St Michael's CofE (Aided) Primary School

What Ofsted said

From the inspection on 21 November 2023

Pupils are happy to be at this school. They take great pride in showing care to each other. Older pupils place a high value on being able to serve as 'buddies' to those in the Reception class. This helps the younger children to feel secure and well looked after. Pupils play nicely together and behave well. There are plenty of activities for them to participate in at lunchtimes. These activities are well organised throughout the week, and some are led by pupils who are play leaders. Pupils particularly look forward to their turn on the trim trail and football pitch. The majority of pupils show positive attitudes towards their education. They are focused during lessons and love to learn. The school has high expectations for what pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), should achieve. In subjects such as English and mathematics, pupils achieve remarkably well by the end of key stage 2. Although this high achievement is not mirrored in some other areas of the curriculum, pupils still achieve well in most subjects. Pupils appreciate the clubs that are available to them. They spoke positively about the many sports clubs on offer, as well as the craft and gardening clubs.

What the school should improve

• The school's oversight of curriculum implementation in some subjects is not as robust as it could be. This means that the school is not assured that some subject curriculums are being delivered as intended and that they are having the expected impact on pupils' learning. The school should review its approaches to evaluating the effectiveness of curriculum implementation in these subjects and its impact on what pupils know and remember over time.
• In some parts of the early years curriculum, the school has not made clear its expectations of what children should learn. This means that, in these few areas, staff do not have the guidance that they need to help children to build a secure foundation of knowledge in preparation for future learning. The school should complete the design of its early years curriculum so that it is clear to staff the precise knowledge that children need to learn and in what order.

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