Crawford Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

The school community, including pupils, parents, carers and staff, told us that there is something 'special' about Crawford. Pupils are very positive about their learning, particularly in subjects such as history, geography and writing. We saw that pupils come into school with a sense of purpose so that lessons start promptly.

Children settle well when they join the early years, which provides them with a safe and positive start to their education.

It was clear to us that adults have high expectations of pupils' conduct and achievement. Pupils have high expectations of themselves and their peers.

Pupils show tremendous respect and tolerance for each other in ...lessons and around the school. They told us that teachers help them to reflect on their behaviour. Staff, pupils and governors are extremely positive about the house points system.

They explained that it brings a shared sense of teamwork to the school community. Pupils are proud of their school uniform. They take responsibility for behaving exceptionally well because they do not want to let their team down.

Pupils insisted that bullying is rare because they all follow the rules. Older pupils are trained to help deal with disagreements and sort out any problems between friends. Pupils were confident that the school's rules and values support them to be safe and happy and do the right thing.

They trust their teachers to help and protect them.

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

All leaders, including governors, are ambitious for pupils and have been highly effective at designing what pupils should learn. Subject planning is well developed across key stages 1 and 2 and provides pupils with a range of experiences that broaden their horizons.

Subjects such as history and geography are exceptionally well planned and well taught. Consequently, all pupils are interested in their learning and remember a lot of relevant knowledge from the topics they have studied. For example, when pupils in Year 5 learn about the plague, they are able to build on the knowledge they gained in Year 2 about The Great Fire of London.

Planning is not quite as thorough across subjects in the early years. For example, activities and resources do not consistently reflect topics as well as they could.

Leaders introduced a new approach to teaching mathematics.

These changes have resulted in pupils achieving well in Years 1, 2 and 3. However, older pupils have not learned mathematics in the same way. Consequently, some pupils in Years 4, 5 and 6 have gaps in their mathematical knowledge.

In most cases, teachers correctly identify when pupils need more support and provide appropriate extra help. However, a few pupils find work too hard because they do not have the underlying knowledge and skills needed to tackle it.

Leaders and staff focus on teaching children to read right from the start of the Nursery Year.

Staff model correct pronunciation and give children different ways to remember the essential skills they need in order to read. Leaders have successfully established a love of reading throughout the school. Visits to the library are met with pupils' whoops of delight.

Older pupils talk confidently about the books they are reading, what types of books they prefer and why reading is such an important life skill.

Pupils in all year groups have extremely positive attitudes to learning. Lessons run very smoothly.

Pupils show resilience in their learning and recognise that this helps them to improve because they do not give up.

We heard about the impressive range of enrichment activities. Leaders ensure that these are accessed equally by all pupils.

Pupils thrive on the opportunities they get for personal development. For example, on a recent 'democracy day' pupils voted for one of their peers to become 'prime minister'. Along with an elected 'member of parliament' from each class, the prime minister accompanied school leaders to see what learning was like and where improvements could be made.

Leaders, including governors, are fully committed to providing excellent learning opportunities for all, including those who join the school part way through their primary education. However, a few pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) achieve less well than they could because work is not adjusted for them precisely enough.

Leaders are exceptionally mindful of staff workload.

Staff have nothing but praise for the way leaders consider their well-being. They describe working here as feeling like part of one big family, with pupils at the heart of it.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

There are strong systems in place for keeping pupils safe. For example, the administration of first aid and the provision for pupils with medical needs are very well organised. Checks on the suitability of adults who work at or visit the school are thorough.

Leaders ensure that training is relevant and regular. Staff have a high level of awareness of what to do if they have any concerns. It was clear to us that a culture of vigilance for pupils' safety and well-being is well established throughout the school.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

The mathematics curriculum is exceptionally strong in key stage 1. To strengthen it further in Years 4, 5 and 6, leaders must continue to support teachers to identify and bridge gaps in pupils' prior learning. .

The vast majority of pupils learn well. However, there are a few pupils with SEND who do not do as well as they could. This is because the curriculum is not always sufficiently refined to meet their needs optimally.

Leaders need to continue to hone staff's expertise to ensure that targets, resources and other support for these pupils are always highly appropriate. . Leaders need to continue to refine planning across the early years so that activities and resources fully reflect topics.

Also at this postcode