Catholic Primary School

What Catholic Primary School does

St Swithun's Catholic Primary School is a state-funded voluntary aided Catholic primary school located in Southsea, Portsmouth, operating under the Portsmouth Catholic Diocese. It admits 45 children into Reception each year across two classes, with a Published Admission Number implying a maximum on-roll of approximately 315 pupils across seven year groups. The school also operates Sunbeams Pre-School (opened September 2018, 32 places per session for ages 2-4) and Sunlight/Twilight wraparound care running 7:30am-5:45pm, extending the offer below and beyond the standard school day. The institution is led by Head Teacher Mrs Jennifer Verhiest with Chair of Governors Cara Guedeney, supported by 91 staff, and serves Catholic and non-Catholic families within its parish catchment.

The school's core product is statutory primary education aligned with the national curriculum, delivered within a Catholic ethos framework validated by the 2025/2026 CSI Outstanding accreditation and 2025 Ofsted inspection. Specialist provision is anchored by Challenge Partners SEND Hub recognition (2024), and the Diocesan Romero Award Developer Level (2025) reflects investment in Catholic Social Teaching and community-justice programming. The underlying technology stack is standard UK-school administrative tooling — Microsoft Teams for collaboration, SCOPAY for parental payments, Arbor for management information, and WordPress for the public website — with no proprietary platform or AI/ML components evident.

The business model is a hybrid of public funding and parental contributions. The dominant revenue stream is per-pupil funding from Portsmouth City Council and the Department for Education, supplemented by Diocesan support, fee income from Sunbeams Pre-School and wraparound Sunlight/Twilight care, and voluntary parental contributions. The school is not commercially investable: it has no equity, no M&A pathway, and no VC/PE ownership structure, with governance resting with the Diocese and the local authority rather than shareholders. Demand is driven by Catholic parish criteria, oversubscription patterns, and the broader demographic profile of the Southsea catchment.

Name

Catholic Primary School

Legal name

St Swithun's Catholic Primary School

Website

https://stswithunscatholicprimaryschool.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2018

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Primary Education

NAICS

Elementary and Secondary Schools (6111), Educational Services (611)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200), Services-Child Day Care Services (8351)

akta.pro primary industry

Faith-Based (Religious) K–12 Schools (EDAJABAC)

akta.pro secondary industries

Faith-Based Preschools (EDACABAF), Faith-Based Early Learning Academies (EDACADAH)

Keywords

• Primary education services
• Catholic school education
• Early childhood education
• Pre-school education
• Wraparound childcare services

Headquarters

HQ city

Southsea, Portsmouth

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Government Education Funding: Core funding from government for maintained school operations including Universal Infant Free School Meals for Reception-Year 2.
2. Pre-School Fees: Charges for additional hours beyond funded entitlements, hot meals, and consumables at Sunbeams Pre-School.
3. Wraparound Care (Sunlight and Twilight): Before and after-school care services charged at session rates.
4. Governors' School Building Fund Donations: Voluntary contributions from families to fund 10% of building improvements as required for voluntary aided school status. Accepts Gift Aid donations via SCOPAY.
5. Caterlink Catering Services: Third-party catering company provides school meals; school administers meal ordering and payments.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

St Swithun's Catholic Primary School delivers Catholic primary education for pupils from Reception through Year 6 following the National Curriculum integrated with the Diocese of Portsmouth's RE programme, alongside the integrated Sunbeams Pre-School providing Early Years Foundation Stage provision for children from age 2. The school operates on a single campus on Taswell Road in Southsea, Portsmouth, admitting 45 children into Reception annually and offers wraparound care (Sunlight and Twilight) from 7:30am to 5:45pm, hot school meals via Caterlink, and a range of extra-curricular clubs.

Product overview

St Swithun's Catholic Primary School operates as a single-site Catholic primary with an integrated preschool (Sunbeams Pre-School) and wraparound care (Sunlight and Twilight). The school provides Reception to Year 6 education following the National Curriculum alongside Catholic Religious Education, with additional services including hot school meals via Caterlink, extra-curricular clubs, and before/after-school care. The technology stack includes SCOPAY for online payments, Arbor for student management, and Microsoft Teams for homework delivery. The school has received Outstanding ratings from both Ofsted and the Catholic Schools Inspectorate.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Sunbeams Pre-School: Early years pre-school provision for children from age 2, operating within the main school and sharing facilities including art studio, music room, library, school hall, and outdoor play areas. Maximum capacity of 32 children per session.

Products and services

• Sunbeams Pre-School On-site preschool delivering the Early Years Foundation Stage curriculum for children from 2 years old, with shared access to school facilities including art studio, music room, library, and gym hall. Maximum 32 children per session, with funded 15/30 hour entitlements and chargeable extras.
• Main School (Reception to Year 6)

Named customers1 record

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration5 records

Partnerships

Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Big Mouth TheatreminorOthersExternal provider running Drama club for Years 1-4 at St Swithun's Catholic Primary School.
• Funk'd DanceminorOthersDance club provider offering sessions for Years R-2 on Tuesdays and Years 3-6 on Thursdays.
• Pompey in the CommunityminorOthersFootball and sports activities provider for Years 3-6, booked through their activity booking system.
• Lisa Morgon GymnasticsminorOthersGymnastics instructor providing clubs for Years 1-3 (Wednesday) and Years 3-6 (Wednesday).
• Southern Academy of Martial ArtsminorOthersKarate club provider for Reception-Year 6 on Fridays.
• Magical MathsminorOthersMaths enrichment club running for 5 weeks every half term for Years 1-6.
• CaterlinkcoreOthersCatering company providing school meal service. Operations Manager: Dawn Spreadbury. Provides hot meals including vegetarian options, cooked on site.
• Penelope Ann School WearminorOthersUniform supplier at 34-36 Tangier Rd, Portsmouth. Holds all school uniform items in stock, offers delivery across city.
• Portsmouth City CouncilcoreOthersLocal education authority providing school funding, admissions coordination, and support services including attendance monitoring.
• Portsmouth Catholic DiocesecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDiocese covering Portsmouth area providing Catholic education support, governance guidance, and Foundation Governor recruitment. School follows Diocese's God Matters RE programme.
• St Swithun's Church, PortsmouthcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerParish church with strong school integration. Father Anthony works closely with school leading worship, celebrating class Masses, supporting RE lessons. School visits church for Masses, liturgies, and celebrations.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Nord Anglia Education: Premium international schools group operating primary and secondary campuses globally; comparable in delivering full primary education with broad extra-curricular offering, but at premium price point and across many geographies.
• Bellevue Education: UK-based independent schools group operating multiple primary and secondary schools across Britain; comparable as a primary education operator with similar extra-curricular and wraparound service models, though larger and multi-brand.
• Cognita Schools: International schools group operating multiple UK independent and faith-affiliated primary and secondary schools; comparable as a primary education operator at scale, but with a much broader portfolio spanning multiple geographies and price points.

Direct peers

• Corpus Christi Catholic Primary School: Another UK Catholic primary school delivering EYFS through Key Stage 2 with faith-based ethos; directly comparable in mission, curriculum structure, and target family demographic.
• Eaton House Schools: Premium independent primary schools in London serving similar professional family demographic; comparable in primary-age delivery and wraparound service breadth, though operating under a fee-based rather than state-funded model.
• Brighton College Prep School: Prep school arm of a leading UK independent school serving similar family demographic with extended-hours and broad extra-curricular provision; comparable as a primary-level offering, though fee-based and at premium price point.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/catholic-primary-school

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Catholic Primary School