School Chooser

St Paul's Infant School

Primary · ages 4-7MixedCouncil242 pupilsMaidstoneKent
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.
Attendance94.2%England 94.8%
Pupils from low-income families24%About the same as most schools in England
Places28 spare242 pupils, 270 places
Pupils per teacher17.0School workforce census
Pupils on roll242Census January 2026

St Paul's Infant School is a council school in Maidstone for boys and girls aged 4 to 7. It has 242 pupils and room for 270. About 24 in every 100 pupils come from a low-income family, about the same as most schools in England.

Hillary Road, Maidstone, ME14 2BS01622 753322stpaulsmaidstone.co.ukMrs Sarah Aldridge headteacherAll details

Ofsted

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

Results

No published results yet for this school.

Getting a place

Admissions policy not published.

Nearly full264 pupils for 270 places, 2024/25
98% full

Fewer than one place in twenty is empty, so in most years more families apply than there are places. Living close by, or already having a child here, makes a real difference. Pupil numbers have grown by 3% since 2021/22, so places are getting harder to come by.

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

Who goes here

Who the school teaches, from the latest school census.

Pupils on roll242Census January 2026
Places27090% full
Pupils from low-income families24%24% 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%66 pupils with SEN support
Pupils with an EHC plan2%5 pupils with a plan
Average class size26.97 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)23%£86,800 extra funding in 2026/27; England 24%
Boys and girls114 / 128
White British pupils41%

The most common needs among pupils getting extra support: language and communications needs (34), emotional and mental health (18), Moderate learning difficulty (16), Autistic spectrum disorder (1), Hearing impairment (1), Multi-sensory impairment (1).

How the mix of pupils has changed
Census202620252024202320222021
Pupils on roll242262268261254259
Pupils from low-income familiesFree school meals24%23%25%30%29%22%
Pupils learning EnglishEnglish as an additional language31%30%33%32%30%35%
Pupils getting extra supportSEN support25%21%20%12%10%
Pupils with an EHC planEducation, health and care plans2%1%1%1%0%

Attendance and behaviour

In 2024/25 pupils were in school 94.2% of the time. Across similar schools in England it was 94.8%.

Attendance94.2%
England 94.8%
Official name: 100 minus overall absence
Pupils missing a lot of school14.6%
England 12.8%
Official name: Persistent absence
Suspensions per 100 pupils8.42024/25, no permanent exclusions
Missed without permission1.2%of school time, 2024/25
Attendance year by year
Measure2024/252023/242022/232021/222020/212018/19England
Sessions missedOverall absence5.9%6.5%8.1%6.1%2.4%4.9%5.2%
Missed with permissionAuthorised absence4.6%4.6%6.1%5.0%1.9%3.8%
Missed without permissionUnauthorised absence1.2%1.9%2.0%1.2%0.5%1.1%
Pupils missing a lot of schoolPersistent absence14.6%19.9%22.7%15.5%6.4%14.1%12.8%
SuspensionsSuspension rate8.45.22.75.91.2
Permanent exclusionsPermanent exclusions00000

Staff and money

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

Teachers14.2full-time equivalent, 16 people
Pupils per teacher17.0Pupils for every full-time teacher
Fully qualified teachers100%hold qualified teacher status
Teaching assistants15.6full-time equivalent
Average teacher pay£46,327
Teachers who left in the year0%2024/25, for any reason including retirement
Vacancies0
Sick days per teacher1.92024/25

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£7,117England £7,738. Total £1.9m
Income per pupil£6,743England £7,697. Total £1.8m
Spent on teachers per pupil£3,227England £3,480
Money in reserve8%Not much put by: £134k, £513 per pupil. England 6%
Money in against money out-£98kit spent more than it took in this year
Where the money goes£7,117spent 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 m18912 months to June 2026, mostly violence and sexual offences
Local crime rate243 per 1,000 people167% higher than the England average
Typical house price£365,000Maidstone
Nearest bus stop230 mBoxley Road TA Centre, 7 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
North Borough Junior SchoolCouncil100 m350Good 202322Compare
Sandling Primary SchoolCouncil830 m421No overall grade 202559Compare
Valley Invicta Primary School At East BoroughAcademy0.8 miles445Report card 202693Compare
Brunswick House Primary SchoolCouncil0.9 miles420Good 202340Compare
Allington Primary SchoolAcademy1.3 miles466Outstanding 202297Compare
Palace Wood Primary SchoolCouncil1.3 miles417Good 202251Compare
St Michael's Church of England Infant School MaidstoneChurch of England1.3 miles118No overall grade 202459Compare
Maidstone, St Michael's Church of England Junior SchoolChurch of England1.3 miles180Good 202343Compare

Questions parents ask

Is St Paul's Infant School a good school?

We don't have enough published data to score St Paul's Infant School yet.

How many pupils does St Paul's Infant School have?

242 pupils aged 4 to 7 were on the roll in January 2026. It has 270 places, so it is 90% full.

Is St Paul's Infant School oversubscribed?

Often. Fewer than one place in twenty was empty in 2024/25, so popular year groups fill up.

What is attendance like at St Paul's Infant School?

Pupils were in school 94.2% of the time in 2024/25. Similar schools in England managed 94.8%. 15% of pupils missed at least a tenth of the year.

How big are the classes at St Paul's Infant School?

The average class had 26.9 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
Hillary Road, Maidstone, ME14 2BS
Telephone
01622 753322
Website
www.stpaulsmaidstone.co.uk
Headteacher
Mrs Sarah Aldridge
Type of school
Council school (Community school, local authority maintained schools)
Phase
Primary school, ages 4-7
Gender
Mixed
Local authority
Kent
Ward
Penenden Heath
Constituency
Maidstone and Malling
Setting
Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
URN
118461 · LAESTAB 8862474 · UKPRN 10074064

Where these figures come from