Rushy Meadow Primary Academy

What Ofsted said

From the inspection on 10 June 2025

Pupils are happy and enjoy coming to this school. They feel safe and well cared for. Pupils say that they know who to talk to if they are worried or upset. There is a strong culture of openness, where pupils feel confident to share their thoughts. They know how to stay safe, and they understand that adults are there to protect them. The school has high expectations for each pupil. This is reflected in its vision that all pupils become 'resilient individuals and successful learners'. In lessons, pupils are encouraged to work hard and give their best. They respond with focus, curiosity and pride in their work. They achieve well. Pupils' behaviour embodies the school's values of respect, honesty, responsibility, kindness and politeness. This is because staff model these values and encourage pupils to do the same. The school's vision to create a positive and ambitious environment where everyone can thrive is clearly reflected in pupils' attitudes to their work and each other. These positive attitudes are established in early years and then carefully nurtured as pupils progress through the older year groups. Pupils are supported to develop their leadership skills. They experience democracy first hand as they elect representatives to their pupil parliament. The younger pupils in school appreciate the play leaders who support them during break times.

What the school should improve

• Sometimes, teaching gives pupils too much information about a subject at once. This affects how well pupils understand and retain key knowledge. The school should ensure that learning supports pupils' understanding and retention consistently well over time.
• Some younger pupils are not as well supported by the curriculum as they could be to develop fluent handwriting. This affects their written work and limits their ability to express ideas clearly in writing. To support these pupils, the school should ensure that the curriculum enables pupils to improve handwriting fluency and accuracy over time.
• The school's work on attendance, while securing overall improvements, has not sufficiently reduced absence rates for some disadvantaged pupils. As a result, these pupils miss out on important learning. The school should continue the work it is doing to improve the attendance of disadvantaged pupils who are persistently absent.

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