Staff and pupils at St. Mary & All Saints in Reading will be ending the year on a high note following the publication of the primary school’s new Ofsted report. 

St. Mary & All Saints, which is part of The White Horse Federation, has been rated ‘Outstanding’ for personal development and ‘Good’ in all other areas, including quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, leadership and management and early years provision. 

This report marks a significant point in the school’s improvement journey, which started when the school moved from ‘Inadequate’ to ‘Requires Improvement’, following a graded inspection in 2023.

In the new report, which follows an inspection on 17 and 18 June, inspectors highlight the school’s calm lessons, noting that pupils are eager to learn and behave well. Pupils are also praised for working hard to meet the school’s expectations and achieving increasingly well across the curriculum.

Ofsted notes that the school’s strategic focus on pupils’ personal development is outstanding, with carefully chosen trips and visits building pupils’ confidence in the wider world. Well-considered experiences such as regular visits to the local hospital to explore the different jobs there, raise aspirations. 

Some of the many other highlights include:

  • Positive, nurturing relationships between staff and pupils help children feel safe. 
  • The curriculum is carefully organised so that pupils learn new knowledge. 
  • Teachers skilfully identify pupils’ gaps in learning and carefully support them.
  • Pupils behave very well in class and around the school. 
  • Since the last inspection, leaders and staff have worked successfully to improve the quality of education, including in the early years, so that it is now securely good. The trust has supported the school very well with this work.  
  • Pupils benefit from excellent opportunities to develop their talents and interests, including many sporting and musical activities. The school choir is especially popular.
  • Pupils develop a strong understanding of diversity. In particular, they celebrate the diverse range of languages spoken in the school because they want everyone to feel welcome.  
  • Staff say that the school is ‘run with kindness and positivity’. They appreciate the consideration made to make their workload manageable. 

Matt Parting, Headteacher at St. Mary & All Saints C of E Primary School, said:

“We are extremely proud of this outcome and particularly proud that our strategic focus on personal development has been recognised. This highlights how our vision of ‘Life in all its Fullness’ is at the heart of everything we do here at St Mary & All Saints.

“Thank you to our staff, pupils and parents for being part of our journey. We look forward to building on this success together.”

Simon Cowley, Director of Education at The White Horse Federation, said:

“Well done to everyone at St. Mary & All Saints. It is brilliant to see that this report reflects the many significant improvements the school has made. 

“We look forward to seeing St. Mary & All Saints continue its impressive improvement journey.”