Walton Priory Middle School

Walton Priory Middle School is a caring, well-led community school where pupils achieve well and feel safe. Inspectors found an ambitious, well-sequenced curriculum that has been strengthened since the previous inspection, strong reading support, courteous behaviour, and an exceptionally broad personal development offer including clubs, residentials, careers work and pupil-led council activity. Personal development was judged outstanding, while quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, and leadership and management were good. Leaders know pupils well, including those with SEND, and safeguarding is effective. Staff are proud to work at the school and governors are knowledgeable. This was the school’s first routine inspection since the COVID-19 pandemic, and the headteacher was appointed in April 2024. The main area for improvement is that a small number of pupils who are disadvantaged and/or have SEND do not attend as regularly as they could and, as a result, do not achieve as highly as their peers; the school needs to strengthen its work on attendance and attainment for these pupils.

Strengths

• Caring community with high expectations and strong pupil achievement
• Ambitious, well-sequenced curriculum strengthened since the previous inspection
• Effective support for pupils with SEND, with staff knowing pupils well
• Reading prioritised, including phonics catch-up and a well-used library
• Pupils behave courteously and feel safe; bullying is rare
• Outstanding personal development with extensive clubs, residentials and careers programme
• Strong PSHE and assemblies that teach pupils how to stay safe
• Thriving, self-governed school council and strong pupil contribution
• Well-led school with effective transition work and knowledgeable governors
• Staff are exceptionally proud to work at the school and value workload and well-being support
• Safeguarding arrangements are effective

Areas for Improvement

• A small number of disadvantaged and/or SEND pupils do not attend as regularly as they could
• Some disadvantaged and/or SEND pupils do not achieve as highly as their peers
• The school’s work to improve attendance and attainment for these pupils is not yet fully realised

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 Walton Priory Middle School attended 94.8% of sessions (the national figure for secondary schools was 91.6%). 12.1% of pupils were persistently absent, missing at least one session in ten (nationally 23.4%).

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, 4.4% of pupils at Walton Priory Middle School were suspended at least once (nationally 7.3%). 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 Walton Priory Middle School had 19.6 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for secondary schools was 16.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 12.5% were no longer at the school a year later (nationally 14.1%).

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, 19.4% of pupils at Walton Priory Middle School were on SEN support (nationally 14.1%) and 3.5% had an education, health and care (EHC) plan (nationally 3.5%).

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 secondary schools. Counts are as published, with small numbers not hidden.

In 2025–26 Walton Priory Middle School received £6,751 and spent £6,537 for each of its 543 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £761,000 (£1,402 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 Stone · Staffordshire local authority: places and applications

What is Walton Priory Middle School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Walton Priory Middle School is Good, from an inspection in May 2025.

When was Walton Priory Middle School last inspected by Ofsted?

Walton Priory Middle School was last inspected in May 2025.

How many pupils does Walton Priory Middle School have?

Walton Priory Middle School has 542 pupils on roll.

What age range does Walton Priory Middle School cover?

Walton Priory Middle School for pupils aged 9 to 13.

What are Walton Priory Middle School's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 52% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Walton Priory Middle School?

Walton Priory Middle School is at Beacon Rise, Walton, Stone, Staffordshire, ST15 0AL.