Windermere Primary School

What Ofsted said

From the inspection on 17 June 2025

This is a welcoming school, where pupils are happy and feel safe. Behaviour is generally calm and respectful. Most pupils behave well, supported by the school's systems and expectations. Pupils generally speak positively about their learning, particularly when activities are engaging and hands-on. Pupils show enthusiasm for science experiments and exploring historical topics. Pupils enjoy recalling their educational visits, including trips, which help them remember more, for example, about history and science. While some pupils are encouraged to take pride in their work, the school's expectations for high-quality work are not always applied across subjects and year groups. This means that some pupils do not yet have regular opportunities to produce their best work. Pupils care about making the world a better place. They speak thoughtfully about global issues, such as climate change, war and homelessness. They show empathy towards people in need. A wide range of clubs and enrichment activities support their personal and social development. Pupils value taking on roles such as play leaders and monitors. Many pupils' attainment is in line with national averages by the end of key stage 2. However, the quality of education remains inconsistent. As a result, not all pupils are as well prepared as they could be for the next stage of their education.

What the school should improve

• The teaching of early reading, particularly in the early years, is not entirely effective. Some children do not receive the targeted support they need, and reading books are not always well matched to pupils' phonics knowledge. This limits some pupils' ability to develop reading fluency and confidence as quickly as they should. Leaders should ensure that its early reading provision enables all pupils, including those in the early years, to become fluent and confident readers as quickly as possible.
• The curriculum in the early years is not delivered well enough across all areas. As a result, some children are not developing the foundational skills they need for future learning. The school should ensure that the early years curriculum is delivered effectively, so that all children get a strong start to their education and become confident learners who are ready for Year 1.
• Some teaching is not adapted well enough to help pupils with SEND to learn the curriculum effectively. Some pupils with SEND do not achieve as well as they should. The school should ensure that teachers adapt their teaching to meet pupils' needs and to support all pupils to achieve well.
• In some subjects, the school does not make sure that teachers use assessment well enough to check that pupils understand and remember what they have been taught previously. The school needs to ensure that assessment is used more purposefully to inform teaching and to monitor the impact of the curriculum more accurately.
• Teachers do not consistently have high expectations of the work pupils should produce. Some pupils do not engage with learning and do not produce work that shows what they can do. The school should make sure that all staff set and model high expectations, so that pupils commit to their learning and produce high-quality work consistently.

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