St Peter's Catholic Primary School, Birmingham Review 2026: High-performing Catholic primary with a tight intake

A smaller primary with big outcomes, St Peter’s serves Bartley Green families who want a clearly Catholic education and strong Key Stage 2 results. The most recent published results place it well above England averages, with particularly strong combined attainment across reading, writing and maths.

Leadership is under Mrs Natasha Mellor (principal), and the school sits within the Lumen Christi Catholic Multi Academy Company, which shapes governance and admissions arrangements.

Entry is competitive for Reception, with a published admission number of 30 and faith based oversubscription criteria that prioritise baptised Catholic children, then siblings, then distance. For many families, the key decision is whether the school’s Catholic life, including expectations around supporting that ethos, fits their household.

Catholic identity is not an add on here, it is the organising principle. The school’s mission statement captures that plainly: “Loved by Jesus, we love, we learn, we live and grow together for Him”. The message is echoed in practical ways, including a dedicated section on Catholic life and pupil leadership roles that centre service and worship.

The pupil leadership and faith action groups give a good sense of how values are translated into routines. Named teams and clubs include Mini Vinnies, CAFOD Club, Liturgy Leaders, and Caritas Ambassadors, which makes “service” feel like something pupils do rather than something adults merely talk about.

Safeguarding messaging is direct, including a clear prompt for families who are worried about a child, plus the school’s stated involvement in Operation Encompass. The safeguarding structure is also set out publicly, with the principal as Designated Safeguarding Lead and named deputy leads.

Outcomes are a clear strength. In the latest published Key Stage 2 results, 90% of pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and mathematics combined, compared with an England average of 62%. At the higher standard, 36.7% reached greater depth across reading, writing and maths, well above the England average of 8%.

Scaled scores reinforce the same picture, with reading at 109, maths at 109, and grammar, punctuation and spelling at 111.

In FindMySchool’s proprietary ranking based on official data, the school is ranked 587th in England and 9th in Birmingham for primary outcomes. That places it well above England average (top 10%).

Parents comparing nearby options can use the FindMySchool local hub and Comparison Tool to see these figures side by side, especially helpful where several Catholic primaries sit within realistic travelling distance.

The curriculum structure looks deliberately planned rather than improvised. The website signposts specific strands such as Early Reading and Phonics, Whole Class Reading, Reading for Pleasure, and Oracy, which suggests reading is treated as a whole school priority rather than a single programme in one year group.

Maths is also presented as a sequence, with Mastering Number highlighted for Key Stage 1. For many pupils, the implication is steady fluency building early on, so that later key stage work can move faster without leaving gaps.

There is also a clear signal of wider curriculum ambition. Latin appears as a named subject area, something still relatively uncommon in state primaries, and it can appeal to families who like traditional academic building blocks and vocabulary development alongside the core.

As a primary, the main transition point is Year 6 to Year 7. One practical detail worth noting is that the school sits in the same trust as St Thomas Aquinas Catholic School, alongside several other Catholic primaries. For some families, that trust linkage can make transition conversations feel more joined up, even though secondary admissions are still a separate process and never guaranteed.

For Catholic families, the wider point is that St Peter’s runs a faith rich primary experience, and children may be well prepared for a secondary environment where chaplaincy, worship, and service are familiar rather than new.

Reception entry is part of Birmingham’s coordinated admissions scheme, but St Peter’s also requires a Supplementary Information Form for families applying under Catholic criteria. For September 2026 entry, the school’s admissions policy states an application deadline of 15 January 2026, with offers advised on 16 April 2026 (or the next working day).

Because today is 27 January 2026, those deadlines have already passed for September 2026 entry. For the next cycle (September 2027 entry), families should expect a similar pattern, applications opening in early October of the preceding year and closing in mid January, with offers released in April. Birmingham’s published timetable for the 2025 to 2026 primary admissions process shows applications starting 1 October 2025, closing 15 January 2026, and National Offer Day on 16 April 2026.

Oversubscription criteria are explicit and faith led. Priority is given first to looked after and previously looked after baptised Catholic children, then baptised Catholic children in the parish with a sibling at the school, then baptised Catholic children in the parish, followed by other baptised Catholic children, and then non Catholic children, with distance used as the tiebreaker within categories. Evidence of Catholic baptism (or reception into the Church) is required to be treated as Catholic within the criteria.

Demand data reinforces that competition is real. For the Reception entry route, there were 109 applications for 30 offers in the latest dataset, which is 3.63 applications for every place. A first preference ratio above 1 also indicates many families list the school as their top choice.

Families who are seriously considering applying should use FindMySchoolMap Search to check their exact distance and to model realistic alternatives, because distance only matters once you are inside the same oversubscription category.

Pastoral systems are easiest to judge where a school is specific. Here, the public emphasis on safeguarding is detailed, including a named safeguarding team and a strong steer about what families should do if they are worried about a child.

The school also flags Operation Encompass, which is typically used to support children affected by incidents involving police attendance at home. Even without adding extra assumptions, the presence of that information indicates active attention to children’s lived circumstances beyond school gates.

For families who want a pastoral approach rooted in faith language, the principal’s welcome makes that intention clear, with a stated aim that each child is “known” and “deeply loved”, alongside the expectation that home and school work in partnership.

The strongest evidence of enrichment is the naming. Instead of generic lists, the website highlights structured pupil groups linked to Catholic social action and worship, including Mini Vinnies, CAFOD Club, Caritas Ambassadors, and Liturgy Leaders. For children who like responsibility, these roles can become a real anchor, building confidence through visible contribution rather than competition.

The curriculum breadth also signals enrichment through subjects, not just clubs. Named provision in areas such as music, art, design and technology, computing, and Latin suggests that pupils who enjoy variety should not feel boxed into English and maths alone, even though those results are a major headline.

The school day runs from 08:50 to 15:30, with gates opening from 08:45.

Before and after school childcare is available through WASPS, which is based at the school. The school website confirms the arrangement, but does not publish session times or pricing on the page itself, so families should check directly with the provider for the current schedule.

For travel planning, Bartley Green is a residential area and many families will factor in school run practicality. If you are weighing multiple Birmingham options, it is worth comparing door to gate travel times alongside admissions criteria.

The predecessor school was rated Outstanding at its last graded Ofsted inspection in July 2019.

Ofsted’s academy conversion letter, published 05 September 2024, confirms the conversion to academy status and links the current academy to the predecessor school.

• Faith commitment is central. Admissions criteria prioritise baptised Catholic children and parish links, and the school’s Catholic character is expected to be supported positively by families. This is ideal for some households, and misaligned for others.

• Reception places are limited. With a published admission number of 30, competition can be intense and late applications are disadvantaged.

• Deadlines matter, and for 2026 entry they have passed. The closing date for September 2026 applications was 15 January 2026, with offers on 16 April 2026. Families looking ahead should plan for similar timings in the next cycle.

• Wraparound details are not fully published on the school page. Childcare is available via WASPS, but session specifics are not shown on the school’s page, so you will need to confirm what works for your working week.

This is a high performing, faith led primary that will suit families who want a Catholic education with strong Key Stage 2 outcomes and a clear culture of service. The academic data indicates pupils leave well prepared for secondary, and the ethos is consistent across curriculum and wider life.

It most suits Catholic families who can engage with the school’s parish shaped admissions criteria, and who value a smaller intake where community links are likely to be strong. Securing entry is where the difficulty lies, particularly in Reception.