Stukeley Meadows Primary School

Inspection of a school judged good for overall effectiveness before September 2024: Stukeley Meadows Primary School Wertheim Way, Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire PE29 6UH

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Outcome

Stukeley Meadows Primary School has taken effective action to maintain the standards identified at the previous inspection.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are happy at school. They value meeting up with their ‘buddies’ from different year groups. They enjoy activities such as reading together. Pupils look out and care for each other. They feel confident sharing thoughts with trusted adults. Adults consistently follow up these conversations where necessary, which keeps pupils safe.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school has high expectations for pupils’ achievement. These expectations are realised well, particularly in reading and mathematics, but less strongly in writing. Almost everyone enjoys reading. Pupils talk enthusiastically about their favourite books. They benefit from learning a broad and interesting curriculum. For example, in art, they are inspired by famous artists, such as Barbara Hepworth, when making their own sculptures.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are polite and very keen to talk to visitors. They are clear on rules for behaviour, which they refer to as the ‘Four Ls’. Most pupils follow these well. However, where needed, staff use consistent approaches and suitable support to settle pupils. Therefore, behaviour is typically calm and purposeful.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils relish various leadership opportunities, such as play leaders and librarians. These roles help them to develop responsibility and teamwork skills. They also get to experience a wide variety of clubs, such as the popular ‘Mölkky’ game.

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What does the school do well and what does it need to do better?

Since the previous inspection, the school has acted to ensure an effective whole-school approach to teaching reading is embedded fully. Pupils are enthusiastic about reading and engage in a variety of different types of reading sessions daily. For instance, Year 6 pupils have reading sessions across the day, focusing on different aspects of reading, such as comprehension and reading for pleasure. This approach has led to strong outcomes in 11 and 12 March 2025

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national tests for reading. Pupils who need support with phonics receive rapid and tailored catch-up support. This enables them to become confident in using phonics knowledge in their reading.

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An effective approach to teaching writing is now in place. In early years, activities are designed to develop children’s fine and gross motor skills. These lay the physical foundations for writing. For example, adults support children in writing sentences about topics such as plants, linked to their drawings. However, although the teaching of writing for older pupils is improving, teachers do not always check pupils’ writing is of high enough quality or give them the support they need to improve it. Consequently, the written work that some pupils produce is not the best they are capable of.

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The school has put in place a wider curriculum that ensures pupils build important knowledge across the full range of national curriculum subjects. For example, in history, pupils deepen their knowledge by participating in Roman-themed days, where they become immersed in what Roman life was like. However, in a few subjects, the school has not ensured that teachers have the subject expertise so that these subjects are taught consistently well. Therefore, in these subjects, pupils do not learn important knowledge as successfully.

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The school ensures that the needs of pupils with special education needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are identified carefully and reviewed. Staff get the information they need to ensure that pupils get any help with learning that they need. Bespoke intervention sessions further build the skills that some pupils with SEND need to access the curriculum as fully as possible.

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The school has put in place clear systems for managing behaviour, which has reduced the number of suspensions. Pupils are typically engaged and follow the school’s rules. This starts in early years, where routines such as turn-taking and tidying up are well established. Staff skilfully calm situations where pupils struggle to deal with their feelings. Pupils attend well because the school works with families to help overcome any barriers to good attendance.

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The school prepares pupils well for life beyond school. The ‘Federation 30’ initiative provides pupils with significant milestones, such as supporting the town council, participating in pancake races and engaging in horticultural events. Extensive club offerings, including board games, dance, football and karate, encourage pupils to explore interests and develop new skills. Pupils build character through activities like the residential trips, book badges and engineering projects with local companies.

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The school is well led and managed. This includes the quality of challenge and support provided by governors and the local authority, which is delivered in a way that supports staff’s workload and well-being. Leaders’ actions to improve the school focus sharply on the most important priorities to improve the quality of provision further. 11 and 12 March 2025

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 On occasion, some staff do not teach writing consistently well. This is because teachers do not always check pupils’ writing knowledge carefully enough or give them the support they need to improve their written work. This means that some pupils do not produce writing of a high enough quality or depth. The school should ensure that all teachers carefully check the quality of pupils’ writing and provide them with the support and guidance they need to produce writing of the highest standard they are capable of.  In a few subjects, the school has not developed consistently effective teaching across the curriculum. This means that pupils do not build knowledge over time as well as they could in these subjects. The school should ensure that teaching is consistently effective across the full range of subjects to enable pupils to develop deep knowledge across the full curriculum.

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Background

Until September 2024, on a graded (section 5) inspection we gave schools an overall effectiveness grade, in addition to the key and provision judgements. Overall effectiveness grades given before September 2024 will continue to be visible on school inspection reports and on Ofsted’s website. From September 2024, graded inspections will not include an overall effectiveness grade. This school was, before September 2024, judged to be good for its overall effectiveness.

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Background

We have now inspected the school to determine whether it has taken effective action to maintain the standards identified at that previous inspection. This is called an ungraded inspection, and it is carried out under section 8 of the Education Act 2005. We do not give graded judgements on an ungraded inspection. However, if we find evidence that a school’s work has improved significantly or that it may not be as strong as it was at the last inspection, then the next inspection will be a graded inspection. A graded inspection is carried out under section 5 of the Act. Usually this is within one to two years of the date of the ungraded inspection. If we have serious concerns about safeguarding, behaviour or the quality of education, we will deem the ungraded inspection a graded inspection immediately.

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Background

This is the first ungraded inspection since we judged the school to be good for overall effectiveness in June 2019. 11 and 12 March 2025

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How can I feed back my views?

find out what other parents and carers think. We use information from Ofsted Parent View when deciding which schools to inspect, when to inspect them and as part of their inspection.

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How can I feed back my views?

The Department for Education has further guidance on how to complain about a school.

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Further information

You can search for published performance information about the school.

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Further information

In the report, ‘disadvantaged pupils’ is used to mean pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND); pupils who meet the definition of children in need of help and protection ; pupils receiving statutory local authority support from a social worker; and pupils who otherwise meet the criteria used for deciding the school’s pupil premium funding (this includes pupils claiming free school meals at any point in the last six years, looked after children (children in local authority care) and/or children who left care through adoption or another formal route). 11 and 12 March 2025

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Date of previous inspection 19 June 2019, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The school federated with Newton Primary School in September 2022. This involved the formation of a new governing body that has responsibility across both schools.  The federation executive headteacher was appointed in September 2022. The head of school was appointed in April 2023.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspections are a point-in-time evaluation about the quality of a school’s education provision.  This was the first routine inspection the school received since the COVID-19 pandemic began. The inspector discussed the impact of the pandemic with the school and has taken that into account in his evaluation of the school.  The inspector met with representatives from the governing body and local authority. This included the chair of governors.  The inspector met with the federation executive headteacher, head of school, special educational needs co-ordinator and other senior staff. 11 and 12 March 2025

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 The inspector conducted further meetings with staff to discuss other aspects of the school’s work.  The inspector visited a sample of lessons, spoke to pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work.  The inspector observed pupils’ behaviour in lessons, around school and at social times.  To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding, the inspector: reviewed the single central record; took account of the views of leaders, staff and pupils; and considered the extent to which the school has created an open and positive culture around safeguarding that puts pupils’ interests first.  The inspector considered responses to the online Ofsted staff and pupil surveys. The inspector also considered responses to the online survey, Ofsted Parent View, including the free-text comments.

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Inspection team

James Chester, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector 11 and 12 March 2025

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achieve excellence in the care of children and young people, and in education and skills for learners of all ages. It regulates and inspects childcare and children’s social care, and inspects the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (Cafcass), schools, colleges, initial teacher training, further education and skills, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It assesses council children’s services, and inspects services for children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

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