Charles Dickens Primary School

School overview

Charles Dickens Primary School is a primary school serving London, Southwark, classified by the DfE as a converter academy. It has 479 pupils aged 2 to 11 on roll. At its most recent graded inspection, Ofsted rated Charles Dickens Primary School 'Outstanding'. In the most recent Key Stage 2 SATs, 92% of pupils reached the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined — well above the national average of 61%. That marks an improvement of 3.0 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 among the top 1% of primary schools in England.

Pupils achieved an average scaled score of 109 in reading and 110 in maths (national averages are about 105 and 104). 34% reached the higher standard across all three subjects (around 8% do so nationally). Competition for places is real here - 49% of first-choice applicants were offered a Reception place for September 2026 (120 first choices for 59 places). Overall pupil absence was 3.5%. There are about 23.1 pupils per teacher. The school serves a community with above-average levels of disadvantage: about 44% of pupils have been eligible for free school meals in the last six years, compared with roughly 24% nationally — useful context when reading the results above. When comparing schools, it is still worth visiting in person to see whether the atmosphere and approach suit your child. 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.