Corsham Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

This is an outstanding school. Pupils achieve very well during their time in this school. They start in the Early Years Foundation Stage with skills that are below those normally found at that age and often well below in literacy and numeracy skills.

They end Year 6 with attainment in English and mathematics that is at least average and often above average. This represents outstanding progress from their starting points. Teaching is outstanding with teachers ensuring a rich and varied curriculum that meets the needs of all pupils very well.

Marking gives pupils clear guidance on how to improve their work. Pupils are set clear targets and know what they need to... do to achieve them. The school is a friendly learning community where pupils behave extremely well.

They are very polite and courteous, showing great respect for each other and for adults. Pupils feel very safe in the school and have a strong understanding of how to keep themselves safe. The provision for pupils' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is excellent and is often built into subjects such as English.

Leaders and managers have a very good understanding of the school's strengths and areas for development. They use this information extremely well in a school development and improvement plan that sets out clearly the school's priorities and the necessary actions to achieve these. The governing body and trustees exercise strong oversight of all aspects of the school's work and set a very clear strategic direction for its growth and improvement.

The care taken to support pupils who circumstances make them vulnerable is excellent. This is particularly important for the above average proportion of pupils who join the school other than at the normal time. The large proportion of pupils with special educational needs, especially those in the Brook Centre for pupils with speech, language and communication difficulties, make outstanding progress in their learning.

The quality of teaching and learning is monitored very rigorously and the information gained used very effectively to identify training needs for staff. High quality support is then provided to teachers to enable them to improve.

Information about this school

This school is much larger than average.

It is made up of two former schools and occupies two sites about two miles apart with about two thirds of pupils being educated on the Pound Pill site. Extensive building work and extensions have recently taken place on the Pound Pill site with some aspects of the school back in use for the first time in several months the day before the inspection. The school has a Board of Trustees and Board of Governors with some governors undertaking both roles.

Corsham Primary School converted to become an academy school on 1st April 2011. When its predecessor school, Corsham Primary School was last inspected by Ofsted, it was judged to be outstanding. Almost all pupils are of White British origin.

Very few have English as an additional language. The school has between one and two per cent of pupils from families of Traveller background. This is above average for this particular group.

The proportion of disabled pupils and those with special educational needs who are supported at school action is above average. The proportion who are supported at school action plus or who have statements of special educational needs is well above average. The school houses a local authority special needs unit, known as the Brook centre, for pupils with speech language and communication problems.

The proportion of pupils eligible for the pupil premium (which is funding to support children in local authority care, children of service families and those known to be eligible for free school meals) is above the national average. The school meets the government's floor standards which set the minimum expectations for pupils' attainment and progress. The school runs a breakfast club on both sites, three days a week at the Pound Pill site and every day at the Broadwood site.

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