Bedford Drive Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are proud to attend Bedford Drive Primary School. Staff greet parents, carers and pupils in the school yard as they arrive at school each morning. Pupils are eager to get into school and start learning.

They feel safe and well cared for by staff.

Pupils know that if they have a worry, there is someone who will support them. Pupils consider the best thing about the school to be their teachers.

They said that this is because staff are always there to help them when needed.

Leaders and staff set high expectations of pupils. Pupils, including children in the early years, behave well in lessons, when moving around the school and at breaktimes.
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Pupils are polite and respectful. They look after each other and say that bullying is rare. However, if it should happen, staff deal with it quickly.

Staff are ambitious for pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). They have designed a curriculum that motivates pupils to want to learn more. Pupils enjoy their lessons and they work hard.

Pupils have opportunities to develop their leadership skills through roles as school councillors, play leaders and 'well-being warriors'. They help to improve playtimes for their peers and support each other to understand how to stay healthy.

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

Staff and leaders at Bedford Drive Primary School play an important role in supporting the community.

Leaders know and understand the needs of pupils and their families well. Leaders have built positive relationships with parents and strong links with local organisations. This enables leaders to guide parents to support when it is needed.

Leaders have developed a curriculum which provides pupils with the knowledge and skills that they need to achieve well academically and socially. However, work to ensure that teachers are clear about the knowledge that pupils should learn is still being finalised in a small number of subjects. In these subjects, teachers are not as clear about the knowledge that pupils should learn.

As a result, some pupils have small gaps in their knowledge when learning something new. In the early years, leaders have designed a curriculum that ensures that children are well prepared for key stage 1. Adults help children in the early years to become confident and independent learners.

Leaders have made reading a priority. Staff are trained well and they deliver the reading curriculum effectively. They know what knowledge pupils need to develop as confident readers.

Leaders ensure that any pupil who falls behind, including pupils with SEND, receive appropriate support so that they catch up. Pupils, and children in the early years, enjoy the stories and books that their teachers share with them.Pupils have a love for reading.

For example, older pupils make recommendations about what to read to others.

Staff are equipped well to identify the needs of pupils with SEND precisely. Support from staff for those pupils with the greatest need is highly effective.

Pupils with SEND follow the same curriculum as their peers. However, in some subjects, teachers are still getting to grips with how to best adapt how they deliver curriculums. At times, this hinders these pupils in their learning.

All staff have high expectations of pupils' behaviour. Leaders have established routines which mean that the school runs smoothly. Pupils move around the school calmly.

Playtimes are well supervised. Pupils understand the school's rules and follow them diligently. Children in the early years play and learn cooperatively.

Pupils work hard and take pride in their work. They understand that some pupils need help to behave well. When required, well-trained adults ensure that learning is not disrupted for other pupils.

Most pupils attend school regularly. Leaders' actions to reduce absence are comprehensive and have been successful for many pupils. However, a small number of pupils are absent too often.

These pupils miss important aspects of their learning.

Pupils enjoy the responsibilities that they hold and they feel that they make a positive difference. For example, school councillors have organised fundraising activities, such as a danceathon, to buy more games equipment for breaktimes.

Pupils have a variety of opportunities to develop their interests. These include sporting activities and playing musical instruments. Pupils enjoy opportunities to learn coding and take part in cross-country running.

They know how to keep themselves healthy physically and mentally. Those pupils who act as 'well-being warriors' reinforce key knowledge for their classmates.

Pupils understand ideas such as equality, tolerance and democracy.

Pupils said that everyone is welcome in their school regardless of their background.

Staff, including those new to teaching, said that leaders are considerate of their well-being and workload. They feel that leaders support them well to be successful in their roles.

Governors are knowledgeable about the school and its community. They provide appropriate challenge to leaders and help to check leaders' progress against the school's priorities. Governors make appropriate use of external partners to support their work.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

Leaders and governors ensure that staff receive regular and appropriate training so that they can recognise the signs that a child may be at risk from harm. Staff know how to report any safeguarding concerns that they might have.

Staff know pupils and their families well. They understand the types of difficulties that pupils and their families may face. Leaders provide vulnerable children and their families with effective early support.

Through the curriculum, pupils learn how to keep themselves safe, including when using social media. They understand about healthy relationships. For instance, they know what to do if anyone asked them to do something that they are not comfortable with.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• In some subjects, leaders are still finalising what they want pupils to learn and when some curriculum content should be learned. This means that, in these subjects, teachers are not as clear about how to design learning and this leads to some pupils having gaps in their knowledge. Leaders should finalise their curriculum thinking in these subjects so that teachers are clear about what pupils should be learning and when this content should be taught.

• In a small number of subjects, teachers are still developing how best to adapt the delivery of the curriculum to meet the needs of some pupils with SEND. This means that, from time to time, some pupils with SEND are hindered in their learning of the intended curriculum. Leaders should ensure that staff are supported well to adapt how they deliver the curriculum for pupils with SEND so that this group of pupils can learn the same ambitious curriculum as well as their peers.

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