Bush Hill Park Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Outcome

Bush Hill Park Primary School continues to be a good school.

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are enthusiastic to learn here. Leaders foster a safe environment, where pupils feel happy. Teachers encourage pupils to respect others, act responsibly and to overcome challenges.

Leaders have high expectations for the academic work and behaviour of all pupils. Low-level disruption is rare and teachers deal with it quickly when it happens. Pupils are safe.

They said that everyone gets along, they are kind to each other and that they make friends easily.

Leaders organise sports clubs, including football, gymnastics and basketball. The school choir is popular,... too.

Children in the early years attend educational visits to the local area, such as the park. All pupils learn about different world faiths and visit different places of worship, including churches and mosques.

Leaders arrange leadership opportunities for pupils.

For example, older pupils read to younger pupils and Year 6 rangers help younger pupils play sensibly during breaktimes. Pupils are taught to help in the local community. Some pupils go litter picking and others plant flowers in the local community.

Leaders prioritise pupils' well-being. Pupils use the 'ask-it basket' as one of many ways to tell teachers how they feel.

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

Leaders have designed a broad curriculum, equivalent to the national curriculum in breadth and ambition.

In many subjects, leaders have clarified the knowledge and skills that pupils need to know. In subjects such as in reading, leaders' thinking is strong. Teachers introduce pupils to increasingly complex knowledge as they progress through the school.

For example, in computer science, children learn who to speak to if they have a problem online when in Reception. In Year 2, they learn what to do, for example, if a stranger tries to speak to them online. By Year 6, pupils discuss the legal consequences of sharing others' work online.

In a few subjects, including some aspects of the early years, leaders' curriculum thinking is not as complete. In these subjects, sometimes the school has not broken down precisely the key knowledge that pupils should know and remember over time.

Teachers and subject leaders have sufficient subject knowledge.

Generally, teachers present new information to pupils clearly. For example, in mathematics, pupils are introduced to new knowledge step by step and teachers check carefully that pupils understand their learning. In Reception, children showed that they had learned simple sums securely, including three plus two equals five and one plus four also equals five.

However, across the school, teaching does not check as routinely that pupils understand what has been taught or check frequently that pupils remember what they have learned.

Leaders have crafted their reading curriculum over many years. Leaders and staff know what pupils need to learn and when in order to be able to read.

Leaders provide teachers with the training that they need to deliver reading effectively. In Reception, teachers support children to learn and practise new words. Teachers give pupils books every week to help them practise and revise the words that they are learning.

Any pupils who require support to improve their fluency receive it through regular catch-up sessions throughout the week. Leaders also encourage pupils to develop a love of reading throughout their time at school. For example, a group of pupils in Year 6 spoke enthusiastically about the fiction, non-fiction and graphic novel books that they were reading for pleasure.

Leaders identify and support pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). They work closely with the parents and carers, pupils and external agencies to ensure that pupils with SEND get the support that they need. Leaders support teachers to adapt their teaching, so that pupils with SEND have the help that they need to learn.

Leaders have high expectations of pupils' behaviour. They teach pupils to follow 'relentless routines', so that pupils move quickly and efficiently between activities in class and around the school. Typically, pupils are attentive throughout their classes.

They interact with courtesy and take turns to speak.

Outings and visits enhance pupils' learning. For instance, pupils visited the Science Museum and the Natural History Museum.

Through the school's personal development classes and during assemblies, leaders make sure that pupils are taught to recognise healthy relationships and how to keep themselves safe. The school council makes recommendations that leaders act on. For example, pupils now have access to a greater range of sports activities led by specialist coaches at breaktimes, after the school council suggested this.

Staff said that they are very grateful for the work that leaders do to reduce teachers' workload and prioritise their well-being. They said that they feel well supported by leaders, who listen and who are approachable. Those responsible for governance check that leaders carry out their work effectively.

They work proactively, come into the school regularly and gather and respond to the views of parents and staff.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

Staff all contribute to keeping pupils safe.

Staff know the signs that suggest a pupil may be at risk from harm. If they see these signs, they report them to leaders swiftly. Leaders act on any concerns that may arise.

Leaders organise a range of support for pupils in school, to support pupils' mental well-being in particular. In addition, leaders work closely with a range of external partners, including the local authority, to ensure that pupils who need help receive targeted and timely support.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• In a few subjects, the school has not isolated and sequenced all the key knowledge that pupils need to learn over time.

In these subjects, sometimes pupils cannot connect new knowledge to their prior learning and they do not develop the deep understanding of important concepts in these subjects that they could. The school should ensure that the key knowledge that they want pupils to know is clearly identified and sequenced across all subjects and phases. ? Teaching does not check that pupils understand and remember what they have been taught as routinely as it should.

This means that pupils sometimes struggle to understand new and more complex knowledge that builds on prior learning. Leaders should ensure that teaching systematically checks that all pupils understand and remember what they have been taught and adapt future teaching as necessary.

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 first ungraded inspection since we judged the school to be good in December 2017.