Berrow Primary Church Academy

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Leaders have not ensured that the culture of safeguarding is rigorous.

While pupils feel well cared for, systems and processes are not securely understood or consistently used by everyone. This puts pupils at risk.

Over recent years, senior leaders and governors have not tackled weaknesses in the school effectively.

This means pupils are not getting a good quality of education.

Most pupils behave well and work hard. They listen respectfully to teachers and one another during lessons.

Pupils can learn well when the curriculum is matched to their needs. However, for some younger pupils, expectations are not high enough. The curriculum is not a...mbitious enough for them.

Leaders' recent work to improve behaviour is having an impact. Incidents at break and lunchtimes have reduced. However, some pupils say that staff do not always listen to, or help with, their concerns.

Pupils have a good understanding of bullying. They say that it sometimes happens but staff deal with this. This is not the view of parents and carers.

They have little confidence in leaders' ability to address bullying.

Pupils enjoy lots of opportunities to develop through the wider curriculum. They learn to be good citizens.

Initiatives such as the 'Berrow Community Star' awards contribute to putting pupils at the heart of the local community.

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

Working relationships between senior leaders, governors and staff are poor. This has diverted the focus away from school improvement.

Significant changes in staffing mean that the momentum of recent improvements to the quality of education has slowed. Many subject leaders are new to their role. The knowledge that leaders want pupils to learn is not well thought out.

Improvements in the curriculums for reading, including phonics, and mathematics are very recent. Training has ensured that staff have the knowledge and confidence to deliver lessons. However, pupils still experience too much variability in the delivery of these subjects.

Leaders have recently bought new books that match better the sounds pupils are learning but pupils are not using them yet.The curriculum does not set out the specific small steps of knowledge that leaders want pupils to learn, including in the early years. There is no clear sequencing of knowledge or vocabulary.

Pupils sometimes find it difficult to remember prior learning. This means they struggle to know more and remember more over time.

Assessment is used well in phonics.

This means that pupils learn the right sounds at the right time. In other subjects, including mathematics, assessment is not always used accurately enough to adapt learning for all pupils. This is because teachers are not yet clear enough about the knowledge they want pupils to learn.

Pupils with special education needs and/or disabilities (SEND) do not consistently have their needs well met. Recent improvements mean that many more pupils have their needs clearly identified. However, a lack of staff knowledge about how to meet these needs means that pupils are not learning well.

Staff encourage children in the early years in their learning. Children learn to take turns, play together and share. Staff have developed positive relationships with parents.

They provide information and resources to help parents to support their child. The early years learning environment is weak. Neither the indoor or outdoor space promote children's curiosity, independence or critical thinking.

Leaders give pupils lots of experiences that develop their broader character. Pupils enjoy positions of responsibility, such as buddies for younger children, house captains and school councillors. Pupils' physical and mental health are well supported through the curriculum.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are not effective.

Leaders have not prioritised the safeguarding of pupils. Records are poorly organised, which means that leaders do not easily have all the information they need to hand.

Records and reports lack detail and actions are not always recorded. This increases the risk that leaders do not have the whole picture of a pupil's experiences.

Leaders and staff do not have a secure understanding of safeguarding.

Staff do not have secure knowledge about how to respond to different incidents, including sexual harassment. This means there is inconsistency and a lack of rigour in the way staff and leaders respond to incidents.

In some individual cases, leaders work with external agencies so that that pupils and families get the right help at the right time.

Pupils learn how to keep themselves safe. This includes when using the internet. They feel that adults listen and, in most cases, respond to their concerns.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• Leaders have not secured an effective culture of safeguarding. As a result, steps to protect children are often not swift or effective enough. Leaders need to ensure that staff knowledge, processes and records are rigorous and consistent so that children are safe.

• Senior leaders and governors do not have a shared vision for improvement. This lack of direction over time means there is a fragmented approach to school improvement. Senior leaders and governors need to have a coherent, strategic vision that provides direction and support for all staff to make the necessary improvements to the quality of education provided.

• Many parents lack confidence in the leadership of the school. This means there is not a positive culture of mutual trust to support pupils' education. Leaders need to rebuild positive relationships with parents so that they can work together towards the best possible outcomes for all pupils.

• Leaders have not sequenced the content of the curriculum well enough. It is not clear what essential knowledge pupils should know and by when, in order to build their knowledge and skills over time, including in the early years. Leaders need to ensure that the curriculum identifies the specific knowledge and vocabulary they want pupils to learn over time.

• Teachers do not have the knowledge to ensure that pupils with SEND have their needs met. This means pupils are not well supported to make the progress in the curriculum that they are capable of. Leaders need to ensure that teachers gain the appropriate knowledge and understanding they need to provide good support to these pupils.

• Staff in the early years have not created an environment that supports an ambitious curriculum. Therefore, pupils do not have enough access to the resources and experiences that develop their curiosity, independence or critical thinking. Leaders need to ensure that the early years environment is inviting and stimulating and used positively to deliver an ambitious curriculum across the seven areas of learning.