St John's Catholic Primary School, Gravesend

Gravesham · DA12 2SY

General information Primary School · 3-11 years Who goes here 869 pupils, 19% FSM

Parent score Rate this school No reviews yet - be the first SEN 8.1% on SEN support Behaviour 4.6% absence rate Staff 17.3% turnover Financials £5,108 per pupil Environment Buildings and facilities

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St John's Catholic Primary School, Gravesend

General Information

Address: Rochester Road, Gravesend, DA12 2SY – View on map
Phone: 01474534546
Website: Visit school website
Headteacher: Co Headteacher Caroline Barron Paula Cooneyhan
Age range: 3-11 years
Demand for places (Reception, September 2026): 99 families put it first for 105 places – 9 for every 10 places. Every one of them was offered a place. 1 of the 105 places went to families living outside the council area. Children putting it first, for every 10 places: 2023 9 · 2024 11 · 2025 9 · 2026 9
Sixth form: No
Intake: Mixed
Religious character: Roman Catholic
Nursery provision: Yes

Who goes here

869 pupils out of 854 places At or near capacity

Pupils eligible for free school meals: 162
% eligible for free school meals: 19.0%
Pupil mix: 8 in 10 (more mixed than the Gravesham average)
English as an additional language: 34% (England 22%)

Staff

Teachers leaving each year

Teacher turnover: 17.3% a year (Gravesham 18%, typical in England 13.9%)
Where they went: about 60% moved to another school, 40% left state schools altogether (retirement, other careers, independent schools, abroad)
Data years: 2022/23 to 2024/25 (average of 3 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.

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 Kent: suspensions by reason

Suspensions for sexual misconduct: 21 (0.2 per 1,000 pupils; England 0.2)
Permanent exclusions for sexual misconduct: 1
Suspensions for bullying: 32 (0.2 per 1,000 pupils; England 0.2)
Suspensions for abuse against sexual orientation or gender identity: 1 (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 Kent (the council area this school is in), 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: 4.6%
Persistently absent pupils: 10.0%
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: 8.1%
Pupils with an EHC Plan: 2.0%
Data year: 2025/26

Most common needs - SEN Support

Speech, language and communications needs: 45 pupils
Social, emotional and mental health: 11 pupils
Autistic spectrum disorder: 6 pupils
SEN support but no specialist assessment of type of need: 3 pupils
Physical disability: 1 pupil

Most common needs - EHC Plan

Speech, language and communications needs: 6 pupils
Autistic spectrum disorder: 5 pupils
Specific learning difficulty: 2 pupils
Physical disability: 1 pupil
Hearing impairment: 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

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.

Year 6 SATs results

Met the expected standard in reading, writing & maths: 73% (England 62%)
Reached the higher standard: 23% (England 8%)
Compared with the area: 12 percentage points above the Gravesham average (61%)
Compared with schools with similar pupils: As expected (3-year average 72% against an expected 70%)
3-year average (expected standard): 72%
Expected standard by subject: Reading 77% · Writing 86% · Maths 83% · Grammar, punctuation & spelling 78%
Average test scores: reading 106, maths 106
Based on: 120 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 schoolGravesham 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 12 percentage points above the Gravesham average (61%).

Year 6 SATs: joint 4th of 26 junior and primary schools in the area

=1Istead Rise Primary School83%
#3Painters Ash Primary School77%
=4St John's Catholic Primary School, Gravesend73%
=4Wrotham Road Primary School73%
=6Copperfield Academy72%

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

=1Cobham Primary School83%
=1Istead Rise Primary School83%
#3Painters Ash Primary School77%
=4St John's Catholic Primary School, Gravesend73%
=4Wrotham Road Primary School73%
=6Copperfield Academy72%
=6Vigo Village School72%
#8St Botolph's Church of England Primary School70%
=9King's Farm Primary School69%
=9Shorne Church of England Primary School69%
=9Tymberwood Academy69%
#12Saint George's Church of England School67%
#13Springhead Park Primary School66%
#14Singlewell Primary School63%
#15Cecil Road Primary and Nursery School61%
#16St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Northfleet58%
#17Higham Primary School57%
#18Meopham Community Academy56%
#19Rosherville Church of England Academy55%
=20Culverstone Green Primary School52%
=20Shears Green Junior School52%
#22Westcourt Primary School47%
#23Holy Trinity Church of England Primary School46%
#24Chantry Community Primary School45%
#25Whitehill Primary School42%
#26Lawn Primary School31%

View full Ofsted inspection report

16th of 22 primary schools in Gravesham for Ofsted rating

#14Springhead Park Primary SchoolGood
#15St Botolph's Church of England Primary SchoolGood
#16St John's Catholic Primary School, GravesendGood
#17The Riverview AcademyGood
#18Tymberwood AcademyGood

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.

Rank School Score

#1Cobham Primary SchoolOutstanding
#2St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, NorthfleetOutstanding
#3Cecil Road Primary and Nursery SchoolGood
#4Culverstone Green Primary SchoolGood
#5Higham Primary SchoolGood
#6Holy Trinity Church of England Primary SchoolGood
#7Istead Rise Primary SchoolGood
#8King's Farm Primary SchoolGood
#9Meopham Community AcademyGood
#10Painters Ash Primary SchoolGood
#11Rosherville Church of England AcademyGood
#12Shorne Church of England Primary SchoolGood
#13Singlewell Primary SchoolGood
#14Springhead Park Primary SchoolGood
#15St Botolph's Church of England Primary SchoolGood
#16St John's Catholic Primary School, GravesendGood
#17The Riverview AcademyGood
#18Tymberwood AcademyGood
#19Vigo Village SchoolGood
#20Westcourt Primary SchoolGood
#21Wrotham Road Primary SchoolGood
#22Whitehill Primary SchoolRequires improvement

Financials

Spending per pupil: £5,108 (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.

24th of 25 primary schools in Gravesham for spending per pupil

#22St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Northfleet£5,421
#23Holy Trinity Church of England Primary School£5,145
#24St John's Catholic Primary School, Gravesend£5,108
#25Whitehill Primary School£2,873

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

#1King's Farm Primary School£8,165
#2Lawn Primary School£7,726
#3Westcourt Primary School£7,020
#4Rosherville Church of England Academy£6,959
#5Vigo Village School£6,940
#6Istead Rise Primary School£6,827
#7Higham Primary School£6,706
#8Copperfield Academy£6,492
#9Chantry Community Primary School£6,457
#10Culverstone Green Primary School£6,436
#11Cecil Road Primary and Nursery School£6,332
#12Tymberwood Academy£6,228
#13Painters Ash Primary School£6,144
#14Springhead Park Primary School£6,083
#15The Riverview Academy£6,041
#16Cobham Primary School£5,862
#17St Botolph's Church of England Primary School£5,762
#18Singlewell Primary School£5,702
#19Wrotham Road Primary School£5,686
#20Shorne Church of England Primary School£5,573
#21Meopham Community Academy£5,453
#22St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Northfleet£5,421
#23Holy Trinity Church of England Primary School£5,145
#24St John's Catholic Primary School, Gravesend£5,108
#25Whitehill Primary School£2,873

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

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