The Richard Clarke First School

About The Richard Clarke First School

The Richard Clarke First School is a small state primary in East Staffordshire, and its most recent Ofsted inspection in 2024 rated it Good overall, with leadership and management also judged Good. That puts it in the majority of Staffordshire primaries — the local authority has 308 primary schools, and only 20 of those hold an Outstanding rating. The school's Progress 8 score is not available in the data, but its Key Stage 2 average is not published either, so a direct comparison against the Staffordshire LA average of 65 is not possible from the information provided. What stands out instead is the school's size: with just 109 pupils against a capacity of 150, it is significantly undersubscribed, which is unusual in a county where many primaries are oversubscribed. The school's most recent ungraded inspection in May 2024 noted it 'remains Good (Improving)', suggesting steady progress since its last graded inspection in 2012, when it also received a Good rating.

Academically, the data does not include specific SATs results or a Progress 8 figure, so it is not possible to benchmark performance against the LA average. The school's Ofsted history shows consistency: both its 2007 and 2012 graded inspections rated overall effectiveness as Good, with leadership and management also Good on both occasions. The early years provision was graded as a 2 (Good) in 2007, though no separate early years grade was given in the most recent inspection. The school does not have a sixth form, as it caters for children aged 4 to 9, and it has no nursery provision. With only 0.9% of pupils eligible for free school meals, the intake is notably less disadvantaged than the national average, which may reflect the local demographic. The school's small roll means class sizes are likely to be small, which can support individual attention, though this is not explicitly stated in the data.

The school offers a range of facilities including an ICT suite, sports hall, playing fields, a dining hall, forest school area, and a chapel. Sports on offer include rounders, football, cricket, netball, athletics, and gymnastics, and there are clubs for book, science, and art. For children with additional needs, the school provides support for specific learning difficulties such as dyslexia, social, emotional and mental health needs, speech, language and communication needs, visual impairment, and physical disability. Admissions data for the 2025/26 year shows the school was oversubscribed: it received 30 applications for 26 places, with 24 first-preference offers made from 24 first-preference applications, giving an oversubscription ratio of 1.15. This suggests that while the school is small, it is popular among local families who list it as their first choice. The school would suit parents looking for a small, church-free primary with strong SEND provision and a forest school ethos, set in a semi-rural Staffordshire location.

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