Renishaw Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

There is a strong sense of community in this school. Pupils say, 'we belong here'. They appreciate the friendships they have with each other and say that they get on well.

They welcome visitors to their school with a cheerful greeting. Relationships between staff and pupils are positive. Pupils trust the adults in school to keep them safe.

Parents value the care and support their children receive.

Pupils' attitudes to their learning are not consistent. In some lessons pupils work hard and give their full attention.

In other lessons low-level disruption occurs and this prevents pupils from learning as well as they can. Social times are lively and fun ...for pupils.

Leaders are ambitious that all pupils will develop positive personal attributes that they can carry with them into later life.

Pupils learn about how to look after their mental health, how to have respectful relationships and how to be responsible citizens. However, the school's expectations of pupils' academic achievements are not high enough. Too many pupils move to the next stage of their education without the skills and knowledge they need to succeed.

The school is beginning to address this.

What does the school do well and what does it need to do better?

The school has recognised the need to improve the curriculum. New curriculum plans have been introduced in many subjects.

The implementation of these plans is at an early stage.

Teachers work hard to follow the curriculum as it is set out. In lessons they largely demonstrate good subject knowledge.

In mathematics teachers explain new ideas well. Year 5 pupils gain a solid understanding of prime numbers. Year 6 pupils develop a more complex understanding of fractions.

However, teachers do not consistently identify the gaps that have emerged in pupil's learning. This incomplete knowledge is not always addressed before introducing new learning. In the early years children do not always have the opportunity to practise and rehearse what they have been taught and learned as part of their daily activities.

The school has ensured that a subject leader leads each area of the curriculum. There is variability in the experience and skills of these leaders. Some subject leaders have a more precise overview of their subjects than others.

More skilled subject leaders flag up where further improvements are needed. Sometimes the resources they need to improve their subjects are not made available to them.

The school has worked hard to improve the teaching of phonics.

Staff are trained and deliver the programme as it is intended. Children in the early years participate in their lessons with enthusiasm. They enjoy sounding out simple words.

Pupils who are at risk of falling behind are identified. They do not always get the help they need to keep up with their peers. Sometimes they are given books to read that are too hard, or too easy.

The school makes sure that all pupils read often and for pleasure. This starts straight away when children enter the school. Nursery-aged children listen to stories that excite them about reading.

The school is committed to inclusion. Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) have their needs identified. Adaptations are made so they can learn from the same curriculum as their peers.

They receive high levels of nurture and care.

Pupils appreciate the opportunities the school provides beyond the academic curriculum. The uptake for the various clubs the school offers is high.

The school identifies pupils who exhibit sporting skills and encourages them to develop their talents. Pupils enjoy the chances they have to volunteer and take on positions of responsibility such as well-being ambassadors or members of the school council. Pupils show their empathy for others by raising money for charity.

They understand that respect for people who are different to them is non-negotiable.

The school has experienced a period of recent turbulence. The legacy of this time has not yet been fully resolved.

While some staff say that their workload and well-being is considered, the morale of other staff is low. The governance of the school has also experienced a period of significant change. The current governing body recognise the urgent need for the school to improve.

In the past the difficulties experienced by the school have been a distraction to their work. Some of their duties to hold the school to account for the work that is being done to make improvements, and the difference it is making for pupils, has been overlooked.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• In a number of subjects a new curriculum has recently been introduced to improve the quality of education. Pupils have not yet benefited from the strengthened curriculum offer. The school should check that the changes made to the curriculum are successfully preparing pupils to be better prepared for the next stage in their education.

• Some subject leaders do not have the resources they need to lead their curriculum effectively. Others do not have the skills they need to lead their subject well. As a result, the curriculum is not always delivered as it is intended.

The school must ensure that all subject leaders provide expert leadership and that the actions recommended by more experienced subject leaders is acted upon. Children in the early years do not have enough opportunities to embed what they have learned. The activities provided do not always help them to remember the intended learning.

The school must ensure that children are given time to practise what they have been taught as part of their play. ? Pupils who need extra support to learn to read do not always get the help they need to keep up. Sometimes the books they are given to read do not match the sounds they know.

Some pupils do not learn to read as well, or as quickly, as they could. The school should ensure that support for these pupils is prioritised and organised well. ? In some lessons pupils do not give their full attention and low-level disruption occurs.

This makes it difficult for other pupils to learn. The school should ensure that all pupils keep the school rules, have positive attitudes to their learning and that staff have the training they need to facilitate this. ? A significant number of staff do not feel that their voices are listened to, or their opinions valued.

Staff morale is not consistently strong. The school must ensure that all staff feel confident that their concerns will be responded to, and that their reasonable requests are considered. ? Governors do not hold leaders to account effectively.

The challenge they offer is not sufficiently rigorous. They do not have an accurate view of some aspects of the school's work because they take too much on trust. They must ensure that they demonstrate high levels of scrutiny in relation to all aspects of the school's work.