St Mary's Roman Catholic Primary School

Overview

St Mary’s Roman Catholic Primary School is rated ‘Good’ across all inspection categories, marking a successful recovery from a previous ‘Requires improvement’ judgement. The report highlights that leaders have “swift and decisive actions” to stabilise the curriculum following staffing changes, resulting in pupils now “achieving well across the curriculum.” The school fosters a positive environment where pupils are “well cared for” and demonstrate “positive and respectful attitudes.”

Strengths

• The curriculum is described as “ambitious” and “well planned,” effectively building knowledge over time from early years upwards.
• Pupils exhibit high standards of behaviour, demonstrating the school’s ‘STAR’ values and showing resilience in their learning.
• Reading instruction in the younger years is rigorous, with teachers ensuring pupils can blend sounds and providing “swift and effective additional support” for those needing to catch up.
• Personal development is promoted well, with pupils learning about diversity, democracy, and becoming “active citizens” through community engagement.
• Staff are well supported by trust leaders, who provide training that “grows expertise” and ensures effective performance.

Areas to improve

• The reading curriculum for older pupils (Years 3–6) lacks precision, meaning some reading books are “not well matched to their reading abilities,” hindering progress for those finding reading tricky.
• In a few subjects, checks on pupil knowledge are “not designed precisely enough,” leaving staff unclear about gaps in understanding and sometimes moving on before learning is “fully secure.”

Safeguarding

The report states that “the arrangements for safeguarding are effective.”