St Mary's CofE (A) First School

St Mary’s CofE (A) First School continues to thrive and has effectively maintained the standards set in its last inspection. Pupils benefit from a supportive environment that emphasizes values of 'love' and 'respect', fostering positive relationships among students and staff. The school places a strong focus on reading and provides a well-structured curriculum, allowing pupils to engage in various learning experiences, including outdoor education and extracurricular activities. However, there are areas for improvement, particularly regarding the consistency of support for pupils at risk of falling behind in phonics and managing low-level disruptive behavior in lessons.

Strengths

• Pupils feel safe and supported within a caring environment.
• Strong emphasis on reading, starting from early years.
• Well-designed curriculum that engages pupils across subjects.
• High levels of regular attendance and good pupil behavior.
• Effective personal, social and health education programming.
• Strong leadership that prioritizes the interests of pupils.

Areas for Improvement

• Inconsistent assessment and support for phonics impacting some pupils' reading proficiency.
• Low-level disruptive behavior in lessons not consistently addressed.

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 Mary's CofE (A) First School attended 95.4% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 10.5% 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, 2.0% of pupils at St Mary's CofE (A) First School were suspended at least once (nationally 1.1%). One pupil was 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 Mary's CofE (A) First School had 25.9 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 36.1% 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, 20.0% of pupils at St Mary's CofE (A) First School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 5.8% 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 Mary's CofE (A) First School received £8,151 and spent £8,161 for each of its 190 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £17,000 (£91 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).

• Primary Schools
• Secondary Schools

All schools in Uttoxeter · Staffordshire local authority: places and applications

What is St Mary's CofE (A) First School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for St Mary's CofE (A) First School is Good, from an inspection in June 2025.

When was St Mary's CofE (A) First School last inspected by Ofsted?

St Mary's CofE (A) First School was last inspected in June 2025.

How many pupils does St Mary's CofE (A) First School have?

St Mary's CofE (A) First School has 190 pupils on roll.

What age range does St Mary's CofE (A) First School cover?

St Mary's CofE (A) First School for pupils aged 3 to 9.

Where is St Mary's CofE (A) First School?

St Mary's CofE (A) First School is at The Heath, Uttoxeter, Staffordshire, ST14 7LX.