St Nicholas Church of England First School, Wolverhampton
St Nicholas Church of England First School is a primary school for pupils aged 3 to 9 in Wolverhampton, part of Codsall Multi Academy Trust. It has a Church of England religious character. It was rated Good at its last graded Ofsted inspection, in November 2013. Ofsted's ungraded inspection in April 2025 did not change this grade. It was 97% full in 2025.
- Ofsted
- Good (2013)
- Demand
- Oversubscribed
- Attendance
- Better than England average
Reception applications for September 2027 close in 80 days
Deadline Friday 15 January 2027. Apply to Staffordshire (the council where you live). Offers on 16 April.
Data last updated 27 Oct 2026
St Nicholas Church of England First School in detail
Getting a place at St Nicholas Church of England First School
For September 2026 entry, 68 families put St Nicholas Church of England First School as their first choice and 125 named it as one of their preferences, for 59 places offered. That is 1.2 first choices for every place. 10 families who put it first were not offered a place there.
Admissions history and your chances at St Nicholas Church of England First School
Compared with nearby schools
The nearest other state primary schools to St Nicholas Church of England First School are St Christopher's Catholic Primary Academy (0.6 miles, 75% reading, 79% maths); Lane Green First School (0.7 miles, Requires improvement); Birches First School (1.2 miles, Good); and Palmers Cross Primary School (1.8 miles, Good, 70% reading, 76% maths).
St Christopher's Catholic Primary AcademyLane Green First SchoolBirches First SchoolPalmers Cross Primary School
The trust
St Nicholas Church of England First School is one of 3 schools run by Codsall Multi Academy Trust, an academy trust.
What parents say
102 parents answered Ofsted's Parent View survey about St Nicholas Church of England First School (as of September 2025): 100% would recommend the school, 100% 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 (90%).
Who goes there
7.7% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, well below the average state school (25%), and 1.5% speak English as an additional language, against 18.8% on average, according to the 2026 school census.
The largest ethnic groups are White British (81%) and Mixed (11%).
In 2026, 30 pupils (8.8%) received SEN support and 12 (3.5%) 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 Codsall Rail Station, about 580 metres away (roughly a 7-minute walk).
4 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Church Road (adjacent), 260 metres away.
The area around the school
Measured by the 2025 English Indices of Deprivation, the neighbourhood St Nicholas Church of England First School stands in is among the 10% least deprived neighbourhoods in England. This describes where the school is, not where its pupils live.
In August 2026, police recorded 54 crimes within a mile of the school, most often violence and sexual offences, anti-social behaviour and public order offences. That is well below the typical figure around schools in Staffordshire (86).
Suspensions and exclusions
In 2024/25, St Nicholas Church of England First School issued 2 suspensions, 0.6 for every 100 pupils (the average state school: 6.3), and no permanent exclusions.
Secondary schools nearby
The secondary schools closest to St Nicholas Church of England First School are Codsall Middle School (0.5 miles), Codsall Community High School (0.6 miles) and Bilbrook CofE (VC) Middle School (0.7 miles).
Codsall Middle SchoolCodsall Community High SchoolBilbrook CofE (VC) Middle School
Sources: 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); English Indices of Deprivation 2025 (MHCLG); data.police.uk street-level crime; DfE exclusions statistics
Location
Staffordshire published that the last place for 2026 entry went to a family 0.807 miles away (straight line). The cut-off moves every year.
Key Information
DfE GIASOfsted Rating
Ofsted · 2 years agoThis judgement is from November 2013, 12 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 Insights
From Ofsted's April 2025 inspection report.
What This School Does Well
St Nicholas provides a warm, welcoming environment where children are polite, respectful and happy. Reading is prioritised exceptionally well with daily phonics and daily support for those who need it. The school offers impressive enrichment through music lessons with the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, farm visits, engineering projects and multiple leadership roles that help prepare pupils for the next stage of their learning.
Key Strengths
- Excellent reading provision with daily phonics teaching and strong support for struggling readers
- Well-designed curriculum with clear expectations and good subject expertise from staff
- Inclusive approach to SEND with meaningful links to external agencies
- Strong school values and positive pupil behaviour and attitudes
- Rich enrichment activities including music, sports, trips and leadership opportunities
Areas for Improvement
- Writing standards are not as high as other subjects due to inconsistent implementation of the writing curriculum
- Not all staff know how to support pupils with SEND effectively, affecting outcomes for some of these pupils
- Some staff do not address early writing misconceptions as swiftly as others
Safeguarding
The arrangements for safeguarding are effective and the school creates a positive culture around safeguarding that puts pupils' interests first.
Extracurricular Activities
Vocal group, football, first-aid club, guitar, drums, recorder, farm visits, university engineering projects, sponsored walk, school council, eco-representative roles, playtime support roles
St Nicholas Church of England First School is a welcoming school where pupils achieve high standards and have a strong sense of belonging. The school has maintained good standards since its previous inspection, with staff ambitious for what pupils can achieve.
At a Glance
7.7%
Free School Meals
No
Boarding
Yes
Nursery
No
Sixth Form
No
Special Measures
What Parents Think
102 responsesSource: Ofsted Parent View, responses as at September 2025 - % who strongly agree or agree
Class Sizes
27.7
Avg class size
28.5
Infant (KS1)
30.7
KS2
9
Total classes
2 classes with more than 30 pupils
2025/26 academic year
How Does This School Compare?
Ranked against 5 nearby primary schools
Keep up with St Nicholas Church of England First School
Term dates
St Nicholas Church of England First School is an academy, so it sets its own term dates: check the school's website. As a guide, see Staffordshire's term dates for its community schools.
Getting There
Train Stations
Bus Stops
Free school transport
Check free transport to St Nicholas Church of England First School from your postcode →
You apply to the council where you live. St Nicholas Church of England First School is in Staffordshire; for families living there:
Apply to Staffordshire for free school transport. Its policy is on the council's website.
Safety and surroundings
Road collisions within 500 m (2021 to 2025)
- Collisions
- 7
- Fatal
- 0
- Serious
- 1
- Children hurt
- 1
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 7 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 1 serious and 6 slight.
1 child aged 0 to 15 was hurt: 1 on a bicycle.
2 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 Staffordshire is 5 (the median across 457 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 Nicholas Church of England First School
Will you get a place at St Nicholas Church of England First School? Get the admissions report
Your home postcode, set against St Nicholas Church of England First School's admissions figures, in one report saved to your account.
What the report includes for St Nicholas Church of England First School:
- The straight-line distance from your home to St Nicholas Church of England First School.
- Last distance offered for 2025 and 2026 entry, from Staffordshire's own figures, and how your distance compares each year.
- Applications, first choices and offers at St Nicholas Church of England First School for 2017 to 2026 entry.
- How many families in Staffordshire 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
97%
Near capacity
299 pupils
308 places
9 spare places in 2025
2025, DfE school capacity data
Area Demand Pressure - Wolverhampton
Based on MHCLG Live Table 122 (2024-25, last 5 years) for Wolverhampton
Across Staffordshire council
Places available
10,768
Applications
8,344
Got 1st preference
95.1%
Got preferred school
99.1%
All primary applications across Staffordshire council (2026/27), not just this school.
This school: Oversubscribed
Inspection History(3)
SEND & SEN Provision
SEN Overview
30
SEN Support
12
EHC Plans
12.4%
of Total Pupils
2026 academic year
Provision & Specialist Facilities
Pupils by Need Type
Pupil Demographics
Ethnicity
2026 academic year
Key Indicators
339
Total Pupils
178
Boys
161
Girls
2026 academic year
Workforce
16
Teachers
21.2:1
Pupil-teacher ratio
£57,737
Mean salary
2026 data
School Funding
£4,955
Per pupil
£1617k
Total funding
£35k
Pupil premium
2025-26 financial year allocations
Pupil Absence2024/25
3.5%
Overall absence
5.1%
Persistent absence
253
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 Nicholas Church of England First School
Questions parents ask about St Nicholas Church of England First School
What is St Nicholas Church of England First School's Ofsted rating?
St Nicholas Church of England First School's most recent Ofsted inspection, in April 2025, was ungraded, so it gave no overall grade. At its last graded inspection, in November 2013, it was rated Good.
How close to St Nicholas Church of England First School do you need to live?
Staffordshire publishes how far the last offered place was, in miles: 2.411 for 2025 entry, then 0.807 for 2026 entry. The cut-off has tightened over that period, which usually means demand is growing faster than places. These are the authority's own figures, not a fixed boundary - the cut-off moves with the number of applications each year.
Is it hard to get a place at St Nicholas Church of England First School?
St Nicholas Church of England First School was close to full in 2025, at 97% of its capacity.
How big are the classes at St Nicholas Church of England First School?
Classes at St Nicholas Church of England First School average 27.7 pupils (2025/26). 2 classes have more than 30 pupils - infant classes are capped at 30 by law, with limited exceptions.
How many pupils go to St Nicholas Church of England First School?
St Nicholas Church of England First School has around 339 pupils on roll. 8% are eligible for free school meals.
What is attendance like at St Nicholas Church of England First School?
3.5% of sessions were missed at St Nicholas Church of England First School in 2024/25. 5.1% of pupils were persistently absent (missing 10% or more of sessions).
How do I apply to St Nicholas Church of England First School?
Apply through Staffordshire's coordinated admissions process, naming St Nicholas Church of England First 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 St Nicholas Church of England First School?
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 7 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 1 serious and 6 slight. 1 child aged 0 to 15 was hurt: 1 on a bicycle. 2 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 Staffordshire is 5 (the median across 457 schools, same distance and years).
Where is St Nicholas Church of England First School?
St Nicholas Church of England First School is at Belvide Gardens, Chillington Drive, Wolverhampton, West Midlands, WV8 1AN.
Sources: Staffordshire admissions booklets; Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19)