Christ Church CofE Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils at this school do not receive an acceptable standard of education.

The school does not have high enough expectations of pupils' achievement. It has not ensured that the curriculum supports pupils to achieve well enough. In addition, pupils are not supported to become independent learners.

They are not well prepared for their next stage of education. This includes pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). These pupils often do not get the right support that they need to succeed.

Most pupils are happy in school, and many say that they feel safe. The school has recently set out much clearer expectations for behaviour. Many pupils m...eet these expectations.

In lessons, most pupils behave well. When behaviour is less positive, it is usually because the activities that pupils complete do not match their needs.

Pupils enjoy attending 'film club', but they do not have opportunities to develop talents and interests outside of lessons.

Many parents and carers, and pupils, would appreciate it if this were to improve. Pupils are proud to be school councillors. However, the school does not do enough to ensure pupils benefit from these experiences.

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

The school has undergone a turbulent time recently. This includes many changes to leadership. This has limited the school's ability to bring about the swift improvements that are necessary to ensure that pupils receive a high-quality education.

Governors do not have a realistic view of how well the school is performing. This is because the information they receive is not accurate enough. The school has started to address some of its shortcomings.

However, it is not checking to see if these changes are making a positive difference. Currently, the school does not have the capacity that it needs to resolve the issues that it faces.

The teaching of phonics is not good enough.

Staff do not pronounce the sounds that letters represent accurately. Pupils then copy these incorrect sounds. This hinders their ability to blend sounds together to read new words fluently.

Staff do not routinely identify the precise gaps that pupils have in their reading knowledge. Staff do not have the necessary skills to teach pupils who struggle to read. The support that pupils receive to help them catch up is often ineffective.

Pupils have too few opportunities to read books that match their phonics knowledge. This further hampers their progress in learning to read. The weaknesses that pupils have in reading limits their ability to access other curriculum areas.

This is particularly true for pupils with SEND.

The curriculums in many subjects lack structure and cohesion. They do not enable pupils to develop their knowledge in a logical way.

This means that pupils cannot build successfully on their prior learning. Teachers have not received the guidance and support that they need to develop their subject knowledge or their expertise. This hampers their ability to deliver the curriculum effectively.

Teachers' checks on pupils' learning do not identify and address any gaps or misconceptions in their learning. This limits pupils' progress through the curriculum.Recently, the school has started to introduce changes to the curriculum in a few subjects.

For example, in mathematics, staff know what to teach and when to teach subject content. As a result, in these subjects, pupils can remember more of what they have been taught. However, these changes are too new to make up for the gaps that have developed in pupils' knowledge over time.

Many pupils do not reach the expected standard in reading, writing and mathematics by the time that they leave Year 6.

The curriculum in the early years is stronger than in key stages 1 and 2. However, inconsistencies remain in how well the curriculum is delivered.

Staff do not tailor their teaching to address children's individual needs well enough. Opportunities to develop and enhance children's language are variable. This means that some children do not develop their communication skills as well as they should.

There is a lack of ambition for those pupils who attend the specially resourced provision for pupils with SEND (specially resourced provision). They do not get the same equality of opportunity as other pupils in the school. For example, getting the opportunity to spend time with their peers in the mainstream classes or attend trips that are available to other pupils.

The school has not ensured that the staff who work with these pupils are suitably trained, understand pupils' needs or have the skills to support them. The support that pupils with SEND in the mainstream classes receive is variable. It does not help these pupils to achieve as well as they should.

Pupils with SEND rely too heavily on adults modelling or completing work for them. This limits their ability to develop into independent, successful learners.

Behaviour has improved for most pupils.

However, many pupils with SEND struggle to manage their behaviour. This is because their needs have not been identified well enough. This is the same for attendance.

The school now looks more closely for patterns in absence to identify the groups that are absent most frequently. However, this is not resulting in a marked improvement in how regularly some pupils, including vulnerable pupils, attend school.

The school has adopted a structured programme to teach pupils about keeping themselves safe.

They have started to teach pupils that it is not acceptable to treat people differently because of the way they live their lives or the different beliefs that they hold. The school also has a structured series of assemblies that teach pupils about world events. These are beginning to help pupils learn about the difficulties that some people face in different parts of the world.

However, pupils find it difficult to recall some of the essential information that they need in readiness for life in modern Britain.

Most staff feel well supported. However, some of the staff, who spoke to inspectors, said they would value more guidance and opportunities for professional development.

Most parents and carers are complimentary about the care, support and guidance that their children receive.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• The curriculum in many subjects is not well designed to enable pupils to build their knowledge over time.

As a result, pupils do not learn the knowledge and skills that they need in sufficient depth. They are not prepared for their next stage of education. The school must ensure the curriculum enables pupils to achieve well.

• The school has not ensured that staff use assessment information effectively to identify where pupils have gaps in their knowledge. This means that gaps and misconceptions are not addressed. This limits pupils' progress through the curriculum.

The school should ensure that all staff accurately identify and then address gaps in pupils' learning. ? The delivery of the phonics programme is not effective. The school has not ensured that pupils who find reading difficult catch up quickly enough.

Often, the books that pupils read are not well matched to the sounds that they know. Staff do not model sounds accurately. As a result, pupils do not learn to read well enough to help them access the curriculum.

The school must ensure that staff receive the support that they need to teach the phonics programme effectively. ? The school has not ensured that staff receive the guidance that they need to meet the needs of pupils with SEND in the mainstream classes and in the specially resourced provision. This includes understanding why some pupils with SEND behave as they do.

The lack of effective support means that these pupils do not access the curriculum as well as they should, which limits their progress. The school must ensure that staff have the knowledge and expertise that they need, so that pupils with SEND thrive academically and are included in all aspects of school life. ? The school's actions to improve the quality of education have been too slow.

Recent changes are not checked sufficiently well to make sure that they are making a positive difference. The school has not provided staff with the guidance that they need to help pupils learn. As a result, pupils do not achieve well.

The school must ensure that it builds capacity to tackle its weaknesses so that changes are sustained over time. ? Members of the governing body have not provided effective support and challenge to improve the quality of education on offer to all pupils. This has led to pupils making weak gains in their knowledge over time.

Governors must ensure that they have the expertise that they need to hold the school to account for its work. ? Children in the early years do not develop their basic communication and language in a systematic way. This creates gaps in children's language acquisition and does not prepare them well for key stage 1 and beyond.

The school should carefully consider its approach to early language development and ensure that there is a sharp focus on all children developing early communication and vocabulary.The school may not appoint early career teachers before the next monitoring inspection. The position regarding the appointment of early career teachers will be considered again during any monitoring inspection we carry out.