SCHOOL PROFILE

Ark Oval Primary Academy

Primary Academy sponsor led URN 137114
Open
Pupils 8,834,192 Latest school census
Capacity 630 Published school capacity
Capacity used 94.1% Pupils as a share of capacity
Age range 4 – 11 Statutory age range
OFSTED

Latest graded inspection

17 June 2025
Latest published outcome Not judged
OEIF
Quality of education Good
Behaviour & attitudes Good
Personal development Good
Leadership & management Good
INSPECTION HISTORY

Previous Ofsted activity

5 March 2020
Ungraded inspection School remains Good
Published 13 May 2020
SCHOOL DETAILS

About this school

School type Academy sponsor led
Phase Primary
Gender Mixed
Religious character —
Local authority Croydon
Trust ARK SCHOOLS
Census date 15 January 2026
PUPIL PROFILE

School community

Latest published pupil characteristics for 2025/26.

2025/26
Total pupils 593 593 full-time · 0 part-time
Female pupils 286 48.2% of pupils
Male pupils 307 51.8% of pupils

Free school meals

Pupils eligible for free school meals.

34.4%
9.6 pts above England
School 34.4%
Croydon 27.2%
London 26.3%
England 24.8%

English as an additional language

Pupils whose first language is not English.

56.2%
35.9 pts above England
School 56.2%
Croydon 29.6%
London 39.2%
England 20.3%

Young carers

Pupils recorded as young carers.

0.0%
1.0 pts below England
School 0.0%
Croydon 0.4%
London 0.5%
England 1.0%

Ethnicity

Largest recorded pupil groups.

African
20.4%
121
Any other White background
13.3%
79
Indian
12.8%
76
Caribbean
10.3%
61
White British
7.9%
47
Any other ethnic group
5.4%
32
Council, regional and national comparisons are pupil-weighted using published school census counts.
ADDITIONAL NEEDS

Special educational needs

Pupils receiving SEN support or with an education, health and care plan.

2025/26
Pupils with SEN 17.9% 106 of 593 pupils
2.9 pts below England England: 20.8%
School 17.9%
Croydon 22.1%
London 19.8%
England 20.8%
SEN support 16.4% 97 pupils
England 14.8% 1.6 pts above
EHC plans 1.5% 9 pupils
England 6.0% 4.5 pts below
PRIMARY NEEDS

Most common identified needs

Pupils
Speech, language & communication 46
Autistic spectrum disorder 20
Moderate learning difficulty 17
Social, emotional & mental health 13
Specific learning difficulty 3
Hearing impairment 2

SEN comparisons are pupil-weighted using published 2025/26 Department for Education school-level data. Primary needs combine pupils receiving SEN support and pupils with EHC plans.

ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE

Key stage 2 outcomes

Published Department for Education results for 2024/25.

2024/25
EXPECTED STANDARD

Reading, writing & maths

66.0% 5.6 pts above England
School 66.0%
Croydon 67.0%
London 67.9%
England 60.4%
EXPECTED STANDARD

Reading

81.0%

7.2 pts above England

School 81.0%
Croydon 76.3%
London 78.2%
England 73.8%
EXPECTED STANDARD

Writing

72.0%

1.7 pts above England

School 72.0%
Croydon 75.0%
London 75.1%
England 70.3%
EXPECTED STANDARD

Maths

71.0%

1.0 pts below England

School 71.0%
Croydon 76.3%
London 77.7%
England 72.0%
School results show the percentage of pupils meeting the expected standard. Council, regional and national comparisons are averages of published school-level percentages and are not pupil-weighted official attainment rates.
ATTENDANCE & ABSENCE

Attendance profile

Published Department for Education absence data for 2024/25. Lower absence rates are generally better.

2024/25
ABSENCE RATE

Overall absence

5.69%

Percentage of possible sessions missed.

0.53 pts lower than England
School 5.69%
Croydon 6.77%
London 6.38%
England 6.22%
ABSENCE RATE

Persistent absence

15.21%

Pupils missing 10% or more of sessions.

0.61 pts lower than England
School 15.21%
Croydon 19.05%
London 17.60%
England 15.82%
ABSENCE RATE

Severe absence

1.05%

Pupils missing 50% or more of sessions.

0.75 pts lower than England
School 1.05%
Croydon 2.11%
London 1.67%
England 1.80%
Council, regional and national comparisons are averages of published school-level percentages rather than pupil-weighted official absence rates.
HOW DOES IT COMPARE?

School context

Comparison with open primary schools.

CAPACITY

Capacity utilisation

94.1% 5.9 pts above England
Ark Oval Primary Academy
94.1%
Croydon
83.9%
London
85.9%
England
88.2%
Benchmarks use open schools in the same phase. Capacity utilisation is calculated from published pupil and capacity figures.
Sources: Department for Education · Get Information about Schools · Ofsted monthly management information