Kilby St Mary's Church of England Primary School

What Ofsted said

From the inspection on 7 January 2026

Pupils enter school with big smiles. Staff and pupils are proud and happy to be part of this small school, which sits at the heart of the community. Pupils are welcomed into a calm, nurturing and friendly environment. Staff build warm and positive relationships with pupils. Pupils know that staff will listen to them if they have a concern. Pupils play and socialise well together. They report that incidents of bullying are dealt with quickly and effectively. Pupils benefit from enrichment activities, including colouring club and the school choir. They enjoy their leadership roles, for example as a member of the school council or as a road safety officer. They are well prepared for life in modern Britain. Pupils enjoy their lessons. They talk about what they have learned with confidence. Most pupils are prepared for the next stage of their learning. However, teachers do not check consistently what pupils are learning. As a result, the work for some pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities is not well matched to what they know. Leaders have identified that the development of writing is in its early stages. There is more work to be done to support letter formation and pupils' handwriting. Pupils attend school well. They want to be there. Well-established routines and high expectations for behaviour lead to pupils learning in a calm environment. Many pupils demonstrate positive attitudes to learning. However, these positive attitudes are not reflected in the quality of written work that pupils produce. In the early years, children get off to a positive start. They are happy, settled and they want to learn. The curriculum focuses on developing communication and language. Some staff demonstrate highly effective interactions with children. However, this is not consistent.

What the school should improve

• Leaders should ensure that teachers use assessment information to check what pupils already know, particularly when adapting learning for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities.
• Leaders should ensure that teachers identify gaps in pupils' learning to improve all aspects of pupils' writing, including letter formation and handwriting.
• Leaders should ensure that all teachers have high expectations for what pupils can achieve, including in the quality of the work that they produce.
• Leaders should continue to develop high-quality interactions between adults and children in the early years.

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