Chilham, St Mary's Church of England Primary School

School

Address: School Hill, Chilham, Canterbury, Kent, CT4 8DE Unique reference number (URN): 118665

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Safeguarding standards met

The safeguarding standards are met. This means that leaders and/or those responsible for governance and oversight fulfil their specific responsibilities and have established an open culture in which safeguarding is everyone's responsibility and concerns are actively identified, acted upon and managed. As a result, pupils are made safer and feel safe.

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How we evaluate safeguarding

When we inspect schools for safeguarding, they can have the following outcomes:

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How we evaluate safeguarding

Met: The school has an open and positive culture of safeguarding. All legal requirements are met. Not met: The school has not created an open and positive culture of safeguarding. Not all legal requirements are met.

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Early years Expected standard

The early years curriculum builds on what children already know and helps them secure key knowledge over time. By the end of the Reception Year, children are typically ready for the next stage of learning. Staff generally adapt activities so all children, including children with special educational needs and/or disabilities, can take part in learning fully.

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Early years Expected standard

Staff model language clearly and introduce new words at every opportunity. Children enjoy using these new words. Staff prioritise the teaching of reading and deliver daily phonics sessions effectively. Children learn their sounds securely from the start of early years and use this knowledge to read simple words. Most begin writing with confidence. Staff use high- quality interactions to help children develop their understanding of numbers. Children concentrate well and show eagerness to learn.

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Early years Expected standard

Adults form warm relationships with children, giving them a secure start to their education in early years. Caring staff look after children very well. Parents speak positively about the support and education their children receive and work closely with the school to ensure that their children are well prepared for the next stage of their educational journey.

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Personal development and wellbeing Expected standard

Leaders take a thoughtful approach to personal development and wellbeing. They design a coherent programme that links important topics in the taught curriculum with carefully planned additional experiences across the school year.

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Personal development and wellbeing Expected standard

The school promotes pupils' social, moral, spiritual and cultural development well. Pupils learn to respect different cultures, challenge discrimination and understand equality. They explore moral issues, reflect on their beliefs and take part in activities that deepen their spiritual understanding. Typically, staff provide activities that develop pupils' knowledge and understanding of fundamental British values. Pupils vote on matters that affect them, learn about democracy and understand why the rule of law protects everyone.

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Personal development and wellbeing Expected standard

The personal, social, health and economic education programme prepares pupils well for the future, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). From the early years to Year 6, pupils develop positive attitudes to healthy living and eating. They learn about relationships and how to stay safe in the community and online. Pupils are supported to look after their mental health.

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Personal development and wellbeing Expected standard

Typically, emotional and social support helps to reduce barriers to learning for many pupils. Leaders provide additional support for pupils who have experienced friendship issues or need support to develop their self-esteem. These interventions are carefully designed and evaluated to ensure that they have the intended impact for pupils.

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Personal development and wellbeing Expected standard

Leaders are fully committed to broadening pupils' experiences. They have mapped out experiences that pupils will have during their time in school. Pupils take pride in leadership roles, such as school council and worship leaders. They understand how these responsibilities contribute to the school and wider community. Pupils build their social skills,

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Needs attention

talents and interests through clubs, trips and visits. Leaders track participation carefully. They check that disadvantaged pupils and those with SEND have access to the full offer.

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Achievement Needs attention

Pupils' achievement, including that of disadvantaged pupils, is not yet where it should be. Too many pupils do not consistently secure the most important knowledge in reading, writing and mathematics by the end of key stage 2. This means that they are not well prepared for their next steps in education. While younger pupils are well supported to develop early reading, writing and mathematical knowledge, this is not yet consistently the case as they move through the school.

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Achievement Needs attention

Work in pupils' books reflects the variability in published outcomes. Weaknesses in pupils' knowledge and understanding are not identified accurately or addressed quickly enough. This means that, sometimes, they move on to new learning before they have secured key knowledge they need to build upon.

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Achievement Needs attention

Pupils achieve well in the phonics screening check. Teachers typically identify and address any missing knowledge in reading. Where needed, staff provide pupils with additional support to help them to keep up with their peers.

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Attendance and behaviour Needs attention

The strategic leadership of attendance is not yet effective. Leaders know individual pupils' contexts and the barriers affecting attendance and are taking action to address these. However, their actions are not supported by robust systems and processes. Consequently, this limits leaders' ability to evaluate the impact of their work or respond swiftly to patterns of absence. As a result, too many pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities and those who are disadvantaged, miss important learning. While there are some improvements in individual pupils' attendance, persistent absence remains too high.

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Attendance and behaviour Needs attention

Leaders have recently changed the behaviour policy to help pupils understand their feelings and emotions. Pupils demonstrate forgiveness, respect and consideration towards their peers. Pupils enjoy their social times. They play kindly with their friends, including in areas such as the school garden. Generally, classrooms are calm. Learning typically takes place without interruption. Occasionally, some pupils become disengaged with their learning. This happens when activities are not well matched to pupils' needs and abilities. Bullying and unkind behaviour are rare, but pupils know that staff will quickly address any issues if they arise.

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Curriculum and teaching Needs attention

Leaders have made recent changes to the curriculum to provide pupils with learning that builds knowledge over time. Teachers, however, do not always adapt the curriculum to ensure that pupils learn the essential knowledge before moving on to more complex learning. Teachers do not secure strong foundations in reading, writing and mathematics. Errors in pupils' transcription skills are not always addressed quickly across subjects. Teachers do not check learning precisely or address misconceptions quickly enough. Leaders have identified these issues and have begun to act.

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Curriculum and teaching Needs attention

Leaders have an accurate understanding of the quality of the curriculum and teaching and recognise where further improvement is needed. They have identified teaching strategies to improve the teaching of the curriculum. Leaders offer training and support to improve teaching, and some improvements are already evident.

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Curriculum and teaching Needs attention

The curriculum is broad and logically sequenced. Leaders ensure that all pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), follow the same curriculum. Adaptations for pupils with SEND, disadvantaged pupils and those known to social care do not always match individual needs. Leaders understand the strengths and weaknesses in the school's curriculum and teachers' practice. They are currently working positively with staff to strengthen pupils' learning experiences.

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Inclusion Needs attention

Typically, leaders identify pupils' needs accurately. However, the systems and processes to support these pupils are not consistently effective. For some pupils, including pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) and those who are disadvantaged, support is not planned or implemented consistently and precisely enough. Pupils with SEND are set targets that are too broad. This means that leaders and staff do not reduce some pupils' barriers to learning and/or wellbeing as quickly as they could.

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Inclusion Needs attention

Although staff have received training on supporting pupils with SEND, some staff lack the skills necessary to adapt their teaching so that these pupils can access the same curriculum as their peers. Pupils with SEND do not get close enough support to help them to become confident, fluent and accurate readers and writers. Consequently, these issues present significant barriers to learning for these pupils and prevent them from achieving all that they should.

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Inclusion Needs attention

Leaders are determined that all pupils who face disadvantage can succeed. This includes pupils who are eligible for pupil premium funding, those who are looked after or those known to social care. Leaders review how safe, cared for and engaged in learning these pupils are. While these pupils receive high-quality pastoral support, staff do not always implement strategies in class to support these pupils effectively. This limits these pupils' achievement.

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Leadership and governance Needs attention

Some leaders' own systems and processes lack strategic design and robustness. Despite this, leaders and governors have an accurate understanding of the school’s strengths and areas for development. This is evident in areas such as attendance. Plans are not clearly designed to bring about necessary improvements. As a result, leaders and governors are not able to evaluate the impact of actions with sufficient precision. Since the last inspection, new leaders continue to develop the right actions to bring about necessary improvements. They have focused on improving the curriculum and securing foundational knowledge in the younger years. These changes are beginning to have impact on the educational experiences of the pupils. Leaders are committed to driving forward improvements in school. They are reflective and have the best interests of children at heart when making decisions. They know their community well and understand the challenges

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Leadership and governance Needs attention

Leaders have put in place a comprehensive programme of professional learning for staff that aligns with school development priorities. However, monitoring and evaluating of the impact of this training remain in their infancy.

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Leadership and governance Needs attention

Staff describe leaders as approachable and supportive, and they value the focus on workload and wellbeing. Training helps improve areas of the school's work, with staff building expertise through professional networks, external specialists and local clusters.

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Leadership and governance Needs attention

Parents and carers speak highly of the school. They value the warm relationships staff build with pupils and recognise the nurturing approach the school provides. They feel listened to and contribute actively as partners in school life.

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What it's like to be a pupil at this school

Chilham, St Mary's Church of England Primary School is a school that cares deeply for its pupils. Pupils feel safe and say that bullying is rare. Staff are on hand at the start of the school day to greet pupils and welcome them in. Some pupils, however, do not attend school as regularly as they should. This can affect their ability to engage with learning and develop their sense of belonging.

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What it's like to be a pupil at this school

Pupils benefit from a carefully sequenced curriculum that makes links to the local area. This helps them to build knowledge over time. However, the curriculum does not always consistently provide the support pupils need to close gaps in their learning. This means that pupils do not have enough time to practise and rehearse the key foundational knowledge in reading, writing and mathematics. Consequently, gaps in pupils' knowledge and misunderstandings persist.

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What it's like to be a pupil at this school

Typically, pupils engage positively in their learning and focus well in lessons. Many are keen to share their ideas and talk positively about the support the school provides. There is some variation in how well teachers know pupils' starting points and provide the right adaptations to support them to achieve as well as they should. This means that some pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities and those who are disadvantaged, are not as well prepared for the next stage of education as they could be.

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What it's like to be a pupil at this school

Children in the early years make a positive start to their education. They receive appropriate support from caring staff who make sure that they are well prepared for Year 1. Pupils develop a clear understanding of respect and equality. They learn about different beliefs and take on roles of responsibility, preparing them well for life in modern Britain. These experiences help pupils develop new interests and build confidence.

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Next steps

Leaders should ensure that their attendance strategy is rigorously monitored so that is continues to improve overall attendance, particularly for disadvantaged pupils and those with special educational needs and/or disabilities. They should also ensure that their actions result in reducing persistent absence for all pupil groups. Leaders should ensure that pupils' precise starting points are accurately identified, routinely shared with staff and used consistently to inform teaching, assessment and appropriate intervention for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities and those who are disadvantaged. Leaders should ensure that recent curriculum changes are fully embedded so that pupils build secure knowledge in all subjects, closing remaining gaps that currently limit their readiness for the next stage. Leaders should ensure all staff apply the school's agreed teaching approaches consistently, maintaining high expectations for the quality of work in pupils' books across

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Next steps

all subjects. Leaders should ensure that staff routinely and precisely check pupils' understanding so they can identify misconceptions and address them before pupils move on to more complex learning.

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About this inspection

The chair of the board of governors in this school is James Dearden.

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About this inspection

Inspectors carried out this full inspection under section 5 of the Education Act 2005.

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About this inspection

Following our renewed inspection framework, all inspections are now led by His Majesty's Inspectors (HMIs) or by Ofsted Inspectors (OIs) who have previously served as HMIs.

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About this inspection

Inspectors spoke with leaders, staff, pupils, parents, governors and a representative of the the local authority.

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About this inspection

The inspectors confirmed the following information about the school:

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About this inspection

This school is registered as having a Church of England religious character. It is in the Diocese of Canterbury. Its last section 48 inspection was 7 November 2023.

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About this inspection

The school currently uses no alternative provision.

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Facts and figures used on inspection

This was the data available at the time of the full inspection, taken from different sources . More recent data may have been published since the full inspection took place.

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Facts and figures used on inspection

The inspector(s) used this data during the full inspection on 30 June 2026

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What does this mean?

The total number of pupils currently at this school and how this compares to other schools of this phase in England.

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What does this mean?

The total number of pupils who can attend the school and how this compares to other schools of this phase in England.

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What does this mean?

The proportion of pupils eligible for free school meals at any point in the last 6 years.

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What does this mean?

The proportion of pupils with an education, health and care plan. This covers pupils with more support than is available through special educational needs support.

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What does this mean?

The proportion of pupils with reported special educational needs support at the school.

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What does this mean?

Based on the English indices of deprivation (2019) and the school's location, we have calculated whether the school is located in a more or less deprived area.

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What does this mean?

Whether school has Resourced provision or SEND unit (if applicable).

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Pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and mathematics

The percentage of pupils meeting the expected standards in a combined reading, writing and mathematics measure.

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average

2023/24 (final) 57% 61% Close to average

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Pupils reaching the expected standard in reading

The percentage of pupils meeting the expected standard in reading.

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average

2023/24 (final) 71% 74% Close to average

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Pupils reaching the expected standard in teacher-assessed writing

The percentage of pupils meeting the expected standard in teacher-assessed writing.

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average

2023/24 (final) 79% 72% Close to average

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Pupils reaching the expected standard in mathematics

The percentage of pupils meeting the expected standard in mathematics.

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Disadvantaged pupils' performance

Disadvantaged pupils are those who have been eligible for free school meals at any point in the last six years and children looked after.

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mathematics

The percentage of disadvantaged pupils meeting the expected standard in reading, writing and mathematics.

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Disadvantaged pupils reaching the expected standard in reading

The percentage of disadvantaged pupils meeting the expected standard in reading.

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Disadvantaged pupils reaching the expected standard in teacher-assessed writing

The percentage of disadvantaged pupils meeting the expected standard in teacher- assessed writing.

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Disadvantaged pupils reaching the expected standard in mathematics

The percentage of disadvantaged pupils meeting the expected standard in mathematics.

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average

‘S’ in the table above indicates the data has been suppressed, which is usually due to small cohorts. The suppression rules applied by the DfE when publishing the data have been mirrored and applied in the report card.

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Disadvantaged pupils' performance gap

Disadvantaged pupils are those who have been eligible for free school meals at any point in the last six years and children looked after. The school disadvantage gap is the difference between the performance of the school's disadvantaged pupils compared to the performance of all non-disadvantaged pupils nationally.

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mathematics

The percentage of disadvantaged pupils meeting the expected standard in reading, writing and mathematics, including the disadvantaged gap.

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Disadvantaged pupils reaching the expected standard in reading

The percentage of disadvantaged pupils meeting the expected standard in reading and the disadvantaged gap.

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Disadvantaged pupils reaching the expected standard in teacher-assessed writing

The percentage of disadvantaged pupils meeting the expected standard in teacher- assessed writing and the disadvantaged gap.

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Disadvantaged pupils reaching the expected standard in mathematics

The percentage of disadvantaged pupils meeting the expected standard in mathematics and the disadvantaged gap.

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gap

‘S’ in the table above indicates the data has been suppressed, which is usually due to small cohorts. The suppression rules applied by the DfE when publishing the data have been mirrored and applied in the report card.

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Overall absence

The percentage of all possible mornings and afternoons missed due to absence from school (for whatever reason, whether authorised or unauthorised) across all pupils.

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national average

2022/23 (3 term) 6.0% 5.9% Close to average

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Persistent absence

The percentage of pupils missing 10% or more of their possible mornings and afternoons.

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national average

2022/23 (3 term) 19.7% 16.2% Close to average

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Exceptional

Practice is exceptional: of the highest standard nationally. Other schools can learn from it.

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Strong standard

The school reaches a strong standard. Leaders are working above the standard expected of them.

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Expected standard

The school is fulfilling the expected standard of education and/or care. This means they are following the standard set out in statutory and non ‑ statutory legislation and the professional standards expected of them.

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Needs attention

The expected standards are not met but leaders are likely able to make the necessary improvements.

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Urgent improvement

The school needs to make urgent improvements to provide the expected standard of education and/or care.

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Urgent improvement

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Urgent improvement

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Urgent improvement

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Urgent improvement

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Urgent improvement

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