St Luke's CofE Primary School

What Ofsted said

From the inspection on 6 January 2026

Pupils have a positive sense of belonging at St Luke's Church of England Primary School. They regard themselves as a team. Pupils behave well and work hard. They help each other to be the best that they can be. They know that bullying is wrong and do not worry about being bullied. Pupils take great pride in upholding the school's values. They represent the school well. For example, they speak to visitors politely and confidently and are fair and generous opponents when playing competitive sports. The school day begins with pleasant greetings between staff and pupils. Pupils particularly enjoy saying good morning to Buddy, the school dog. Pupils settle quickly to their learning. They focus well on the tasks they are given, even when, for example, they are excited about the snow outside. During outdoor play they are careful to stick to the rules so that they can have fun and stay safe. The school's motto of 'opening eyes, hearts and minds' provides the foundation for the decisions leaders take, which are in the best interests of pupils. Leaders are aspirational that pupils will leave the school well prepared for the next stage in their education. This is exemplified through the 'no child leaves St Luke's without' charter. This sets out the varied academic and personal experiences that pupils will have during their time at the school. These include having the confidence to read aloud, the ability to hold a basic conversation in a modern foreign language, a visit to a museum and learning from past mistakes. Nevertheless, there is still more for leaders to do to ensure that pupils leave the school with the knowledge and skills they need across the curriculum. Pupils, and in particular disadvantaged pupils, are not achieving as well as they should be in national tests, such as mathematics, at the end of Year 6 compared to their peers. Parents and carers are overwhelmingly supportive of the school's work. They show high levels of appreciation for the school's community spirit as well as the education and care their children receive.

What the school should improve

• Leaders should ensure that pupils' achievements at the end of key stage 2, including for disadvantaged pupils, improves, so that pupils are sufficiently well prepared for the next stage in their education.
• Leaders should ensure that pupils at the earliest stage of learning to read have plenty of opportunities to read books that enable them to develop their fluency skills.
• Leaders should develop a clear strategy to the teaching of handwriting so that there is a consistency of approach as pupils progress through the school.
• Leaders should refine their attendance strategy to work more closely with families so that they can reduce pupils' persistent absence.

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