Independent report praises "aspirational" St Michael's School

Wednesday 08 May 2024

The largest private preparatory school on the island has received a glowing report for its aspirational ethos, strong academic progress, and positive teacher-pupil relationships.

St Michael's Preparatory School was hailed as “excellent” in the review compiled by independent inspectors, who visited the Five-Oaks based premises in late January.

During the four-day visit, inspectors observed lessons, scrutinised student work, interviewed pupils and held discussions with senior leaders.

They also examined school policies, including safeguarding, child protection, and pupil welfare.

In the report compiled by the Independent Schools Inspectorate as part of the British Schools Overseas inspection programme, St Michael's School was described as "aspirational" and "excellent".

"The school is aspirational on behalf of its pupils, and it successfully instils in them a strong sense of academic ambition," the report read. 

"Pupils make strong progress and achieve well because they are valued as individuals and receive bespoke support and guidance."

The students' behaviour was described as "kind, courteous, and considerate at all times".

Pictured: St Michael's School is a private co-educational day school that prepares students aged 3 to 14 for Common Entrance and senior school scholarships in the UK.

The report also praised the school's ethos for placing British values at its heart, and the teachers' commitment to giving detailed feedback and advice to students to enable their academic progress.

"The prevailing ethos of productive, positive teacher-pupil relationships is present across the school in all age phases and was seen to be a consistent feature in lessons observed," the report added.

"Pupils universally display strong communication skills, speaking and listening astutely, and writing with a good understanding of grammatical rules."

Recommendations from the report included enabling older pupils to achieve a broader range of academic knowledge, skills, and understanding, as well as teaching students more about the diversity of cultures and individual characteristics in modern society. 

Henry Marshall, who became headteacher of St Michael's School in September 2023, said: "We are absolutely delighted to have achieved a first-class inspection report from ISI.

"This recognition is a testament to the dedication of our staff, the support of our parent body and above all else the remarkable achievements of our talented pupils.

"We pride ourselves on fostering an environment where every child can thrive, both academically and personally.

"We consistently strive to provide the highest standard of education and pastoral care to our pupils. This excellent achievement reinforces that commitment."

To read the report in full, click HERE.