Comberton Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Comberton Primary School is a caring community. Pupils enjoy being part of this happy, inclusive school. Staff build positive relationships with pupils.

Pupils feel safe. They know that they can talk to adults about any worries and they will sort things out for them.The school has high expectations for pupils' learning.

Pupils rise to these expectations and achieve well, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND).

Pupils are polite to one another and respectful to adults. The school has introduced a new approach to managing behaviour and, mostly, pupils behave well.

However, where staff do not consistently apply the beh...aviour policy, some pupils sometimes do not uphold the school's high expectations.

Pupils take responsibility for a range of roles in school. For example, the 'sports crew' encourage pupils to be physically active and demonstrate the school games' values.

A range of carefully chosen visits and visitors are used to enhance the curriculum and bring learning to life. The school provides a well-planned programme of enrichment. Pupils appreciate the wide range of clubs on offer to them, such as football, netball and chess.

They talk positively about how these opportunities allow them to develop their talents and interests.

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

The school has developed a broad and ambitious curriculum for all pupils. It has mapped out the important knowledge pupils should learn from the early years onwards.

From Nursery, there is a strong focus on developing children's vocabulary and communication skills. Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities are accurately identified and given the support they need to access the full curriculum.

Teachers know what they should teach and how the curriculum develops over time.

They deliver the well-designed curriculum effectively. Pupils appreciate the support offered to improve and deepen their learning in core subjects. Where learning is most effective, teachers check carefully on what pupils have remembered.

They address misconceptions and help pupils build their understanding. However, in some subjects, these checks are less effective. This can prevent pupils from building the depth of knowledge they need.

The school fosters a love of reading and stories from the start. Children in the early years, enjoy listening to stories and re-enact them in their play. The school ensures a wide variety of books are available for pupils to borrow from the library and the 'golden shelf'.

Pupils speak with enthusiasm about their favourite authors and enjoy listening to stories by the author of the half term. The school also involves parents and carers in reading initiatives, such as inviting them to school to share stories as part of 'Welcome Wednesdays'. The published outcomes at the end of key stage 2 in 2024 show that pupils consistently achieve very well in reading.

The school prioritises the effective teaching of early reading. Staff are well trained and use their strong subject knowledge to teach letter sounds effectively. Pupils who fall behind their peers get the help they need to catch up.

In phonics lessons, staff provide pupils with opportunities to practise writing sounds and words. However, staff do not always give sufficient attention to developing younger pupils' letter formation. As a result, weak letter formation and handwriting in early years continue into key stage 1 for some pupils.

Children in early years are happy and well cared for. They get a positive start to their education. Children interact with each other and adults positively.

They sustain concentration through a range of engaging learning activities. Adults build on children's understanding using carefully considered questions. This enables children to build their knowledge over time.

The school promotes pupils' personal development very well. Pupils develop an understanding of how to stay safe and healthy. They know about the importance of mental health.

The well-being champions remind everybody of the importance of being emotionally healthy. Pupils visit places of worship to learn about different views and beliefs. The school provides many opportunities for pupils to become active citizens in the local community.

The school monitors attendance closely. The school puts in place appropriate strategies and support for pupils and families, so that attendance improves. Pupils are keen to come to school and enjoy learning.

Leaders are dedicated to continuing to improve the school in all areas. Staff feel valued and are positive about their experience of working at the school. They appreciate the school's consideration of their workload.

Governors know the school well. They provide effective challenge and support to the school.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• Assessment is not used well enough in some wider curriculum subjects. As a result, some pupils have gaps in their understanding and do not build their knowledge well enough over time. The school needs to ensure that teachers use assessment effectively across all subjects and use this information to inform future learning.

• The school's focus on letter formation for children in the early years is not sharp enough. As a result, not enough children in the early years form their letters correctly. The school should focus on teaching correct letter formation and provide more practise to improve handwriting fluency.

On occasion, the school's high expectations of pupils' conduct are not always upheld consistently. This means that pupils do not routinely demonstrate high levels of self-control. The school must ensure its expectations of behaviour are understood by all staff, so that the behaviour policy is applied consistently.