St Clare's Catholic Primary School, Clacton-on-Sea
St Clare's Catholic Primary School is a primary school for pupils aged 2 to 11 in Clacton-on-Sea, part of The Rosary Trust - A Catholic Multi Academy. It has a Roman Catholic religious character. It was rated Good at its last graded Ofsted inspection, in June 2015. Ofsted's ungraded inspection in July 2024 did not change this grade. Its 2025 Key Stage 2 results were the highest of the 14 schools in Clacton-on-Sea with published results, and 3,408th of 14,452 across England. It was 98% full in 2025.
- SATs results
- Above England average
- Ofsted
- Good (2015)
- Demand
- Every first choice offered
- Attendance
- Below 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
St Clare's Catholic Primary School in detail
St Clare's Catholic Primary School in its own words
From the headteacher's welcome: "We believe every day is an opportunity to improve and better ourselves. Our staff, parents and governors work hard to ensure that every child has an opportunity to succeed. We believe that all children can be successful learners. At St Clare's we support our children to become resilient, inclusive, compassionate and respectful citizens."
Headteacher's welcome (school website)
Source: The school's own website
Results
In 2025, 86% of Year 6 pupils at St Clare's Catholic Primary School reached the expected standard in reading and 84% in maths. At the average state primary the figures were 78% and 76% in Essex and 77% and 75% across England.
Results fell from 89% in reading and 89% in maths in 2024.
Getting a place at St Clare's Catholic Primary School
For September 2026 entry, 37 families put St Clare's Catholic Primary School as their first choice and 77 named it as one of their preferences, for 42 places offered. It had fewer first-choice applications than places. Every family who put it first was offered a place there for 2026 entry.
Admissions history and your chances at St Clare's Catholic Primary School
Compared with nearby schools
The nearest other state primary schools to St Clare's Catholic Primary School are Ravens Academy (0.1 miles, Good, 57% reading, 59% maths); Cann Hall Primary School (0.6 miles, Good, 83% reading, 84% maths); Oakwood Infant and Nursery School (0.7 miles, Good); and White Hall Academy and Nursery (0.7 miles, Good, 66% reading, 69% maths).
St Clare's Catholic Primary School's 2025 results were higher than all 3 of them.
Ravens AcademyCann Hall Primary SchoolOakwood Infant and Nursery SchoolWhite Hall Academy and Nursery
The trust
St Clare's Catholic Primary School is one of 7 schools run by The Rosary Trust - A Catholic Multi Academy, an academy trust.
All 7 schools in The Rosary Trust - A Catholic Multi Academy
Who goes there
34.8% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, well above the average state school (25%), according to the 2026 school census.
In 2026, 20 pupils (5.5%) received SEN support and 8 (2.2%) 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 social, emotional and mental health needs.
Staffing
St Clare's Catholic Primary School had 21 teachers in 2026, one for every 15 pupils: more teachers per pupil than a typical primary school, at about one for every 20.
Getting there
The nearest railway station is Clacton-on-Sea Rail Station, about 1.1 miles away in a straight line.
8 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Nien Oord (opposite), 130 metres away.
The area around the school
Measured by the 2025 English Indices of Deprivation, the neighbourhood St Clare's Catholic Primary School stands in is among the 10% most deprived neighbourhoods in England. This describes where the school is, not where its pupils live.
In August 2026, police recorded 276 crimes within a mile of the school, most often violence and sexual offences, anti-social behaviour and public order offences. That is well above the typical figure around schools in Essex (97), as is usual near a town centre.
Suspensions and exclusions
In 2024/25, St Clare's Catholic Primary School issued 29 suspensions, 7.9 for every 100 pupils (the average state school: 6.3), and no permanent exclusions.
Secondary schools nearby
The secondary schools closest to St Clare's Catholic Primary School are Lift Clacton (0.5 miles) and Clacton County High School (1.3 miles).
Sources: DfE school performance data (averages: state mainstream schools); DfE school-level applications and offers; council admissions booklets; DfE appeals statistics; DfE school census and special educational needs statistics; DfE school workforce census; NaPTAN (Department for Transport); English Indices of Deprivation 2025 (MHCLG); data.police.uk street-level crime; DfE exclusions statistics
Key Information
DfE GIASOfsted Rating
Ofsted · 2 years agoThis judgement is from June 2015, 11 years ago, longer than Ofsted's usual 4-year cycle: the school may have changed since.
Overall
Latest (ungraded) inspection: The school remains Good and may be improving; its next inspection will be a full graded one.
Ofsted's report, in its own words
What is it like to attend this school?
Pupils at this school 'learn to love and love to learn'. They talk excitedly about their lessons and can remember what they have learned. Pupils tackle challenging tasks in lessons resiliently and are keen to do their best. They rise to teachers' high expectations. As a result, pupils achieve highly.
Pupils proudly take on leadership roles, including school councillors, play leaders and library monitors. The maturity pupils demonstrate in these roles shows their readiness to progress to the next stage of their education.
What does the school do well and what does it need to do better?
The school has developed a broad, balanced and ambitious curriculum. Its stated goal is to ensure 'every child is a successful learner'. The well-trained staff make lessons interesting and memorable. They ensure that pupils can recall what they have learned. They do this through quizzes and skilful questioning. Teachers engage pupils' curiosity by their continual focus on inquiry in lessons. Pupils devise and answer their own questions about learning. This means that pupils can learn more about the subjects they study. Staff constantly check pupils' learning and provide appropriate support. As a result, pupils achieve highly.
Many children begin nursery with weak communication and language skills. They then improve these skills through imaginative play environments and purposeful adult interactions. As a result, children leave nursery with a strong foundation on which to learn to read. In Reception, phonics lessons engage children through fun but meaningful activities. This helps children practise and remember the sounds they have learned. Pupils participate in stimulating activities. This ensures that they build strong foundations for the next stage of learning.
From Ofsted's July 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 June 2015 inspection - up from Inadequate.
Rated Good for
Leadership & management.
At a Glance
34.8%
Free School Meals
No
Boarding
Yes
Nursery
No
Sixth Form
No
Special Measures
Primary Performance (KS2)
Academic year 2024/25KS2 Results (% meeting expected standard)
Reading has remained stable at around 86% (2024 to 2025). Maths has declined from 89% to 84% (2024 to 2025). Writing has declined from 84% to 75% (2024 to 2025).
Class Sizes
40.0
Avg class size
2
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 St Clare's Catholic Primary School
Before and after school care
St Clare's Catholic 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 Essex
Getting There
Bus Stops
Free school transport
Check free transport to St Clare's Catholic Primary School from your postcode →
You apply to the council where you live. St Clare's Catholic Primary 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
- 18
- Fatal
- 0
- Serious
- 6
- Children hurt
- 2
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 18 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 6 serious and 12 slight.
2 children aged 0 to 15 were hurt: 1 on foot and 1 on a bicycle.
4 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 St Clare's Catholic Primary School
Will you get a place at St Clare's Catholic Primary School? Get the admissions report
Your home postcode, set against St Clare's Catholic Primary School's admissions figures, in one report saved to your account.
What the report includes for St Clare's Catholic Primary School:
- The straight-line distance from your home to St Clare's Catholic Primary School.
- We hold no last distance offered figures from Essex, so the report covers demand, alternatives and dates.
- Applications, first choices and offers at St Clare's Catholic Primary School for 2014 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
98%
Near capacity
310 pupils
315 places
5 spare places in 2025
2025, DfE school capacity data
Area Demand Pressure - Clacton-on-Sea
Based on MHCLG Live Table 122 (2024-25, last 5 years) for Clacton-on-Sea
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(3)
SEND & SEN Provision
SEN Overview
20
SEN Support
8
EHC Plans
7.7%
of Total Pupils
2026 academic year
Provision & Specialist Facilities
Pupils by Need Type
Pupil Demographics
Ethnicity
2026 academic year
Key Indicators
362
Total Pupils
184
Boys
178
Girls
2026 academic year
Workforce
21
Teachers
17.2:1
Pupil-teacher ratio
£48,166
Mean salary
2026 data
School Funding
£5,798
Per pupil
£2072k
Total funding
£177k
Pupil premium
2025-26 financial year allocations
Pupil Absence2024/25
7.5%
Overall absence
26.6%
Persistent absence
278
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
St Clare's Catholic Primary School
Questions parents ask about St Clare's Catholic Primary School
What are SATs results like at St Clare's Catholic Primary School?
Of the pupils at St Clare's Catholic Primary School who took the 2025 Key Stage 2 assessments, 86% reached the expected standard in reading and 84% did so in maths.
What is St Clare's Catholic Primary School's Ofsted rating?
St Clare's Catholic Primary School's most recent Ofsted inspection, in July 2024, was ungraded, so it gave no overall grade. At its last graded inspection, in June 2015, it was rated Good.
What is the catchment area for St Clare's Catholic Primary School?
No fixed boundary. When St Clare's Catholic Primary 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 St Clare's Catholic Primary School?
St Clare's Catholic Primary School was close to full in 2025, at 98% of its capacity.
How big are the classes at St Clare's Catholic Primary School?
Classes at St Clare's Catholic Primary School average 40 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 St Clare's Catholic Primary School?
St Clare's Catholic Primary School has around 362 pupils on roll. 35% are eligible for free school meals.
What is attendance like at St Clare's Catholic Primary School?
7.5% of sessions were missed at St Clare's Catholic Primary School in 2024/25. 26.6% of pupils were persistently absent (missing 10% or more of sessions).
How do I apply to St Clare's Catholic Primary School?
Apply through Essex's coordinated admissions process, naming St Clare's Catholic 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 St Clare's Catholic Primary School have a breakfast club or after-school club?
St Clare's Catholic 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.
How many road collisions happen near St Clare's Catholic Primary School?
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 18 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 6 serious and 12 slight. 2 children aged 0 to 15 were hurt: 1 on foot and 1 on a bicycle. 4 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 St Clare's Catholic Primary School?
St Clare's Catholic Primary School is at Cloes Lane, Clacton-on-Sea, Essex, CO16 8AG.
Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19)