Blewbury Church of England Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are proud of their inclusive and caring school. They understand the school's values of love, courage, resilience and forgiveness.

Pupils respect the school's clear rules and routines, which helps them to feel safe. They know that adults will listen and help them with any worries. Pupils learn to play together kindly and look after each other.

New pupils quickly make friends.

The school has high ambitions for every pupil, including pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Pupils live up to the school's expectations by working hard and behaving well, both in lessons and at breaktimes.

As a result, pupils achieve well acr...oss the curriculum.

Pupils benefit from a broad range of interesting experiences. This includes different leadership roles, such as being a house captain or an eco-leader in the school.

Pupils take these roles seriously. Pupils benefit from a range of trips connected to their learning, such as visiting Oxford Castle or Hill End to learn about and re-enact a historical battle. Pupils keenly learn about the challenges that people with differences face and how to best provide support and celebrate them.

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

The school provides a curriculum that builds pupils' knowledge from the early years to Year 6. Leaders make clear what all pupils need to know and remember. They have adapted the curriculum for the mixed-age classes in the school successfully.

However, in a few subjects, this knowledge is not detailed precisely enough. This means that staff are not as clear of what to teach and when in these subjects.In nearly all subjects, teachers have a good understanding of what to teach and lessons usually build on what pupils have already learned.

Tasks are well matched to help pupils learn the intended curriculum. In most lessons, teachers check pupils' understanding of the learning. However, in a few subjects teachers do not check carefully enough that pupils have understood the important knowledge they need to learn as successfully as they could.

Staff identify and assess pupils' needs effectively. Staff provide support so that pupils with SEND progress well through the curriculum. Teachers adapt materials so that these pupils can learn the same knowledge as their peers.

Some pupils with SEND also receive well-planned, one-to-one support so that they do not miss out on learning important ideas in a subject.The school prioritises reading. Many pupils have additional barriers to their learning.

The school's approach to teaching phonics has helped all pupils to quickly embed new learning. Staff have very secure phonics subject knowledge. They share materials and model the pronunciation of sounds accurately.

Staff assess pupils' knowledge and understanding and adapt the phonics programme to meet all pupils' needs. Books match closely to the sounds that pupils have learned. If any pupils fall behind, they catch up to their peers.

In the early years, children get off to an excellent start. The early years curriculum prepares children well for the next stage of their education. Children cooperate extremely well with each other and happily share resources with friends.

During independent learning times, staff model language expertly and encourage pupils to practise important vocabulary. This helps pupils develop their communication and language skills extremely well.Pupils behave well in class.

They are attentive and respect the views of others. When pupils do become distracted, teachers refocus them, enabling their learning to remain purposeful. The school carefully tracks the attendance of pupils.

Staff support families of pupils whose attendance is low effectively. This helps to ensure that pupils' attendance improves.

The school provides well for pupils' wider development.

Leaders think carefully about the clubs on offer. Some clubs focus on helping pupils who struggle to recognise and cope with their emotions to do so. Pupils lead other clubs such as chess and board games.

This helps them to think of others and show resilience when faced with unexpected situations.

Leaders at all levels have high aspirations for pupils. They share the same inclusive vision and keep pupils at the heart of decision-making.

Staff are positive about the support they receive that helps them to refine their teaching. They are proud to work at the school. The dedicated governing body supports and challenges staff to be their best.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• In a small number of subjects, essential learning has not been identified as clearly as in the rest of the curriculum. Consequently, not all pupils are able to build on prior learning as effectively as they might.

The school should ensure that its ongoing work to identify the specific knowledge that it wants pupils to learn leads to them developing secure knowledge across the whole curriculum. ? In a few subjects, assessment is not yet used consistently well. Staff do not always check whether pupils have learned and remembered what they need to be successful in the future.

Consequently, teachers sometimes move pupils on to new content before they are ready. This slows pupils' learning. The school should ensure that assessment is used effectively in all subjects to identify what pupils know and can do.