St Helen's Catholic Primary School, London
St Helen's Catholic Primary School is a primary school for pupils aged 3 to 11 in London. It has a Roman Catholic religious character. It was rated Good at its last graded Ofsted inspection, in July 2014. Ofsted's ungraded inspection in July 2024 did not change this grade. Its 2025 Key Stage 2 results were the highest of the 959 schools in London with published results, and 1st of 14,452 across England. It was 69% full in 2025.
- SATs results
- Above England average
- Ofsted
- Good (2014)
- Demand
- Every first choice offered
- Attendance
- In line with England
Reception applications for September 2027 close in 80 days
Deadline Friday 15 January 2027. Apply to Lambeth (the council where you live). Offers on 16 April.
Data last updated 27 Oct 2026
St Helen's Catholic Primary School in detail
St Helen's Catholic Primary School in its own words
From the headteacher's welcome: "On behalf of our staff, governors, friends and families, I would like to warmly welcome you to St Helen's Catholic Primary School. We are a thriving school in the heart of Brixton, with a community where many have travelled from far and wide to be part of our family."
Headteacher's welcome (school website)
Source: The school's own website
Results
In 2025, 100% of Year 6 pupils at St Helen's Catholic Primary School reached the expected standard in reading and 100% in maths. At the average state primary the figures were 82% and 80% in Lambeth and 77% and 75% across England.
Results rose from 94% in reading and 90% in maths in 2024.
Getting a place at St Helen's Catholic Primary School
For September 2026 entry, 23 families put St Helen's Catholic Primary School as their first choice and 58 named it as one of their preferences, for 26 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 Helen's Catholic Primary School
Compared with nearby schools
The nearest other state primary schools to St Helen's Catholic Primary School are Stockwell Primary School (0.2 miles, Good, 97% reading, 97% maths); St John's Angell Town Church of England Primary School (0.2 miles, Good, 76% reading, 84% maths); St Andrew's Church of England Primary School (0.4 miles, Good, 87% reading, 83% maths); and Loughborough Primary School (0.4 miles).
St Helen's Catholic Primary School's 2025 results were higher than all 3 of them.
Stockwell Primary SchoolSt John's Angell Town Church of England Primary SchoolSt Andrew's Church of England Primary SchoolLoughborough Primary School
Who goes there
47% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, well above the average state school (25%), and 63.6% speak English as an additional language, against 18.8% on average, according to the 2026 school census.
The largest ethnic groups are Black (60%) and Mixed (6%).
In 2026, 61 pupils (24.7%) received SEN support and 17 (6.9%) 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.
Staffing
St Helen's Catholic Primary School had 10 teachers in 2026, one for every 25 pupils: fewer teachers per pupil than a typical primary school, at about one for every 20.
Getting there
The nearest railway station is Brixton Rail Station, about 430 metres away (roughly a 5-minute walk).
17 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Villa Road, 50 metres away.
Suspensions and exclusions
In 2024/25, St Helen's Catholic Primary School issued 2 suspensions, 0.8 for every 100 pupils (the average state school: 6.3), and no permanent exclusions.
Secondary schools nearby
The secondary schools closest to St Helen's Catholic Primary School are Minerva Virtual Academy (0.2 miles), Platanos College (0.5 miles), Ark Evelyn Grace Academy (0.6 miles) and Trinity Academy (0.8 miles).
Minerva Virtual AcademyPlatanos CollegeArk Evelyn Grace AcademyTrinity Academy
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); DfE exclusions statistics
Key Information
DfE GIASOfsted Rating
Ofsted · 2 years agoThis judgement is from July 2014, 12 years ago, longer than Ofsted's usual 4-year cycle: the school may have changed since.
Overall
Latest (ungraded) inspection: The school remains Good.
Ofsted's report, in its own words
What is it like to attend this school?
St Helen's Catholic Primary School is welcoming and inclusive to all pupils. Parents and carers agree that the school is a warm, friendly and caring community for their children to learn in. Pupils eagerly come to school every day with a smile on their face.
Across the school there are high aspirations for all pupils, including pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Pupils live up to these expectations and achieve highly in English and mathematics. By the time they leave the school, they are well prepared for secondary education.
What does the school do well and what does it need to do better?
The school has designed a broad and ambitious curriculum that develops pupils' curiosity about the world and their local area. In most subjects, the school has set out, carefully, the concepts and vocabulary pupils should learn. Learning is well sequenced, starting from early years, so pupils build on their knowledge over time. For example, in art and design, pupils develop a secure understanding of colour mixing. Older pupils apply this knowledge with confidence when creating their own pop art print work. In core subjects, such as mathematics and science, assessment is used well. Teachers ensure that pupils recall and remember what they have learned in the past. Staff identify any gaps in learning and put in place effective support to swiftly remedy these. As a result, pupils build their knowledge securely over time and achieve well.
A few subjects are at an earlier stage of design and implementation. In these instances, the knowledge pupils need to secure is less well defined and teachers are sometimes less precise about what they want pupils to learn. As a result, some of the tasks and activities provided do not enable pupils to build their understanding of important ideas securely. The school recognise this and are currently developing the knowledge and expertise of middle leaders to check the implementation and impact of their subjects.
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 July 2014 inspection - unchanged since its previous inspection.
Rated Good for
Leadership & management.
At a Glance
47.0%
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 improved from 94% to 100% (2024 to 2025). Maths has improved from 90% to 100% (2024 to 2025). Writing has improved from 81% to 97% (2024 to 2025).
Class Sizes
22.3
Avg class size
24.0
Infant (KS1)
24.2
KS2
10
Total classes
2025/26 academic year
How Does This School Compare?
Ranked against 5 nearby primary schools
Latest from St Helen's Catholic Primary School
Letter to Parents - Friday 2nd October 2026
2 Oct 2026
Letter to Parents - Friday 25th September 2026
25 Sep 2026
Letter to Parents - Friday 18th September 2026
18 Sep 2026
Piano Fun Club Letter for Parents - September 2026
16 Sep 2026
Piano Fun Club Information for Parents - September 2026
16 Sep 2026
Parent Governor Elections Letter & Nomination Form (September 2026)
16 Sep 2026
From St Helen's Catholic Primary School's website. School Signal is not affiliated with the school.
Keep up with St Helen's Catholic Primary School
Before and after school care
St Helen'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 Lambeth
Clubs on Ofsted's childcare register at or near St Helen's Catholic Primary School.
- St Helen's Catholic School Extended Club Premier F4F GroupAt the school · Not yet graded
- St John's Angell Town School Extended Club Premier F4F Group360m away · Not yet graded
- Young People Matter at St Andrews Church of England Primary School630m away · Not yet graded
Getting There
Train Stations
Tube / Metro / Tram
Bus Stops
Free school transport
Check free transport to St Helen's Catholic Primary School from your postcode →
You apply to the council where you live. St Helen's Catholic Primary School is in Lambeth; for families living there:
- Lambeth's school travel policy: Home to school transport policy
Safety and surroundings
Road collisions within 500 m (2021 to 2025)
- Collisions
- 276
- Fatal
- 2
- Serious
- 50
- Children hurt
- 17
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 276 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: 2 fatal, 50 serious and 224 slight.
17 children aged 0 to 15 were hurt: 11 on foot, 1 on a bicycle and 5 in a vehicle or otherwise.
41 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 Lambeth is 142.5 (the median across 102 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 Helen's Catholic Primary School
Will you get a place at St Helen's Catholic Primary School? Get the admissions report
Your home postcode, set against St Helen's Catholic Primary School's admissions figures, in one report saved to your account.
What the report includes for St Helen's Catholic Primary School:
- The straight-line distance from your home to St Helen's Catholic Primary School.
- We hold no last distance offered figures from Lambeth, so the report covers demand, alternatives and dates.
- Applications, first choices and offers at St Helen's Catholic Primary School for 2014 to 2026 entry.
- How many families in Lambeth 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
69%
Available places
251 pupils
364 places
113 spare places in 2025
2025, DfE school capacity data
Area Demand Pressure - London
Based on MHCLG Live Table 122 (2024-25, last 5 years) for London
Across Lambeth council
Places available
2,650
Applications
2,122
Got 1st preference
80.6%
Got preferred school
96.5%
All primary applications across Lambeth council (2026/27), not just this school.
This school: Every first choice offered
Inspection History(7)
SEND & SEN Provision
SEN Overview
61
SEN Support
17
EHC Plans
31.6%
of Total Pupils
2026 academic year
Provision & Specialist Facilities
Pupils by Need Type
Pupil Demographics
Ethnicity
2026 academic year
Key Indicators
247
Total Pupils
128
Boys
119
Girls
2026 academic year
Workforce
10
Teachers
24.7:1
Pupil-teacher ratio
£61,739
Mean salary
2026 data
School Funding
£7,419
Per pupil
£2116k
Total funding
£167k
Pupil premium
2025-26 financial year allocations
Pupil Absence2024/25
5.3%
Overall absence
13.7%
Persistent absence
234
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 Helen's Catholic Primary School
Questions parents ask about St Helen's Catholic Primary School
What are SATs results like at St Helen's Catholic Primary School?
Of the pupils at St Helen's Catholic Primary School who took the 2025 Key Stage 2 assessments, 100% reached the expected standard in reading and 100% did so in maths.
What is St Helen's Catholic Primary School's Ofsted rating?
St Helen'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 July 2014, it was rated Good.
What is the catchment area for St Helen's Catholic Primary School?
No fixed boundary. When St Helen's Catholic Primary School is oversubscribed, Lambeth allocates places by its published criteria, usually ending with home-to-school distance.
Is it hard to get a place at St Helen's Catholic Primary School?
St Helen's Catholic Primary School was not full in 2025: it ran at 69% of its 364 places.
How big are the classes at St Helen's Catholic Primary School?
Classes at St Helen's Catholic Primary School average 22.3 pupils (2025/26).
How many pupils go to St Helen's Catholic Primary School?
St Helen's Catholic Primary School has around 247 pupils on roll. 47% are eligible for free school meals.
What is attendance like at St Helen's Catholic Primary School?
5.3% of sessions were missed at St Helen's Catholic Primary School in 2024/25. 13.7% of pupils were persistently absent (missing 10% or more of sessions).
How do I apply to St Helen's Catholic Primary School?
Apply through Lambeth's coordinated admissions process, naming St Helen'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 Helen's Catholic Primary School have a breakfast club or after-school club?
St Helen'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. Ofsted's childcare register lists an out-of-school club at the school: St Helen's Catholic School Extended Club Premier F4F Group (registered, not yet graded). There are 2 more within a kilometre.
How many road collisions happen near St Helen's Catholic Primary School?
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 276 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: 2 fatal, 50 serious and 224 slight. 17 children aged 0 to 15 were hurt: 11 on foot, 1 on a bicycle and 5 in a vehicle or otherwise. 41 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 Lambeth is 142.5 (the median across 102 schools, same distance and years).
Where is St Helen's Catholic Primary School?
St Helen's Catholic Primary School is at Knowle Close, Brixton, London, SW9 0TQ.
Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19)