School Chooser

St Stephens (Saltash) Community Primary School & Nursery

Primary · ages 4-11MixedCouncil349 pupilsSaltashCornwall
School Chooser Score
67
Above
similar schools
Likely range 48 to 81, so it could be “in line”
Out of 100. Better than 80% of the 50 schools most like it. Slipping year on year.
OfstedGoodConfirmed by Ofsted, November 2022
Reached the expected level at 1172%England 63%
Attendance95.0%England 94.8%
Pupils from low-income families23%About the same as most schools in England
Places71 spare349 pupils, 420 places
Pupils per teacher16.5School workforce census

St Stephens (Saltash) Community Primary School & Nursery is a council school in Saltash for boys and girls aged 4 to 11. It has 349 pupils and room for 420. About 23 in every 100 pupils come from a low-income family, about the same as most schools in England. We give it 67 out of 100. That puts it above schools like it, ahead of 80% of the 50 schools most like it. Ofsted's last grade was good, back in 2022.

Long Park Road, Saltash, PL12 4AQ01752 843561st-stephens-salt.cornwall.sch.ukMrs Sarah Laws headteacherAll details

What Ofsted found

A shorter visit on 9 November 2022 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

Year 6 results (SATs), summer 2025

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

Reached the expected level at 1172%
England 63%
Official name: Expected standard in reading, writing and maths
Working above the expected level7%
England 8%
Official name: Higher standard in reading, writing and maths
Reading score105.0
England 105.6
Official name: Reading average scaled score
Maths score104.0
England 104.6
Official name: Maths average scaled score
Trend
Reached the expected level at 11
2017 to 2025
2017: 75%75%20172018: 75%75%20182019: 76%76%20192023: 74%74%20232024: 80%80%20242025: 72%72%2025
Since 2017: -3%Declining overall
All Year 6 measures, year by year
Measure202520242023201920182017CornwallEngland
Pupils tested586161454444
Reached the expected level at 11Expected standard in reading, writing and maths72%80%74%76%75%75%60%63%
Working above the expected levelHigher standard in reading, writing and maths7%16%15%9%14%7%8%8%
Reading scoreReading average scaled score105.0108.0107.0107.0106.0107.0105.4105.6
Maths scoreMaths average scaled score104.0107.0105.0105.0105.0104.0103.8104.6
Grammar and spelling scoreGPS average scaled score105.0108.0107.0107.0107.0107.0103.8105.2
Expected level: readingReading expected standard81%93%90%91%84%82%
Expected level: mathsMaths expected standard78%87%77%82%82%84%
Expected level: writingWriting expected standard (teacher assessed)78%82%84%89%84%84%
Reading progressReading progress score+2.7+3.4+3.2+2.9
Maths progressMaths progress score+1.8+1.2+2.2+0.6
Expected level: low-income pupilsExpected standard, disadvantaged72%73%56%100%67%63%
Expected level: other pupilsExpected standard, non-disadvantaged73%83%81%69%78%78%

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. Every gap at this school 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
72%73%
Gap 1 ptsEngland 21 pts
Reached the expected level at 11Boys vs girls
71%74%
Gap 3 ptsEngland 5 pts
Reached the higher level at 11Low-income pupils vs all pupils
4%7%
Gap 3 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.

A few spare places362 pupils for 420 places, 2024/25
86% full

About 58 places were empty, so most families who apply get in, though a popular year group can still fill up. Pupil numbers have fallen by 6% 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 Cornwall 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 roll349Census January 2026
Places42083% full
Pupils from low-income families23%23% have had free school meals at some point in the last six years
Pupils learning English3%First language is not English
Pupils getting extra support20%68 pupils with SEN support
Pupils with an EHC plan6%20 pupils with a plan
Average class size24.412 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)22%£120,900 extra funding in 2026/27; England 24%
Boys and girls175 / 174
White British pupils92%

Infant classes (Reception to Year 2) average 22.4 pupils (England 25.5); junior classes (Years 3 to 6) average 25.9 (England 27.3).

The most common needs among pupils getting extra support: language and communications needs (36), emotional and mental health (21), Moderate learning difficulty (13), Autistic spectrum disorder (10), Specific learning difficulty (6), Hearing impairment (1).

How the mix of pupils has changed
Census202620252024202320222021
Pupils on roll349364380389385380
Pupils from low-income familiesFree school meals23%26%27%26%25%26%
Pupils learning EnglishEnglish as an additional language3%3%2%3%3%4%
Pupils getting extra supportSEN support16%16%15%16%17%
Pupils with an EHC planEducation, health and care plans4%3%4%2%1%

Attendance and behaviour

In 2024/25 pupils were in school 95.0% of the time. Across similar schools in England it was 94.8%.

Attendance95.0%
England 94.8%
Official name: 100 minus overall absence
Pupils missing a lot of school14.2%
England 12.8%
Official name: Persistent absence
Suspensions per 100 pupils1.72024/25, no permanent exclusions
Missed without permission1.4%of school time, 2024/25
Attendance year by year
Measure2024/252023/242022/232021/222020/212018/19England
Sessions missedOverall absence5.0%5.2%4.7%5.6%2.2%3.2%5.2%
Missed with permissionAuthorised absence3.7%4.0%3.7%4.9%1.9%2.5%
Missed without permissionUnauthorised absence1.4%1.2%1.0%0.7%0.3%0.8%
Pupils missing a lot of schoolPersistent absence14.2%11.8%9.2%13.3%3.0%7.9%12.8%
SuspensionsSuspension rate1.74.70.51.01.1
Permanent exclusionsPermanent exclusions00000

Staff and money

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

Teachers21.2full-time equivalent, 23 people
Pupils per teacher16.5Pupils for every full-time teacher
Fully qualified teachers100%hold qualified teacher status
Teaching assistants22.8full-time equivalent
Average teacher pay£48,192
Teachers who left in the year0%2024/25, for any reason including retirement
Vacancies0
Sick days per teacher1.12024/25

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£7,174England £7,738. Total £2.6m
Income per pupil£7,484England £7,697. Total £2.7m
Spent on teachers per pupil£3,206England £3,480
Money in reserve16%A healthy amount put by: £439k, £1,206 per pupil. England 6%
Money in against money out+£113kit took in more than it spent this year
Where the money goes£7,174spent 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 m25712 months to June 2026, mostly violence and sexual offences
Local crime rate61 per 1,000 people33% lower than the England average
Typical house price£289,950Cornwall
Nearest bus stop40 mLong Park Road School, 41 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
Brunel Primary & Nursery AcademyAcademy460 m211Good 202250Compare
Bishop Cornish CofE VA Primary SchoolChurch of England640 m196Good 202216Compare
Burraton Community Primary SchoolCouncil0.7 miles343Good 202351Compare
Riverside Community Primary SchoolFoundation1.5 miles370Good 202368Compare
St Paul's Roman Catholic Primary SchoolAcademy1.6 miles136Good 202214Compare
Victoria Road PrimaryAcademy1.7 miles172No overall grade 202510Compare
Marine Academy PrimaryFree school2.1 miles506Outstanding 202299Compare
Carbeile Junior SchoolCouncil2.1 miles268Report card 202619Compare

Compared with schools like it

Our score compares St Stephens (Saltash) Community Primary School & Nursery 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.

Beats80%of schools with a similar mix of pupils
In the top quarter of its group. Its score of 67 is 28 points above the typical school in the group.
0Lowest of the group 4 · middle 39 · highest 100100

How the score was worked out

The score is out of 100. A 67 means that once everything below is added up, this school comes out ahead of 67% of primary schools in England. Results bounce around from year to year, especially in small schools, so we also show a likely range: 48 to 81. 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
+0.09
2025, 2024 and 2023 results; 58 pupils
Ofsted inspection18% (normally 20%, cut because the inspection is old)in line
+0.01
Ofsted grade, 3.8 years old
Progress pupils make20%above
+0.13
DfE progress measure; 58 pupils
Direction of travel over five years10%below
-0.10
results and attendance falling year on year
Attendance and behaviour10%in line
0.00
2024/25; 324 pupils
Results, allowing for the mix of pupils10%above
+0.08
Attainment relative to schools with a similar intake; 58 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 Stephens (Saltash) Community Primary School & Nursery a good school?

Yes, going by the figures. St Stephens (Saltash) Community Primary School & Nursery scores 67 out of 100. That is above schools that take in a similar mix of pupils, and ahead of 80% of the 50 schools most like it in England. The score could fairly be anywhere from 48 to 81, 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 Stephens (Saltash) Community Primary School & Nursery's Ofsted rating?

Ofsted rated St Stephens (Saltash) Community Primary School & Nursery good at its last full inspection on 9 November 2022.

How good are St Stephens (Saltash) Community Primary School & Nursery's SATs results?

In summer 2025, 72% of Year 6 children reached the expected level in reading, writing and maths. Across England it was 63%. 7% went further and reached the higher level.

How many pupils does St Stephens (Saltash) Community Primary School & Nursery have?

349 pupils aged 4 to 11 were on the roll in January 2026. It has 420 places, so it is 83% full.

Is St Stephens (Saltash) Community Primary School & Nursery oversubscribed?

Probably not. 58 places were empty in 2024/25 (14% of the total), so most families who apply get a place.

What is attendance like at St Stephens (Saltash) Community Primary School & Nursery?

Pupils were in school 95.0% of the time in 2024/25. Similar schools in England managed 94.8%. 14% of pupils missed at least a tenth of the year.

How big are the classes at St Stephens (Saltash) Community Primary School & Nursery?

The average class had 24.4 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
Long Park Road, Saltash, PL12 4AQ
Telephone
01752 843561
Website
www.st-stephens-salt.cornwall.sch.uk
Headteacher
Mrs Sarah Laws
Type of school
Council school (Community school, local authority maintained schools)
Phase
Primary school, ages 4-11
Gender
Mixed
Local authority
Cornwall
Ward
Saltash Essa
Constituency
South East Cornwall
Setting
Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
URN
111966 · LAESTAB 9082723 · UKPRN 10077280

Where these figures come from