Ann Edwards Church of England Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are happy and attend school regularly. Many pupils join the school during the academic year. The school helps pupils to settle quickly.

When pupils leave school due to their family's military deployment or at the end of Year 6, they are socially and emotionally prepared well for the next stage of their education. The care and support for pupils' well-being, particularly for disadvantaged pupils, are a strength of the school.

Pupils are enthusiastic about the school clubs and educational visits on offer.

Pupils enjoy a wide variety of enrichment experiences, such as performing music and regular outdoor learning sessions. These carefully planned activiti...es help to develop pupils' talents and interests. Pupils' achievements are celebrated in the school's 'gold book'.

The school's curriculum is in place. Pupils can recall subject-specific words and knowledge well in some subjects, such as art and design. Other, wider curriculum subjects continue to develop.

Staff have high expectations for pupils' behaviour. Pupils follow the school's values in all that they do. They are polite and show respect to each other and adults.

Staff help pupils to develop an awareness of how to care for others. For example, pupils demonstrate maturity and kindness in their role as school prefects.

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

Children in early years quickly learn the school's routines and expectations.

Children actively engage in learning through play. They are helped to develop the necessary skills for learning right from the start. For example, children can independently find and put on their wellington boots to play and learn in the mud corner.

Children show resilience when trying to climb and balance on the obstacle course. They share resources and enjoy exploring the indoor and outdoor learning spaces together.

Staff support children in early years to speak and to listen carefully to each other and adults.

Children are introduced to the joy of books in early years. The school introduced a new phonics programme in September 2023. Staff have received appropriate training to deliver phonics.

Leaders continue to support staff, so their knowledge of the phonics programme, including catch-up sessions, is secure.

Staff routinely check pupils' phonics knowledge and spot those who need help. The letters and sounds in pupils' reading books match the phonics that pupils are taught.

Staff help pupils to develop their reading speed and accuracy well. A new reading scheme is used by pupils who have secured their phonics knowledge. Discussion of the class books supports the development of pupils' reading comprehension.

A wide range of high-quality books is available for pupils to read in every class and on the library bus.

The school's curriculum identifies the essential knowledge that pupils need to know and remember. However, the school has not checked that its ambitious curriculum is taught well in all subjects.

Some learning activities do not help pupils to build on their prior knowledge. In these subjects, pupils have gaps in their subject-specific vocabulary and knowledge.

Targets in individual education plans for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) do always not match their group and whole-class learning activities.

When this occurs, pupils complete learning activities that do not meet their needs. As a result, the school does not know whether pupils meet their targets. Staff cannot accurately check pupils' progression through the planned curriculum.

Provision for pupils with SEND does not always meet their needs.

Pupils are taught about the importance of respect and safe relationships. They develop an appreciation of difference and diversity across Britain.

Pupils know how to be physically and mentally healthy. Fundamental British values are taught through the curriculum and assemblies. Pupils understand the importance of democracy, justice and tolerance in society.

Pupils think that everyone should be treated fairly.

Pupils behave well. They move around the school in a calm and orderly way.

Some pupils receive help to recognise and manage their feelings. This work is successful. Leaders have plans to roll out this practice across the school.

The school carefully considers pupils' attendance information to ensure that patterns of absence are understood and tackled appropriately. Individual families are supported to remove barriers to their children attending school. This may involve support from outside agencies.

The impact of the school's work to improve pupils' attendance is clear. Many pupils with low prior attendance now attend school regularly.

Governors share the ambitions of school leaders.

They take time to listen and respond appropriately to concerns and questions from staff and from parents and carers.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• The school does not check how pupils' individual education plan targets are used.

This means that provision for pupils with SEND does not always meet their needs effectively. The school needs to ensure that provision is precisely matched to pupils' needs. The school's curriculum is not implemented as intended in some foundation subjects.

In these subjects, learning activities do not always provide pupils with opportunities to secure and deepen their knowledge sufficiently well. This means that pupils are unable to build on prior learning and make connections between the concepts taught. The school needs to support staff to ensure that pupils know more, can do more and remember more of the school's curriculum.

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