Saint James’ Primary School rated Good by Ofsted inspectors

Saint James' Church of England Primary School in West End, Southampton, received an inspection from Ofsted on April 30 and May 1.

The inspector said the school was outstanding in two areas - behaviour and personal development of the pupils and staff.

The four Ofsted inspectors praised the school and said: "Pupils feel very safe and are happy.

"Pupils achieve well. Outcomes by the end of key stage two demonstrate that they are ready for their next stage of education consistently.

“Pupils are confident, resilient and caring. They conduct themselves impeccably and are rightly proud of their school.”

The school has 590 students on its roll and was last inspected in 2018, where it also received a Good rating.

Students from Saint James’ Church of England Primary School (Image: St James Primary) Inspectors added: “The school teaches phonics and early reading in an exemplary way. Across the curriculum, the school is highly ambitious for every pupil.

“The school works tenaciously to support disadvantaged pupils, including pupils with SEND. This is reflected through thoughtful adaptations to the curriculum where needed.

"Parents are overwhelmingly supportive and appreciate the efforts of all staff at the school.”

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Headteacher Michelle Marsh said: “The report states that pupils are ‘rightly proud of their school’, having been headteacher at Saint James Primary School for nine years now, I can only echo those sentiments.

“It is an absolute pleasure to work with such dedicated and passionate members of staff and confident, caring and respectful pupils. It really does feel like a Saint James ‘family’.

“I feel passionately that we should empower children to be able to navigate through life showing resilience and persistence when things are difficult.”

Chair of the school’s governors, Dr Richard Gomer, added: “The Governing Board and I are delighted with the result of the recent Ofsted inspection. It demonstrates the consistent hard work and dedication of staff at the school.

“We are extremely fortunate to have exceptionally skilled staff teaching and nurturing our pupils.

“I am often struck by how welcoming everyone is at Saint James and this has certainly come across in the incredibly positive comments made by the Ofsted inspectors.”