All Saints’ CofE Primary School NW2

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are safe and well cared for by staff at the school. They appreciate being part of a small, close-knit community that celebrates difference.

Pupils demonstrate a strong understanding of the importance of respecting people from all walks of life. Parents and carers commend the approachability of staff and the detailed knowledge they have of every child.

Pupils are excited about learning new things.

They get on well with staff and each other. This means that bullying is a rare occurrence. Pupils know that staff will deal with any rare incidents if they occur.

They rightly said that behaviour seldom disrupts learning. Pupils understand the school'...s high expectations of their work and behaviour. Pupils are increasingly rising to meet them and achieve well in most subjects.

Pupils take on leadership roles that give them a voice in the way the school is run. They are school council members, faith leaders and buddies to younger pupils. Pupils are active citizens in the community.

They manage the food bank and read to residents of the local care home. These responsibilities help pupils gain confidence and be happy to make mistakes. They prepare older pupils well for the transition to secondary school.

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

The school has made significant changes to the curriculum in recent times. The curriculum across subjects is well sequenced. There are regular opportunities for pupils to revisit important themes and concepts.

These become more complex as pupils progress through the school. Staff use a range of helpful adaptations to ensure that all pupils can access this ambitious curriculum. Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities and those with English as an additional language achieve increasingly well.

The curriculum highlights the important knowledge, skills and vocabulary that pupils need to learn in each subject. Teachers check pupils' understanding of these systematically. Typically, they address misconceptions in a timely fashion.

However, in a few subjects the curriculum is not yet fully embedded. Staff are still developing their subject expertise. They are considering how best to teach the curriculum.

Where the subject content is new, the school is still exploring the impact on pupil's development of knowledge and skills. On occasion, pupils find it difficult to recall elements of important subject content beyond simple facts. They are unclear about how to improve aspects of their work.

The school prioritises reading. Pupils begin the phonics programme at the very start of the Reception Year. Staff benefit from the training and resources they receive, which supports their teaching of phonics.

Teaching and support staff work closely to model sounds in the same way. As a result, staff deliver phonics lessons consistently well. The school provides extensive and effective help to pupils who need it.

Pupils become increasingly confident in the use of phonics strategies to decode and blend words. They take home a book each week that matches their stage of phonics learning.

There is a strong culture of reading for pleasure in school.

Pupils enjoy their guided reading sessions as well as visits to the school and local library. Staff help pupils to select high-quality books that are suitable for their reading stage. Pupils can visit 'the snug,' where they are able to access a new book from the reading vending machine.

The early years environment provides many inviting spaces for pupils to engage with books, including in the outdoor area.

Pupils are polite and welcoming. There are clear expectations of behaviour.

These are established in Reception and regularly reinforced as pupils move through the school. The school has made a promising start to improving attendance. This work has reduced the number of pupils who are frequently absent from school.

However, there is still some way to go to raise overall attendance, particularly that of disadvantaged pupils.

The school provides many opportunities for pupils to develop their talents and interests. Pupils value learning to play musical instruments, such as the piano and the guitar.

They successfully participate in a wide range of competitive sports events. Pupils particularly enjoy trips and residential visits to locations such as the South Downs. They go to places of cultural interest, such as the theatre and museums.

These outings help pupils to develop socially and support their learning of the curriculum.

Staff enjoy working at the school. They appreciate recent changes that have made their workload more manageable.

Governors involve themselves in all aspects of the school's work. They are effective in their challenge and support of the school, using their visits to assure themselves of the quality of education and its impact on pupils' achievement.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• Teachers are getting used to delivering new curriculum content. They are beginning to identify and address the gaps in pupils' knowledge and understanding of important subject content from the previous curriculum. The school should ensure that it continues to develop staff's confidence so that they can implement the new curriculum effectively.

• A minority of pupils, in particular those who are disadvantaged, do not attend school regularly enough. This means that a proportion of pupils are missing out on vital education. The school should further develop its processes to address patterns of weak attendance and formalise support where needed to increase overall rates of attendance.