Beal Vale Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are proud to belong to this family-orientated and nurturing school. They said that everyone is welcome here regardless of their ethnicity, gender or culture. Pupils are happy and keen to learn.

Friendly staff know pupils and their families well.

The trust and the school are ambitious for pupils, including those pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Typically, pupils rise to these high expectations and achieve well across a range of subjects.

The school expects pupils to behave well, and most do. Pupils are polite and make friends easily because they genuinely care about each other. They feel safe and move around school in an... orderly manner.

Pupils know that adults will help them if they have any worries or concerns. The school also ensures that vulnerable families receive the timely help and support that they need.

Pupils have a rich range of experiences beyond the academic curriculum.

For instance, they have weekly opportunities to learn life skills, such as sewing, first aid and British Sign Language. Pupils access a varied range of clubs and trips, which they clearly enjoy. The school supports pupils' emotional health well.

Pupils recognise that to learn well, they should attend school on a regular basis. Many pupils have high aspirations for their future careers. They leave school as well-rounded individuals who are well prepared for the next stage of their education.

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

The school, with the support of the trust, has designed a curriculum that is ambitious and well organised. The curriculum is purposeful and meets the needs of pupils, including those with SEND. Pupils are taught the full range of national curriculum subjects.

Across many subjects, the knowledge and skills that pupils should learn are well ordered from early years through to Year 6. Pupils learn well in these subjects. However, in a few subjects, the curriculums are new and have not been implemented fully.

Teachers are not as confident about what should be taught and when pupils should learn this content. As a result, pupils do not progress through these curriculums as well as they should.

In conjunction with the trust, the school ensures that staff receive subject-specific training and appropriate resources.

This enables them to deliver many areas of the curriculum well. Typically, teachers choose suitable activities for pupils that are closely linked to the knowledge identified in the curriculum.

In the main, teachers explain new concepts with clarity and use a range of strategies to check pupils' understanding.

However, the school is still refining the assessment strategies that teachers should use in a few subjects. From time to time, this hinders teachers in identifying and remedying gaps in pupils' knowledge swiftly enough.The teaching of reading has a high profile across the school.

As soon as children start in the Reception class, they are immersed in stories, rhymes and poems that help to develop their language skills. Well-trained staff deliver the phonics programme effectively. Pupils who struggle or fall behind with the phonics programme are given the help and support that they need to learn all that they should.

By the end of key stage 1, most pupils are confident and fluent readers.

Older pupils read widely and often. They talk about their favourite authors and the different types of books that they like to read.

Pupils have many opportunities to read throughout each day. They enjoy selecting books from the well-stocked library and from the outdoor book shed.

Pupils with SEND, including children in early years, have their additional needs identified promptly.

Teachers adapt how they deliver the curriculum through additional support and resources. This enables most pupils with SEND to learn alongside their friends in class.

Pupils are tolerant and respectful of others.

They understand that people have different families and beliefs. Pupils are confident about the steps to take to keep themselves safe when online and to live a healthy lifestyle. Through the curriculum, pupils are made aware of many issues relating to personal safety.

This includes the dangers of smoking and of alcohol and drug misuse. Pupils take on leadership roles with pride, such as those of school councillors, librarians and health champions. The school has developed links with the local community.

This gives pupils a broader understanding of the different roles that people have in society.

The trustees and members of the local governing body provide the school with high levels of challenge and support. They have an accurate understanding of the school's many strengths and the refinements that are needed to improve the quality of education that pupils receive.

The trust provides appropriate support in the form of training and the sharing of expertise with staff from another school in the trust.

Staff are proud to work at the school. They appreciate the consideration that is given to their workload when any changes are introduced.

This helps staff to feel valued and supported to fulfil their roles well.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• A few curriculums are at the early stages of implementation.

Teachers are less sure about what they should teach in these subjects. This hinders pupils' progress through these curriculums. The school should ensure that staff receive the support and guidance that they need to deliver these subjects well.

• In some subjects, the school is still determining the assessment strategies that teachers should use. This means that it is difficult for teachers to check on pupils' understanding and to ascertain any gaps in their knowledge. The school should ensure that, in these areas, teachers are suitably equipped to identify and address pupils' misconceptions.

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