Spalding’s St Paul’s Community Primary and Nursery School in Spalding celebrates first ‘good’ rating in history of the Ofsted inspection regime

Staff and pupils are celebrating after getting a ‘good’ rating and turning around the fortunes of their school, which has never achieved such a high rating under the Ofsted inspection regime.

Spalding’s St Paul’s Community Primary and Nursery School has ‘improved significantly’ since its last inspection in 2019 when it was deemed to be ‘inadequate’ and not providing an acceptable level of education.

Five years on, the school has been praised for its curriculum delivered by ‘committed’ teachers who have high expectations for pupils.

Inspectors have given the school just one thing to work on - which is ensuring that the planned curriculum is taught well and addresses gaps.

The report states: “The school is caring and supportive of all pupils. Staff and pupils said that the school has improved significantly.

“The school has high expectations of what pupils can achieve and how they should behave. Most pupils consistently meet these expectations.

“Pupils feel safe at school. They know there are staff they can talk to if they are worried about anything.

“Most pupils enjoy attending school. They said that teachers make lessons interesting. Some pupils join the school at different times during the year. These pupils settle in quickly. They are well supported, and other pupils make them feel welcome.”

The Queen’s Road school has come a long way from its last report in 2019 when it was deemed to be inadequate in its effectiveness, leadership and management, quality of teaching, learning and assessment and outcomes for pupils. It was also told to improve in personal development, behaviour and welfare and early years provision.

St Paul’s had been rated 'requires improvement' after visits in 2013, 2015 and 2017, after being 'satisfactory' in 2007 and 2010.

Since then, the school has appointed a new headteacher, Selina Ratchford.

She said: “I am incredibly proud. All our children and parents should also be proud of how well the report reads and reflects the excellent education the children receive.

“They work hard, are kind and happy in school and the inspection team saw this first hand, along with our well skilled staff in action. I would like to take this opportunity to thank my team for all their incredible hard work. They deliver day in, and day out, providing our pupils with a high-quality education.”

In the latest report inspectors praised the pupils for their ‘good attitudes to learning’ and behaviour in lessons following a visit in June. It also said that there was a clear system to deal with behaviour issues.

It goes onto say: “At playtime and lunchtime, staff organise games, so pupils learn how to play well together. Pupils are polite and respectful.”

Eco-club, reading buddies and class representatives are some of the initiatives introduced to help children feel part of the school.

It states: “The school has significantly improved the curriculum offered to pupils. There is an ambitious, broad and well-planned curriculum in place. The school continually reviews the curriculum to ensure that it meets pupils’ needs.

“The impact of the improved curriculum is not yet fully evident in all outcomes at key stage 2. However, the work that pupils produce shows that they are achieving well.”

Reading is at the heart of the new curriculum with staff offering daily reading and comprehension sessions

St Paul’s was praised for providing a ‘strong start’ to early years pupils along with ensuring that youngsters with special educational needs are well supported.

Inspectors also highlighted that the school has ‘planned effectively for pupils’ personal development’.

It goes onto say: “Staff are proud to work at the school. They feel well supported and benefit from high-quality professional development. The school provides many meaningful opportunities for parents to engage with the school.

“Leaders at all levels are committed to ensuring that pupils get the best education possible. They have taken highly effective action to improve all areas of the school. The trust and those responsible for governance provide excellent support.”

The school is part of the CIT Academies trust since 2020.

Chief executive Peter Bell said: “Over the last four years, the trust has invested heavily improving the learning environment, and the school staff have worked tirelessly to achieve this amazing result of a Good Ofsted with Outstanding in Leadership.

“To put this into context, since Ofsted was formed in 1992, St Paul’s has never been graded better than satisfactory/requires improvement, so to achieve their recent result, is a huge achievement.”