Acomb Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Acomb Primary School has a warm and welcoming atmosphere. Pupils love their school.

They demonstrate consistently positive attitudes to their education.Leaders and subject champions have exceptionally high expectations for pupils. They share a vision that puts the pupils at the forefront of everything the school does.

The school's values of resilience, aspiration, integrity and respect are constantly modelled by pupils and adults. Pupils are extremely polite and articulate.The school environment is purposeful, calm and orderly.

Leaders ensure that pupils have opportunities to contribute to the life of the school. For example, key stage 2 playtime buddies mode...l positive behaviour to the younger children, promoting social skills and teamwork.The school's 'Acorns' initiative enhances pupils' learning.

These are a wide, rich set of experiences that give pupils opportunities to develop their character and to make a difference to the school, their community and the wider world. For example, pupils visit local landmarks, perform a Shakespeare play at a York theatre, contribute to the community by tidying the park and support charities.The school provides an extensive extra-curricular offer.

There is strong take-up by pupils to develop their talents and interests in activities like, sport, music, science, art and the environment.

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

The school's exceptional curriculum is designed to meet the specific needs of the Acomb community. The subject champions are passionate and impressively knowledgeable about the subjects they lead.

The champions have a clear vision for their subject, including the knowledge and understanding they want pupils to gain in each phase. Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are fully supported to access the curriculum. There is strong adaptive teaching in place to ensure that pupils with SEND can meet the curriculum expectations.

For example, a pupil with SEND in a design and technology lesson used an adapted template to measure and saw wood, achieving the same outcome as their peers.The checks the school make on the knowledge pupils remember take different forms. For example, in geography pupils' recap and revisit learning throughout a topic.

The school uses low stakes questions, linked to the key knowledge, to check that pupils have mastered specific knowledge and skills.Teachers read to pupils every day. The school has developed their own reading spine that includes a wide range of genres and authors to enhance pupils' reading experience.

This reading spine was generated exclusively by the school community for the pupils. The school has recently introduced the use of Makaton signs in Reception to support pupils' phonics retention. Children use the sign for the letter to help to create a physical memory of the sound.

Pupils use their phonics knowledge to blend and read unfamiliar words. Teachers make checks on pupils' phonics knowledge during the phonics lesson. If teachers identify pupils who are not keeping up, they receive immediate extra phonics support.

The teaching of mathematics is outstanding. Teachers use appropriate questioning to ensure that cumulative mathematical knowledge builds over time. If pupils need further consolidation, the school ensures that pupils have opportunities to repeatedly practise number facts and times tables before they move on to more complex ideas.

Evidence in pupils' mathematics books shows that the school prepares pupils well for their next stage of education.The early years curriculum is exemplary. The stimulating environment enables children to be independent.

Areas of provision, like the role play space, have a specific learning focus that changes regularly. Children display high levels of self-control and self-regulation. Routines, such as pegging their outdoor shoes together, are already established early in the academic year.

Children are highly motivated and sustain concentration when participating in exciting and interesting activities.The school weave their personal development offer through all aspects of the curriculum. Leaders are relentless in their endeavour to develop pupils into responsible citizens of the world.

Pupils have an excellent understanding of equality and diversity. There is a whole-school approach to ensuring that pupils learn about healthy relationships, consent and staying safe.The school has increased its high-quality pastoral support for pupils.

Staff provide nurture and care for pupils with mental health or well-being needs.The members of the school council make a positive contribution to the school. They actively survey pupils and implement change.

For example, pupils told the school council they would like more mirrors, so mirrors now hang in the toilets.The trust and local governing committee recognise the strength of the school leadership. Leadership at all levels is extraordinary.

The school offers all staff professional development opportunities to enhance their subject knowledge. This consistently translates into improvements in the curriculum.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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