Brodetsky Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Outcome

Brodetsky Primary School continues to be a good school.

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils happily attend this inclusive school. They know that they are looked after by kind adults who know them well.

Many staff, parents and pupils say that the school is 'like one big family'. Those who need extra support get the help they need. Parents value the conversations they have with staff about their child.

The shared values and ethos of the school are a tangible presence in every aspect of its work.

Where the school has focused its attention, pupils achieve highly. Some make startling progress.

This includes in the early years, where the youngest chil...dren are nurtured and flourish in a carefully considered setting. Most pupils behave well and are kind towards others.

The school provides a range of different opportunities to broaden pupils' experiences and develop their talents and interests.

Some pupils are house captains, while others are reading buddies and enjoy supporting younger pupils with their reading. Year 6 pupils joyfully described the fun they had on their recent residential trip. Many were proud of how they had successfully challenged themselves on different activities, such as traversing the high ropes.

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

In many subjects, the school has carefully considered the important knowledge that it wants pupils to learn. New learning builds from what pupils have been taught before. Teachers skilfully make links between different topics and different subjects.

This brings learning to life for pupils and helps them to see for themselves these different connections. In some subjects, including English and mathematics, pupils achieve highly. However, this is not consistently the case for all subjects.

Where leaders have focused their attention, pupils experience an improved curriculum. Pupils at the early stages of learning to read benefit from the new approach, which is now consistently in place. From the moment they start at the school, children in the early years are immersed in a word-rich environment.

Older pupils who need help to read with confidence are similarly well supported, with personalised interventions delivered by well-trained staff. As a result, pupils rapidly learn to read, with increasing proficiency.

However, in some lessons, pupils do not benefit from a sufficiently ambitious curriculum.

Some teaching approaches do not enable pupils to learn the important knowledge that the school has identified. In a few subjects, pupils do not have regular opportunities to return to what they have been taught before. As a result, some pupils have gaps in their knowledge.

The school knows that some pupils need more help and support. This includes pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). The school now has sharp oversight of this area of provision.

Pupils with high needs are well supported by kind teaching staff, who know them well and appropriately adapt the curriculum so that these pupils continue to access important learning. However, some other pupils with SEND are not consistently well supported to access the curriculum.

A small minority of pupils continue to struggle to meet the school's expectations for their behaviour.

On occasion, low-level disruption gets in the way of learning. A few pupils speak of 'drama' between others in their class. At times, a few pupils are unkind towards others.

Some pupils and their parents are worried by this, including when there is a bullying incident. The school knows there is work to do to further improve behaviour. A new behaviour policy, which includes a restorative justice approach, is increasingly embedded across the school.

Although it is early days, there is increasing evidence that this is helping some pupils make better choices.

The school council is one way in which pupils contribute to the life of the school. With representation from different year groups, these pupils are both ambassadors for their school and role models for others.

The school council members meet with the governing body members to tell them of their views and those of other pupils. Governors listen carefully and follow up any issues. Pupils are proud of how they help and support others, including their friends.

Pupils were keen to speak of how they had recently raised a significant sum of money for their chosen charity.

Staff are proud to work at the school. They know that they are supported by leaders, who listen to them and consider their workload and well-being.

All staff are united by a clear vision to do the very best for pupils and their families. However, leaders' oversight of their work to improve aspects of the school is not sufficiently robust.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

The school has ensured that staff know the signs that suggest a pupil may be at risk of harm. Staff promptly report any concerns they have about pupils and the school rapidly follows these up. Referrals to wider safeguarding partners are made swiftly.

However, on a few occasions, important safeguarding documents do not record in sufficient detail the actions that the school has taken to keep children safe.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• Leaders, including governors, do not keep a close enough strategic oversight of the work to improve the school. This means that they are not able to accurately evaluate the impact of the work that they are doing to improve outcomes for pupils and to check whether the actions they are taking are having the desired impact.

Leaders at all levels should ensure that there is robust oversight of their areas of responsibility, including in the development of subjects, so that clearly identified school improvement priorities are rigorously implemented. ? In a few subjects, pupils struggle to recall what they have been taught before. This is because they have not had sufficient opportunities to regularly revisit important knowledge over time.

Some struggle to make sense of new learning, and their progress through the curriculum is slowed. The school should ensure that pupils can regularly revisit the important knowledge that has been highlighted so that they learn well in all subjects. ? Some pupils do not consistently meet the school's high expectations for their behaviour.

At times, learning is disrupted, and a few pupils are upset by the unkind comments and actions of others. The school should carefully and regularly check that the actions they are taking to improve behaviour are helping pupils to consistently make better choices so that their behaviour improves.

Background

When we have judged a school to be good, we will then normally go into the school about once every four years to confirm that the school remains good.

This is called an ungraded inspection, and it is carried out under section 8 of the Education Act 2005. We do not give graded judgements on an ungraded inspection. However, if we find evidence that a school would now receive a higher or lower grade, then the next inspection will be a graded inspection, which is carried out under section 5 of the Act.

Usually this is within one to two years of the date of the ungraded inspection. If we have serious concerns about safeguarding, behaviour or the quality of education, we will deem the ungraded inspection a graded inspection immediately.

This is the second ungraded inspection since we judged the school to be good in January 2014.

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