St John's Church of England Primary School

St John's Church of England Primary School is a nurturing, community-minded school where pupils feel safe, behave well and benefit from strong pastoral care and a broad enrichment offer. Safeguarding standards are met. The inspection found attendance and behaviour and personal development and wellbeing at the expected standard, with leaders taking decisive action to improve attendance and behaviour following a period of change. However, the school is not yet ensuring pupils achieve as well as they should. Achievement, curriculum and teaching, early years, inclusion and leadership and governance were judged to need attention. Pupils have gaps in foundational reading, writing and mathematics, and their prior learning in wider subjects is not secure enough. Assessment is not used well enough to identify misunderstandings, so gaps persist. Support for pupils with SEND has been inconsistent over time and staff are not yet fully equipped to adapt the curriculum to meet identified needs. The school is part of the Good Shepherd Trust and serves a community with above-average disadvantage and high proportions of pupils with SEND. Leadership has changed frequently, and while current leaders and governors have the right priorities and are taking appropriate action, many improvements are recent and not yet measurable. Early years has strengths in care and sequencing but needs more consistent language and communication practice. The next steps focus on deepening teachers' assessment expertise, embedding SEND provision, and closing foundational knowledge gaps.

Strengths

• Safeguarding arrangements are effective, with an open culture and pupils who feel safe.
• Pupils attend school consistently well, and leaders have acted decisively to improve attendance.
• Pupils typically behave well, and playtimes and lunchtimes are safe and inclusive.
• Bullying and discrimination are not tolerated, and pupils are confident staff will deal with bullying well.
• Personal development is a strength, with a broad enrichment offer, leadership roles and community projects.
• Pastoral support is highly effective and pupils feel well cared for.
• Curriculum documents set out the key knowledge and skills pupils must learn in most subjects.
• Staff have received useful training in phonics and mathematics, helping many pupils read with confidence and fluency.
• The early years curriculum is well sequenced, especially in Nursery, and children are happy and well cared for.
• Leaders accurately identify barriers for disadvantaged pupils and have a clear pupil premium strategy.
• Governors fulfil their statutory duties and are strengthening their ability to hold leaders to account.
• Staff value leaders' focus on workload and wellbeing, and parents appreciate improved communication.
• Pupils have a well-developed understanding of different faiths and British values.

Areas for Improvement

• Pupils have gaps in foundational reading, writing and mathematics knowledge.
• Across wider subjects, pupils do not remember prior learning in enough detail.
• Phonics screening outcomes are lower than they should be.
• Published outcomes are below or around national averages, reflecting past staffing instability.
• Assessment across the curriculum is not effective, so teachers do not know where learning is insecure and move on too quickly.
• Early years children have too few opportunities to practise new language, and staff interactions are inconsistent.
• Transition planning from early years to Year 1 is still being refined.
• Support for pupils with SEND has not been effective enough over time and provision does not consistently match identified needs.
• Staff are not fully equipped to adapt the curriculum for pupils with SEND, so some do not secure key knowledge and skills.
• Disadvantaged pupils' published outcomes were low in 2024/25, with large gaps in reading, writing and mathematics.
• Recent improvements are too new to have made a measurable difference to the quality of education.
• Leaders need to further develop staff expertise in checking and deepening pupils' understanding.
• Leaders need to embed SEND provision across the curriculum so adaptations and guidance are consistently in place.
• Leaders need to further develop approaches to closing gaps in pupils' foundational knowledge.

• Primary Schools
• Secondary Schools

St John's Church of England Primary School is part of The Good Shepherd Trust, which runs 23 schools. The nearest others:

• St Paul's CofE Primary School Dorking
• Surrey Hills All Saints Primary School Dorking
• The Weald CofE Primary School Dorking
• Cranleigh Church of England Primary School Guildford
• Bramley CofE Infant School and Nursery Guildford
• Christ's College, Guildford Guildford
• Queen Eleanor's Church of England School Guildford
• Ashley Church of England Primary School Walton-On-Thames
• St Paul's CofE Primary School Addlestone
• Ottershaw Christ Church Church of England Infant School Chertsey

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

The latest Ofsted rating for St John's Church of England Primary School is Needs attention, from an inspection in September 2026.

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

St John's Church of England Primary School was last inspected in September 2026.

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

St John's Church of England Primary School has 210 pupils on roll.

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

St John's Church of England Primary School for pupils aged 3 to 11.

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

In 2025, 33% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

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

St John's Church of England Primary School is at Goodwyns Road, Dorking, Surrey, RH4 2LR.