Saint Edmund's Roman Catholic Primary School

What Ofsted said

From the inspection on 28 January 2025

The school is happy, welcoming and inclusive. The school's Catholic values are at the heart of all that it provides. Pastoral support is strong. Staff care deeply for pupils and form trusting and supportive relationships with them. Pupils enjoy school and feel safe here. Until recently, the school's expectations of pupils' achievement have not been high enough. The school now provides a more ambitious curriculum. However, this does not yet result in consistently strong outcomes for pupils. Disruptions to staffing have hindered the pace of improvement. Most pupils behave well. They are polite and respectful. They understand the importance of the school's values, such as curiosity and resilience. However, inconsistent expectations of pupils' behaviour mean that some pupils do not behave as well as they should. Pupils enjoy getting involved in their learning. For example, children in the early years enjoy making a house out of cardboard and sticky tape. Pupils relish the chance to participate in extra-curricular opportunities such as dodgeball, or learning to play the violin. Most parents and carers are very happy with the school, which they say helps their children to thrive. However, some parents are dissatisfied with communication and the way in which the school responds to their concerns.

What the school should improve

• Teachers' subject knowledge is not sufficiently strong. As a result, pupils do not yet deepen their knowledge and recall important concepts. The trust and school must ensure teachers are supported to develop the necessary expertise to implement the curriculum effectively.
• Assessment does not consistently identify what pupils already know and can do. Consequently, pupils often undertake similar tasks, which do not challenge them to achieve their potential. The trust and school need to ensure that staff are supported to check learning carefully, and that this information is used to adapt learning, to support pupils in achieving well.
• Leaders do not evaluate the impact of their work thoroughly enough. As a result, they do not swiftly identify when they need to make improvements. The trust and school must fully evaluate their work, and rapidly intervene when necessary, so that they can make the necessary improvements.
• Some pupils do not attend school regularly enough. This means that they are missing out on vital education. The trust and school must rigorously analyse the causes of absence, and put in place strategies to improve attendance, so that pupils benefit from all that the school has to offer.
• At times, there is an inconsistent application of the school's behaviour policy. This means that some pupils are not supported to live up to the expectations the school has of behaviour, and there is disruption to learning. The school needs to ensure that all staff apply the behaviour expectations consistently, so that pupils are supported to behave well.

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