St Michael's Church of England Primary School

St Michael’s Church of England Primary School is a warm and friendly school where pupils feel happy and safe. Behaviour is polite and courteous, and the school is calm and purposeful. Reading is a notable strength, early years provision prepares children well, and pupils benefit from strong personal development, including leadership roles, clubs and wider experiences. Pupils with SEND are identified quickly and learn the ambitious curriculum alongside their peers, and safeguarding is effective. The school has been through significant change since its previous inspection, including leadership changes, a new governing body and joining the Genesis Federation. A new curriculum has been designed at pace, but some of this work is in its earliest stages. Historic gaps in pupils’ knowledge have not been fully addressed, and assessment checks are not precise enough to identify and close gaps consistently. Some tasks are not carefully matched to pupils’ prior knowledge, so older pupils are not always well prepared for their next steps. Behaviour and attitudes, personal development and early years provision are strong, but the quality of education and leadership and management are not yet consistently effective. Some subject leaders are newly established and do not yet have a secure enough understanding of the new curriculum, which leads to inconsistencies in delivery. Leaders are sensitive to staff workload pressures and prioritise well-being as improvement work continues.

Strengths

• Pupils are happy, safe and feel well cared for by trusted adults
• Pupils behave politely and courteously, creating a calm and purposeful school
• Reading is a strength, with accurate phonics teaching and precise support for pupils who fall behind
• Early years staff explain learning clearly and prepare children well for Year 1
• Pupils with SEND are identified quickly and access the ambitious curriculum alongside their peers
• Personal development is prioritised through leadership roles, clubs, trips and performances
• Attendance is close to national averages and improving
• Governors are ambitious and provide high levels of challenge and support
• Safeguarding arrangements are effective

Areas for Improvement

• Assessment is not used effectively enough to identify gaps in pupils’ knowledge and adapt teaching
• Teachers’ checks on understanding lack precision, so gaps are not always spotted swiftly
• Some activities are not carefully selected to build on pupils’ prior knowledge and deepen learning
• Historic gaps in pupils’ prior learning have not been fully addressed
• Too many older pupils are not well enough prepared for their next steps
• Some subject leaders are newly established and lack sufficient understanding of the new curriculum
• Curriculum delivery is inconsistent in some subjects, limiting pupils’ learning
• A small number of staff feel the pace of change has affected their workload

Admissions: local authority offers data from the Department for Education. A school is oversubscribed when at least 5% of the families who put it first were not offered a place, and undersubscribed when everyone who put it first got in but 10% or more of its places were unfilled in the Department's school capacity survey (the latest survey is used for entry years it does not cover). Places: Department for Education, School capacity, from local authorities' annual survey as at 1 May. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024–25); the survey was not run in 2020. Places include sixth form places. Forecasts are the local authority's own for the school's planning area, an area it uses to plan places that is not the school's catchment area. The forecast starts from a head count in 2025; the dashed line is the Department's estimate of places in that area, including those the authority has firm plans for. Planned places are cumulative, and only those with firm plans are counted.

In 2024–25 pupils at St Michael's Church of England Primary School attended 93.4% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 20.0% of pupils were persistently absent, missing at least one session in ten (nationally 13.0%).

Sessions missed

Pupils persistently absent

Source: Department for Education, Pupil absence in schools in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). Persistent absence means missing 10% or more of sessions; severe absence means 50% or more. No figures were published for 2019/20.

In 2024–25, 2.5% of pupils at St Michael's Church of England Primary School were suspended at least once (nationally 1.1%). No pupils were permanently excluded.

Pupils suspended at least once

Source: Department for Education, Suspensions and permanent exclusions in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). A pupil can be suspended more than once, so suspensions per 100 pupils can be higher than the share of pupils suspended. Very small numbers are hidden by the DfE. Exclusion figures dropped in 2020 and 2021 because of school closures.

In 2025–26 St Michael's Church of England Primary School had 14.4 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 19.0% were no longer at the school a year later (nationally 15.7%).

Pupils per teacher

Teachers who left the school within a year

Source: Department for Education, School workforce in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). Pupils per teacher counts full-time-equivalent pupils and teachers. Turnover is the share of a year's teachers (full-time equivalent) who were not at the school the following year, whether they moved to another school or left state-funded teaching. Turnover and sickness figures run one year behind the ratios. Sick leave is the share of teachers who took at least one day in the year, so it swings widely at small schools, where a few teachers can make it 0% or 100%. The national figures are for all state schools of the same type.

In 2025–26, 17.3% of pupils at St Michael's Church of England Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 2.7% had an education, health and care (EHC) plan (nationally 4.1%).

Pupils by main type of need

Source: Department for Education, Special educational needs in England (the 2025–26 school census). SEN support is extra help in school without an EHC plan. National figures are for all state-funded primary schools. Counts are as published, with small numbers not hidden.

In 2025–26 St Michael's Church of England Primary School received £9,397 and spent £9,799 for each of its 75 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £36,000 (£480 per pupil).

Income per pupil

Spending per pupil

Source: Department for Education, Financial Benchmarking and Insights Tool. Each year is the one the financial year ends in (2024 is 2023–24).

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• Secondary Schools

All schools in Rother · East Sussex local authority: places and applications

What is St Michael's Church of England Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for St Michael's Church of England Primary School is Requires Improvement, from an inspection in May 2025.

When was St Michael's Church of England Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

St Michael's Church of England Primary School was last inspected in May 2025.

How many pupils does St Michael's Church of England Primary School have?

St Michael's Church of England Primary School has 75 pupils on roll.

What age range does St Michael's Church of England Primary School cover?

St Michael's Church of England Primary School for pupils aged 5 to 11.

What are St Michael's Church of England Primary School's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 0% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is St Michael's Church of England Primary School?

St Michael's Church of England Primary School is at Houghton Green Lane, Playden, Playden Rye, East Sussex, TN31 7PJ.