Best Schools in St Albans

How many schools are there in St Albans?

St Albans has 57 open schools: 35 state primary, 10 state secondary or all-through, 5 independent, 5 special and 2 others.

Source: DfE Get Information About Schools

Which schools in St Albans are rated Outstanding?

10 schools in St Albans were rated Outstanding at their most recent graded Ofsted inspection: St Michael's Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School, St Albans; Cunningham Hill Junior School; Sandringham School; Cunningham Hill Infant School; Fleetville Infant and Nursery School; and 5 more. Counting Good as well, 98% of the 45 graded schools here are rated Good or better. Ofsted stopped giving single-word overall grades in September 2024, so these are the grades from each school's last full inspection.

St Michael's Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School, St AlbansCunningham Hill Junior SchoolSandringham SchoolCunningham Hill Infant SchoolFleetville Infant and Nursery School

Source: Ofsted

Which secondary schools in St Albans get the best GCSE results?

Of the 11 schools in St Albans with 2026 GCSE results, the highest Attainment 8 scores - the average grade across a pupil's best eight GCSEs - were at Sandringham School, with an Attainment 8 score of 65.7 and 84% passing English and maths at grade 5 or above; Beaumont School, with an Attainment 8 score of 63 and 76% passing English and maths at grade 5 or above; and St Albans Girls' School, with an Attainment 8 score of 60.7 and 69% passing English and maths at grade 5 or above. Progress 8, the DfE's value-added measure, was not published for 2026.

Sandringham SchoolBeaumont SchoolSt Albans Girls' School

Source: DfE school performance data

Which primary schools in St Albans have the best SATs results?

Of the 31 primary schools in St Albans with 2025 Key Stage 2 results, the highest shares of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading and maths were at Maple Primary School (93% in reading, 96% in maths); Samuel Ryder Academy (93% in reading, 95% in maths); and Saint Bernadette Voluntary Catholic Primary Academy (90% in reading, 97% in maths). Small schools can swing a long way from one year to the next, because each pupil is a large share of the result.

Maple Primary SchoolSamuel Ryder AcademySaint Bernadette Voluntary Catholic Primary Academy

Source: DfE school performance data

Are there grammar schools in St Albans?

No. None of the state secondary schools in St Albans selects pupils by ability, so every state secondary here is comprehensive.

Source: DfE Get Information About Schools

Do schools in St Albans have catchment areas?

Most state schools in St Albans have no fixed catchment boundary. When a school is oversubscribed, Hertfordshire allocates places on its published criteria - usually looked-after children first, then siblings, then home-to-school distance - so the practical cut-off moves each year. Each school's page here shows an estimate of its catchment radius.

How do I apply for a school place in St Albans?

Apply to Hertfordshire through its coordinated admissions process, even for academies and faith schools. In England the closing date is 31 October for secondary places and 15 January for primary places, in the year before your child starts. Independent schools run their own admissions, so apply to those directly.