St Paul's CofE Primary School, Stalybridge

Overview

This ungraded inspection confirms that St Paul’s CofE Primary School has “taken effective action to maintain the standards identified at the previous inspection.” The school continues to provide a high-quality education where pupils feel safe, valued, and motivated to learn. Leaders have successfully sustained the positive culture and academic rigour established in earlier years.

Strengths

• Pupils “feel safe” and understand that “staff care about them,” contributing to high attendance and positive attitudes.
• The curriculum is “carefully considered,” ensuring pupils “build their knowledge securely over time” and achieve well across subjects.
• Reading is prioritised with effective phonics teaching; staff identify pupils at risk of falling behind “promptly” and provide appropriate support.
• Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are supported effectively, allowing them to “achieve well.”
• The personal development offer prepares pupils for “future life in modern Britain,” including understanding different faiths and engaging in charitable activities.

Areas to improve

• In a few subjects, such as mathematics, teachers do not check pupils’ understanding “thoroughly enough,” which can lead to unnecessary adult support and limit independent learning.
• The school should undertake “thorough checks of pupils’ understanding” to ensure smooth progress through all curriculum areas.

Safeguarding

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