Central Primary School

Community school·Primary school Watford, Hertfordshire·WD17 2LX
Composite score
51.8
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#6,601
National rank
#702
In East of England
#186
In Hertfordshire
Top 45%
Nationally

Performance (KS2 SATs)

% meeting expected RWM
69%
% achieving higher RWM
6%
Reading average scaled score
106.0
National avg ≈ 105
Maths average scaled score
105.0
National avg ≈ 104
Reading progress
—
Maths progress
—

Ofsted judgements

New framework · Last inspection: 24/02/2026 · Read full report ↗

Achievement
Expected standard
Leadership and governance
Expected standard
Curriculum and teaching
Expected standard
Attendance and behaviour
Expected standard
Personal development and wellbeing
Strong standard
Inclusion
Strong standard
Safeguarding standards
Met
Early years
Expected standard

Getting a place

Offered a place after putting it first
100%
33 first choices, 42 places
First choices per place
0.79
fewer first choices than places
Applications naming the school
84
any preference, for 42 places
First preferences per place, last five years▲ 0.09
00.511.5
1 per place
0.9220220.9420230.8820240.7020250.792026

Red dashed line = one first choice per place. How to read this

Every child who put Central Primary School first was offered a place in 2026, so no distance cut-off applied: living further away did not cost a place that year.

Application figures: DfE, school level applications and offers (2026 intake).

School profile

Age range
3–11
Pupils on roll
411
Gender
Mixed
Religious character
None

Pupil background

% FSM ever-6
22.9%
Typical primary: 21.5%
% EAL
71.5%
Typical primary: 9.6%

Special educational needs

% SEN support
16.1%
Typical primary: 14.3%
% with an EHC plan
3.4%
Typical primary: 3.0%

Attendance

Overall absence
6.0%
Typical primary: 5.3%
Persistently absent
17.4%
Typical primary: 13.3%

Staffing & funding

Pupils per teacher
20.9
Typical primary: 20.7
Spend per pupil
£6,807
Typical primary: £6,960

“Typical” = the median primary school in England. What this means

Nearby primary schools

Location

Central Primary School at a glance

Located in Watford, Hertfordshire, Central Primary School is a primary school, classified by the DfE as a community school. The school educates roughly 411 pupils aged 3 to 11. Ofsted judged the school to be 'Requires improvement' when it was last inspected in February 2026. In the most recent Key Stage 2 SATs, 69% of pupils reached the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined — above the national average of 61%. That marks an improvement of 23.0 percentage points in the proportion reaching the expected standard on the previous year. On our composite score, which combines the DfE attainment measures above, this places it in the top 45% of primary schools nationally.

Pupils achieved an average scaled score of 106 in reading and 105 in maths (national averages are about 105 and 104). 6% reached the higher standard across all three subjects (around 8% do so nationally). Central Primary School was not oversubscribed for September 2026: all 33 families who put it first were offered a place. Overall pupil absence was 6.0%. There are about 20.9 pupils per teacher. If you are considering Central Primary School, it may be worth asking how leaders have responded to Ofsted's findings and what has changed since the inspection. This overview is generated automatically from the latest published DfE performance tables and Ofsted data; figures are rounded, and you can check the originals via the official links above.

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