Cheriton Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy attending this welcoming and caring school. Everyone understands its core mission: 'Be the best we can be'. All adults have high expectations for pupils' behaviour and conduct.

They have created a culture of kindness. One parent's comment summed up the view of many, stating that this is a 'wonderfully nurturing school'.

Leaders have created a calm and orderly environment.

During lessons, pupils are attentive and keen to learn. Pupils learn well in core areas such as reading. However, this is not the case across all subjects as leaders have not yet decided the important knowledge pupils should learn.

Pupils are keen to support each other.... They all know the 'leader in me' values and say these have made their school better. Deliberate unkindness does not happen often.

If it does, staff help pupils to deal with it. Parents agree. Pupils take an active role in their community, most recently by working with local charities to rewild the River Itchen, which runs through the village.

Pupils have many opportunities to attend a wide range of clubs, such as cookery and macrame. Many learn to play instruments, like the piano. Pupils also enjoy trips to places including the historical Portsmouth Dockyard and Marwell Zoo.

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

Pupils do not achieve as well as they should. This is because the curriculum is still in development. Leaders have not given teachers enough information about the small steps pupils need to build their learning.

As a result, teachers do not always plan activities that build on pupils' existing understanding and sometimes introduce new content before pupils are ready. Likewise, the early years curriculum is not thought through well enough to ensure children gain the knowledge and skills to prepare them for Year 1.

Pupils learn well in reading and mathematics.

This is because leaders are clear about the knowledge pupils need to learn and the order in which they should learn it, from early years onwards. During lessons, teachers check for gaps in understanding to make sure pupils know what they should before introducing new ideas. Children in the early years access a range of activities that are engaging and deepen their learning.

Across the classes, teachers adapt tasks so all pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities, are able to learn and remember the core skills. Pupils at risk of falling behind are supported during the lesson or after in small groups to help them keep up.

Ensuring pupils learn to read fluently is a priority for leaders.

The new phonics programme is well structured and is already having an impact. This is because staff delivering the programme have strong subject knowledge. They teach pupils to identify and pronounce sounds and help them to remember them.

Pupils read from books that contain these sounds, developing their reading ability. They become confident readers and are able to access high-quality texts throughout the curriculum. Subject leaders do not always know what pupils should learn and when in their curriculum areas.

This lack of precision limits their ability to support teachers in some subjects. Many subject leaders are new to the school. They have not had training for their leadership roles.

This means that the effectiveness of leaders' checks on how well subjects are delivered and where improvements are needed varies across the curriculum.

Many aspects of pupils' wider development are well established. Lessons across the curriculum help pupils to understand how to identify risks, and how to build healthy relationships.

They learn about different faiths and understand others may not share their beliefs or opinions. Pupils have a strong understanding of right and wrong. They have learned about democracy through voting in school council elections.

Pupils are respectful and tolerant of others. Breaktimes are calm and pupils of all ages play together harmoniously. Children in early years listen attentively, share resources and engage readily in their learning.

Throughout the school, pupils are quick to follow routines. They are keen to help each other and their teachers. Older pupils act as reading buddies for younger children in the early years class.

Pupils also enjoy celebrating when their classmates get headteacher awards during the weekly assembly.

Governors are fully supportive of the school. They carry out checks on leaders' work and review the information leaders share with them.

However, they are not as well informed about the quality of all areas of the wider curriculum. This hinders their ability to hold leaders to account for school improvement.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

Leaders ensure that staff receive regular training so they know about signs that might indicate that a pupil is at risk from harm. Staff know it is everyone's responsibility to keep pupils safe. They know whom to go to with concerns.

Leaders work with external agencies to secure support for pupils and their families. However, record-keeping is not as robust as it could be. In a small number of cases, safeguarding files were incomplete.

This is because leaders have not always routinely updated them. These records are now complete.

Pupils have a good awareness of staying safe in different ways, including online safety.

They know they should report concerns to an adult and know not to share personal information with strangers.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• Leaders' curriculum thinking is still at an early stage in most subjects. This means that pupils do not always learn or remember the key information they need for what comes next.

Leaders should ensure that everybody is clear on how learning should build over time and that teachers are checking this carefully and adjusting teaching where needed. ? The role of subject leaders is underdeveloped. They do not all have the expertise and skills to support colleagues and improve pupils' learning.

Senior leaders should ensure that subject leaders are well trained and supported to carry out their roles effectively. ? Arrangements for recording safeguarding concerns are not as robust as they could be. Leaders need to make sure that systems are in place that enable them to review all the evidence about a pupil to keep them safe.