Ofsted has placed a primary school in Stockport in special measures, and has found only early signs of progress at a primary school in Dukinfield that was already judged to need significant improvement, as reported by BBC News and the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS).

St Thomas' Church of England Primary School on Marriott Street, Stockport, was inspected on 28 April 2026, and the report was published on 1 October. Inspectors said the school was “failing to provide an acceptable standard of education” and that leaders and governors were not showing the capacity to make the necessary improvements. It is a different school from St Thomas' CE Primary in Heaton Chapel.

The report said pupils had been “hindered by a range of factors that ultimately stem from ineffective leadership and governance”. Inspectors graded achievement, attendance and behaviour, curriculum and teaching, and leadership and governance as needing urgent improvement. They said too many pupils were persistently absent, that pupils' knowledge beyond English and maths was patchy, and that many pupils were “ill-equipped for the next stage of their education”. Inspectors praised the early years, where children “get off to a good start”. The BBC said the school had been contacted for comment.

At Ravensfield Primary School in Dukinfield, a monitoring visit on 23 June 2026, published on 8 October, found that leaders had started to put actions in place to improve the many significant areas of concern. The report said relationships with many staff members were fractured, but that leaders were working to repair them. Earlier this year, the teachers' union NASUWT said pupil-on-teacher and pupil-on-pupil violence at the school had reached untenable levels, and staff went on strike, the BBC reported.

Inspectors said pupils sometimes found it hard to learn when others' behaviour distracted them and that, although this was reducing, “there is still a way to go”. They said expectations were starting to rise but were inconsistent, which made it “difficult for pupils to succeed”.

The CLIC Trust, which runs Ravensfield, said it “recognised the seriousness of Ofsted’s findings” and was committed to rapid improvement. A spokesperson said the Department for Education recognised the trust had the capacity to deliver rapid and sustainable improvement.

Ofsted no longer gives one-word judgements such as good or outstanding. Its report cards grade areas such as achievement, attendance and behaviour, and personal development and wellbeing on a five-point scale from exceptional to urgent improvement.

Sources: BBC News / Local Democracy Reporting Service, 18 October 2026; Ofsted inspection report, St Thomas' Church of England Primary School Stockport; Ofsted monitoring inspection report, Ravensfield Primary School. This article was produced with the help of AI tools and checked by an editor against the sources above.