Ashfield Park Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

This is a good school.

Children get a good start to school in the early years classes. Well planned activities and good teaching develop children's skills very effectively. Pupils achieve well and make good progress in reading, writing and mathematics.

As a result, standards rise as pupils move through the school. Teachers make sure that lessons are interesting. They use good subject knowledge to help them guide pupils to the next steps in their learning.

Pupils behave well in and around school. They are pleasant and polite to adults and each other. They are enthusiastic about their learning and try hard in lessons.

Pupils feel safe in school... and know that there is always someone they can go to if they have a concern. They learn how to keep themselves safe beyond school, such as on the roads or when using the internet. The headteacher has high aspirations for the school and is successfully driving improvements in achievement, behaviour and safety.

Senior leaders check that the quality of teaching is improving and that pupils are making good progress. Any pupils at risk of falling behind are quickly helped to keep up. The headteacher has introduced new ways of teaching literacy and mathematics which have improved pupils' rates of progress in these subjects.

Governors are very clear about their roles. They are supportive and challenge leaders to ensure continued improvement. Governors visit regularly to see for themselves how well the school is doing.

The school's values of 'Be the Best you Can Be' provide a good base for pupils' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. Respect, consideration and a desire to help each other 'be the best' underpin all the school does. It is not yet an outstanding school because : Teachers' guidance as to how pupils can improve their work in some subjects is not as effective as the helpful guidance they receive in literacy and mathematics.

The very recently introduced way of teaching mathematics is not yet being used to full effect in all classes. While teachers receive high quality development opportunities to refine and improve their teaching skills, additional adults who help in the classroom are not so well supported.

Information about this school

The school is larger than the average-sized primary school.

Children in the early years start in a part-time Nursery class in the year in which they are four. Most then move to a full-time Reception class at the beginning of the year in which they are five. Most pupils are White British.

The proportion of pupils from minority ethnic backgrounds is lower than in most schools and few pupils speak English as an additional language. The proportion of disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs is above average. The proportion of disadvantaged pupils supported by the pupil premium, which is additional government funding for pupils who are known to be eligible for free school meals or looked after by the local authority, is below average.

The headteacher joined the school in January 2013. The Chair of the governing body took up post in September 2014. Since then, six new governors have joined the governing body.

The school works closely with the Wye Valley Learning Network. This comprises a group of eight local schools who work together to share expertise and develop teaching and leadership skills. The school meets the government's current floor standards, which set the minimum expectations for pupils' attainment and progress in reading, writing and mathematics by the end of Year 6.