Wigan St Andrew's CofE Junior and Infant School

What Ofsted said

From the inspection on 28 April 2026

Pupils enjoy coming to Wigan St Andrew’s Church of England Junior and Infant School. The school is calm and welcoming from the start of the day. This helps pupils settle quickly and feel secure. Staff know pupils well and respond sensitively to their emotional needs. Attendance is generally secure because pupils feel safe and supported. Pupils behave sensibly in lessons and during social times. They follow routines confidently because they understand what is expected of them. Pupils consider unkind behaviour to be rare and dealt with quickly by adults. This culture helps everyone feel included and valued as individuals. Pupils with additional needs describe being supported to regulate their emotions and re-engage with learning. Pupils are generally caring and accepting of difference. They speak positively about the wider life of the school, enjoying a range of clubs, performances and visits. Memorable experiences include concerts, Viking Day re-enactments and residential trips. Music is a particular strength. Through whole-class teaching, pupils learn instruments and perform in bands and choirs. They especially value opportunities to perform for parents and carers, the community and local care homes. Older pupils welcome responsibility. Year 6 pupils look forward to becoming play leaders and supporting younger children. End-of-year celebrations recognise values such as friendship, trust and sportsmanship. Pupils enjoy learning and talk enthusiastically about the wider curriculum. Many recall learning in some subjects with confidence. However, too many pupils struggle to show what they know across subjects, particularly in writing. Inconsistencies in teaching mean some pupils do not progress as well as expected from their starting points. This is most evident in writing, where gaps are slow to close. When learning weaknesses persist, some pupils are less well prepared for the next stage of their education. These inconsistencies show that leaders’ systems do not always check the impact of actions to support pupils' learning rigorously enough. Consequently, weaknesses are not addressed quickly.

What the school should improve

• Leaders should ensure that teaching is consistently responsive, so that staff can swiftly identify and address pupils’ learning gaps and misconceptions, to help pupils build secure foundations and learn more deeply.
• Leaders should refine how activities and adaptations are used so that they are precisely matched to pupils’ needs, especially for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities, and enable pupils to learn the knowledge leaders intend them to secure.
• Leaders should strengthen how foundational writing skills, including handwriting, spelling and sentence construction, are developed across the school so that pupils record their learning accurately and demonstrate what they know.
• Leaders and those responsible for governance should ensure that systems, including safeguarding and inclusion records, consistently demonstrate that timely action is taken, so that leaders and governors can evaluate impact and assure themselves that pupils are kept safe and supported.

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