St Mary’s Catholic Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

This is a good school. The headteacher has an accurate view of the school's strengths and areas for development. She communicates the highest of expectations.

Individuals and groups of pupils achieve well and some make outstanding progress. Teaching is good. The school is providing many opportunities for staff to improve their teaching further and achieve its vision to be outstanding.

The school is a calm and welcoming place. Pupils behave well, feel safe and are polite and considerate. Their spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is of a high quality.

The headteacher and other leaders, including governors, are proud of their school and its... achievements. They provide high quality care, guidance and support for pupils. Teachers, parents and pupils are overwhelmingly positive about the school.

It is not yet an outstanding school because : More teaching needs to be outstanding. On occasions, expectations of what pupils can achieve are not high enough. At times work is not always sufficiently challenging and some pupils are not always clear on what they need to do, which leads to the pace of learning slowing.

Development plans and monitoring information are not always explicit in measuring the impact of outcomes to ensure all pupils are making rapid and sustained progress.

Information about this school

St Mary's is a smaller than average-sized primary school. Since the previous inspection, a new headteacher is at the school and a new Chair of the Governing Body has been appointed.

The majority of pupils are from White British heritage. The proportions of pupils who are from minority ethnic backgrounds and who speak English as an additional language are both above average. The proportion of pupils eligible for the pupil premium is below average.

This is additional government funding to support students known to be eligible for free school meals, those in local authority care and pupils with a parent or carer in the armed forces. The proportion of disabled students and those with special educational needs supported at school action is below average. The proportion supported at school action plus or with a statement of special educational needs is also below average.

The school met the government's floor standard, which set the minimum expectation for pupils' attainment and progress, in 2012. The school does not use any alternative provision. Since the previous inspection, the school has received many awards including an International School Award, the Eco School's silver award and the Royal Horticultural Society's bronze award.

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