Scarisbrick St Mark's Church of England Primary School

What Ofsted said

From the inspection on 12 January 2023

Pupils enjoy being part of the St Mark's family. They are happy and feel safe in school. Pupils get on well with their classmates and teachers. Pupils who join the school at different points during the year are helped to settle in and make friends quickly. Leaders and staff are ambitious for the achievement of all pupils. Pupils, including children in the early years, work well in class and take pride in their work. There is a calm and purposeful atmosphere around school. Most pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), achieve well during their time at St Mark's. Pupils live up to leaders' high expectations for their behaviour. They are polite and respectful and offer visitors a warm welcome. Pupils behave extremely well in lessons and at playtimes. Pupils are confident that adults in school will listen to any worries they might have. On the extremely rare occasions that name-calling or bullying happens, staff deal with these situations quickly and effectively. Pupils appreciate the wide selection of clubs that staff provide. Many pupils join in with sporting or musical activities. Members of the coding club enjoy taking part in international projects with other schools. Pupils also benefit from going on regular educational trips and residential visits.

What the school should improve

• In some subjects, assessment strategies are not as effective as they could be. Teachers lack clarity about what pupils already know. This is particularly true when pupils are new to the school and their prior knowledge has been learned elsewhere. Leaders should ensure that assessment procedures more effectively identify pupils' prior knowledge so that teachers can build on what their pupils already know and can do.
• The knowledge that leaders would like children in early years to secure within the different areas of learning is sometimes not explicitly identified. Leaders should continue with their efforts to ensure that the early years curriculum builds sequentially in all areas. This will help to ensure that children are prepared consistently well for their future learning.

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