St Benedict's Catholic Primary School

Medway · ME5 8PU

General information Primary School · 4-11 years Who goes here 205 pupils, 9.3% FSM

Educational attainment Ofsted and results

Parent score Rate this school No reviews yet - be the first SEN 12.7% on SEN support Behaviour 4.0% absence rate Staff 9.9% turnover Financials £5,072 per pupil Environment Buildings and facilities

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St Benedict's Catholic Primary School

General Information

Address: Lambourn Way, Lordswood, Chatham, ME5 8PU – View on map
Phone: 01634669700
Website: Visit school website
Headteacher: Mrs Sarah McAlpine
Age range: 4-11 years
Demand for places (Reception, September 2026): 28 families put it first for 28 places – 10 for every 10 places. Every one of them was offered a place. 5 of the 28 places went to families living outside the council area. Children putting it first, for every 10 places: 2024 11 · 2025 10 · 2026 10
Sixth form: No
Intake: Mixed
Religious character: Roman Catholic
Nursery provision: No

Who goes here

205 pupils out of 210 places At or near capacity

Pupils eligible for free school meals: 19
% eligible for free school meals: 9.3%
Pupil mix: 6 in 10 (more mixed than the Medway average)
English as an additional language: 15% (England 22%)

Staff

Teachers leaving each year

Teacher turnover: 9.9% a year (Medway 17.4%, typical in England 13.9%)
Where they went: about 100% moved to another school, 0% left state schools altogether (retirement, other careers, independent schools, abroad)
Data years: 2022/23 to 2024/25 (average of 2 years, DfE school workforce census)

Teachers who moved school or left state schools in the year after each November, as a share of all the school's teachers. Some turnover is healthy – retirements, promotions, moving house. This is a small staff, so one or two teachers leaving moves the figure a lot.

Behaviour

Awaiting Data

About this Behaviour status

We've asked this school for real behaviour figures under Freedom of Information and haven't had a response yet.

Across Medway: suspensions by reason

Suspensions for sexual misconduct: 3 (0.1 per 1,000 pupils; England 0.2)
Permanent exclusions for sexual misconduct: 0
Suspensions for bullying: 3 (0.1 per 1,000 pupils; England 0.2)
Suspensions for abuse against sexual orientation or gender identity: 0 (0.0 per 1,000 pupils; England 0.0)
Data year: 2024/25 (DfE suspensions and exclusions statistics)

These are figures for all state primary schools in Medway, not this school's own – the government doesn't publish them school by school. A suspension can have up to three reasons. Most sexual harassment between pupils never leads to a suspension, so these figures show only part of the picture.

Attendance

Overall absence: 4.0%
Persistently absent pupils: 8.2%
Data year: 2024/25

About persistent absence

A pupil is counted as "persistently absent" if they miss 10% or more of their possible school sessions - roughly one day in every two weeks. Schools and Ofsted both pay close attention to this figure specifically, since it can highlight a pattern the overall absence rate alone might hide.

SEN

No dedicated Unit or Resourced Provision

SEN Unit and Resourced Provision

Most mainstream schools don't have a dedicated SEN Unit or Resourced Provision - it isn't a mark against a school that doesn't, just a different kind of setup than one that does.

Pupils on SEN Support: 12.7%
Pupils with an EHC Plan: 2.0%
Data year: 2025/26

Most common needs - SEN Support

Speech, language and communications needs: 12 pupils
Specific learning difficulty: 4 pupils
Autistic spectrum disorder: 4 pupils
Social, emotional and mental health: 2 pupils
SEN support but no specialist assessment of type of need: 2 pupils

Most common needs - EHC Plan

Speech, language and communications needs: 3 pupils
Autistic spectrum disorder: 1 pupil

These figures show the makeup of the school.

About these SEND figures

These figures give a sense of the makeup of the school - they aren't a judgement on the quality of support provided.

Parent score - no reviews yet –

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Behaviour

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Openness

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Teaching Quality

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School Ethos

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Ability to Deal with Problems

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Headteacher Approval

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SafeguardingSafeguarding (parent rating)How parents rate the school on keeping children safe - how safe their child feels, and how well concerns are listened to and acted on. It's parents' experience, not an inspection result; Ofsted checks safeguarding separately.

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Wraparound CareWraparound Care (parent rating)How parents rate the school's breakfast and after-school clubs - availability, cost and quality. Only asked for infant, junior and primary schools, where it matters most for working parents.

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Would recommend –

Educational Attainment

An Ofsted rating for this school hasn't been added yet.

Year 6 SATs results

Met the expected standard in reading, writing & maths: 77% (England 62%)
Reached the higher standard: 23% (England 8%)
Compared with the area: 16 percentage points above the Medway average (61%)
Compared with schools with similar pupils: Above (3-year average 78% against an expected 69%)
3-year average (expected standard): 78%
Expected standard by subject: Reading 87% · Writing 90% · Maths 84% · Grammar, punctuation & spelling 87%
Average test scores: reading 109, maths 108
Based on: 31 Year 6 pupils, 2024/25

View the School Context Comparator – how this school's SATs results compare with schools teaching similar pupils.

SATs results over time

This schoolMedway averageEngland→ Broadly steady No clear rise or fall since 2022/23 (changes this small are normal from one year group to the next). In 2024/25 this school was 16 percentage points above the Medway average (61%).

Year 6 SATs: joint 6th of 54 junior and primary schools in the area

#4Thames View Primary School80%
#5St Margaret's at Troy Town CofE Voluntary Controlled Primary School79%
=6St Benedict's Catholic Primary School77%
=6Walderslade Primary School77%
#8Lordswood School76%

Click to see the full ranking

Year 6 SATs ranking

Junior and primary schools in this area, ranked by the % of Year 6 pupils meeting the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (official DfE results, 2024/25). Schools with the same result share a place (shown as =). In small schools one or two children can move a school several places, so treat close positions as roughly equal.

Rank School Score

#1Napier Community Primary and Nursery Academy84%
#2The Pilgrim School (A Church of England Primary With Nursery)83%
#3Leigh Academy High Halstow81%
#4Thames View Primary School80%
#5St Margaret's at Troy Town CofE Voluntary Controlled Primary School79%
=6St Benedict's Catholic Primary School77%
=6Walderslade Primary School77%
#8Lordswood School76%
#9Leigh Academy Hundred of Hoo75%
#10Fairview Community Primary School73%
=11Cuxton Community Junior School72%
=11Hempstead Junior School72%
=13Balfour Junior School71%
=13Halling Primary School71%
=13St Helen's Church of England Primary School, Cliffe71%
=13St Mary's Island Church of England (Aided) Primary School71%
=17Elaine Primary School70%
=17Oaklands School70%
=17St Augustine of Canterbury Catholic Primary School70%
=20Chattenden Primary School69%
=20The Academy of Woodlands69%
=22All Saints Church of England Primary School68%
=22Brompton-Westbrook Primary School68%
#24St Margaret's Church of England Junior School67%
=25Kingfisher Community Primary School66%
=25New Road Primary School66%
=25Temple Mill Primary School66%
#28Gordons Children's Academy, Junior65%
#29Featherby Junior School64%
=30Hilltop Primary School62%
=30Saxon Way Primary School62%
=32All Faiths Children's Academy61%
=32Leigh Academy Peninsula East61%
#34Delce Academy60%
=35Cedar Children's Academy57%
=35St Mary's Catholic Primary School57%
=37Bligh Primary School (Juniors)56%
=37Maundene School56%
=37Miers Court Primary School56%
=37Riverside Primary School56%
#41Cliffe Woods Primary School53%
=42Barnsole Primary School52%
=42Hoo St Werburgh Primary School and the Marlborough52%
=42Oasis Academy Skinner Street52%
=42Twydall Primary School and Nursery52%
#46Byron Primary School51%
#47Wainscott Primary School48%
=48Phoenix Primary School38%
=48St James Church of England Primary Academy38%
=48Warren Wood Primary School38%
#51Luton Primary School36%
#52New Horizons Children's Academy35%
#53Wayfield Primary School31%
#54Deanwood Primary School28%

View full Ofsted inspection report

Financials

Spending per pupil: £5,072 (2024-25)

About this spending figure

A higher or lower position here isn't a sign of a better or worse school - schools have different needs and circumstances - but it can help reassure you that a school has sufficient funding behind your child's education.

42nd of 52 primary schools in Medway for spending per pupil

#40Napier Community Primary and Nursery Academy£5,232
#41Wainscott Primary School£5,216
#42St Benedict's Catholic Primary School£5,072
#43St Thomas of Canterbury RC Primary School£5,053
#44Miers Court Primary School£4,972

Click to see the full ranking

Spending Per Pupil ranking

Based on official DfE financial return data (Consistent Financial Reporting / Academies Accounts Return) - not a ranking of school quality.

Rank School Score

#1Cedar Children's Academy£9,952
#2Greenvale Primary School£7,848
#3Delce Academy£7,657
#4Twydall Primary School and Nursery£7,631
#5Kingfisher Community Primary School£7,594
#6Elaine Primary School£7,410
#7Saxon Way Primary School£7,023
#8New Road Primary School£6,947
#9Warren Wood Primary School£6,811
#10St Margaret's at Troy Town CofE Voluntary Controlled Primary School£6,809
#11St Nicholas CEVC Primary School£6,698
#12St Helen's Church of England Primary School, Cliffe£6,578
#13Oaklands School£6,351
#14Brompton-Westbrook Primary School£6,337
#15St James Church of England Primary Academy£6,333
#16Rochester Riverside Church of England Primary School£6,244
#17Temple Mill Primary School£6,219
#18The Pilgrim School (A Church of England Primary With Nursery)£6,218
#19Lordswood School£6,028
#20Phoenix Primary School£6,015
#21Oasis Academy Skinner Street£5,967
#22Riverside Primary School£5,881
#23Hilltop Primary School£5,828
#24Wayfield Primary School£5,806
#25Byron Primary School£5,785
#26St Augustine of Canterbury Catholic Primary School£5,729
#27Deanwood Primary School£5,687
#28Halling Primary School£5,654
#29English Martyrs' Catholic Primary School£5,613
#30St Mary's Island Church of England (Aided) Primary School£5,605
#31Barnsole Primary School£5,580
#32Leigh Academy Peninsula East£5,579
#33All Saints Church of England Primary School£5,571
#34Cliffe Woods Primary School£5,507
#35Leigh Academy High Halstow£5,458
#36St Mary's Catholic Primary School£5,408
#37Thames View Primary School£5,353
#38Maundene School£5,301
#39Fairview Community Primary School£5,251
#40Napier Community Primary and Nursery Academy£5,232
#41Wainscott Primary School£5,216
#42St Benedict's Catholic Primary School£5,072
#43St Thomas of Canterbury RC Primary School£5,053
#44Miers Court Primary School£4,972
#45New Horizons Children's Academy£4,726
#46Parkwood Primary School£3,804
#47St Michael Catholic Primary and Nursery School£3,246
#48Chattenden Primary School£2,894
#49Hoo St Werburgh Primary School and the Marlborough£507
#50Luton Primary School£491
#51Walderslade Primary School£365
#52The Academy of Woodlands£283

View on the Financial Benchmarking and Insights Tool (GOV.UK)

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