St Thomas More Catholic Primary School

Overview

St Thomas More Catholic Primary School is described as a “welcoming and inclusive school” where relationships are “warm and positive,” ensuring pupils feel “happy and safe.” The inspection highlights an “ambitious” curriculum and “exceptional” behaviour, with most pupils achieving well and making good progress.

Strengths

• Pupils’ behaviour is “exemplary,” with children being “respectful and polite” and demonstrating a “positive attitude” to their work.
• Reading is a clear priority, with a “sharp focus” on phonics and consistent support ensuring most pupils become “confident and fluent readers.”
• The curriculum is “ambitious for all,” including pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), who are well supported to learn alongside peers.
• Leaders provide opportunities for broader development, such as a “social action week,” fostering pupils’ understanding of how to “make a difference.”
• Staff appreciate leaders’ consideration of their “well-being and workload,” contributing to a positive work–life balance.

Areas to improve

• In some subjects, the curriculum is “relatively new,” and teachers are not yet skilled at implementing it in a way that helps pupils “embed new learning into their long-term memory.”
• Consequently, in some cases, pupils “cannot demonstrate and recall previous learning when needed,” requiring further training for accurate implementation.

Safeguarding

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