Crosslee Community Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Crosslee Community Primary School does not provide an acceptable standard of education to pupils. Pupils, and children in the early years, do not experience a well-designed curriculum that meets their learning needs.

Pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), underachieve considerably.

Leaders' expectations for pupils' achievement are low. Pupils, and children in the early years, do not gain the knowledge or skills that they require to be fully prepared for the next steps in their education.

Leaders do not have high expectations of pupils' behaviour.

Disruptions to lessons are frequent. Pupils' behaviour is not... well managed by staff. This impedes how well pupils learn.

Although pupils appear happy in school, many pupils who spoke with inspectors said that they did not feel safe in some areas of the school building. This is because they are subjected to boisterous and unruly behaviour. Leaders do not safeguard pupils effectively.

The use of homophobic and derogatory language is common across the school. Pupils explained that they often hear unkind name-calling. They are not confident that leaders will sort this out.

Inspectors found that leaders do not deal with incidents of bullying effectively enough.

Pupils enjoy learning in the school's spacious outdoor grounds. Pupils take part in after-school clubs such as yoga, meditation and hockey.

However, the wider personal development programme is ineffective. It does not allow pupils to learn about the diverse nature of British society.

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

Leaders and governors have not set out an ambitious curriculum that meets the needs of pupils, including children in the early years.

They have not identified the essential knowledge that pupils must learn, nor the order in which pupils will learn new topics and concepts. While more recently leaders have taken some steps to improve this situation, it is far too early to see any impact on pupils' learning. As a result, pupils, and children in the early years, do not have the knowledge, skills and understanding that they should.

They are ill-prepared for the next stage of their education.

Over time, teachers have been unclear about what they are supposed to teach. As a result, pupils experience a series of jumbled up lessons.

Moreover, teachers do not always present information in a way which helps pupils to learn. They do not choose the most appropriate activities to teach new topics and concepts.

Teachers do not check how well pupils are learning new information.

This further compounds pupils' ability to learn well. Pupils develop misunderstandings and wide gaps in their knowledge of different subjects.

Leaders do not routinely check how well the curriculum is being delivered.

Leaders and governors have not done enough to address the weaknesses in the curriculum. The quality of the curriculum has declined considerably over time. Pupils, including children in the early years, have been let down.

Leaders have recently introduced a new phonics programme. Unlike other areas of the curriculum, this structured programme helps teachers to know what pupils should learn. As a result, teachers are clear about the next steps for pupils.

Staff have received some training to help them to deliver the phonics programme. However, several staff remain insecure in their knowledge of sounds and the letters that they represent. This impedes how well some pupils learn to read.

It prevents pupils who struggle with reading from catching up with their peers. Too many pupils cannot read as well as they should do by the end of key stage 2.

Pupils with SEND do not achieve well across the curriculum.

Over time, leaders have failed to identify their additional needs. While this is beginning to change, it is too early to see any meaningful evidence of impact. For far too long, there has not been enough support in place for pupils with SEND.

Teachers have not received enough training to give them the skills that they need to adapt the delivery of the curriculum for these pupils. Leaders do not have a secure oversight of how well these pupils are learning. Consequently, pupils with SEND do not have their needs met.

Many pupils and children do not display positive attitudes to learning. They do not concentrate as well as they should in lessons. Some pupils disturb other pupils' learning.

Teachers deal with poor behaviour in different ways. As a result, pupils find it difficult to know what is expected of them or how to improve their behaviour. In addition, leaders have not ensured that pupils and children attend school as often as they should.

Pupils who are absent do not catch up sufficiently well on missed learning.

Leaders have recently introduced a new curriculum to support pupils' wider personal development. Pupils know how to keep themselves healthy and fit.

However, they do not learn enough about different religions, cultures or societies. Pupils also do not learn about different types of families. They explained to inspectors how they frequently hear discriminatory language.

Pupils are ill-prepared for life in modern Britain.

Governors and leaders have not kept a close enough check on how well pupils are learning. They have not taken effective action to improve the school since the previous inspection.

The overall quality of education has declined considerably for pupils. Despite this, leaders do take account of staff's workload. Staff appreciate the support that they receive.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are not effective.

Leaders ensure staff receive regular safeguarding training. Staff are alert to spotting the signs of potential harm in pupils.

Nevertheless, leaders have not always taken effective and decisive action to help pupils stay safe when staff have reported safeguarding concerns. They have not acted quickly enough to protect the well-being of some pupils. Leaders have been lax in their approaches to protecting pupils from the risk of harm.

Leaders work with several agencies to try to make sure that pupils receive the support that they need. However, sometimes, leaders do not refer pupils to external agencies swiftly enough. This prevents pupils and their families from receiving the timely support that they need.

Pupils learn about how to keep themselves safe, including online. However, they feel unsafe in certain parts of the school building.

Governors have not fulfilled their statutory duty to safeguard pupils.

They have not had sufficient oversight of how well leaders safeguard and protect pupils from potential harm.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• Leaders and governors do not fulfil their statutory duties to keep pupils safe. Leaders do not always identify, manage and help pupils who may be at risk of harm.

Added to this, some pupils do not feel safe in parts of the school. This puts some pupils at risk of harm. Leaders and governors must ensure that safeguarding procedures are fully effective and that pupils feel safe at school.

• Leaders and governors have overseen a decline in the quality of education that pupils receive. They have not ensured that pupils, and children in the early years, benefit from an ambitious, well-designed and well-ordered curriculum. This means that pupils, and children in the early years, underachieve considerably.

Leaders must take immediate action to arrest the decline in the quality of education that pupils receive. They must implement a curriculum that enables pupils and children to achieve well. ? Teachers do not present information clearly to pupils.

They do not choose the most appropriate learning activities to deliver new topics and concepts. Consequently, pupils, and children in the early years, have wide gaps in their knowledge, skills and understanding. Leaders must ensure teachers know exactly what content to teach and that they are trained to make appropriate pedagogical choices when delivering new knowledge.

• Leaders and teachers do not check on how well pupils are remembering the curriculum. They do not successfully identify pupils and children who have developed misconceptions. Consequently, pupils, and children in the early years, develop wide gaps in their knowledge.

Leaders must make sure that teachers are using assessment strategies well to design the next steps in pupils' and children's learning and to address any misunderstandings. ? Leaders have not identified the additional needs of pupils with SEND quickly enough. They have not trained staff to adapt the delivery of the curriculum for these pupils.

As a result, pupils with SEND fail to achieve well. They do not have their needs met. Leaders must ensure that the quality of education for pupils with SEND improves quickly.

They must train staff to adapt the delivery of the curriculum. Leaders must also ensure that they identify pupils' additional learning needs in a timely manner. ? Leaders have not ensured that pupils have the phonics knowledge or reading skills that they need to be confident and fluent readers.

They have not ensured that some staff know the sounds that they must teach to children and pupils. Consequently, many pupils struggle to read. This prevents them from learning other areas of the curriculum as well as they should.

Leaders must improve the teaching of phonics and develop further the reading curriculum. ? Many pupils do not display positive attitudes to learning and some do not attend school regularly enough. Staff do not deal with pupils' behaviour consistently well.

These issues prevent pupils from learning. Leaders must ensure that staff are trained to deal with pupils' behaviour more effectively and they must ensure that pupils attitudes to learning improve. They should also improve pupils' rates of attendance.

• The personal development curriculum is under-developed. Leaders do not ensure that pupils learn about the diversity of modern Britain. As a result, pupils use derogatory and homophobic language in school.

They do not know how to be tolerant and respectful of one another. Leaders must ensure that the personal development programme meets pupils' learning needs.

Leaders and those responsible for governance may not appoint early career teachers before the next monitoring inspection.