since 2021/22, so places are getting easier to find.

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 Staffordshire council's admissions booklet, send it to us.

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 roll184Census January 2026
Places32656% full
Pupils from low-income families10%10% have had free school meals at some point in the last six years
Pupils learning English1%First language is not English
Pupils getting extra support14%26 pupils with SEN support
Pupils with an EHC plan2%3 pupils with a plan
Average class size26.18 classes, January 2026; England 25.4
Classes with more than 30 pupils25%Infant classes are capped at 30 by law; England 10%
Pupils with extra funding (pupil premium)8%£23,250 extra funding in 2026/27; England 24%
Boys and girls94 / 90
White British pupils90%

Infant classes (Reception to Year 2) average 24.3 pupils (England 25.5); junior classes (Years 3 to 6) average 29.0 (England 27.3).

The most common needs among pupils getting extra support: language and communications needs (12), Moderate learning difficulty (8), emotional and mental health (4), Specific learning difficulty (3), Autistic spectrum disorder (1), SEN support but no specialist assessment of type of need (1).

How the mix of pupils has changed
Census202620252024202320222021
Pupils on roll184198229221214219
Pupils from low-income familiesFree school meals10%13%11%10%10%15%
Pupils learning EnglishEnglish as an additional language1%1%1%1%1%1%
Pupils getting extra supportSEN support12%16%11%10%9%
Pupils with an EHC planEducation, health and care plans2%0%1%1%2%

Attendance and behaviour

In 2024/25 pupils were in school 95.7% of the time. Across similar schools in England it was 94.8%.

Attendance95.7%
England 94.8%
Official name: 100 minus overall absence
Pupils missing a lot of school8.7%
England 12.8%
Official name: Persistent absence
Suspensions per 100 pupils3.02024/25, 1 permanent exclusion
Missed without permission0.6%of school time, 2024/25
Attendance year by year
Measure2024/252023/242022/232021/222020/212018/19England
Sessions missedOverall absence4.3%4.4%4.4%5.6%2.0%3.9%5.2%
Missed with permissionAuthorised absence3.7%3.6%3.2%4.9%1.8%3.0%
Missed without permissionUnauthorised absence0.6%0.9%1.2%0.6%0.3%0.9%
Pupils missing a lot of schoolPersistent absence8.7%11.3%10.5%17.7%3.3%8.8%12.8%
SuspensionsSuspension rate3.03.10.92.81.8
Permanent exclusionsPermanent exclusions10000

Staff and money

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

Teachers9.4full-time equivalent, 11 people
Pupils per teacher19.6Pupils for every full-time teacher
Fully qualified teachers100%hold qualified teacher status
Teaching assistants8.0full-time equivalent
Average teacher pay£53,263
Teachers who left in the year0%2024/25, for any reason including retirement
Vacancies0
Sick days per teacher1.52024/25

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£7,771England £7,738. Total £1.5m
Income per pupil£7,537England £7,697. Total £1.5m
Spent on teachers per pupil£3,035England £3,480
Money in reserve-23%In the red: -£340k, -£1,717 per pupil. England 6%
Money in against money out-£46kit spent more than it took in this year
Where the money goes£7,771spent 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 m8112 months to June 2026, mostly violence and sexual offences
Local crime rate44 per 1,000 people51% lower than the England average
Typical house price£255,000Stafford
Nearest bus stop90 mGrange Road, 8 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
Walton Priory Middle SchoolCouncil0.7 miles542No overall grade 202572Compare
Pirehill First SchoolCouncil0.7 miles245Report card 202648Compare
St Dominic's Catholic Primary SchoolAcademy0.9 miles221Outstanding 202299Compare
Christ Church CofE First SchoolAcademy1.0 miles120Not inspectedCompare
Manor Hill First SchoolAcademy1.0 miles260Good 202369Compare
Christ Church AcademyAcademy1.2 miles540Report card 202658Compare
Oulton CofE First SchoolAcademy1.7 miles77Not inspectedCompare
Springfields First SchoolCouncil2.8 miles138Good 202382Compare

Compared with schools like it

Our score compares St Michael's CofE (C) First School with the 49 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 49 schools are dotted all over the country, so we don't list them. What matters is where this school sits among them.

Beats29%of schools with a similar mix of pupils
In the lower half of its group. Its score of 53 is 13 points below the typical school in the group.
0Lowest of the group 6 · middle 67 · highest 96100

Nearby schools with a similar mix of pupils that score higher

Of those 49 schools, these are within 25 km and score at least five points more than St Michael's CofE (C) First School, nearest first. A school with the same kind of pupils and a higher score is the fairest sign that it gets more out of them.

SchoolTypeDistancePupilsOfstedScore
Baldwins Gate CofE(VC) Primary SchoolChurch of England8.4 miles188Good 202293Compare
Hugo Meynell CofE (VC) Primary SchoolChurch of England10.6 miles206No overall grade 202590Compare

How the score was worked out

The score is out of 100. A 53 means that once everything below is added up, this school comes out ahead of 53% of primary schools in England. Results bounce around from year to year, especially in small schools, so we also show a likely range: 26 to 78. 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 years0%no data
Ofsted inspection18% (normally 20%, cut because the inspection is old)in line
+0.02
Ofsted grade, 3.7 years old
Progress pupils make0%no data
Direction of travel over five years10%below
-0.16
results and attendance falling year on year
Attendance and behaviour10%above
+0.16
2024/25; 173 pupils
Results, allowing for the mix of pupils0%no data
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 Michael's CofE (C) First School a good school?

It is about average. St Michael's CofE (C) First School scores 53 out of 100. That is in line with schools that take in a similar mix of pupils, and ahead of 29% of the 50 schools most like it in England. The score could fairly be anywhere from 26 to 78, 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 Michael's CofE (C) First School's Ofsted rating?

Ofsted rated St Michael's CofE (C) First School good at its last full inspection on 12 January 2023.

How many pupils does St Michael's CofE (C) First School have?

184 pupils aged 3 to 9 were on the roll in January 2026. It has 326 places, so it is 56% full.

Is St Michael's CofE (C) First School oversubscribed?

Probably not. 105 places were empty in 2024/25 (35% of the total), so most families who apply get a place.

What is attendance like at St Michael's CofE (C) First School?

Pupils were in school 95.7% of the time in 2024/25. Similar schools in England managed 94.8%. 9% of pupils missed at least a tenth of the year.

How big are the classes at St Michael's CofE (C) First School?

The average class had 26.1 pupils in January 2026. Across England it was 25.4. 25% of classes 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
Weavers Lane, Off Lichfield Road, Stone, ST15 8QB
Telephone
01785 334930
Website
www.st-michaels-stone.staffs.sch.uk
Headteacher
Mrs Julia Wass
Type of school
Church of England school (voluntary controlled) (Voluntary controlled school, local authority maintained schools)
Phase
Primary school, ages 3-9, with nursery
Gender
Mixed
Religious character
Church of England, Diocese of Lichfield
Local authority
Staffordshire
Ward
St Michael's & Stonefield
Constituency
Stone, Great Wyrley and Penkridge
Setting
Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
URN
124275 · LAESTAB 8603112 · UKPRN 10078757

Where these figures come from