Beaufront First School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils love coming to school, especially those in the early years. They enjoy being with their friends and learning together.

Reception-aged children take delight in welcoming the nursery children. They model how to play, share books and motivate the younger children with phrases such as, 'Go on, you can do it!'

Leaders and staff have high expectations of pupils. Pupils respond well to these and are eager to learn.

They develop excellent spoken skills. This begins with joining in with nursery rhymes and familiar stories. In other years, pupils are encouraged to discuss their work with partners and in larger groups.

They are confident and articulate ...in sharing their thoughts.

Pupils have a natural curiosity. They ask searching questions of the teachers and one another.

They often choose to do additional research on topics at home and bring this into school.

Pupils feel safe and well looked after by adults in school. Pupils behave well in lessons.

They understand what bullying is and those spoken to say this rarely happens. Pupils know and adhere to the two school rules, showing kindness and taking responsibility. Older pupils relish their roles as digital leaders and playground buddies.

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

Leaders promote a love of reading from the moment pupils enter nursery. The children enjoy sharing books and actively seek out adults to read with them. They progress onto learning sounds and actions as pre-reading skills for Reception.

The whole-school phonics programme is well structured so pupils decode words and build up their fluency in reading. Pupils read books that are matched to the sounds they are learning. Leaders check to see if the pupils have any gaps in their phonics learning.

If they do, these are quickly addressed. Once pupils know all their sounds, they are encouraged to read a wide range of books. Teachers purposefully choose texts for class reading that are varied and broaden pupils' interests and understanding of the world.

Leaders have created an ambitious curriculum which makes best use of the rural location. Pupils visit the local farm and Hadrian's Wall as part of their science and history studies. In mathematics, the coherent curriculum builds on pupils' knowledge over time.

Teachers follow a programme that progresses systematically from Nursery to Year 4. For example, pupils in early years quickly develop their knowledge of number bonds. This provides a solid foundation for their next step.

The curriculum is stronger in some areas than in others. There are strengths in the early years, key stage 1, computing, reading, mathematics and physical education curriculums, in which clear sequencing ensures pupils carefully build their knowledge and what they can do over time. In other subjects, such as geography and history in key stage 2, leaders have not yet identified precisely enough the essential knowledge that pupils need to know.

In these subjects, teachers do not make regular checks on what the pupils have learned. Assessments in subjects other than English and mathematics are not focused enough to determine what pupils know and can do. This means some pupils are not challenged as much as they should be to learn as much as they could.

Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are well supported. Pupils' needs are identified at an early stage. Staff are well trained and know how to support pupils with SEND in accessing all parts of the curriculum.

As a result, pupils with SEND enjoy their learning and keep up with their peers.

Leaders have the highest expectations of pupils' behaviour. The curriculum includes lessons on relationships and making the right choices.

Most pupils show exemplary behaviour. They are mostly polite, courteous and respectful of one another. However, during the inspection, a small number of pupils interrupted learning by talking over their teacher.

This distracted from the learning that was planned.

Senior leaders have identified that older pupils do not know enough about different cultures and the different ways in which people live in British society. Visits to places such as a mosque and a gurdwara have been unable to go ahead due to the previous COVID-19 restrictions.

Leaders have recently changed the personal development curriculum so that it is even more ambitious and better prepares pupils for life in modern Britain. It is too early to assess the impact of this change.

Pupils benefit from a wide variety of extra-curricular activities.

These include football, dance, art and gardening club. The pupils look forward to these activities and the clubs are fully subscribed.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

Leaders ensure the staff receive regular safeguarding training. The designated safeguarding lead seeks advice and support from external partners. The number of safeguarding incidents is very low; however, records show a speedy response to any concern raised.

Senior leaders make sure there is a robust recruitment process for any new staff. This includes all the necessary background checks to keep pupils safe.

Pupils learn how to keep themselves safe as part of the school curriculum.

This includes online safety. Pupils know about the risks they may face in the future.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• In geography and history, the precise knowledge that pupils need to know in key stage 2 does not build on from the previous learning in key stage 1 and early years.

Leaders should revisit these curriculum areas to ensure that the pupils' knowledge and skills are carefully sequenced and that no gaps in curriculum coverage remain. It is clear from the leaders' actions that they are already in the process of bringing about this change. ? In the wider curriculum, for example religious education (RE), assessments do not check on the full breadth of what has been taught.

As a result, pupils' knowledge and understanding are not being checked in enough detail. Teachers do not have the full picture of the pupils' knowledge and skills across the curriculum. Leaders should ensure that assessments in the wider curriculum subjects accurately capture pupils' understanding of what has been taught.