St Philip's Church of England Controlled Primary School

What Ofsted said

From the inspection on 16 June 2026

Pupils enjoy attending this caring school. They start the day with smiles as they are greeted by staff who know them well. This helps pupils to feel safe and valued. Pupils benefit from a learning community that promotes school values, such as compassion and perseverance. They typically live out these values through their daily actions. They look after one other. Older pupils are role models as play leaders and for their younger ‘buddies’ in the early years. They are proud to help children to enjoy breaktimes and special events, such as sports day. Bullying is rare. When this does occur, it is dealt with swiftly. This makes the school a happy and harmonious place. Pupils aim to be ready, respectful and resilient. They generally enjoy their learning. They are particularly keen to earn the ‘writer of the week’ award and to read with Kola, the dog. Pupils with barriers to learning are supported well by staff who help them to take a full part in school life. Pupils’ attainment by the end of Year 6 has been below the national averages for some time. Leaders have renewed and raised their ambition for pupils. They have ensured that pupils’ learning is more focused on the most important key knowledge that they need for their future learning. However, it is too soon to see the impact of these improvements on pupils' achievement. This is because, over time, pupils have not benefited from learning that builds their knowledge securely, particularly in reading, writing and mathematics. Pupils’ attendance is improving. They want to take an active part in school life. Pupils benefit from experiences that bring their learning to life such as visits to cathedrals, the local docks and to listen to orchestras. They are especially proud of the range of Shakespeare plays that they study and perform during their time at the school. Pupils are excited about the increasing sporting achievements that they have experienced recently, such as winning the local football league.

What the school should improve

• Leaders should continue to focus on ensuring that gaps in pupils' English and mathematics knowledge are swiftly addressed so that pupils are supported to achieve all that they can and are ready for their next stage of learning.
• Leaders should ensure that they support staff, including those in the early years, to further develop their use of checks on pupils’ learning within and beyond lessons, so that teaching builds more securely on pupils’ understanding and skills across the curriculum.
• Leaders should continue to take action to further reduce levels of absence for pupils, particularly for those pupils who are persistently absent.

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