The Blessed Sacrament Catholic Primary School, Preston

What Ofsted said

From the inspection on 3 March 2026

Pupils, especially those who join at different points in the school year, benefit from a nurturing and welcoming school. Staff know pupils and understand their needs. This ensures that disadvantaged pupils, and those with special educational needs and/or disabilities, feel that they belong and are included in all aspects of school life. Pupils know that the pastoral support team and Buddy, the school dog, are always on hand to help them with any worries they may have. Pupils enjoy their lessons and try their best. The school has experienced a lot of changes in recent years, including in staffing and leadership. This has hindered leaders’ success in fully reducing the variability in the quality of the curriculum and how it is taught. As a result, some pupils have gaps in their knowledge and skills. This means they are not as well prepared for their next stage in education as they should be. Pupils enter school happily each morning and many attend regularly. However, some pupils still miss school too much. This makes it harder for them to thrive and achieve well. Recent changes have led to the school being a calm and orderly place, where pupils generally behave well. They cooperate positively with each other and enjoy their social times of the day. Although, some pupils say that bullying and behaviour incidents continue to happen, they know that they have staff to talk to, who do their best to resolve such issues. Pupils are taught to keep safe, including when using the internet. They are well informed about age-appropriate risks in the wider community and how to protect themselves. Pupils take on extra responsibilities, such as school councillors, that provide opportunities to make an impact in their school and local community. They are proud of their school and their plans to make improvements, including arranging new playground markings. Pupils understand how they can make a positive contribution to society. They plant trees and pick up litter in their local area. Pupils develop their knowledge of citizenship, which helps prepare them for life in modern Britain.

What the school should improve

• Leaders should ensure that behaviour records contain clearer information about incidents of bullying and derogatory language so that they can act more swiftly and effectively.
• Leaders should review the writing curriculum to ensure that pupils are able to form letters correctly and spell accurately, so they build writing fluency as they move through school.
• In some subjects, leaders should identify the most important knowledge in the curriculum to ensure that teachers are clear about what to teach and pupils learn all that they should.
• Leaders should ensure the delivery of the early years curriculum is closely aligned with children’s starting points, enabling learning to build progressively from Nursery to Reception and preparing children consistently well for Year 1.

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