Mark First and Pre-School CE Academy

What Ofsted said

From the inspection on 21 January 2025

The school has high ambitions for its pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). However, these ambitions are not fully realised. Pupils have gaps in their learning across a range of phases and subjects. They do not achieve as well as they should. More work remains to ensure that pupils are fully prepared for the next stage of their education. This is a welcoming and inclusive school. Pupils are happy and safe. They know the school rules of 'ready, respectful and safe'. Most live up to these and behave well around the school site. The school has high expectations of pupils' attendance and as a result, they attend well. Pupils enjoy positive relationships with staff and each other. They know who to talk to if they are worried about anything. Pupils contribute to the school community and take on different leadership roles. These responsibilities range from serving as a school councillor to supporting others as play leaders. The eco-committee improve the school site by planting bulbs and looking after the resident hedgehog 'Holly'. Most parents and carers are pleased with the school. They appreciate the dedication and care shown by staff.

What the school should improve

• In some subjects, the school has not broken down the key knowledge that pupils should be taught and when. As a result, pupils have gaps in their knowledge and are not sufficiently prepared for next stage of their education. The trust should ensure that the school finalise its curriculum thinking so that it is clear what pupils should learn and when this knowledge should be taught.
• In some subjects, the school does not use assessment with enough precision to check what pupils know and remember. As a result, some gaps in pupils' knowledge are not identified or closed quickly enough. The trust needs to ensure that staff use assessment effectively to check on pupils' understanding and to inform future teaching.
• The school does not ensure that, in the early years, staff consistently engage in high- quality interactions with children. This impacts children's progression through the key areas of learning, particularly in communication and language development. The trust should strengthen staff expertise in supporting learning in the early years to ensure children are better prepared for key stage 1.
• The behaviour policy is not applied routinely by some staff. Therefore, a small minority of pupils do not focus on their learning as well as they should. The trust should ensure that all staff apply the school's behaviour policy consistently.

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