Allenton Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Outcome

Allenton Primary School continues to be a good school.

What is it like to attend this school?

Allenton Primary is happy and inclusive. Pupils talk with pride about their school.

They feel safe and cared for. One pupil shared: 'I like the teachers because they are always kind to me. I can talk to the teachers, have fun with the teachers and learn from the teachers.'



Leaders are ambitious for all pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Teachers enhance lessons by planning regular trips and visits. Pupils value these experiences.

Classrooms are calm and purposeful. Pupils show positive attitudes towards their stud...ies. Staff and pupils often reference the school's learning superheroes: 'resilience, resourcefulness, reflectiveness and reciprocity'.

These values are lived out by pupils.

Bullying is rare. Pupils explain that when bullying does happen, staff deal with it well.

One pupil told the inspector, 'Teachers always find out what happened. They make sure it doesn't happen again.'

Pupils have access to a range of clubs and extra-curricular activities.

They make good use of these. They enjoy taking on extra responsibilities. These include being a 'hall helper' and school councillors.

Year 6 pupils enjoy being 'role models' for the rest of the school.

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

Leaders have prioritised early reading and phonics. Staff are well trained and carry out regular assessments.

Pupils receive the teaching and support they need to be successful, fluent readers. Interventions are in place to support pupils who are at risk of falling behind. Reading books are matched to the sounds that pupils know.

This helps pupils to read unfamiliar words by blending together the sounds that they know. Pupils enjoy reading. Beyond phonics, the reading curriculum develops pupils' vocabulary and comprehension.

The texts that pupils study as a class cover a diverse range of genres, authors and cultures. Pupils explore and discuss these texts in whole-class reading sessions.

The Reception Year learning environment is well resourced.

Children have the opportunity to learn through play. The outdoor area allows children to take risks safely. It provides opportunities for children to develop their gross motor skills.

The trust is helping to further improve the early years provision. This is working well. However, the quality of adult interaction with children is inconsistent.

Some opportunities to develop children's early language and communication are missed.

Leaders have developed a well-designed curriculum for all subjects. Lessons are well sequenced.

Pupils' knowledge builds progressively over time. 'Tell me what you know tasks' and 'double page spreads' are used to check what pupils remember. Knowledge organisers are in place for each topic.

One pupil stated, 'they help me to recap knowledge and help me to remember important information.' However, some subject leaders rely heavily on senior leaders and the trust for support. They do not fully understand how their subject is planned and implemented.

In mathematics, pupils get regular opportunities to solve problems and to explain their answers. Teachers provide a wide variety of resources that help pupils to understand what they are learning. Pupils make good use of classroom displays to help them solve different types of calculations.

Personal, social and health education and relationships and sex education lessons prepare pupils well for life in modern Britain. Pupils have an age-appropriate understanding of different types of relationships and families. Pupils know what fundamental British values are and why these are important.

They understand the importance of eating a healthy diet.

Pupils with SEND are well supported. Leaders engage proactively with external agencies to make sure that pupils receive the tailored support that they need.

Teachers adapt lessons, so that these pupils learn the same curriculum as their peers. For example, some pupils record voice notes to show their understanding of historical events.

Staff feel very well supported by leaders.

They feel that leaders consider their workload and well-being carefully. One member of staff shared, 'At this school, we have friendships as well as colleagues.' Staff said that leaders have a genuine 'open door' policy.

Leaders provide staff with a wealth of training opportunities.

Leaders provide effective support for teachers who are at the early stage of their career. One teacher stated, 'Everyone is so approachable and keen to offer support.

It feels like I have several mentors.'

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

Leaders have created a strong safeguarding culture at the school.

They are vigilant and work on the premise that it 'could happen here'. The safeguarding team's daily communication ensures that information is shared effectively.

Staff receive regular safeguarding training.

Weekly briefings provide frequent updates. Staff know how to record and report safeguarding concerns. Record keeping is robust.

Leaders are tenacious when working with external agencies. They escalate concerns where necessary.

Pupils said that they feel safe at school.

They say that they have adults that they can share any worries or concerns with.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

¦ The quality of adult interactions with children in the Reception Year is inconsistent. Adults do not always engage children in a purposeful way.

As a result, some learning opportunities to develop children's language and communication are missed. Senior leaders should ensure that adult interactions with children in the Reception Year consistently support the development of children's early language and communication skills. ¦ Some subject leaders' understanding of how their curriculum is planned and implemented is dependent on support and guidance from senior leaders or representatives from the trust.

As a result, some subject leaders do not know what is going well and what actions are needed to bring around improvements. Senior leaders should ensure that all subject leaders have the knowledge and expertise required to effectively monitor and develop their subjects.

Background

When we have judged a school to be good, we will then normally go into the school about once every four years to confirm that the school remains good.

This is called an ungraded inspection and it is carried out under section 8 of the Education Act 2005. We do not give graded judgements on an ungraded inspection. However, if we find evidence that a school would now receive a higher or lower grade, then the next inspection will be a graded inspection, which is carried out under section 5 of the Act.

Usually this is within one to two years of the date of the ungraded inspection. If we have serious concerns about safeguarding, behaviour or the quality of education, we will deem the ungraded inspection a graded inspection immediately.

This is the first ungraded inspection since we judged the school to be good in October 2017.