Kirby Hill Church of England (VC) Primary School

What Ofsted said

From the inspection on 21 April 2026

Pupils are warmly welcomed to this community-focused school where they feel valued from the moment they arrive. Staff greet pupils each morning. This helps create a calm and safe start to the day. Pupils enjoy school and attend regularly. They are positive about their learning and value their friendships with each other. Relationships between staff and pupils are respectful and supportive. This reflects the school’s commitment to inclusion. Pupils are known as individuals. They know that they can talk to staff if they are worried. From the early years onwards, pupils benefit from a well-structured curriculum that helps them develop socially and academically. Leaders have high expectations of pupils to achieve well from their different starting points. Pupils live out the school’s vision of ‘if you can believe it, you can achieve it’. As pupils move through school, they continue to build knowledge securely and take pride in their progress. Pupils show positive attitudes to learning and respond well to staff in lessons. Behaviour is calm and orderly. Any incidents of bullying are dealt with quickly and effectively. Pupils are well supported through the school's aspirational personal development offer. Pupils enjoy a range of opportunities and experiences that are consistently embedded across school life. They develop an impressive understanding of the wider world and life beyond school. For example, pupils enjoy partnerships with other schools, such as a school in Peru and pupils in an inner-city school. This helps them to learn about similarities and differences. Older pupils learn to speak French and practise their linguistic skills during an annual visit to France with another local school. Pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities, those who are disadvantaged and those known or previously known to social care, succeed because barriers to learning and wellbeing are reduced through targeted support and well-trained staff. Pupils are socially confident, speak maturely and show a secure sense of belonging within this close-knit school community.

What the school should improve

• Leaders should ensure that high-quality teaching consistently develops pupils’ phonics knowledge and writing knowledge for Year 2 pupils onwards so that they access the wider curriculum and achieve well.
• Leaders should ensure that staff in the early years consistently maximise opportunities to engage children in high-quality interactions throughout the day so that children develop a broad vocabulary and a detailed understanding across the 7 areas of learning and development.

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