Primary school told it must improve following Ofsted inspection

A primary school previously rated 'good' by Ofsted has been told it needs to make improvements across the board.

 Inspectors visited St Stephens CE Primary School for the first time since the pandemic.

And their report, published this month, says the school 'requires improvements' in all areas. These include quality of education, behaviour and leadership.

The inspection team, led by Sue Dymond, said a new curriculum had recently been introduced at the 204 pupil school in Audenshaw.

But they discovered that some teachers had failed to get to grips with it and the behaviour of some pupils caused disruption in lessons.

Ms Dymond wrote: "Pupils generally behave well and have fun at playtimes and with their friends. However, pupils' behaviour in lessons is not as positive.

"Some staff do not ensure that pupils follow the recently introduced behaviour systems. This leads to disruption to pupils' learning in some classes across the school.

"The school has recently reviewed the behaviour police. However, the new approach is not followed consistently well.

"In some lessons, pupils listen attentively and work cooperatively with one another.

"However, in most classes, pupils attitudes to learning are not as strong. They regularly distract and hinder other pupils from learning."

The report said an Interim Executive Board (IEB) had taken over the running of the school to address a 'previously weak curriculum and instability in staffing' which had led to gaps in pupils' knowledge.

However, the report says some staff feel left out. Ms Dymond wrote: "Many staff are proud to be a part of St Stephen's. However, some staff do not feel that their workload and well-being are accounted for by leaders when making necessary changes.

"The IEB has not had sufficient time to be able to tackle the many historic weaknesses in the school."

The report recommends the school needs to apply the new curriculum across the board and improve behaviour at the school.