Shepeau Stow Primary School downgraded despite parents being happy

Inspectors say that a ‘happy’ school has ‘more to do’ to ensure curriculum is taught well.

Ofsted inspectors have downgraded Shepeau Stow Primary School after finding the quality of its teaching wasn’t ‘good in all subjects’.

Following a visit in November, inspectors said that leaders at the school, which had previously been rated ‘good’, do not have ‘a sufficiently clear understanding of how successfully the curriculum is implemented’.

The report states: “Leaders have made improvements to the curriculum. However, they know that there is more to do.

“In some subjects, the curriculum is not taught well enough. This means that some pupils do not gain the knowledge and skills they should over time.

“This includes some pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND).”

It continues: “Over time, leaders have not ensured that the quality of education is good in all subjects. Leaders have identified the key content they expect pupils to learn.

“However, they have not established ways to teach the curriculum content successfully in some subjects. This hampers some pupils from remembering the most important knowledge and building their understanding over time.”

While the school was marked as ‘requiring improvement’.

However, it was noted that pupils are happy and felt safe, adding that ‘parents and carers are overwhelmingly positive about the school’.