St Matthew's Church of England Primary School

St Matthew’s Church of England Primary School has demonstrated overall good performance across all inspected areas. The school fosters a positive environment where pupils feel safe, valued, and encouraged to develop their talents. It is clear that high standards for behavior are maintained, and students show a community-minded approach through various initiatives such as volunteering and writing to local authorities. Despite these strengths, the school faces challenges in reflecting current learners' achievements in published outcomes, indicating room for improvement in assessment practices. This marks the school's first section 5 inspection, which considers the context of its leadership under the Diocese of Gloucester Academies Trust.

Strengths

• Pupils are proud of their school and feel safe.
• High expectations for behavior lead to polite and well-mannered students.
• A rich and ambitious curriculum supports student learning.
• Reading is prioritized and effectively supported for all pupils.
• Support is in place for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND).
• The school promotes physical and mental health awareness.

Areas for Improvement

• Assessment in some subjects is not used effectively, impacting pupils' secure knowledge.

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 Matthew's Church of England Primary School attended 96.0% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 6.9% 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, 0.5% of pupils at St Matthew'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 Matthew's Church of England Primary School had 18.7 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 14.6% 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, 20.5% of pupils at St Matthew's Church of England Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 6.2% 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 2024–25 St Matthew's Church of England Primary School received £6,983 and spent £7,121 for each of its 192 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £122,000 (£637 per pupil).

Across all 25 schools of The Diocese of Gloucester Academies Trust, income was £6,887 and spending £6,916 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). Academy figures include a share of the trust's central services, shared out by pupil numbers, and are rounded to the nearest £1,000. Premises costs were defined differently from 2024, so compare them across that gap with care.

• Primary Schools
• Secondary Schools

All schools in Stroud · Gloucestershire local authority: places and applications

St Matthew's Church of England Primary School is part of The Diocese of Gloucester Academies Trust, which runs 25 schools. The nearest others:

• Whiteshill Primary School Stroud
• Amberley Parochial School Stroud
• Minchinhampton Primary Academy Stroud
• Coaley Church of England Primary Academy Dursley
• Hardwicke Parochial Primary Academy Gloucester
• Lakefield CofE Primary School Gloucester
• Field Court Church of England Infant Academy Gloucester
• Clearwater Church of England Primary Academy Gloucester
• Dursley Church of England Primary Academy Dursley
• Longney Church of England Primary Academy Gloucester

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

The latest Ofsted rating for St Matthew's Church of England Primary School is Good, from an inspection in November 2023.

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

St Matthew's Church of England Primary School was last inspected in November 2023.

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

St Matthew's Church of England Primary School has 195 pupils on roll.

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

St Matthew's Church of England Primary School for pupils aged 4 to 11.

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

In 2025, 74% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

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

St Matthew's Church of England Primary School is at Church Road, Cainscross, Stroud, Gloucestershire, GL5 4JE.