St Paul's Catholic Primary School described as "faith-filled community" with "happy and confident" pupils
An inspection has found pupils at a Catholic school “are exceptionally happy, confident and secure” and “thrive” in a faith-filled community.
St Paul's Catholic Primary School, in Bourne Road, has secured a glowing Catholic Schools Inspectorate report following an inspection which took place on February 5 and 6, 2026.
The report noted the school is working at good and outstanding levels across the criteria which evaluates its catholic life and mission, religious education and collective worship.
It said: “Pupils at St Paul’s are exceptionally happy, confident and secure within their school community. They have a strong understanding of and commitment to the school’s distinctive Catholic identity and mission statement.
“The experiences of prayer and liturgy provided by the school engage pupils deeply. Across all age groups, pupils demonstrate reverence, confidence and spiritual maturity, appropriate to their age. In Reception, for example, children reflected prayerfully in silence on ‘how to be kind today,’ showing an early understanding of prayer as personal dialogue with God.”
The inspection also highlighted that “all staff wholeheartedly embrace the school’s mission statement and consistently implement it”, and they have described it as a “warm, forgiving, compassionate and inclusive” space.
Zoe Killick, headteacher, said: “It is a joy to lead a school where our mission to "Do Everything with Love" is not just scripture on the wall, but a lived reality in our classrooms, school and community.
“This achievement is a testament to the partnership between our school, our families, and the parish. We are so proud to be a good school but even prouder to be 'outstanding' in Catholic life and mission and collective worship.”
In order to maintain its positive rating, the report noted the school needs to ensure all pupils consistently understand how well they are doing in religious education, and teachers should continue to support pupils to articulate more clearly how prayer and liturgy can lead to action.