Churchfield CofE Primary Academy

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Churchfield Primary Academy is a safe and happy place for pupils to learn. Staff care deeply about the pupils and know their families well. Pupils feel safe in school and know they can talk to staff if they are worried.

Parents appreciate the support and help they get from the school.

The school wants every pupil to learn to read and receive a broad, ambitious curriculum. It wants pupils to do well in school.

Pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), mostly meet these expectations to achieve well. Children in the early years achieve exceptionally well.

Behaviour is good in school.

Staff are confident ...in spotting pupils who might need more support and quickly give them the help they need. If bullying happens, it is dealt with quickly.

Pupils are proud of their school.

They enjoy the opportunities to take extra responsibilities to help look after the school and one another. Pupils go on many exciting trips, and the school encourages pupils to participate actively in community events. For example, Year 6 pupils read out the names of those soldiers from Rugeley who have lost their lives in the town's remembrance service.

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

The school has won the confidence of staff and parents over the last few years. The school is successfully making important changes to improve the curriculum. These changes are beginning to make a difference to pupils' outcomes as they leave key stage 2, but more time is required to fully realise the impact of these changes.

The school has developed a curriculum for teachers to follow. The most successful subjects are those where the school has implemented its own initiatives. For example, in mathematics, the daily themed starters have a positive impact on improving arithmetic skills.

However, the curriculum in some subjects is not yet fully embedded, so pupils are not always building on their prior learning.

The curriculum in the early years is exceptionally well planned and considers the needs of all pupils. Helping pupils to develop a rich vocabulary, a love of books, and a strong understanding of early mathematical skills is well embedded into the curriculum and practice in these classes.

Children in the early years get off to an exceptionally good start in school. When they leave the Reception class, they are ready for the key stage 1 curriculum.

Pupils achieve well where the use of resources and learning activities by teachers is effective.

However, in a few subjects, the choice of learning activities is not always appropriate. Where this is the case, pupils are not always sure about what they are supposed to be learning. As a result, some pupils cannot always build on their learning over time and do not consistently achieve as well as they could.

Teaching pupils to read and helping them to be interested in books are priorities for everyone in the school. Teaching early phonics skills starts in Nursery and continues through to Year 2. Staff know what sounds to teach and when, and they deliver effective daily lessons with skill and confidence.

If pupils need help to catch up, they receive extra support. This support is effective. Reading is encouraged across the curriculum.

Pupils enjoy their time in the school library, where they choose from a range of books. Pupil librarians take pride in looking after the library.

The school uses a range of ways of checking on how well pupils are learning.

On occasion, these checks do not always help teachers to accurately pinpoint what pupils know or what they need to learn next. Some pupils are ready to move on with their learning. Other pupils need more support to address gaps in their knowledge.

The school uses assessments to help to identify the needs of pupils. Most pupils with SEND receive appropriate support, which helps them to be successful learners. However, for a few pupils with SEND, the school does not determine well enough the precise next steps or the best adaptations to support pupils.

Pupils know how the school expects them to behave, and they take pride in behaving well. They are attentive to adults and other pupils in lessons and are eager to contribute and discuss their ideas. Pupils cooperate well with each other.

They share and listen attentively to each other's ideas. Children in the early years have settled exceptionally quickly and already know the classroom routines, which they are eager to follow.

Each month, a core value forms part of the wider curriculum.

This curriculum helps pupils to develop empathy and understanding of other cultures and traditions. Pupils enjoy the exciting trips, which help to deepen their understanding of different cultures and traditions.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• The school has not ensured that assessment strategies are used consistently and effectively in order to check how well all pupils are learning the intended curriculum. As a result, staff are unclear how well pupils understand and remember the curriculum in some subjects. Leaders should make sure that assessment strategies are used consistently and effectively so that they can more accurately identify when pupils are ready to move on.

• The needs of a few pupils with SEND are not met well enough. These pupils do not consistently receive the adaptations they need to achieve well. The school should ensure that staff develop the skills and knowledge to use a range of appropriate strategies to pave the way for increased success for these pupils.

• The curriculum for the foundation subjects is in the early stages of implementation and is not yet fully embedded. Pupils are not building on their prior learning in a way that helps them to know more and remember more. The school should support staff's subject knowledge and expertise so that they can implement these subjects well to secure pupils' knowledge and understanding.