St Paul's Infant School, Maidstone
St Paul's Infant School is a primary school for pupils aged 4 to 7 in Maidstone. It was rated Good at its last graded Ofsted inspection, in June 2016. Ofsted's ungraded inspection in July 2025 did not change this grade. It was 98% full in 2025.
- Ofsted
- Good (2016)
- 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 Kent (the council where you live). Offers on 16 April.
Data last updated 27 Oct 2026
St Paul's Infant School in detail
St Paul's Infant School in its own words
In its own words: "We are a three-form entry infant school in Maidstone, with classes in reception, year one and year two (4-7 year olds). The school is set in delightful grounds with two large playgrounds, grassed areas, an adventure playground and a conservation area with a pond where we hold forest school sessions for each year group."
Clubs and activities named on the school's website include football, dance, Lego and art.
The school runs a breakfast club and after-school care.
Coming up: an open day on Tuesday 17 November 2026 and an open day on Wednesday 25 November 2026. Check the school's website before you go, as dates can change.
Vision and values (school website)Clubs (school website)Wraparound care (school website)
Source: The school's own website
Getting a place at St Paul's Infant School
For September 2026 entry, 64 families put St Paul's Infant School as their first choice and 124 named it as one of their preferences, for 85 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 Paul's Infant School
Compared with nearby schools
The nearest other state primary schools to St Paul's Infant School are North Borough Junior School (under 0.1 miles, Good, 75% reading, 77% maths); Sandling Primary School (0.5 miles, Good, 82% reading, 68% maths); Valley Invicta Primary School At East Borough (0.8 miles, Good, 81% reading, 81% maths); and Brunswick House Primary School (0.9 miles, Good, 72% reading, 78% maths).
North Borough Junior SchoolSandling Primary SchoolValley Invicta Primary School At East BoroughBrunswick House Primary School
What parents say
57 parents answered Ofsted's Parent View survey about St Paul's Infant School (as of September 2025): 93% would recommend the school, 98% say their child is happy there and 78% of those with a view say bullying is dealt with well.
The strongest agreement was that their child is happy at the school (98%); the weakest, that the school deals with bullying well (among parents with a view) (78%).
Who goes there
30.6% speak English as an additional language, against 18.8% on average, according to the 2026 school census.
The largest ethnic groups are White British (41%), Asian (18%) and Black (15%).
In 2026, 66 pupils (27.3%) received SEN support and 5 (2.1%) 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 Maidstone East Rail Station, about 880 metres away (roughly a 11-minute walk).
4 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Boxley Road TA Centre (adjacent), 230 metres away.
The area around the school
In August 2026, police recorded 397 crimes within a mile of the school, most often violence and sexual offences, anti-social behaviour and shoplifting. 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, St Paul's Infant School issued 22 suspensions, 8.4 for every 100 pupils (the average state school: 6.3), and no permanent exclusions.
Secondary schools nearby
The secondary schools closest to St Paul's Infant School are Maidstone Grammar School for Girls (0.7 miles), The Maplesden Noakes School (0.8 miles), Invicta Grammar School (0.9 miles) and Valley Park School (1 mile).
Maidstone Grammar School for GirlsThe Maplesden Noakes SchoolInvicta Grammar SchoolValley Park 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
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 · 1 year agoThis judgement is from June 2016, 10 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 July 2025 inspection report.
What This School Does Well
St Paul's is an exceptionally nurturing and supportive school where children quickly settle and build confidence in their learning. Reading is at the heart of teaching, with expert phonics instruction helping pupils achieve well. The school provides outstanding emotional support and creates many opportunities for pupils to develop responsibility and character, resulting in happy, well-behaved children who are proud to attend.
Key Strengths
- Reading is prioritised with consistently high-standard phonics teaching and rising standards of reading achievement
- Strong relationships and emotional support help pupils develop confidence, resilience and a sense of responsibility
- Teachers have secure subject knowledge, set high expectations, and adapt learning to meet the needs of all pupils including those with SEND and disadvantaged pupils
- Behaviour is excellent with low-level issues in lessons being rare, and attendance is improving
- Ambitious, well-designed curriculum that helps pupils build on prior knowledge in most subjects
Areas for Improvement
- In some subjects, essential knowledge that pupils need to learn has not been identified as specifically as it could be, resulting in some pupils having gaps in key knowledge
- The school should more clearly define the precise knowledge pupils need to learn and when they should learn it across all subjects
Safeguarding
Safeguarding arrangements are effective and the school has created an open and positive culture around safeguarding that puts pupils' interests first.
St Paul's Infant School is a highly inclusive school that recognises and nurtures each pupil's unique talents, where pupils are happy, safe, and develop positive attitudes to learning. The school has taken effective action to maintain the good standards identified at the previous inspection.
At a Glance
23.6%
Free School Meals
No
Boarding
No
Nursery
No
Sixth Form
No
Special Measures
What Parents Think
57 responsesSource: Ofsted Parent View, responses as at September 2025 - % who strongly agree or agree
Class Sizes
26.9
Avg class size
26.9
Infant (KS1)
7
Total classes
2025/26 academic year
How Does This School Compare?
Ranked against 5 nearby primary schools
Keep up with St Paul's Infant School
Before and after school care
Clubs on Ofsted's childcare register at or near St Paul's Infant School.
- Busy Bodies OSC840m away · Not yet graded
Getting There
Train Stations
Bus Stops
Free school transport
Check free transport to St Paul's Infant School from your postcode →
You apply to the council where you live. St Paul's Infant 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
- 13
- Fatal
- 0
- Serious
- 2
- Children hurt
- 2
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 13 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 2 serious and 11 slight.
2 children aged 0 to 15 were hurt: 1 on a bicycle and 1 in a vehicle or otherwise.
5 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 St Paul's Infant School
Will you get a place at St Paul's Infant School? Get the admissions report
Your home postcode, set against St Paul's Infant School's admissions figures, in one report saved to your account.
What the report includes for St Paul's Infant School:
- The straight-line distance from your home to St Paul's Infant School.
- We hold no last distance offered figures from Kent, so the report covers demand, alternatives and dates.
- Applications, first choices and offers at St Paul's Infant 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
98%
Near capacity
264 pupils
270 places
6 spare places in 2025
2025, DfE school capacity data
Area Demand Pressure - Maidstone
Based on MHCLG Live Table 122 (2024-25, last 5 years) for Maidstone
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: Every first choice offered
Inspection History(7)
SEND & SEN Provision
SEN Overview
66
SEN Support
5
EHC Plans
29.3%
of Total Pupils
2026 academic year
Provision & Specialist Facilities
Pupils by Need Type
Pupil Demographics
Ethnicity
2026 academic year
Key Indicators
242
Total Pupils
114
Boys
128
Girls
2026 academic year
Workforce
16
Teachers
15.1:1
Pupil-teacher ratio
£46,328
Mean salary
2026 data
School Funding
£5,607
Per pupil
£1641k
Total funding
£80k
Pupil premium
2025-26 financial year allocations
Pupil Absence2024/25
5.9%
Overall absence
14.6%
Persistent absence
199
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
Questions parents ask about St Paul's Infant School
What is St Paul's Infant School's Ofsted rating?
St Paul's Infant School's most recent Ofsted inspection, in July 2025, was ungraded, so it gave no overall grade. At its last graded inspection, in June 2016, it was rated Good.
What is the catchment area for St Paul's Infant School?
No fixed boundary. When St Paul's Infant 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 St Paul's Infant School?
St Paul's Infant School was close to full in 2025, at 98% of its capacity.
How big are the classes at St Paul's Infant School?
Classes at St Paul's Infant School average 26.9 pupils (2025/26).
How many pupils go to St Paul's Infant School?
St Paul's Infant School has around 242 pupils on roll. 24% are eligible for free school meals.
What is attendance like at St Paul's Infant School?
5.9% of sessions were missed at St Paul's Infant School in 2024/25. 14.6% of pupils were persistently absent (missing 10% or more of sessions).
How do I apply to St Paul's Infant School?
Apply through Kent's coordinated admissions process, naming St Paul's Infant 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 Paul's Infant School have a breakfast club or after-school club?
Ofsted's childcare register lists an out-of-school club within a kilometre of St Paul's Infant School: Busy Bodies OSC (840m 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 Paul's Infant School?
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 13 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 2 serious and 11 slight. 2 children aged 0 to 15 were hurt: 1 on a bicycle and 1 in a vehicle or otherwise. 5 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 St Paul's Infant School?
St Paul's Infant School is at Hillary Road, Maidstone, Kent, ME14 2BS.
Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19)