Salmestone Primary School, Margate
Salmestone Primary School is a primary school for pupils aged 3 to 11 in Margate, part of The Kemnal Academies Trust. It was rated Good at its last graded Ofsted inspection, in January 2019. Ofsted's ungraded inspection in October 2024 did not change this grade. Its 2025 Key Stage 2 results were the 3rd-highest of the 8 schools in Margate with published results, and 11,173rd of 14,452 across England. It was 48% full in 2025.
- SATs results
- Below England average
- Ofsted
- Good (2019)
- Demand
- Oversubscribed
- Attendance
- Below England average
Reception applications for September 2027 close in 80 days
Deadline Friday 15 January 2027. Apply to Kent (the council where you live). Offers on 16 April.
Data last updated 27 Oct 2026
Salmestone Primary School in detail
Results
In 2025, 69% of Year 6 pupils at Salmestone Primary School reached the expected standard in reading and 66% in maths. At the average state primary the figures were 77% and 73% in Kent and 77% and 75% across England.
Results fell from 76% in reading and 69% in maths in 2024.
With small year groups, a few pupils can move these figures by several points.
Getting a place at Salmestone Primary School
For September 2026 entry, 28 families put Salmestone Primary School as their first choice and 80 named it as one of their preferences, for 30 places offered. It had fewer first-choice applications than places. 2 families who put it first were not offered a place there.
Admissions history and your chances at Salmestone Primary School
Compared with nearby schools
The nearest other state primary schools to Salmestone Primary School are St Gregory's Catholic Primary School, Margate (0.2 miles, Good, 85% reading, 80% maths); Margate, Holy Trinity and St John's Church of England Primary School (0.5 miles, Good, 44% reading, 44% maths); Drapers Mills Primary Academy (0.5 miles, Good, 57% reading, 51% maths); and Garlinge Primary School and Nursery (0.9 miles, Good, 69% reading, 64% maths).
Salmestone Primary School's 2025 results were higher than 3 of these 4 schools.
St Gregory's Catholic Primary School, MargateMargate, Holy Trinity and St John's Church of England Primary SchoolDrapers Mills Primary AcademyGarlinge Primary School and Nursery
The trust
Salmestone Primary School is one of 45 schools run by The Kemnal Academies Trust, an academy trust.
Across the trust's primary schools, 71% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths in 2024/25.
What parents say
10 parents answered Ofsted's Parent View survey about Salmestone Primary School (as of September 2025): 70% would recommend the school, 70% say their child is happy there and 100% of those with a view say bullying is dealt with well.
The strongest agreement was that the school deals with bullying well (among parents with a view) (100%); the weakest, that the school has high expectations for their child (60%).
Who goes there
50.9% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, well above the average state school (25%), according to the 2026 school census.
In 2026, 48 pupils (22.2%) received SEN support and 5 (2.3%) 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 speech, language and communication needs.
Getting there
The nearest railway station is Margate Rail Station, about 1010 metres away (roughly a 13-minute walk).
10 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Beatrice Road (after), 110 metres away.
The area around the school
In August 2026, police recorded 490 crimes within a mile of the school, most often violence and sexual offences, anti-social behaviour and criminal damage and arson. That is well above the typical figure around schools in Kent (101), as is usual near a town centre.
Suspensions and exclusions
In 2024/25, Salmestone Primary School issued 23 suspensions, 10.4 for every 100 pupils (the average state school: 6.3), and 1 permanent exclusion.
Sources: DfE school performance data (averages: state mainstream schools); 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
Our estimate from how close the nearest similar schools are and how oversubscribed the council's schools are. It is not a published boundary.
Key Information
DfE GIASOfsted Rating
Ofsted · 2 years agoThis judgement is from January 2019, 7 years ago, longer than Ofsted's usual 4-year cycle: the school may have changed since.
Overall
Latest (ungraded) inspection: Standards have been maintained.
Ofsted's report, in its own words
What is it like to attend this school?
Pupils are proud of their school and see it as a close, family community. Staff work hard here to support pupils and their families. The pastoral care is strong, though does not come at the expense of high aspirations for pupils to achieve academically. As a result, pupils achieve well. They are increasingly better prepared for their move to secondary school when the time comes.
Pupils are happy and safe here. They generally behave well and enjoy learning. They frown on silly behaviour. Older pupils say that poor behaviour is not a problem because staff now have higher expectations than in past. Pupils enjoy the opportunities they get as leaders, but want more chances to help their teachers, who they feel are kind and who give everyone an equal chance to enjoy school.
What does the school do well and what does it need to do better?
This is a school that is moving forward at a pace. Though smaller than at the time of the last inspection, there is no sense that the school has shrunk or that any aspect of provision is less secure than it should be. Staff feel valued and well supported in their work. The multi-academy trust is also playing its part in ensuring that the school has a stable future and that pupils from all backgrounds, including those with SEND, benefit from a good quality of education.
The school's curriculum is evolving, though built on firm foundations. It starts in Nursery and builds through Reception, where children are prepared well for their move to Year 1. Staff in early years have a clear understanding of the strengths and the barriers to learning individuals have. As a result, children grow in confidence daily. They are happy to talk to visitors about bats, cats and other topics they are exploring in their autumn-term learning journey.
From Ofsted's October 2024 ungraded inspection report: the opening paragraphs of each section, quoted word for word. Read the full report Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
Ofsted Insights
Ofsted rated this school Good at its January 2019 inspection - up from Requires Improvement.
Rated Good for
Leadership & management.
At a Glance
50.9%
Free School Meals
No
Boarding
Yes
Nursery
No
Sixth Form
No
Special Measures
What Parents Think
10 responsesSource: Ofsted Parent View, responses as at September 2025 - % who strongly agree or agree
Primary Performance (KS2)
Academic year 2024/25KS2 Results (% meeting expected standard)
Reading has declined from 76% to 69% (2024 to 2025). Maths has remained stable at around 66% (2024 to 2025). Writing has improved from 72% to 79% (2024 to 2025).
Class Sizes
26.5
Avg class size
28.0
Infant (KS1)
30.0
KS2
6
Total classes
1 class with more than 30 pupils
2025/26 academic year
How Does This School Compare?
Ranked against 5 nearby primary schools
Keep up with Salmestone Primary School
Before and after school care
Salmestone Primary School is on the Department for Education's free breakfast clubs programme (list updated July 2026), which pays for a free breakfast club for pupils before school. Source: Free breakfast clubs: schools on the programme, Department for Education Free breakfast clubs in Kent
Clubs on Ofsted's childcare register at or near Salmestone Primary School.
- Inclusive Sport Wrap Around Care - SalmestoneAt the school · Not yet graded
Getting There
Train Stations
Bus Stops
Free school transport
Check free transport to Salmestone Primary School from your postcode →
You apply to the council where you live. Salmestone Primary School is in Kent; for families living there:
Apply to Kent for free school transport. Its policy is on the council's website.
Safety and surroundings
Road collisions within 500 m (2021 to 2025)
- Collisions
- 53
- Fatal
- 0
- Serious
- 12
- Children hurt
- 6
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 53 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 12 serious and 41 slight.
6 children aged 0 to 15 were hurt: 2 on foot, 3 on a bicycle and 1 in a vehicle or otherwise.
13 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 Kent is 11 (the median across 711 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 Salmestone Primary School
Will you get a place at Salmestone Primary School? Get the admissions report
Your home postcode, set against Salmestone Primary School's admissions figures, in one report saved to your account.
What the report includes for Salmestone Primary School:
- The straight-line distance from your home to Salmestone Primary School.
- We hold no last distance offered figures from Kent, so the report covers demand, alternatives and dates.
- Applications, first choices and offers at Salmestone Primary School for 2014 to 2026 entry.
- How many families in Kent 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
48%
Available places
203 pupils
420 places
217 spare places in 2025
2025, DfE school capacity data
Area Demand Pressure - Margate
Based on MHCLG Live Table 122 (2024-25, last 5 years) for Margate
Across Kent council
Places available
18,893
Applications
16,593
Got 1st preference
89.7%
Got preferred school
98.2%
All primary applications across Kent council (2026/27), not just this school.
This school: Oversubscribed
Inspection History(6)
SEND & SEN Provision
SEN Overview
48
SEN Support
5
EHC Plans
24.5%
of Total Pupils
2026 academic year
Provision & Specialist Facilities
Pupils by Need Type
Pupil Demographics
Ethnicity
2026 academic year
Key Indicators
216
Total Pupils
115
Boys
101
Girls
2026 academic year
Workforce
9
Teachers
24.0:1
Pupil-teacher ratio
£51,764
Mean salary
2026 data
School Funding
£6,198
Per pupil
£1515k
Total funding
£155k
Pupil premium
2025-26 financial year allocations
Pupil Absence2024/25
9.9%
Overall absence
29.7%
Persistent absence
192
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
Salmestone Primary School
Questions parents ask about Salmestone Primary School
What are SATs results like at Salmestone Primary School?
Of the pupils at Salmestone Primary School who took the 2025 Key Stage 2 assessments, 69% reached the expected standard in reading and 66% did so in maths.
What is Salmestone Primary School's Ofsted rating?
Salmestone Primary School's most recent Ofsted inspection, in October 2024, was ungraded, so it gave no overall grade. At its last graded inspection, in January 2019, it was rated Good.
What is the catchment area for Salmestone Primary School?
No fixed boundary. When Salmestone Primary School is oversubscribed, Kent allocates places by its published criteria, usually ending with home-to-school distance.
Is it hard to get a place at Salmestone Primary School?
Salmestone Primary School was not full in 2025: it ran at 48% of its 420 places.
How big are the classes at Salmestone Primary School?
Classes at Salmestone Primary School average 26.5 pupils (2025/26). 1 class has more than 30 pupils - infant classes are capped at 30 by law, with limited exceptions.
How many pupils go to Salmestone Primary School?
Salmestone Primary School has around 216 pupils on roll. 51% are eligible for free school meals.
What is attendance like at Salmestone Primary School?
9.9% of sessions were missed at Salmestone Primary School in 2024/25. 29.7% of pupils were persistently absent (missing 10% or more of sessions).
How do I apply to Salmestone Primary School?
Apply through Kent's coordinated admissions process, naming Salmestone Primary 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.
Does Salmestone Primary School have a breakfast club or after-school club?
Salmestone Primary School is on the Department for Education's free breakfast clubs programme (list updated July 2026), which pays for a free breakfast club for pupils before school. Ofsted's childcare register lists an out-of-school club at the school: Inclusive Sport Wrap Around Care - Salmestone (registered, not yet graded).
How many road collisions happen near Salmestone Primary School?
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 53 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 12 serious and 41 slight. 6 children aged 0 to 15 were hurt: 2 on foot, 3 on a bicycle and 1 in a vehicle or otherwise. 13 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 Kent is 11 (the median across 711 schools, same distance and years).
Where is Salmestone Primary School?
Salmestone Primary School is at College Road, Margate, Kent, CT9 4DB.
Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19)