Dover, St Mary's Church of England Primary School

Inspection of Dover, St Mary's Church of England Primary School Laureston Place, Dover, Kent CT16 1QX

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The quality of education Good Behaviour and attitudes Good Personal development Good Leadership and management Good Early years provision Good Previous inspection grade Requires improvement 8 and 9 July 2025

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What is it like to attend this school?

This school serves its local community with a deeply caring and welcoming ethos. Pupils proudly demonstrate the values of peace, friendship, respect, trust and perseverance across school life. They celebrate diversity and say, 'We are all different and that's okay'.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Behaviour expectations are consistently high. Relationships are warm and pupils follow school rules with care and respect. Learning is not disrupted. Conduct is positive from the classroom to the playground. Pupils are not worried about bullying, because they know the school will always listen and immediately address any worries.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Since the previous inspection, the school has embedded strong improvements. Highly effective support for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) ensures that the school meets the needs of all. High expectations reflect an ambitious and inclusive culture that helps each unique pupil to shine. As a result, pupils achieve well across the curriculum.

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What is it like to attend this school?

A broad range of trips, visits and clubs enrich school life. The school ensures that opportunities are accessible to all, so nobody misses out. Pupils learn musical instruments and represent the school in local sports events. Pupils are the driving force behind the school’s charitable work. They plan and deliver fundraising activities to make a tangible difference to society.

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

The teaching of reading is a strength of this school. Well-trained staff use their expertise to help children learn sounds as soon as they join the nurturing early years provision. The school provides effective catch-up help to identify and address any gaps in pupils’ reading skills. Pupils learn to develop fluency, comprehension and joy for reading. Pupils with SEND particularly benefit from the school’s sharp focus on communication and language. From early years to Year 6, staff model vocabulary and help pupils to learn and understand language to equip them for successful learning across the subjects.

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

Many pupils join the school mid-year with gaps in their knowledge. The school works hard to address this by identifying needs swiftly and providing additional help. A high proportion of pupils speak English as an additional language. The school makes inclusive and effective changes to learning activities to unlock language for all. This strong work begins in early years, where children are thriving. Staff provide meaningful learning opportunities across the indoor and outdoor provision to help children to collaborate and learn together.

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

Pupils learn to use and apply mathematical concepts and methods with skill. They know and remember knowledge across the school’s broad and ambitious curriculum. Staff check pupils’ learning well to spot misconceptions and address them. The school puts effective help in place for pupils with SEND to give them the precise support they need. For example, many pupils with SEND use visual aids and specific support to access new learning before cementing their understanding with appropriate tasks. 8 and 9 July 2025

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Teachers have secure subject knowledge. They design effective lesson tasks that help pupils to learn and achieve well across the subjects. Pupils can recall and discuss knowledge with confidence and accuracy. However, some pupils struggle to produce high- quality written work. Handwriting and presentation skills are not always strong enough to enable pupils to present their knowledge clearly. The school’s support for this aspect of pupils’ learning needs further refining.

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Pupils behave well in lessons. Classroom expectations are clear and teachers address any minor distractions swiftly and effectively. Attendance has been historically low, but the school works tirelessly to reduce absence. By connecting with the community, supporting families and promoting relentlessly high expectations, there have been significant improvements in many pupils’ attendance. Persistent absence is now close to the national average and pupils attend regularly and punctually.

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The school’s work to promote pupils’ positive mental health and well-being is strong. Regular opportunities for calm reflection greatly help pupils who struggle with their emotions. The school prepares pupils for modern Britain with well-designed curriculum and assembly activities. Pupils understand healthy relationships and online safety. Fundamental British values are integrated into the curriculum and assembly programme. Pupils understand the rule of law and practise democracy through various voting opportunities. The school raises pupils’ future career aspirations through opportunities such as ‘police cadets’ and ‘mini medics’.

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Leaders have shown dedication and focus to drive effective improvements across the school. Staff are positive about workload and well-being. Governors fulfil their duties with diligence. They provide effective support to uphold the school’s vision and values. Parents and carers speak highly of the school. One represented many when sharing, ‘The staff are incredibly inclusive, kind and attentive to the needs of each child’, while another said that their ‘children have thrived academically, socially and personally’.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 The teaching of transcription skills has not ensured that all pupils present their writing with accuracy. This means that pupils’ written work sometimes does not communicate their learning successfully. The school should support pupils’ handwriting and presentation skills to help them produce high-quality work across the whole curriculum. 8 and 9 July 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). 8 and 9 July 2025

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Chair of governing body Revd. Melissa Carter

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School details

Headteacher Helen Comfort (executive headteacher) Matthew Lamprell (headteacher) Website www.st-marys-dover.kent.sch.uk

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School details

Dates of previous inspection 15 and 16 November 2022, under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 This is a voluntary aided Church of England school in the Diocese of Canterbury. Its last section 48 inspection took place in October 2022. The next section 48 inspection should take place within five years.  The school does not currently use alternative provision.

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Information about this inspection

The inspectors carried out this graded inspection under section 5 of the Education Act 2005. During a graded inspection, we grade the school for each of our key judgements (quality of education; behaviour and attitudes; personal development; and leadership and management) and for any relevant provision judgement (early years). Schools receiving a graded inspection from September 2024, will not be given an overall effectiveness grade.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspections are a point-in-time evaluation about the quality of a school’s education provision. 8 and 9 July 2025

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 Inspectors discussed any continued impact of the pandemic with the school and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  Inspectors met with the headteacher, executive headteacher, curriculum leaders, SEND coordinator, teachers and support staff.  The lead inspector met with five governors, including the chair of the governing body.  The lead inspector met with an adviser from the local authority. He also spoke by telephone with an adviser from the Diocese.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: early reading, mathematics, science and history. For each deep dive, inspectors held discussions about the curriculum, visited a sample of lessons, spoke to teachers, spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work. Inspectors also evaluated pupils’ work in personal, social, health and economic education.  The lead inspector listened to pupils read to a known adult. The inspector observed

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catch-up interventions to learn how staff provide additional reading support to pupils.  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.  Inspectors spoke to a range of pupils to learn their views about the school and took account of responses to the pupil survey.  Inspectors considered the responses to the staff survey and spoke to a range of staff about their views of the school.  Inspectors took account of responses to the Ofsted Parent View survey, including the free-text responses. Inspectors also spoke to parents at the gates before school.

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Inspection team

Scott Reece, lead inspector His Majesty's Inspector

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Inspection team

Gavin Thomas His Majesty's Inspector 8 and 9 July 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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