Elton CofE Primary School

What Ofsted said

From the inspection on 8 July 2025

This small school is determined to improve. This renewed ambition is shared by all. The curriculum is beginning to help pupils build their knowledge and skills. Expectations of what pupils will learn have increased. However, some of the recent changes are still taking root. At times, pupils do not benefit fully from the recent developments, particularly changes to the school's curriculum. As a result, the school's broader ambitions are not realised fully. Pupils enjoy learning and playing alongside their friends. Parents and carers value how their children's needs are met. Pupils feel happy and safe. Systems to keep pupils safe now work effectively, including when pupils access the internet. Pupils behave well in lessons and around the school. Increasingly, they model the school's values of kindness, respect and determination. Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are taught practical strategies to self-regulate. This helps them to stay focused on their learning. Pupils value the wider opportunities that the school offers. They attend weekly swimming lessons and some learn to play a musical instrument. Pupils plant wildflowers for the local bees to enjoy, helping them to understand their impact on the natural environment.

What the school should improve

• The school has not fully developed its programme for the teaching of writing. This particularly affects pupils with SEND and limits how well these pupils are prepared for the next stage of education. The school must ensure that the English writing curriculum enables all pupils to build knowledge systematically, learn and recall the necessary skills consistently and write with increasing fluency and independence.
• The school have not made sure that all staff have the depth of expertise necessary to teach all subjects across the curriculum. As a result, pupils' learning slows at times in some subjects. The school should continue to ensure that all staff are equipped with the necessary knowledge and expertise to deliver the full breadth of the curriculum effectively.
• The school does not check the effectiveness of the impact of its actions consistently. This limits its ability to identify clearly what is working well and where further work is needed. The school should further develop its systems to assure itself that its actions are having a positive impact on school improvement.

Read the full Ofsted report (opens in a new tab)