Brooklands Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy their time at Brooklands Primary School. They behave exceptionally well and develop excellent attitudes to learning.

They are confident and articulate when engaging in conversations with each other and with the staff who teach them. Pupils told inspectors that they feel safe and well looked after in school. They view the school as one enormous family.

They said that if they were concerned about bullying, they could go to any member of staff for help. They are confident that adults would deal with such issues promptly.

Leaders, including governors, have high expectations for all aspects of school life.

They provide pupils with many opport...unities to develop leadership skills. For example, older pupils organise events and supervise clubs for other year groups. Pupils are taught how to look after themselves.

They learn about the importance of eating healthily. They also learn about road safety and how to stay safe while working or playing online.

Before the COVID-19 pandemic, pupils enjoyed a wide range of after-school clubs and inter-school sporting events.

Staff are gradually reintroducing these activities, along with educational trips and residential visits.

The new senior leadership team has wasted no time in gaining the unwavering support of the staff team. Staff are fully supportive of the actions that leaders are taking to further improve the quality of education.

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

Pupils study a curriculum which is well planned and well sequenced. Subject leaders have thought carefully about how to order the curriculum so that pupils build on their previous learning. This helps pupils to learn more and remember more as they move through the school.

Many pupils who met with inspectors demonstrated a deep understanding of the subjects that they are studying. In conversations with inspectors, some older pupils were able to discuss how their teachers had made learning memorable. They could also recall key knowledge that they had learned in previous years.

Reading has a high profile at Brooklands. Teachers make sure that pupils develop a love of reading by introducing them to a wide range of books. Staff have been well trained in the teaching of phonics.

They ensure that children in the Reception Year practise the sounds that they are learning regularly. Younger pupils soon develop their phonics knowledge and the skills needed to develop into independent readers. Many older pupils are avid readers, who have knowledge of a wide range of authors and genres.

Subject leaders have played an important role in developing the school's curriculum. They also keep a check on how well pupils are learning in each subject. However, some subject leaders have a limited understanding of how learning in the Nursery and Reception classes is structured.

They are unsure how this learning prepares children for key stage 1.

Pupils thrive in this school's positive and respectful culture. The school's values of friendship, perseverance, respect and honesty are evident in pupils' excellent behaviour and their positive attitudes to learning.

Learning is almost never disrupted by weak behaviour. Pupils show consistently high levels of respect for others. Some older pupils, who met with an inspector, explained how they discuss sensitive issues such as puberty in an extremely mature manner during lessons.

Other pupils spoke of the importance of valuing diversity. They gave examples of how the school celebrates the achievements of black women who have overcome prejudice and discrimination.

Leaders work well with staff to ensure that pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are identified early.

Where necessary, they engage with outside agencies to ensure that pupils get the help that they need. Staff support pupils well and ensure that they do not fall further behind in mathematics and English. However, until recently, pupils with SEND have often been removed from class to receive additional support.

This has prevented them from developing their knowledge across the full range of subjects.

Governors know the school extremely well. They have made a strong contribution to the school's development.

Governors hold leaders to account for the financial and academic performance of the school. They also provide support for school leaders. For example, they helped to ensure that the staff had the capacity to provide remote learning during the recent partial school closures related to COVID-19.

Staff are proud to work at this school. They feel highly valued by school leaders, including governors. This was reflected in many of the responses to the staff survey, one of which read, 'Leaders are continually seeking ways to support staff well-being.'



Parents and carers are highly supportive of the school. The views of many parents were captured in this statement on Parent View: 'Brooklands is a forward thinking and inclusive school promoting equality and diversity, critical thinking and collaborative skills.'

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

There is a strong culture of safeguarding at the school. Staff receive regular safeguarding training. They are quick to act if they have any concerns about a pupil's safety or well-being.

They know whom to go to and have confidence that leaders will deal with issues quickly and appropriately. Pupils learn how to keep themselves safe through the curriculum.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• Some pupils with SEND have missed out on key learning in wider curriculum subjects.

This is because they have been removed from lessons to receive extra support for English and mathematics. Leaders need to ensure that pupils with SEND develop their knowledge and understanding in all areas of the curriculum and that their learning builds sequentially on what they already know. ? Some subject leaders do not have a secure understanding of how children's learning should build from the early years into key stage 1.

As a result, the plans for these subjects do not help teachers in key stage 1 to build effectively on what children have previously learned. Leaders should ensure that subject leaders develop their knowledge of the early years curriculum. They should also ensure that the school's curriculum plans for Year 1 identify how each subject should build on what children have learned in the early years.

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