St Michael's Primary School and Nursery, Colchester, Colchester
St Michael's Primary School and Nursery, Colchester is a primary school for pupils aged 3 to 11 in Colchester. It was rated Good at its last graded Ofsted inspection, in June 2015. Ofsted's ungraded inspection in January 2025 did not change this grade. Its 2025 Key Stage 2 results were the 45th-highest of the 66 schools in Colchester with published results, and 8,618th of 14,452 across England. It was 58% full in 2025.
- SATs results
- In line with England
- Ofsted
- Good (2015)
- 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 Essex (the council where you live). Offers on 16 April.
Data last updated 27 Oct 2026
St Michael's Primary School and Nursery, Colchester in detail
St Michael's Primary School and Nursery, Colchester in its own words
Coming up: an open day on Tuesday 10 November 2026 at 2pm and an open day on Thursday 19 November 2026 at 9.30am. Check the school's website before you go, as dates can change.
Open days on the school's site (school website)
Source: The school's own website
Results
In 2025, 73% of Year 6 pupils at St Michael's Primary School and Nursery, Colchester reached the expected standard in reading and 76% in maths. At the average state primary the figures were 78% and 76% in Essex and 77% and 75% across England.
Results were similar in 2024 (79% in reading, 66% in maths).
With small year groups, a few pupils can move these figures by several points.
Getting a place at St Michael's Primary School and Nursery, Colchester
For September 2026 entry, 20 families put St Michael's Primary School and Nursery, Colchester as their first choice and 59 named it as one of their preferences, for 20 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 St Michael's Primary School and Nursery, Colchester
Compared with nearby schools
The nearest other state primary schools to St Michael's Primary School and Nursery, Colchester are Montgomery Primary School, Colchester (0.3 miles, Good, 80% reading, 76% maths); King's Ford Infant School and Nursery (0.5 miles, Good); Kings Ford Academy (0.5 miles, Good, 55% reading, 41% maths); and Gosbecks Primary School (0.7 miles, Good, 71% reading, 60% maths).
St Michael's Primary School and Nursery, Colchester's 2025 results were higher than 2 of these 3 schools.
Montgomery Primary School, ColchesterKing's Ford Infant School and NurseryKings Ford AcademyGosbecks Primary School
What parents say
50 parents answered Ofsted's Parent View survey about St Michael's Primary School and Nursery, Colchester (as of September 2025): 86% would recommend the school, 92% say their child is happy there and 69% of those with a view say bullying is dealt with well.
The strongest agreement was that their child does well at the school (92%); the weakest, that the school deals with bullying well (among parents with a view) (69%).
Who goes there
In 2026, 36 pupils (15.8%) received SEN support and 22 (9.6%) 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.
St Michael's Primary School and Nursery, Colchester has a resourced provision for severe learning difficulties: 20 places, 20 pupils on roll.
Getting there
The nearest railway station is Colchester City Rail Station, about 1.9 miles away in a straight line.
8 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Kingsford Cross Roads (s-bound), 300 metres away.
Suspensions and exclusions
In 2024/25, St Michael's Primary School and Nursery, Colchester issued 26 suspensions, 11.2 for every 100 pupils (the average state school: 6.3), and no permanent exclusions.
Secondary schools nearby
The secondary schools closest to St Michael's Primary School and Nursery, Colchester are Paxman Academy (0.6 miles), Philip Morant School and College (1.2 miles), The Thomas Lord Audley School (1.2 miles) and St Benedict's Catholic College (1.4 miles).
Paxman AcademyPhilip Morant School and CollegeThe Thomas Lord Audley SchoolSt Benedict's Catholic College
Sources: DfE school performance data (averages: state mainstream schools); DfE school-level applications and offers; council admissions booklets; DfE appeals statistics; Ofsted Parent View; DfE school census and special educational needs statistics; NaPTAN (Department for Transport); 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 June 2015, 11 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
St Michael's excels at helping children learn to read confidently from their first year, with skilled staff who quickly spot and support those needing extra help. The school creates exceptional opportunities for personal development - pupils explore different faiths and cultures, hear from diverse role models, and take active roles in school leadership. Every child's needs are carefully understood and supported, with particular strength in helping pupils with SEND thrive.
Key Strengths
- Early reading is a major strength with highly trained staff using phonics effectively to help most pupils, including disadvantaged pupils, become confident readers
- Exceptional personal development provision - pupils gain rich understanding of different faiths, learn about diverse careers, and develop citizenship skills through core values events
- Outstanding support for pupils with SEND - rapid identification of needs and highly trained staff who adapt learning and provide therapeutic support including a therapy dog
- Ambitious, well-designed curriculum that motivates and inspires all pupils from nursery through year 6
- Extensive clubs and enrichment opportunities that are very well attended, including by disadvantaged pupils
Areas for Improvement
- Writing skills across the wider curriculum are not consistently reinforced - spelling, punctuation and grammar errors in non-English subjects are not always identified and addressed
- Inconsistent approaches to checking what pupils have understood in a few subjects, meaning gaps in knowledge are not always fully identified and addressed
- Some pupils do not progress as well as they could in certain subjects due to these gaps in checking understanding
Safeguarding
Safeguarding arrangements are effective with an open and positive culture that puts pupils' interests first.
Extracurricular Activities
Musical instruments, choir, public speaking events, school productions with choreography and talent contests, sports clubs, music clubs, young carers club, military troopers club, breakfast club, after-school club, theme park visits, science and war museum visits, zoo visits, conservation area visits
St Michael's Primary School and Nursery is a good school where pupils consistently display positive behaviour and attitudes, feel safe, and achieve well in most subjects. The school is particularly strong in personal development, with pupils gaining extensive opportunities to develop their talents and understand different cultures.
At a Glance
24.6%
Free School Meals
No
Boarding
Yes
Nursery
No
Sixth Form
Resourced provision: SLD
SEN Provision
No
Special Measures
What Parents Think
50 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 79% to 73% (2024 to 2025). Maths has improved from 66% to 76% (2024 to 2025). Writing has improved from 42% to 62% (2024 to 2025).
Class Sizes
19.8
Avg class size
24.3
Infant (KS1)
24.8
KS2
11
Total classes
2025/26 academic year
How Does This School Compare?
Ranked against 5 nearby primary schools
Latest from St Michael's Primary School and Nursery, Colchester
From St Michael's Primary School and Nursery, Colchester's website. School Signal is not affiliated with the school.
Keep up with St Michael's Primary School and Nursery, Colchester
Before and after school care
Clubs on Ofsted's childcare register at or near St Michael's Primary School and Nursery, Colchester.
- Premier Education Activities - Kings Ford Infants School860m away · Not yet graded
Getting There
Bus Stops
Free school transport
Check free transport to St Michael's Primary School and Nursery, Colchester from your postcode →
You apply to the council where you live. St Michael's Primary School and Nursery, Colchester 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
- 11
- Fatal
- 0
- Serious
- 1
- Children hurt
- 0
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 11 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 1 serious and 10 slight.
No children aged 0 to 15 were among the people hurt.
1 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 Michael's Primary School and Nursery, Colchester
Will you get a place at St Michael's Primary School and Nursery, Colchester? Get the admissions report
Your home postcode, set against St Michael's Primary School and Nursery, Colchester's admissions figures, in one report saved to your account.
What the report includes for St Michael's Primary School and Nursery, Colchester:
- The straight-line distance from your home to St Michael's Primary School and Nursery, Colchester.
- We hold no last distance offered figures from Essex, so the report covers demand, alternatives and dates.
- Applications, first choices and offers at St Michael's Primary School and Nursery, Colchester 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
58%
Available places
219 pupils
375 places
156 spare places in 2025
2025, DfE school capacity data
Area Demand Pressure - Colchester
Based on MHCLG Live Table 122 (2024-25, last 5 years) for Colchester
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(8)
SEND & SEN Provision
SEN Overview
36
SEN Support
22
EHC Plans
25.4%
of Total Pupils
2026 academic year
Provision & Specialist Facilities
St Michael's Primary School and Nursery, Colchester has a resourced provision for severe learning difficulties: 20 places, 20 pupils on roll.
Source: GIAS, Department for Education.
Pupils by Need Type
Pupil Demographics
Ethnicity
2026 academic year
Key Indicators
228
Total Pupils
121
Boys
107
Girls
2026 academic year
Workforce
13
Teachers
17.5:1
Pupil-teacher ratio
£50,470
Mean salary
2026 data
School Funding
£6,027
Per pupil
£1461k
Total funding
£86k
Pupil premium
2025-26 financial year allocations
Pupil Absence2024/25
5.6%
Overall absence
14.2%
Persistent absence
204
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 Michael's Primary School and Nursery, Colchester
Questions parents ask about St Michael's Primary School and Nursery, Colchester
What are SATs results like at St Michael's Primary School and Nursery, Colchester?
Of the pupils at St Michael's Primary School and Nursery, Colchester who took the 2025 Key Stage 2 assessments, 73% reached the expected standard in reading and 76% did so in maths.
What is St Michael's Primary School and Nursery, Colchester's Ofsted rating?
St Michael's Primary School and Nursery, Colchester's most recent Ofsted inspection, in January 2025, 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 Michael's Primary School and Nursery, Colchester?
No fixed boundary. When St Michael's Primary School and Nursery, Colchester 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 Michael's Primary School and Nursery, Colchester?
St Michael's Primary School and Nursery, Colchester was not full in 2025: it ran at 58% of its 375 places.
How big are the classes at St Michael's Primary School and Nursery, Colchester?
Classes at St Michael's Primary School and Nursery, Colchester average 19.8 pupils (2025/26).
How many pupils go to St Michael's Primary School and Nursery, Colchester?
St Michael's Primary School and Nursery, Colchester has around 228 pupils on roll. 25% are eligible for free school meals.
Does St Michael's Primary School and Nursery, Colchester have specialist SEN provision?
St Michael's Primary School and Nursery, Colchester has a resourced provision for severe learning difficulties: 20 places, 20 pupils on roll.
What is attendance like at St Michael's Primary School and Nursery, Colchester?
5.6% of sessions were missed at St Michael's Primary School and Nursery, Colchester in 2024/25. 14.2% of pupils were persistently absent (missing 10% or more of sessions).
How do I apply to St Michael's Primary School and Nursery, Colchester?
Apply through Essex's coordinated admissions process, naming St Michael's Primary School and Nursery, Colchester 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 Michael's Primary School and Nursery, Colchester have a breakfast club or after-school club?
Ofsted's childcare register lists an out-of-school club within a kilometre of St Michael's Primary School and Nursery, Colchester: Premier Education Activities - Kings Ford Infants School (860m away, registered, not yet graded). The school may also run its own clubs, which don't have to register with Ofsted.
How many road collisions happen near St Michael's Primary School and Nursery, Colchester?
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 11 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 1 serious and 10 slight. No children aged 0 to 15 were among the people hurt. 1 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 Michael's Primary School and Nursery, Colchester?
St Michael's Primary School and Nursery, Colchester is at Camulodunum Way, Berechurch Hall Road, Colchester, Essex, CO2 9RA.
Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19)