Ofsted rates Four Elms Primary near Edenbridge strong for pupils' wellbeing. Every Year 6 pupil met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.
Four Elms Primary School has been rated above the standard Ofsted expects for pupils’ personal development and wellbeing. The village school near Edenbridge met the expected standard in every other area, and its safeguarding standards are met.
Inspectors visited on 15 and 16 September. The report card was published on Tuesday. (Ofsted, Four Elms Primary School, URN 149976)
What the report card says
Ofsted no longer gives schools a single overall grade. Each area is graded on a five-point scale: Exceptional, Strong standard, Expected standard, Needs attention and Urgent improvement. Safeguarding is recorded only as met or not met.
| Area | Grade |
|---|---|
| Personal development and wellbeing | Strong standard |
| Achievement | Expected standard |
| Attendance and behaviour | Expected standard |
| Curriculum and teaching | Expected standard |
| Early years | Expected standard |
| Inclusion | Expected standard |
| Leadership and governance | Expected standard |
| Safeguarding | Met |
(Ofsted, inspection report, 15 September 2026)
Why wellbeing stood out
Inspectors said the school has “an extensive mental health and wellbeing offer for pupils”. They wrote that pupils “are confident to discuss their feelings” and have strategies for when they are angry or sad.
The report praises the trips and wider opportunities, including farm visits, visiting theatre companies and performing at the local theatre. It says leaders check who takes up clubs such as art, football and singing, so every pupil gets the same chance to join in.
Pupils also take on jobs around the school. The report lists playground ambassadors, buddies for younger pupils and organising Macmillan coffee mornings.
Results and attendance
The report card carries the school’s published results. In 2024/25 every Year 6 pupil reached the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined, against 62% nationally. The year before, the combined figure was 93%, against 61%.
The school has 83 pupils, against a capacity of 108. With year groups that small, each child counts for several percentage points, so the figures can swing from one year to the next.
Attendance is better than average. Overall absence in 2024/25 was 4.3%, against 5.2% nationally. Persistent absence, meaning pupils who miss 10% or more of sessions, was 9.4% against 13%.
Inspectors called attendance and behaviour “highly positive”. They wrote that bullying is “extremely rare”.
What the school needs to do
Ofsted set two next steps:
- use assessment consistently well across the whole curriculum to find gaps in pupils’ learning
- make sure staff can adapt their teaching to pupils’ needs equally well in every subject
The report says checks on pupils’ understanding are “more rigorous in some subjects than others”, so some pupils “do not learn as securely as they could”.
About the school
Four Elms Primary is on Bough Beech Road and is part of the Inspire Academy Movement Trust. The headteacher is Anna Cheddie.
What it means for parents
The full report card, with every grade explained, is on Ofsted’s website. Our Kent school term dates page has the holidays for the year.
Sources
- Ofsted, Four Elms Primary School, URN 149976
- Ofsted, inspection report card, inspected 15 September 2026, published 20 October 2026
Image: Crossroads and Village Sign, Four Elms. Photo by G Laird, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Geograph and Wikimedia Commons. Chart by Sevenoaks Online.
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