Curbar Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy life at Curbar Primary School. In lessons, they display exceptionally positive attitudes to learning.

At playtimes, pupils of all ages play happily together. Older pupils enthusiastically take on roles of responsibility such as playground monitors and reading buddies. They are proud to provide care and support for younger pupils.

Pupils strive to follow the 'Curbar code' and to earn rewards for being good 'Curbar citizens'.

Children in the early years are eager to learn. Staff help them learn to communicate effectively and work together.

The curriculum provides them with an exciting range of activities that is well planned to match their... interests and prepare them very well for key stage 1.

The school provides a safe and nurturing environment that pupils thrive in. Staff know the pupils very well.

Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are well supported to enjoy all the same opportunities as their peers. Pupils learn how to keep themselves safe and healthy. Staff support their well-being and teach them how to take care of their mental health.

Parents and carers appreciate the exceptional levels of care that the school provides for their children.

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

The school has worked hard to develop an ambitious and interesting curriculum. It is designed to help pupils gain knowledge and develop skills to prepare them for their next stage in education.

Staff have clearly identified the important knowledge that pupils should learn across the full range of subjects. The curriculum is well sequenced so that pupils deepen their understanding over time. Many aspects of the curriculum are new.

Subject leaders know their subjects well. Staff have received training to support them to deliver the curriculum. However, the school has not yet established effective routines for checking how well all subjects are being delivered or how well pupils remember what they have learned.

In lessons, staff present new knowledge clearly. There is a strong focus on literacy and helping pupils to gain the vocabulary they need to understand and discuss increasingly-complex concepts. Lesson activities are designed to help pupils learn the important knowledge.

On some occasions, lessons are not adapted well enough to support all pupils to gain knowledge quickly and securely. Pupils with SEND benefit from effective support from staff.

Pupils try hard in lessons.

They produce work of good quality. Staff regularly check pupils' learning and provide useful feedback to help them improve their understanding. However, sometimes pupils' misconceptions are not identified quickly enough.

Pupils do not always have opportunities to act on the feedback that they are given. As a result, pupils do not always progress as well as they might.

The school places a high priority on reading.

There is a well-planned phonics programme in place for children in the early years and pupils in key stage 1. Staff routinely check pupils' progress in reading and provide extra support when it is needed. Pupils in all years read from a diverse range of texts.

They enjoy reading.

In the early years, the curriculum is designed to precisely meet the needs of individual children. It helps them to build on what they know already and broaden their understanding of the world.

Children in the early years enjoy listening to stories. They enthusiastically learn, and use, new vocabulary. In mathematics, they eagerly learn about numbers, shapes, and patterns.

Learning activities are very well designed to help them develop physical and social skills.

Pupils' behaviour in lessons, and around school, is exemplary. There are no disruptions to learning.

Children develop remarkably positive attitudes to learning in the early years and these are maintained as they progress through the school.

The school supports pupils' wider personal development well. Through assemblies and lessons across the curriculum, pupils learn about diversity, equality and British values.

The personal, social and health education (PSHE) is well planned to make sure that pupils gain an age-appropriate understanding of topics such as healthy relationships and online safety. The school provides pupils with extra-curricular activities that they enjoy. Pupils have opportunities to go on trips that include experiences of different cultures and religions.

Staff enjoy working at the school. The school prioritises their well-being and helps them to manage their workload while providing opportunities to develop their expertise. Governors know the school and its priorities for further development well.

They provide strong support and challenge to the school and fulfil their statutory duties.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• Much of the curriculum is new.

It is not yet delivered consistently well. This means that sometimes pupils do not gain new knowledge securely and their misconceptions are not always addressed quickly. The school needs to ensure that all staff deliver the planned curriculum effectively.

• The school does not yet have a rigorous plan for checking the effectiveness of the curriculum. This means that potential areas for further development are not identified quickly enough. The school needs to establish a routine for systematically checking the impact of the curriculum.