Avonmouth Church of England Primary School and Nursery

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Outcome

Avonmouth Church of England Primary School and Nursery continues to be a good school.

What is it like to attend this school?

The school is an inclusive and welcoming environment, where pupils feel safe and valued. They play enthusiastically at social times, during which there is always plenty to interest them. Relationships between pupils and staff are positive and respectful.

Pupils know the importance of the school's values and the difference they make. Leaders have made the school motto 'by the river we prosper' central to the life of the school, rooting it in the local community.

Pupils trust staff to resolve problems quickly.

Bullying is rare and if it does h...appen teachers deal with it quickly. Pastoral care is strong and ensures that pupils' physical and mental well-being is a priority. There is a focus on developing the skills pupils need to keep themselves safe, including when online.

Pupils love coming to school and appreciate the many additional visits, visitors and activities on offer. They learn to express their opinion and understand the importance of valuing the views of others. Opportunities to take part in a range of events and have leadership responsibilities, such as school council and worship committee, help pupils gain important life experiences.

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

Leaders and staff are ambitious for pupils. They work together well to equip pupils with the knowledge and experiences that help raise their aspirations. Leaders and staff keep a strong focus on improving pupils' language skills and increasing their vocabulary.

This is particularly helpful for children with underdeveloped communication skills and those with limited knowledge of English.

Reading is a priority. Staff are well trained and have the resources they need to teach early reading effectively.

From the start of Reception, staff follow the school's phonics programme closely. They check pupils' progress carefully. Struggling readers get the help that they need to catch up quickly.

Staff read aloud high-quality books from a range of authors. This develops pupils' love of reading and exposes them to texts they might not read themselves. Pupils get off to a strong start in learning to read.

In mathematics, staff follow a well-structured curriculum. They recap prior learning before moving onto new content. Teaching provides pupils with plenty of practice to improve the speed and efficiency of calculations.

Teachers accurately explain new vocabulary and skilfully adapt activities so that all pupils can learn the curriculum. Teachers check pupils' understanding regularly and use this information to inform their teaching. On the whole, pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), learn mathematics well.

Leaders recognise that further development of mathematical problem-solving and reasoning would help pupils achieve even better.

The sequencing of important knowledge in the early years, from entry into Nursery to leaving Reception, is very clear for each area of learning. Leaders establish exactly what pupils should know and be able to do at the end of each year.

Where teachers have a secure understanding of the curriculum, the teaching is engaging, tasks adapted well, and pupils learn well. However, some subjects, such as history, are not taught as confidently and pupils do not achieve as well as they could.

Leaders prioritise developing pupils' self-esteem, confidence and resilience.

This helps pupils to persevere and overcome challenges. Staff support pupils who make wrong choices, and disruption to learning is rare. However, occasionally, staff do not insist on the best possible behaviour.

Leaders ensure that pupils with the most complex social and emotional needs get the support needed to be successful.

A wide range of clubs are on offer. Pupils value the leadership opportunities available because they bring about positive change in school and in the wider community.

They eagerly take part in charity work to develop their understanding of helping others. Pupils explore and discuss local, national and world issues. The curriculum for personal, social and health education is well sequenced and ensures that pupils are ready for life in modern Britain.

Pupils learn about healthy relationships and appropriate behaviour within these relationships.

Governors know the school and its strengths well. This helps them to provide effective support and challenge.

Governors diligently oversee important areas of school life, such as school attendance, equality of opportunity and SEND. They rightly have confidence in their school leaders, who demonstrate a relentless focus on improving the standard of education for all pupils. Staff appreciate that leaders are mindful of their workload and take action to help their well-being.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

Leaders have established a strong safeguarding culture, where pupils' safety is of the utmost importance. Staff are well trained to spot and raise concerns.

The safeguarding team ensures that pupils who are at risk of harm receive the help that they need quickly, seeking help from outside agencies when required. Record-keeping is comprehensive and demonstrates the tenacity of leaders' actions to bring about positive change for pupils and families. Leaders know the community well and teach pupils how to keep themselves safe within it.

They carry out the necessary pre-employment checks on staff and keep meticulous records.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• Teachers' subject knowledge is stronger in some subjects than it is in others. Where it is weaker, learning is not sequenced in small steps and tasks that enable all pupils, including pupils with SEND and the most disadvantaged, to achieve well in all subjects.

Leaders should continue to prioritise professional development in those curriculum areas where teachers' subject knowledge is weaker so that pupils achieve the very best possible outcomes. ? Occasionally, staff do not insist on the very best possible behaviour. Some school routines are not commonly agreed and understood.

As a result, some pupils' behaviour and attitudes are not as strong as they could be. Leaders should ensure that high expectations of behaviour, including attitudes to learning, are consistently applied.

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 second ungraded inspection since we judged the school to be good in November 2012.

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