Barrow 1618 CofE Free School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Barrow 1618 CofE Free School is like one big family and pupils say it is, 'all about friendship here'. As the school motto states, the pupils here grow with faith, friendship and courage.

Pupils attend this happy, welcoming school regularly.

They try hard, behave well and are kind and caring towards others. They feel safe and know that adults will sort out any problems if they arise.

Staff and governors are passionate about providing the very best for all pupils and work very hard to do so.

They share a vision that this school will develop the 'whole child'. There are positive relationships between pupils and staff here. As a result, pupils are confi...dent, prepared to take risks and achieve well.

They express their views, ideas and opinions clearly and with sensitivity.

Pupils love learning both indoors and out. The school offers many valuable and exciting opportunities for learning outdoors and making use of the enviable school setting.

Whether it is working alongside the flock of ducks in Reception or exploring the local woodland during forest school sessions, pupils relish these opportunities.

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

In recent years, the school has carefully reviewed and developed the curriculum. It is broad, ambitious and designed to give pupils what they need for their next steps in education.

In mathematics, pupils follow a well-structured programme and become confident problem-solvers. They use key vocabulary very well when explaining their methods. Teachers pick up on misconceptions quickly.

They focus on pupils' instant recall of important number facts, such as times tables. This helps pupils solve problems more efficiently.

The curriculum in English is well designed, setting out explicitly the expectations in reading, writing, and speaking and listening.

Pupils become skilled, enthusiastic readers. Their writing, in English and across the curriculum, sometimes varies in quality in terms of handwriting, spelling and punctuation. This is because teachers do not always set high enough expectations.

In a small number of subjects, including history, the curriculum is at an earlier stage of implementation. Pupils say they enjoy history and that teachers make it interesting. However, the school has not checked carefully enough how well pupils are retaining and connecting the information they learn.

This means that the school has not been able to develop and improve these subjects as effectively as they could.

Staff are determined that no pupil is left out or left behind. They identify and support pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities very well.

They provide extra support, resources and adapt activities so that all pupils can access the full curriculum.

Staff are experts at teaching early reading and phonics. They do this in a highly structured and consistent way.

As a result, children in the early years quickly learn the sounds that letters make and become very skilled at blending them together. There is real rigour in the way in which staff ensure that children do not fall behind. Staff provide successful additional phonics sessions to prevent this from happening.

Pupils become fluent, proficient readers who read regularly. They also enjoy hearing the books that teachers read to them in daily reading sessions. The new library and newly appointed pupil 'reading influencers' provide opportunities to further promote a love of reading.

Provision in the early years is exceptional. Children get off to a super start, quickly becoming confident, independent learners. Relationships are highly positive and children feel safe and happy.

Adults know the children very well and design and adapt activities to ensure children learn what is most useful to them. Both indoors and outdoors, the learning environment is engaging and purposeful. The outdoor area is meticulously organised.

Every inch provides engaging and meaningful opportunities that promote children's learning.

The curriculum extends beyond the academic in many ways. Considering the size of school, pupils get an extensive choice of clubs, trips and activities at playtimes and after school.

They become school councillors, 'activity starters' and 'sports bronze ambassadors'. They learn about staying safe in the real world and online. The curriculum and assemblies are helping them develop an understanding of diversity, equality and fundamental British values, including democracy.

Governors and leaders have a shared strategic vison, passion and drive to make this school as good as it can be. They know the school well and what needs working on to improve it further. Staff enjoy working here and feel very supported by one another and by leaders.

There is a real team spirit at Barrow 1618 C of E Free School.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• Teachers do not always have high enough expectations of the quality of pupils' written work.

This means that sometimes pupils' work is inaccurate and contains grammatical or spelling errors. The school must ensure that teachers, in line with school policy, have consistently high expectations of the work pupils produce. This will help to ensure that pupils consistently produce high-quality written work with attention to accuracy.

• In a small number of subjects, the school has not fully implemented curriculum improvements as effectively as in other subjects. This means that pupils do not retain as much knowledge as they could. The school should implement planned improvements and review these subjects so that pupils' learning becomes as effective as those subjects which are fully embedded.

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