St Matthew’s CofE Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

This is an outstanding school.

The headteacher provides inspirational leadership. Together with her high calibre deputy headteacher, senior leaders and governors, she has greatly improved teaching and achievement. Governors provide strong leadership.

They challenge senior leaders and have played an important part in helping the school to achieve an outstanding quality of education. The school's programme for the training of staff is outstanding. Senior leaders expect a lot and staff very successfully pass on these high expectations to the pupils in their care.

Teaching is consistently good or outstanding across age groups and subjects. The quality of ...teamwork between teachers and other adults is excellent. Children make rapid progress in the early years because teaching staff make learning enjoyable as well as purposeful.

Pupils from all ethnic groups make excellent progress in Key Stages 1 and 2 through outstanding teaching. Any pupils in danger of falling behind in their work, or who find learning difficult, are supported exceptionally well so they too achieve very well. The teaching of writing is particularly strong and pupils are very confident writers by the time they leave.

The school is now focusing on getting more pupils up to such high levels in mathematics. The care shown to pupils by staff is exceptional. As a result, pupils' behaviour is outstanding and they develop impressively mature attitudes to learning.

Pupils feel very safe and attendance is high because : they love coming to school. This is a very harmonious school. Pupils are greatly valued as individuals and their different cultural backgrounds are much celebrated.

Pupils are very well prepared for life in modern Britain. Staff promote key British values very well. As a result, pupils gain a very keen awareness of spiritual, moral, social and cultural issues.

The wide range of exciting activities, trips, clubs, special events and chances to take responsibility add greatly to pupils' excellent personal development. Particularly strong links with parents and key people within the local community contribute very well to the racial harmony in the school.

Information about this school

The school is smaller than the average-sized primary school.

Nine out of ten pupils come from minority ethnic groups, with just under half being of Somali heritage. Just over three fifths of the pupils speak English as an additional language. The proportion of pupils who are disadvantaged and supported by the pupil premium is almost three times the national average.

The pupil premium is additional funding for pupils who are known to be eligible for free school meals or looked after by the local authority. More pupils than usual join and leave the school at different times throughout the school year. The proportion of disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs is broadly average.

Children in the early years attend a full-time Reception class. The school's 'Morning Club' provides care for pupils before school during term time. It is managed by the governing body and formed part of this inspection.

The school meets the government's current floor standards, which set the minimum expectations for pupils' attainment and progress in reading, writing and mathematics by the end of Year 6. The headteacher is a Local Leader of Education (LLE) and provides support to Harper Bell Seventh Day Adventist School in her role as executive headteacher. The school was recognised by the government as one of the top 100 most improved schools in England in 2014.