Long Marston VA Church of England Primary and Nursery School

What Ofsted said

From the inspection on 21 March 2023

Pupils enjoy their learning at Long Marston VA Church of England School. They work hard in lessons and become confident, independent learners. They develop positive relationships with each other and with adults. This contributes towards pupils being happy and safe. Pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), respond well to the high expectations of staff in terms of both their work and their behaviour. Pupils behave well around the school and in lessons. Pupils know that bullying is more than a single incident. They say it rarely happens but that adults do deal with it quickly when and if it does. Pupils explain that if they have a concern they can speak to a trusted adult or use the 'worry boxes' in classrooms. Pupils are polite and respectful. They enjoy the opportunities they have to take on responsibilities in the school, for example as a school council member or a lunch monitor. Pupils who act as 'well-being warriors' learn about strategies to promote positive mental health and well-being. They build their confidence through the sharing of these strategies with other pupils. This helps to raise awareness of the importance of mental health and positive attitudes to all pupils.

What the school should improve

• In a small number of foundation subjects, assessment systems are not as well developed. The checking processes do not focus precisely on the most important knowledge pupils need to know and remember. As a result, pupils do not have a consistently strong automatic recall of concepts they need for future learning. Leaders should continue their work to further refine assessment practices. This will ensure that teachers prioritise checking that pupils can recall the knowledge they need to succeed at each stage of their learning, so they are successfully knowing and remembering more.

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