About The School

Please read a welcome letter from the Chair of our Governing Body here.

We were inspected by Ofsted in March 2023, you can find the Ofsted report here.

Laddingford St Mary’s is a small rural Primary School in easy reach of Maidstone, Marden, Paddock Wood, Tonbridge and Tunbridge Wells.

Laddingford St Mary’s is a happy and vibrant school where children and staff are excited about learning. Our aim is for children to leave Laddingford not only with knowledge but also with the skills and disposition needed to be a successful lifelong learner; throughout all lessons we focus on skills such as inquisitiveness, independence and a positive mind-set. As a result our children are excited about their learning, hardworking, focused and confident.

We strive unashamedly for academic excellence for all children in our care, whilst also nurturing and celebrating the wide range of other talents that make them special and unique. We have a fantastic staff team, who are dedicated to their roles and passionate not only about our children’s education but also their holistic development. Our calm and nurturing atmosphere is underpinned by our core Christian values, as a Church of England Primary School we strive to provide children with a sound moral compass which will support them throughout their education and beyond. We are exceptionally proud of our off-site forest school provision which has been running since 2019, a short distance from the school. Our children love their time in the forest where they build fires, cook stews, whittle sticks and much more. As noted in our recent Ofsted inspection, teachers see the resilience, teamwork and communication benefits of this in class.  

At maximum capacity our school is able to educate just 91 children. This means that we truly are one family, we go on whole school trips together and at playtime and lunchtime children socialise happily together across year groups. We currently have 80 children on roll across four classes.  Consultation has recently taken place to expand the age range of the school to include nursery age children, making this an exciting opportunity for our new Head Teacher.

Laddingford St Mary’s is a very special place, our school has a warmth and positive buzz that is best experienced firsthand. If you are interested in what we have to offer and think this could be the right school for you, we look forward to hearing from you.

As a school we are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of the children and young people and to this end all staff are subject to DBS checks.