OFSTED has decided its next inspection of Spreyton Primary School will be “graded”. 

The education watchdog said evidence inspectors gathered in a visit to the tiny 26-pupil West Devon school in March suggested its inspection grade "might not be as high if a graded inspection were carried out now". 

Ofsted has four ratings: inadequate, requires improvement, good, and outstanding. Spreyton Primary School has been rated "good" since 2013. 

When inspectors judge a school to be good, the watchdog normally visits the school around once every four years. 

If Ofsted thinks the school should have a higher or lower grade, the next inspection is graded and usually carried out within one to two years. 

The report from its March visit highlighted how pupils are “proud” of their school, “feel safe and well cared for” and “show positive attitudes to their learning”. 

Staff develop positive relationships with pupils, and “all pupils are included in all aspects of school life”. 

The school provides “a range of opportunities that go beyond the academic”, Ofsted added, such as school trips, sporting events and clubs. 

But Ofsted highlighted three areas in which the school could improve. 

It said that in some subjects, the school “has not identified with enough precision the knowledge it wants pupils to know and remember”, leading to gaps in some pupils’ knowledge. 

Assessment is “not used with enough precision”, and teachers “do not have the expertise they need to implement the curriculum effectively across all subjects”, the watchdog added. 

Head of School Emma Donne, who was appointed in September 2022, said: “We are delighted that our school remains 'good' in our recent Ofsted inspection. 

“The inspectors highlighted a huge amount of positive features of our school, including how well our school nurtures children and focuses on each individual, how many experiences outside the curriculum our children get to experience [and] how skilled our teachers and teaching assistants are at helping children make progress through the curriculum in English and Maths. 

“I am incredibly proud of our school, the staff, children and parents form a wonderful community, and I feel privileged to be part of it.” 

You can read the report online here: https://files.ofsted.gov.uk/v1/file/50246781.