Katherine Semar Infant School, Saffron Walden
Katherine Semar Infant School is a primary school for pupils aged 4 to 7 in Saffron Walden, part of Saffron Academy Trust. It was rated Outstanding at its last graded Ofsted inspection, in October 2010. Ofsted's ungraded inspection in January 2025 did not change this grade. It was 99% full in 2025.
- Ofsted
- Outstanding (2010)
- Demand
- Every first choice offered
- Attendance
- Better than England average
Reception applications for September 2027 close in 80 days
Deadline Friday 15 January 2027. Apply to Essex (the council where you live). Offers on 16 April.
Data last updated 27 Oct 2026
Katherine Semar Infant School in detail
Getting a place at Katherine Semar Infant School
For September 2026 entry, 59 families put Katherine Semar Infant School as their first choice and 149 named it as one of their preferences, for 59 places offered. That is one first choice for every place. Every family who put it first was offered a place there for 2026 entry.
Admissions history and your chances at Katherine Semar Infant School
Compared with nearby schools
The nearest other state primary schools to Katherine Semar Infant School are Katherine Semar Junior School (under 0.1 miles, Outstanding, 88% reading, 91% maths); St Thomas More Catholic Primary School, Saffron Walden (0.6 miles, Good, 97% reading, 94% maths); R A Butler Infant School (0.7 miles, Good); and R A Butler Junior School (0.7 miles, Outstanding, 93% reading, 93% maths).
Katherine Semar Junior SchoolSt Thomas More Catholic Primary School, Saffron WaldenR A Butler Infant SchoolR A Butler Junior School
The trust
Katherine Semar Infant School is one of 9 schools run by Saffron Academy Trust, an academy trust.
Across the trust's primary schools, 76% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths in 2024/25.
What parents say
90 parents answered Ofsted's Parent View survey about Katherine Semar Infant School (as of September 2025): 100% would recommend the school, 100% say their child is happy there and 93% of those with a view say bullying is dealt with well.
The strongest agreement was that they would recommend the school (100%); the weakest, that the school deals with bullying well (among parents with a view) (93%).
Who goes there
9.4% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, well below the average state school (25%), according to the 2026 school census.
In 2026, 15 pupils (8.3%) received SEN support and 5 (2.8%) had an education, health and care plan, against 16.2% and 4.6% at the average state school. The most common need among them is autism.
Getting there
The nearest railway station is Audley End Rail Station, about 1.7 miles away in a straight line.
9 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Katherine Semar School (opposite), 80 metres away.
The area around the school
Measured by the 2025 English Indices of Deprivation, the neighbourhood Katherine Semar Infant School stands in is among the 20% least deprived neighbourhoods in England. This describes where the school is, not where its pupils live.
In August 2026, police recorded 50 crimes within a mile of the school, most often violence and sexual offences, anti-social behaviour and shoplifting. That is well below the typical figure around schools in Essex (97).
Suspensions and exclusions
In 2024/25, Katherine Semar Infant School issued 1 suspension, 0.6 for every 100 pupils (the average state school: 6.3), and no permanent exclusions.
Sources: DfE school-level applications and offers; council admissions booklets; DfE appeals statistics; DfE multi-academy trust performance data; Ofsted Parent View; DfE school census and special educational needs statistics; NaPTAN (Department for Transport); English Indices of Deprivation 2025 (MHCLG); data.police.uk street-level crime; DfE exclusions statistics
Location
Every family who put it first was offered a place for 2026 entry, so distance did not limit places that year.
Key Information
DfE GIASOfsted Rating
Ofsted · 2 years agoThis judgement is from October 2010, 16 years ago, longer than Ofsted's usual 4-year cycle: the school may have changed since.
Overall
Quality of Education
Behaviour & Attitudes
Personal Development
Leadership & Management
Early Years
Ofsted Insights
From Ofsted's January 2025 inspection report.
What This School Does Well
Katherine Semar Infant School excels at creating a nurturing environment where children thrive academically and personally. Teachers are highly skilled and deliver an ambitious curriculum with engaging lessons, while excellent support ensures all pupils, including those with additional needs, succeed. The school goes beyond academics to teach pupils about different cultures, develop their values, and provide memorable enrichment experiences like theatre performances and castle visits.
Key Strengths
- Well-designed curriculum with effective teaching that helps pupils achieve highly
- Excellent support for pupils with SEND needs, identified promptly with carefully adapted learning
- Comprehensive phonics programme that helps pupils become confident, fluent readers
- Impressive pupil behaviour and strong focus on school values of curiosity, confidence and resilience
- Rich experiences and trips that connect learning to the wider world
Safeguarding
Safeguarding arrangements are effective, with school leadership creating an open and positive culture that puts pupils' interests first.
Extracurricular Activities
After-school clubs, breakfast and after-school wraparound provision, school council, class ambassadors, eco council, structured playground games, local trips and visits
Katherine Semar Infant School is a nurturing and exciting place to learn where pupils thrive and achieve highly through an ambitious curriculum. The school has been judged outstanding across all key areas including quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development, leadership and management, and early years provision.
At a Glance
9.4%
Free School Meals
No
Boarding
No
Nursery
No
Sixth Form
No
Special Measures
What Parents Think
90 responsesSource: Ofsted Parent View, responses as at September 2025 - % who strongly agree or agree
Class Sizes
30.0
Avg class size
30.0
Infant (KS1)
6
Total classes
2025/26 academic year
How Does This School Compare?
Ranked against 5 nearby primary schools
Keep up with Katherine Semar Infant School
Getting There
Bus Stops
Free school transport
Check free transport to Katherine Semar Infant School from your postcode →
You apply to the council where you live. Katherine Semar Infant School is in Essex; for families living there:
- Essex's school travel policy: Education Transport Policy
Safety and surroundings
Road collisions within 500 m (2021 to 2025)
- Collisions
- 2
- Fatal
- 0
- Serious
- 0
- Children hurt
- 0
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 2 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 0 serious and 2 slight.
No children aged 0 to 15 were among the people hurt.
0 of the collisions happened on a weekday between 08:00 and 09:30 or 14:45 and 16:30, holidays included.
The typical figure for schools in Essex is 9 (the median across 614 schools, same distance and years).
Serious and slight counts use the Department for Transport's severity adjustment, which allows for changes in how police forces record injuries; they are estimates, rounded to whole numbers. Distances are in a straight line. Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19), Open Government Licence v3.0.
Commute and house prices
Your chances of a place at Katherine Semar Infant School
Will you get a place at Katherine Semar Infant School? Get the admissions report
Your home postcode, set against Katherine Semar Infant School's admissions figures, in one report saved to your account.
What the report includes for Katherine Semar Infant School:
- The straight-line distance from your home to Katherine Semar Infant School.
- We hold no last distance offered figures from Essex, so the report covers demand, alternatives and dates.
- Applications, first choices and offers at Katherine Semar Infant School for 2015 to 2026 entry.
- How many families in Essex got their first choice, and how often appeals there succeed.
- The nearest state schools to your home, with Ofsted rating, demand and last distance offered where published.
- Key dates for September 2027 entry and how to apply.
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Capacity & Demand
School Occupancy
99%
Near capacity
179 pupils
180 places
1 spare place in 2025
2025, DfE school capacity data
Area Demand Pressure - Saffron Walden
Based on MHCLG Live Table 122 (2024-25, last 5 years) for Saffron Walden
Across Essex council
Places available
17,932
Applications
15,737
Got 1st preference
90.3%
Got preferred school
98.2%
All primary applications across Essex council (2026/27), not just this school.
This school: Every first choice offered
Inspection History(2)
SEND & SEN Provision
SEN Overview
15
SEN Support
5
EHC Plans
11.1%
of Total Pupils
2026 academic year
Provision & Specialist Facilities
Pupils by Need Type
Pupil Demographics
Ethnicity
2026 academic year
Key Indicators
180
Total Pupils
89
Boys
91
Girls
2026 academic year
Workforce
11
Teachers
16.4:1
Pupil-teacher ratio
£45,156
Mean salary
2026 data
School Funding
£5,093
Per pupil
£1033k
Total funding
£26k
Pupil premium
2025-26 financial year allocations
Pupil Absence2024/25
3.7%
Overall absence
6.6%
Persistent absence
122
Enrolments
Absence trend
Source: DfE pupil absence statistics. Persistent absence = pupils missing 10%+ sessions.
Secondary Schools Nearby
Secondary schools pupils are likely to move to
Katherine Semar Infant School
Questions parents ask about Katherine Semar Infant School
What is Katherine Semar Infant School's Ofsted rating?
Katherine Semar Infant School's most recent Ofsted inspection, in January 2025, was ungraded, so it gave no overall grade. At its last graded inspection, in October 2010, it was rated Outstanding.
What is the catchment area for Katherine Semar Infant School?
No fixed boundary. When Katherine Semar Infant School is oversubscribed, Essex allocates places by its published criteria, usually ending with home-to-school distance.
Is it hard to get a place at Katherine Semar Infant School?
Katherine Semar Infant School was close to full in 2025, at 99% of its capacity.
How big are the classes at Katherine Semar Infant School?
Classes at Katherine Semar Infant School average 30 pupils (2025/26).
How many pupils go to Katherine Semar Infant School?
Katherine Semar Infant School has around 180 pupils on roll. 9% are eligible for free school meals.
What is attendance like at Katherine Semar Infant School?
3.7% of sessions were missed at Katherine Semar Infant School in 2024/25. 6.6% of pupils were persistently absent (missing 10% or more of sessions).
How do I apply to Katherine Semar Infant School?
Apply through Essex's coordinated admissions process, naming Katherine Semar Infant School on your application. Applications for Reception places starting in September 2027 close on Friday 15 January 2027, and offers are made on Friday 16 April 2027.
How many road collisions happen near Katherine Semar Infant School?
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 2 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 0 serious and 2 slight. No children aged 0 to 15 were among the people hurt. 0 of the collisions happened on a weekday between 08:00 and 09:30 or 14:45 and 16:30, holidays included. The typical figure for schools in Essex is 9 (the median across 614 schools, same distance and years).
Where is Katherine Semar Infant School?
Katherine Semar Infant School is at Ross Close, Saffron Walden, Essex, CB11 4DU.
Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19)