Richmond Avenue Primary and Nursery School

What Ofsted said

From the inspection on 30 June 2026

This is a welcoming and inclusive school where pupils feel safe and valued. Pupils are confident that staff are there to help and support them. Staff know their pupils very well. This means that pupils are treated as individuals. As a result, pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities, enjoy coming to school and attend regularly. Pupils get on well with each other. Bullying is uncommon. If it does occur, pupils are confident that staff will deal with it effectively. Pupils respect each other and celebrate the things that make them unique. They take part in a range of activities that encourage kindness and tolerance. For example, 'culture day' enables pupils to celebrate their backgrounds and heritage. Pupils enjoy a wide range of clubs that help them develop their passions and interests. This includes chess club, basketball, arts and crafts club and choir. Every year group benefits from a trip that reinforces their learning, such as a trip to visit HMS Belfast. The 'My future, My Southend' programme helps pupils to build life skills alongside the curriculum. Pupils learn about a range of careers. As a result, they have high aspirations for themselves and their peers. Pupils value the opportunity to take on leadership responsibility. Roles such as pupil advocate and school councillor help them to develop confidence and communication skills. Their voice plays an important role in school and trust development plans. For example, pupil advocates meet with trust leaders regularly to discuss activities they would like to see in school. This helps them to feel empowered and develop a strong sense of belonging. The school is a calm and orderly place to be. Pupils behave well at break times and in lessons. Because of this, learning is not interrupted and pupils achieve well. The school environment has been carefully designed to support pupils of all ages and abilities. Those who require additional support with their learning benefit from spaces like 'the boost bubble'. Staff here work closely with pupils to remove specific barriers to learning. As a result, pupils make good progress towards individual goals and thrive in school.

What the school should improve

• Leaders should ensure that their expectations of pupils' handwriting are applied consistently so that pupils communicate effectively in writing and produce high-quality work across the curriculum.
• Leaders should ensure that more-detailed information related to pupils' foundational skills is shared in advance of transition to key stage 1, enabling effective planning for accelerated progress.
• Leaders should ensure that improvement planning and target-setting are more precisely aligned with key school improvement priorities, leading to sharper self-evaluation and improved tracking of impact.

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