Audley Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils at this school are well looked after and cared for. Pupils are happy and feel safe in school. Staff ensure they keep pupils safe by checking in with them on a regular basis and monitoring their behaviour closely.

Some parents raised concerns about bullying. However, leaders shared records with inspectors to show that they take appropriate action when any matters arise.

Staff have high expectations of pupils' behaviour.

Most pupils rise to these expectations. They listen attentively, play well together, and move around the school calmly and sensibly. There is a positive and friendly atmosphere throughout the school.

Pupils enjoy their lessons. ...Staff expect pupils to work hard, and they do. Teachers make lessons clear and engaging.

The variety of visitors to school also enhances pupils' learning. Pupils like the rewards they receive for reading regularly, such as choosing a book from the vending machine.

Pupils appreciate the variety of experiences the curriculum provides.

They are proud of their charity work and the responsibilities they have in school. Pupils enjoy the variety of opportunities on offer, which includes choir and a range of sports clubs.

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

The new leadership team has been well supported by the trust to bring about swift improvements since the pandemic.

Together, they have created an ambitious curriculum and a culture of aspiration. The trust has clear systems and processes to support leaders. Trustees also make thorough checks on the impact of leaders' work.

School leaders know what they are doing and have the expertise to continue driving improvements. The majority of staff say they are proud to work at the school. Teachers feel well supported by leaders and feel that they are considerate of their workload.

Leaders have made sure that reading is a high priority. Children in the early years have daily phonics lessons and additional reading activities. This helps to develop their ability to read and supports their love of reading.

This approach continues as pupils move on to key stage 1. Staff use a range of assessment strategies to identify when pupils are falling behind. They provide effective extra support to pupils who find reading difficult.

This has a positive impact, and pupils can read with increased fluency and confidence.

Leaders have ensured that all areas of the curriculum are coherently sequenced. Subject leaders have identified the knowledge and skills they want pupils to know and remember and the order in which they should be taught.

In the early years, there is an emphasis on language and communication, which gives children a solid foundation for their future learning.Teachers use several strategies to support pupils to remember their learning. These include revisiting key themes within a subject, such as sewing in design technology, or retrieving key learning at the start of lessons in mathematics.

As a result, pupils can recall a lot of their current and prior learning in a range of subjects.

Teachers make effective use of assessment strategies. In core subjects, they use assessment information to identify groups or individuals who may need additional support to help them to catch up.

In other subjects, assessment strategies help teachers to recap on pupils' key knowledge, supporting pupils to remember it.

Until recently, the needs of pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) had not always been identified as well as they could be. This led to delays in providing the right support to pupils and caused frustration for pupils and their parents.

Leaders have improved the systems to accurately identify the needs of pupils with SEND. They have provided training to help staff make appropriate adaptations to their teaching, where needed. This has had a positive impact in most classes, but there are still a few inconsistencies.

This has held back learning for a small number of pupils. Nevertheless, most pupils with SEND are well supported to access the curriculum and make good gains in their learning.

There is a calm and orderly environment throughout the school day.

Pupils are polite and welcoming. In lessons, staff have high expectations for pupils' behaviour. For pupils who may find this challenging, there are strategies in place to support them to regulate their feelings.

Leaders have worked hard to improve pupils' attendance. It is improving, but the number of pupils who do not come to school regularly enough is too high.

Pupils enjoy a range of opportunities to develop their leadership skills.

Roles such as safeguarding or eco-ambassadors enable pupils to make positive contributions to the school community. Pupils know the importance of fundamental British values such as tolerance and respect. Through the curriculum, they are well prepared for life in modern Britain.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

Leaders have a good understanding of the local context and the risks that pupils at the school might face. They ensure that staff are well trained to identify the signs that a pupil may be at risk of harm.

All staff know how to report any concerns, and they pass on any worries quickly. Leaders take swift action when issues arise. They are relentless in following up their concerns to make sure that pupils are safe.

Through the curriculum, pupils learn how to stay safe online and in other risky situations. Leaders work with relevant external agencies to ensure that pupils are aware of the dangers they might encounter in the local community.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• Recent improvements to the way pupils' needs are identified, together with improvements in how well teachers adapt their teaching to meet these needs, are making a difference to the way pupils with SEND are supported.

However, these improvements are not fully embedded across all classes. As a result, a few pupils with SEND do not make the progress they are capable of. Leaders should continue to engage with parents and embed the recent improvements so that pupils with SEND achieve the best possible outcomes.

• Pupils' attendance, although improving, is too low, and there are some pupils who do not attend school often enough. This hinders their progress. Leaders should ensure that they continue to work with families where attendance is an issue to increase overall attendance and reduce the number of pupils missing too much time from school.