St Michael's CofE (A) First School, Stafford

Ofsted's report card from its 3 February 2026 inspection grades St Michael's CofE (A) First School on 7 areas: 7 expected standard. Report cards replaced single-word judgements in November 2025, on a five-point scale from exceptional to urgent improvement.

Achievement - Expected standard. "Pupils, including disadvantaged pupils and those with special educational needs and/or disabilities, usually progress securely through the curriculum."

Attendance and behaviour - Expected standard. "All groups of pupils attend regularly."

Curriculum and teaching - Expected standard. "Leaders and staff have designed a broad and balanced curriculum that clearly sets out what pupils should learn in each subject."

Early years - Expected standard. "Staff work closely with parents and carers from the start of Nursery."

Inclusion - Expected standard. "Leaders have created a culture where pupils feel noticed and supported."

Leadership and governance - Expected standard. "Governors meet statutory duties well."

Personal development and wellbeing - Expected standard. "A weekly focus on the school's values such as kindness, courage and respect sets clear expectations for pupils."

Safeguarding standards were met.

Ofsted's next steps for the school: "Leaders should refine their checks on the wider curriculum so they focus more closely on how well pupils are learning key concepts. They should then use this information to help teachers to deepen pupils' understanding"; "Leaders should continue to develop early years practice so that adults make the most of opportunities to build children's vocabulary and plan activities that more closely match children's starting points, so that all children stay focused and learn as well as they can"; "Leaders should continue to strengthen the teaching of writing so that younger pupils secure key skills, such as sentence construction and handwriting, earlier in their learning".

Clubs and activities named on the school's website include netball, karate, choir and cheerleading.

The school runs after-school care.

For September 2026 entry, 34 families put St Michael's CofE (A) First School as their first choice and 78 named it as one of their preferences, for 30 places offered. That is 1.1 first choices for every place. 4 families who put it first were not offered a place there.

The nearest other state primary schools to St Michael's CofE (A) First School are Marshbrook First School (0.1 miles, Good); Princefield First School (0.3 miles, Good); St Leonard's CofE First School (2.3 miles); and All Saints CofE Primary School, Bednall (2.9 miles, Requires improvement, 67% reading, 44% maths).

23 parents answered Ofsted's Parent View survey about St Michael's CofE (A) First School (as of April 2026): 100% would recommend the school and 100% say their child is happy there.

The strongest agreement was that they are kept well informed about progress (100%); the weakest, that their child is happy at the school (100%).

10.1% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, well below the average state school (25%), and 0% speak English as an additional language, against 18.8% on average, according to the 2026 school census.

The largest ethnic groups are White British (91%) and Mixed (6%).

In 2026, 20 pupils (13.5%) received SEN support and 2 (1.4%) had an education, health and care plan, against 16.2% and 4.6% at the average state school. The most common need among them is speech, language and communication needs.

The nearest railway station is Penkridge Rail Station, about 510 metres away (roughly a 6-minute walk).

8 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Cannock Road (adjacent), 120 metres away.

In August 2026, police recorded 51 crimes within a mile of the school, most often violence and sexual offences, anti-social behaviour and other theft. That is well below the typical figure around schools in Staffordshire (86).

In 2024/25, St Michael's CofE (A) First School issued 1 suspension, 0.7 for every 100 pupils (the average state school: 6.3), and no permanent exclusions.

The secondary schools closest to St Michael's CofE (A) First School are Penkridge Middle School (0.5 miles), Wolgarston High School (0.6 miles) and The Rural Enterprise Academy (1.6 miles).