St James' Church of England Primary School

General Information

Address: Merestones Road, Cheltenham, GL50 2RS
Phone: 01242516836
Website: Visit school website
Headteacher: Mrs Caryn Smith
Age range: 4-11 years
Sixth form: No
Intake: Mixed
Religious character: Church of England
Number of pupils: 408
School capacity: 420
Pupils eligible for free school meals: 28
% eligible for free school meals: 6.9%
Nursery provision: No

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.

Behaviour information for this school has not been added yet.

Attendance

Overall absence: 4.4%
Persistently absent pupils: 8.5%
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.

SEN provision information for this school has not been added yet.

Pupils on SEN Support: 13.7%
Pupils with an EHC Plan: 2.0%
Data year: 2025/26

Most common needs - SEN Support

Social, emotional and mental health: 24 pupils
SEN support but no specialist assessment of type of need: 13 pupils
Speech, language and communications needs: 9 pupils
Moderate learning difficulty: 8 pupils
Autistic spectrum disorder: 1 pupil

Most common needs - EHC Plan

Social, emotional and mental health: 3 pupils
Speech, language and communications needs: 3 pupils
Moderate learning difficulty: 1 pupil
Physical disability: 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 –

Behaviour

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Openness

–

Teaching Quality

–

School Ethos

–

Ability to Deal with Problems

–

Headteacher Approval

–

Would recommend –

Give this school your first review

Educational Attainment

Good 2023 report

About this Ofsted rating

Ofsted changed how it rates schools in the last couple of years, so ratings from different years aren't always on the same scale - that's why we show the year alongside every rating.

Educational attainment data for this school has not been added yet.

View full Ofsted inspection report

Ranked #11 of 17 Ofsted Rating schools of this type in the area

#9Leckhampton Church of England Primary SchoolGood
#10Springbank Primary AcademyGood
#11St James' Church of England Primary SchoolGood
#12St John's Church of England Primary SchoolGood
#13St Thomas More Catholic Primary SchoolGood

Click to see the full ranking

Ofsted Rating ranking

Based on real Ofsted ratings (via official DfE data) for schools on the same four-word grading scale.

#1Christ Church CofE Primary SchoolOutstanding
#2Dunalley Primary SchoolGood
#3Gardners Lane Primary SchoolGood
#4Glenfall Community Primary SchoolGood
#5Greatfield Park Primary SchoolGood
#6Hesters Way Primary SchoolGood
#7Holy Apostles' Church of England Primary SchoolGood
#8Lakeside Primary SchoolGood
#9Leckhampton Church of England Primary SchoolGood
#10Springbank Primary AcademyGood
#11St James' Church of England Primary SchoolGood
#12St John's Church of England Primary SchoolGood
#13St Thomas More Catholic Primary SchoolGood
#14Swindon Village Primary SchoolGood
#15The Catholic School of Saint Gregory the GreatGood
#16Warden Hill Primary SchoolGood
#17Oakwood Primary SchoolRequires improvement

Financials

Financial summary information for this school has not been added yet.

Spending per pupil: £5,489 (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.

Ranked #19 of 20 Spending Per Pupil schools of this type in the area

#17Holy Apostles' Church of England Primary School£5,802
#18Springbank Primary Academy£5,796
#19St James' Church of England Primary School£5,489
#20Leckhampton Church of England Primary School£5,409

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.

#1Hesters Way Primary School£8,682
#2St Thomas More Catholic Primary School£8,319
#3Gloucester Road Primary School£8,072
#4Oakwood Primary School£8,065
#5Christ Church CofE Primary School£7,618
#6Glenfall Community Primary School£7,477
#7Greatfield Park Primary School£7,294
#8Gardners Lane Primary School£7,096
#9Holy Trinity Church of England Primary School£7,068
#10Dunalley Primary School£6,911
#11St John's Church of England Primary School£6,786
#12The Catholic School of Saint Gregory the Great£6,457
#13Naunton Park Primary School£6,344
#14Swindon Village Primary School£6,112
#15Warden Hill Primary School£6,028
#16Lakeside Primary School£5,934
#17Holy Apostles' Church of England Primary School£5,802
#18Springbank Primary Academy£5,796
#19St James' Church of England Primary School£5,489
#20Leckhampton Church of England Primary School£5,409

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