St Mawes Primary School

Inspection of a school judged good for overall effectiveness before September 2024: St Mawes Primary School Grove Hill, St Mawes, Truro, Cornwall TR2 5BP

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Outcome

St Mawes Primary School has taken effective action to maintain the standards identified at the previous inspection.

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Outcome

The headteacher of this school is Kerry-Anne Crinks. This school is part of Aspire Academy Trust, which means other people in the trust also have responsibility for running the school. The trust is run by the chief executive officer (CEO), Rachel Warwick, and overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by Penny Shilston.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Staff and pupils are proud of the school and its prominent role within the community. The school is a small but vibrant place. Pupils love their school and feel safe. They speak warmly about their peers and how staff support them. Pupils behave exceptionally well. They are resolute that bullying would not be tolerated. Year 6 pupils are well prepared and excited for their next steps into secondary school but feel sad to leave St Mawes.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school has high expectations for pupils’ achievements. Most pupils meet these and progress well in their learning of the curriculum. Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are well supported. Staff ensure that these pupils have personalised and measurable targets which helps them to be successful.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school has developed positive links with local businesses and use this to benefit pupils. For example, pupils take sailing lessons at a local club and learn cookery at nearby hotels. Pupils work alongside the community in their school grounds, such as planting in the polytunnel. They also take part in local events. Pupils develop their independence and resilience when attending school residentials. They have a strong voice in the school as members of the eco council or pupil parliament.

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Staff are proud to work at this school. The team’s approach and commitment to the pupils is commendable. There have been recent changes in curriculum and staffing. School and trust leaders consider the potential impact of this on staff workload and well-being. This creates a positive working environment, and one where pupils can flourish.

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The trust supports the school’s drive for further improvement. For example, trust leads provide expertise in English and mathematics. The content and curriculum delivery ensures that pupils have many opportunities to revisit and rehearse key knowledge. This is helping pupils with their fluency in mathematics. Pupils recall with ease their multiplication tables. They show confidence and speed in their arithmetic.

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The school places reading at the centre of the curriculum. It has adopted a systematic phonics programme to teach pupils to read. Children in the early years, pupils in key stage 1 and those who need additional support with their reading, are taught phonics effectively. They become confident and fluent readers. Pupils have regular opportunities to practise their handwriting. The school’s library is well resourced. It is an inviting space to choose and enjoy a book for pleasure. Younger pupils ‘buddy’ up with older pupils to read a book together.

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Pupils experience a broad and interesting curriculum. The school has a strong understanding of its local context. This has been carefully threaded through the school's curriculum so that pupils appreciate and celebrate their local community and its unique location. However, the knowledge that pupils learn in the wider curriculum has not been broken down into enough detail. Across year groups, it is not clear exactly what pupils need to know and be able to do. Pupils find it difficult to recall their learning of the wider curriculum over time.

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Where staff think that pupils may have a special educational need and/or disabilities (SEND), they take quick action to ensure effective support is put in place. This includes working with parents and carers, as well as external services where appropriate.

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Most of the time staff do not use the school’s behaviour policy. This is because they have no need to. Pupils behave well as they know it is the right thing to do. They respond positively to the range of rewards that the school offers. Older pupils are friendly and caring to younger pupils. There is a strong family feel at the school.

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The school is sensitive to the needs of different age groups when delivering the personal, social, and health education curriculum. The delivery of the curriculum is age-appropriate. Pupils learn about how to keep themselves safe online and in the community. There is a specific focus on water safety given the school’s locality.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 In the wider curriculum, the school has not outlined in sufficient detail the knowledge it wants pupils to learn or how this will build over time. Therefore, pupils do not always experience a curriculum where important ideas and concepts build as successfully as they could within these subjects. The school should ensure that the core knowledge, and the assessment of how well pupils have learned it, is carefully considered in every subject.

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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 second ungraded inspection since we judged the predecessor school, St Mawes Community Primary School, to be good for overall effectiveness in May 2012.

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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. 1 April 2025

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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). 1 April 2025

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School details

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

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Information about this school

 Since the previous inspection, a new headteacher has been appointed.  The school does not use any alternative provision.

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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 inspectors discussed the impact of the pandemic with the school and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  The inspectors held discussions with the headteacher, who is also the special educational needs and disabilities coordinator, two local hub councillors, a trustee, and the CEO of the trust. 1 April 2025

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 Inspectors visited both classes, spoke to teachers, spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work.  To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding, the inspectors: 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 inspectors considered parents’ responses to Ofsted Parent View, including the free- text comments. The inspectors also considered responses to Ofsted’s online staff and pupil surveys.

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Inspection team

Kelly Olive, lead inspector His Majesty's Inspector

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Inspection team

Angela Folland His Majesty's Inspector 1 April 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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