St Stephen's CofE First School
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St Stephen's CofE First School is a sponsored academy in Redditch for boys and girls aged 3 to 9. It has 171 pupils, 21 more than it has places for. About 26 in every 100 pupils come from a low-income family, about the same as most schools in England. We give it 64 out of 100. That puts it in line with schools like it, ahead of 60% of the 50 schools most like it. Ofsted's last grade was good, back in 2024.
Mabey Avenue, Redditch, B98 8HW0152763911ststephensschool.org.ukMs Sarah Callanan headteacherAll details
What Ofsted found
Ofsted's last full inspection was on 13 March 2024, back when it gave schools one overall grade. Read the report on Ofsted's website.
Good overall.
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.
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 5% since 2021/22, so places are getting harder to come by.
In 2026 every child who applied got a place, so how far away you live didn't matter. That could change if the school gets more popular.
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. Every child who applied got a place.
| Entry | Places | How far the last child lived | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 Primary | 30 | – all offered | LA |
| 2025 Primary | 30 | 0.8 miles (distance, outside the catchment area) | LA |
| 2024 Primary | 30 | – all offered | LA |
| 2023 Primary | 30 | 2.5 miles (distance, outside the catchment area) | LA |
| 2022 Primary | 30 | 790 m (distance, outside the catchment area) | LA |
| 2021 Primary | 30 | 1.9 miles (distance, outside the catchment area) | LA |
| 2020 Primary | 30 | 2.1 miles (distance, outside the catchment area) | LA |
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 0.8 miles of the school costs
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.
Infant classes (Reception to Year 2) average 29.7 pupils (England 25.5); junior classes (Years 3 to 6) average 30.0 (England 27.3).
The most common needs among pupils getting extra support: Moderate learning difficulty (14), language and communications needs (13), Autistic spectrum disorder (4), emotional and mental health (3), Specific learning difficulty (2), Severe learning difficulty (1).
How the mix of pupils has changed
| Census | 2026 | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils on roll | 171 | 167 | 171 | 170 | 161 | 154 |
| Pupils from low-income familiesFree school meals | 23% | 22% | 21% | 21% | 23% | 20% |
| Pupils learning EnglishEnglish as an additional language | 63% | 70% | 63% | 65% | 61% | 63% |
| Pupils getting extra supportSEN support | – | 16% | 16% | 18% | 23% | 19% |
| Pupils with an EHC planEducation, health and care plans | – | 2% | 2% | 1% | 2% | 1% |
Attendance and behaviour
In 2024/25 pupils were in school 94.7% of the time. Across similar schools in England it was 94.8%.
Attendance year by year
| Measure | 2024/25 | 2023/24 | 2022/23 | 2021/22 | 2020/21 | 2018/19† | England |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sessions missedOverall absence | 5.3% | 5.8% | 7.7% | 7.5% | 5.0% | 3.7% | 5.2% |
| Missed with permissionAuthorised absence | 4.2% | 4.8% | 6.0% | 6.2% | 4.6% | 2.8% | – |
| Missed without permissionUnauthorised absence | 1.1% | 0.9% | 1.7% | 1.4% | 0.5% | 0.9% | – |
| Pupils missing a lot of schoolPersistent absence | 10.8% | 16.7% | 26.3% | 20.0% | 11.5% | 6.7% | 12.8% |
| SuspensionsSuspension rate | 1.2 | 1.8 | 0.6 | 14.3 | 9.7 | – | – |
| Permanent exclusionsPermanent exclusions | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | – | – |
† These attendance figures are for St Stephen's CofE First School, the school this one replaced in October 2019. 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.
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.
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
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.
| School | Type | Distance | Pupils | Ofsted | Score | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| St George's CofE First School and Nursery | Academy | 910 m | 170 | Requires improvement 2024 | 1 | Compare |
| Holyoakes Field First School | Academy | 0.7 miles | 315 | No overall grade 2024 | 55 | Compare |
| St Bede's Catholic Middle School | Academy | 0.8 miles | 646 | Good 2023 | 64 | Compare |
| Birchensale Middle School | Academy | 0.9 miles | 522 | No overall grade 2025 | 52 | Compare |
| Moons Moat First School | Council | 1.1 miles | 170 | Report card 2026 | 7 | Compare |
| Oak Hill First School | Academy | 1.2 miles | 440 | Not inspected | – | Compare |
| Woodfield Academy | Academy | 1.2 miles | 542 | No overall grade 2024 | 10 | Compare |
| Abbeywood First School | Academy | 1.2 miles | 255 | Good 2020 | 30 | Compare |
Compared with schools like it
Our score compares St Stephen's CofE First School with the 45 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 45 schools are dotted all over the country, so we don't list them. What matters is where this school sits among them.
How the score was worked out
The score is out of 100. A 64 means that once everything below is added up, this school comes out ahead of 64% of primary schools in England. Results bounce around from year to year, especially in small schools, so we also show a likely range: 36 to 84. 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 at | How much it counts | Against schools like it | Effect on the score | Based on |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Results over three years | 0% | no data | – | |
| Ofsted inspection | 20% | in line | +0.03 | Ofsted grade, 2.5 years old |
| Progress pupils make | 0% | no data | – | |
| Direction of travel over five years | 10% | above | +0.13 | results and attendance rising year on year |
| Attendance and behaviour | 10% | in line | +0.01 | 2024/25; 120 pupils |
| Results, allowing for the mix of pupils | 0% | no data | – | |
| What parents say | 0% | 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 Stephen's CofE First School a good school?
It is about average. St Stephen's CofE First School scores 64 out of 100. That is in line with schools that take in a similar mix of pupils, and ahead of 60% of the 50 schools most like it in England. The score could fairly be anywhere from 36 to 84, so a few points either way between schools doesn't mean much.
What is St Stephen's CofE First School's Ofsted rating?
Ofsted rated St Stephen's CofE First School good at its last full inspection on 13 March 2024.
How many pupils does St Stephen's CofE First School have?
171 pupils aged 3 to 9 were on the roll in January 2026. It has 150 places, so it is 114% full.
Is St Stephen's CofE First 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 Stephen's CofE First School?
Pupils were in school 94.7% of the time in 2024/25. Similar schools in England managed 94.8%. 11% of pupils missed at least a tenth of the year.
How big are the classes at St Stephen's CofE First School?
The average class had 28.5 pupils in January 2026. Across England it was 25.4. No class had more than 30 pupils.
Does St Stephen's CofE First School have a breakfast club?
Yes. It is on the government's free breakfast club programme, so every pupil can have a free half-hour breakfast club before school.
These answers come straight from the figures on this page and update when new data comes out.
Contact and details
- Address
- Mabey Avenue, Redditch, B98 8HW
- Telephone
- 0152763911
- Website
- www.ststephensschool.org.uk
- Headteacher
- Ms Sarah Callanan
- Free breakfast club
- Yes: on the government's programme, so every pupil can have a free half-hour breakfast club before school (listed since September 2026).
- Type of school
- Sponsored academy (Academy sponsor led, academies)
- Phase
- Primary school, ages 3-9, with nursery
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Church of England, Diocese of Worcester
- Multi-academy trust
- Central Region Schools Trust (14 schools)
- Local authority
- Worcestershire
- Ward
- Greenlands & Lakeside
- Constituency
- Redditch
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Opened
- 1 October 2019 (new provision)
- URN
- 147165 · LAESTAB 8852030 · UKPRN 10083598
- Formerly
- St Stephen's CofE First School
Where these figures come from
- School details: Department for Education, Get Information About Schools, refreshed daily (this page rebuilt 13 September 2026).
- Inspections: Ofsted management information, monthly; latest publication in our data 27 August 2026.
- Attendance: DfE pupil absence in schools in England, 2024/25 full year.
- Pupil characteristics: DfE school census, January 2026.
- Staff: DfE school workforce census, November 2025.
- Class sizes: DfE schools, pupils and their characteristics, January 2026.
- Pupil premium: DfE allocations and conditions of grant, 2026 to 2027.
- Money: DfE financial benchmarking and insights tool, academy accounts return 2024/25.
- Admissions outcomes: Worcestershire council's published allocation statistics (source), entry years 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024, 2025, 2026.
- House prices: HM Land Registry price paid data, December 2023 to December 2025, placed by postcode.
- Breakfast club: DfE list of schools on the free breakfast club programme.
- Neighbourhood: police.uk street-level crime, HM Land Registry price paid data, NaPTAN bus stops, English Indices of Deprivation 2025.
- All under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Full list and update calendar.