PrimaryState · Voluntary controlled school

St Michael's Church of England Primary School

Houghton Green Lane, Playden, Playden Rye, East Sussex, TN31 7PJ ·

Ofsted:Some areas below Good· 2025Church of England

At a glance

A state Church of England primary school for ages 5–11 in Playden Rye. Ofsted inspection (April 2025): Some areas below Good (no overall grade was given). The year group is too small to compare results fairly with the England average. 5 families put it first for 5 places (September 2026 entry).

Ages: 5–11
Pupils: 75
Gender: Mixed
Sixth form: No
Admissions: Non-selective
Local authority: East Sussex
Headteacher: Mrs Lison Smart

School website 01797280277 Explore the area

Inspection

Ofsted (framework in use until November 2025)

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Graded inspection 23 Apr 2025

Inspections from September 2024 did not give an overall grade, only the separate judgements below.

Quality of education: Requires improvement
Behaviour and attitudes: Good
Personal development: Good
Leadership and management: Requires improvement
Early years: Good

Safeguarding effective: Yes

Latest ungraded inspection (26 Nov 2019): School remains Good

Inspection reports describe the school on the day. Read the full report and visit the school before deciding.

Exam results

Department for Education performance tables

Year 6 pupils, 2024/25 · 9 pupils

Expected standard

Reading, writing & maths

Higher standard

Reading, writing & maths

Reading score

Average scaled score

Maths score

Average scaled score

This school

East Sussex

61%

England

62%

Expected standard over time

Small year group: with few pupils, results can swing a lot from year to year. Look at several years together.

KS2 tests were not held in 2019/20 or 2020/21. Progress scores are not available from 2024/25.

Admissions

Demand for places and how places are allocated

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Reception entry, September 2026 (national offer day data)

Offers made

1st preferences

All applications

1st prefs per place

1.00

Fewer first choices than places

5 of 5 first-preference applicants were offered a place (100%).

Catchment area

We don't have an official catchment boundary for this school. Many schools don't have one, and few councils publish boundaries as open data. We don't estimate catchments. Check the school's admissions policy or the council's admissions booklet.

Last distance offered

Not published nationally. Many councils publish the furthest distance offered for each school in their annual allocation reports. Past distances vary year to year with demand and sibling numbers, so they are not a guarantee.

How places are allocated: you apply through your home council. When a school has more applicants than places, it applies its published oversubscription criteria in order. These usually start with looked-after children, then siblings, then catchment or distance; faith schools may prioritise church attendance. Children with an EHC plan naming the school are admitted first. Apply on GOV.UK

Pupils

School census 2024/25

Pupils

Capacity

105

71% full

Girls / boys

41/59

Mixed

Eligible for free school meals (last 6 years)29.6%
English as an additional language2.5%
SEN support18.5%
Education, Health and Care plan2.5%
The black tick shows the median for state-funded primary schools in England.