Percy Main Primary School

Percy Main Primary School

Address: Nelson Terrace, Percy Main, North Shields, Tyne and Wear, NE29 6JA Unique reference number (URN): 108572

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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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Attendance and behaviour Strong standard

Leaders make careful checks on pupils’ attendance and behaviour. Attendance is broadly in line with national averages. This is sustained by leaders' highly effective actions. Pupils who are disadvantaged and those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) attend well. Their attendance is in line with the national average. The number of pupils who are persistently absent is reducing.

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Attendance and behaviour Strong standard

Leaders work extensively with parents, carers and pupils to remove any barriers that prevent pupils from attending school. Leaders do all they can to promote the importance of good attendance.

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Attendance and behaviour Strong standard

Pupils behave consistently well in school and at playtimes. Pupils' behaviour in the lunch hall is particularly impressive. They sit quietly, chatting happily to their friends and eating their dinner while demonstrating good table manners. Classrooms are purposeful. Pupils remain focused and respond well to staff. Learning is rarely disrupted by others. Leaders prioritise helping pupils to manage their social, emotional and mental health needs. As a result, pupils manage their behaviour independently. Staff skilfully adapt their approach to managing behaviour to accommodate pupils with SEND who may need additional support. Significant incidents of poor behaviour are rare. Bullying, though uncommon, is dealt with effectively.

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Inclusion Strong standard

Leaders create a highly welcoming culture, particularly for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). They identify pupils’ individual needs, which are sometimes complex, with precision. Leaders work with a range of professionals to ensure that the support pupils with SEND receive has the greatest impact. Staff carefully design individual support plans with the help of specialist advice, parents and carers. They review these plans regularly to ensure that they continue to enhance learning. Staff make suitable adaptations across the curriculum, which helps pupils to stay engaged and build skills and knowledge over time. As a result of this support, pupils with SEND access their learning well and make substantial progress through the curriculum from their starting points.

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Inclusion Strong standard

Pupils who are disadvantaged and those known or previously known to children’s social care, receive well-coordinated support. The funding the school receives for disadvantaged pupils is used to support them effectively. Where necessary, leaders and staff act swiftly and compassionately to ensure that families receive suitable help, both within and beyond school.

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Inclusion Strong standard

Leaders have established an additional resourced provision. This has been carefully designed to ensure that it meets the complex needs of the pupils who access it. Staff have high expectations for pupils' behaviour and engagement in this provision.

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Achievement Expected standard

Most pupils make secure progress through the curriculum from their individual starting points. Pupils' attainment in the phonics screening check is higher than the national average. The majority of pupils can read and write confidently by the end of Year 1.

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Achievement Expected standard

Leaders have taken successful action to improve pupils’ achievement over the last 3 years. Pupils' attainment in national tests at the end of Year 6 (including those who are disadvantaged) is now closer to the national average. Pupils' achievement in mathematics, across the school, is improving particularly quickly.

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Achievement Expected standard

Pupils broadly achieve well in wider curriculum subjects, such as design and technology and geography.

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Achievement Expected standard

In key stage 1, the school supports pupils to acquire basic skills, such as number and letter formation. However, some pupils in key stage 2 still have gaps in their basic knowledge and skills that staff have not acted quickly enough to close.

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Achievement Expected standard

Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities achieve well as a result of the tailored support they receive.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

Leaders have improved the curriculum to ensure that it is more ambitious and appropriately sequenced. The impact of this work is more evident in some subjects than others. For example, leaders ensure that pupils now receive regular opportunities to revisit and practise number facts and calculations in mathematics. As a result, pupils can apply this knowledge when solving problems. The teaching of phonics is consistently effective. The teaching of writing has been strengthened, but staff do not consistently check carefully enough that pupils' spelling, use of capital letters and letter formation is correct. At times, this impacts the legibility of pupils' writing and their ability to independently check their work. There is some variability in how often and effectively staff teach some subjects in the wider curriculum, such as French and religious education. This hinders pupils' ability to recall important

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

Staff typically follow a structured approach to introducing new learning. This includes deliberate teaching of subject-specific vocabulary. Most staff break learning down into small steps. Staff use practical activities to enhance pupils' learning. For example, pupils enjoy learning about the human digestive system through a practical investigation.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

Staff skilfully adapt their teaching approaches and resources to enable pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities to participate fully in lessons.

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Early years Expected standard

In the early years, children typically make a positive start to their schooling. Staff create nurturing and caring relationships. They know the children well. Staff build positive relationships with parents and carers.

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Early years Expected standard

Leaders have designed a curriculum that is coherently sequenced. This includes stories, rhymes and key vocabulary. Leaders prioritise the development of children’s communication and language. This is a particular strength in the 2- and 3-year-old provision. Here, staff model effectively vocabulary and sentence structure during high-quality interactions. Consequently, children, particularly those who face barriers to learning, begin to acquire a range of vocabulary that helps them be ready for the Reception Year. Leaders ensure that children learn early phonics and mathematics as soon as they join school. Children in the Reception Year receive precise phonics teaching. They typically acquire the knowledge they need for early reading and writing. The indoor provision is engaging and inspires the children to deepen their understanding of core stories.

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Early years Expected standard

Children in the early years are well cared for. Leaders ensure that all welfare requirements are met. Children engage well with each other and adults. The youngest children are growing in their independence and resilience. Where necessary, adults provide targeted support to help children to be ready for Year 1.

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Leadership and governance Expected standard

Leaders understand the school’s context well. They accurately identify strengths and priorities for improvement. While leaders have taken significant action to improve some areas of the school's work, the pace of this has sometimes been too slow. Leaders are still working to resolve some aspects of the areas for improvement identified at the last inspection. Leaders check the implementation of the curriculum, including pupils' achievement across subjects. However, the quality of these checks is inconsistent. As a result, gaps in pupils' knowledge and skills are not closing quickly enough.

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Leadership and governance Expected standard

The professional learning programme for staff is linked to the school’s improvement priorities. Staff appreciate the support they receive through evidence-informed professional development. This has helped their effectiveness at teaching some subjects in the curriculum and meeting pupils' diverse needs.

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Leadership and governance Expected standard

Leaders take a comprehensive approach to identifying potential additional needs and barriers to learning or wellbeing. This supports pupils' behaviour and achievement. Many pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities fully engage in school life and learn alongside their peers.

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Leadership and governance Expected standard

Governors know their roles and uphold their statutory responsibilities. They are knowledgeable about the school's work. They generally know what is working well and what needs further improvement. Governors are skilled at providing support and challenge to leaders. They make appropriate checks on how leaders manage staff's workload and support their wellbeing. Leaders foster warm relationships with parents and carers. Parents are overwhelmingly positive about the school and appreciate all that the staff do to help their children.

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Personal development and wellbeing Expected standard

Leaders have designed an appropriate personal development and wellbeing programme. They regularly review the plan for personal, social, health and economic education to ensure that it is tailored to pupils' needs. For example, pupils learn how to keep safe on the busy roads around the school. They also know how to stay safe on the railway and when near the sea. The local police combined with the computing curriculum teach pupils about the potential dangers in the community and online. As a result, pupils are clear about how to keep safe and the importance of respecting consent. The school encourages pupils to ‘start small, think big’. Parents, carers and staff share their experiences from different workplaces, helping children to become familiar with a range of careers.

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Personal development and wellbeing Expected standard

Pupils benefit from opportunities that widen their experiences. These include surfing lessons, residential visits, museum visits and a trip to a Viking village. They also enjoy a range of after-school clubs. These are wide ranging and include a girls' football club, Lego club and biking club.

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Personal development and wellbeing Expected standard

Pupils are typically well prepared for life in modern Britain. They have some knowledge about fundamental British values and discrimination. They demonstrate tolerance and respect consistently. The school has introduced a diverse range of books for pupils to read. This is beginning to help pupils understand different cultures. However, pupils only have a limited understanding of different faiths.

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Personal development and wellbeing Expected standard

Children in the early years begin to learn the importance of keeping healthy. This widens as pupils get older to include how exercise, sleep and being outdoors promote good mental health and wellbeing. Through various leadership roles, pupils learn how they can affect change. For example, diversity ambassadors help to make the school welcoming to new pupils from different backgrounds. Playground ambassadors help pupils learn to play well together.

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

Relationships are at the heart of the school. All pupils are warmly welcomed and included. They have a secure sense of belonging to the school community. Leaders and staff know pupils well. Pupils are consistently polite and respectful to staff, visitors and each other. Pupils become increasingly confident and articulate as they journey through the school. They eagerly share their ideas and what they are learning. They also happily share the many reasons why they love coming to Percy Main Primary School. Most pupils attend school well.

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

The school’s caring approach begins in the early years, where staff meet children’s needs from the start. Children quickly make positive relationships with adults who deeply care for them. Records show that bullying of any kind is rare. Pupils are confident that if it happens, staff will address it swiftly and effectively. The school meets the needs of pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities consistently well. This includes pupils who access the school’s additionally resourced provision. Here, they receive targeted, intensive support, which enables them to thrive.

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

The early years curriculum typically supports children to develop the essential knowledge and skills they need to be ready for Year 1. Leaders have strengthened some aspects of the curriculum throughout the school, particularly in English and mathematics. This means that an increasing number of pupils are ready to progress with their education at the end of Year 6.

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

The school provides pupils with opportunities to make improvements. For example, the diversity ambassadors work with pupils from a local secondary school to help pupils who are refugees or asylum seekers to feel welcome and included.

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

Pupils enjoy a range of opportunities to broaden their experiences and enrich the curriculum. These include visits to the local farm, the theatre and outdoor activity residentials.

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Next steps

Leaders should strengthen the teaching of writing and raise teachers’ expectations so that pupils develop an efficient pencil grip, spell accurately, form letters correctly and use capital letters appropriately. Leaders should support staff to implement the newly designed foundation curriculum effectively so that pupils' knowledge and skills build over time in all subjects. Leaders should ensure that pupils develop deep and secure knowledge across the personal, social, health and economic curriculum, particularly of fundamental British values, different faiths and cultures.

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About this inspection

The chair of the governing body is David Baldwin.

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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 (HMI) or by Ofsted Inspectors (OIs) who have previously served as HMIs.

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About this inspection

Inspectors spoke with the headteacher, assistant headteacher, other leaders, the school's improvement partner, the chair of governors and one other governor. Inspectors also spoke to staff, pupils and parents and carers during the inspection.

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About this inspection

The inspectors confirmed the following information about the school:

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Team inspectors:

Deborah Ashcroft, Ofsted Inspector Chris Baines, Ofsted Inspector

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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 16 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 school includes an additionally resourced provision for 12 pupils, which caters for pupils with social, emotional and mental health needs. This provision opened in January 2026.

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What does this mean?

The school does not use any alternative provision.

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What does this mean?

Headteacher: Kathryn Thompson 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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Pupils reaching the expected standard in reading

The percentage of pupils meeting the expected standard in reading.

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average

2024/25 (final) 72% 75% Close to average

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average

2023/24 (final) 70% 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

2024/25 (final) 66% 72% Close to average

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average

2022/23 (final) 68% 71% 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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average

2024/25 (final) 47% 47% Close to average

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average

2023/24 (final) 48% 46% Close to average

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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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average

2024/25 (final) 68% 63% Close to average

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average

2023/24 (final) 67% 62% Close to average

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average

2022/23 (final) 61% 60% Close to average

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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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average

2024/25 (final) 68% 59% Close to average

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average

2023/24 (final) 57% 58% Close to average

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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

2023/24 (final) 62% 59% Close to average

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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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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

2024/25 (3 term) 5.6% 5.2% Close to average

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national average

2023/24 (3 term) 5.5% 5.5% Close to average

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national average

2022/23 (3 term) 5.3% 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

2024/25 (3 term) 13.5% 13.0% Close to average

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national average

2023/24 (3 term) 13.6% 14.6% Close to average

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national average

2022/23 (3 term) 13.5% 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

T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/ofsted

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