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Best primary schools in Dulwich

Our resident expert guides you through Dulwich’s best state primary school options – from high-performing community and academy schools to well-established church schools – and what local parents should know before applying.
Playground and astroturf at breaktime at Dulwich Hamlet Junior School
Dulwich Hamlet Junior School, Dulwich

There’s a plethora of choice when it comes to primary school options in Dulwich. Many are well-regarded and tend to be oversubscribed on first preference applications for reception places.

Dulwich’s top primary schools

The most popular primaries include Dulwich Hamlet Junior School and its feeder school Dulwich Village Church of England Infants’ School (the former has no religious admissions criteria but the latter does), Harris Primary Academy East Dulwich, Rosendale Primary School and Jessop Primary School, all of which turn in exceptional Key Stage 2 SATs results. Herne Hill’s Judith Kerr Primary School, named after the much-loved author of The Tiger Who Came to Tea, also turns in strong results and is ideal for families keen on languages, with even the tiniest children learning German through stories, songs and role-play.

As well as ‘open’ places, the aforementioned Dulwich Village Church of England Infants School admits half its intake of 90 on ‘foundation’ places for children from church-going families so read the admissions policy carefully before applying. St Anthony’s Catholic Primary School, just off Lordship Lane, primarily serves the Catholic community and when it comes to admissions, Catholic children always take priority.

State primary schools for children with Special Educational Needs

Most children with special educational needs, including those with an EHCP, attend local mainstream schools. Dulwich Hamlet Junior School, for example, caters for a range of needs, including speech and language difficulties, social, emotional and mental health difficulties, ADHD and ASD, and publishes its own termly SEND newsletter, while John Ruskin Primary School in nearby Camberwell has a specialist resource base for speech and language needs. Further afield in Clapham, Larkhall Primary School supports 30 autistic children age 5-11, in their own resource base, with up to eight pupils per class. Children with hearing impairment can apply for an additional resource base at Jubilee Primary School in Tulse Hill, where they are supported with spoken English, sign-supported English, BSL by qualified teachers of the deaf.

For those for whom a mainstream school doesn’t provide sufficient support, the boroughs of Southwark and Lambeth have a variety of specialist settings. Southwark’s four state-funded special schools for primary-age children are Haymerle School in Peckham, Spa School Camberwell, Cherry Garden School in Peckham and Beormund Primary School in Southwark – all of which provide for more severe needs.

In Lambeth, Elm Court School is a special school for pupils aged 9 to 19 who have learning difficulties with associated social and communication needs (many have autism) while The Livity School in Streatham is a primary school for children aged 2 to 11 with complex needs.