Datchet St Mary’s CofE Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Outcome

Datchet St Mary's CofE Primary School continues to be a good school.

The headteacher of this school is Nicola Green. This school is part of Oxford Diocesan Schools Trust, which means other people in the trust also have responsibility for running the school. The trust is run by the chief executive officer, Anne Dellar, and overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by Kathy Winrow.

What is it like to attend this school?

Leaders aspire for all pupils to experience success here, regardless of their background. The school fosters strong relationships with parents and families, and pupils feel valued and understood by staff. Staff create a positive and safe environment for learning, and p...upils achieve well.

Pupils have confidence that they can talk to staff about any worries. Children in early years learn to share and interact positively. This helps them to make a strong start to their schooling.

In class and around school, pupils follow clear routines and behave kindly towards one another. Staff provide pupils with techniques to develop a 'happy mind'. This helps pupils to manage their emotions and become more resilient.

Pupils are proud to take on responsibilities within school. They enjoy acting as buddies for younger pupils and being leaders for sports or worship. The school provides a range of activities to foster pupils' talents and interests.

The school makes sure that pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) take advantage of these opportunities fully. Pupils enjoy learning about different backgrounds and faiths, from both within and beyond the school community. This helps pupils to develop a clear commitment to equality and diversity.

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

The school's curriculum is built on a clear understanding of what pupils need. When children begin in early years, any SEND needs are identified rapidly. Recently, leaders have reviewed and extended the range of what pupils learn in some subjects.

This gives pupils access to varied and highly engaging themes, such as learning about the Suffragettes in history.

Pupils learn to read with accuracy and assurance. In Nursery, staff help children to learn new words and talk about their ideas.

Children in Reception benefit from frequent phonics learning. Teachers check how well pupils know and remember letters and sounds. This enables the school to target support for weaker readers effectively.

As the curriculum has developed, teachers have made sure that their own subject knowledge has kept pace with changes to what is taught. This enables teachers to model and explain well. For example, in mathematics, teachers demonstrate important techniques, such as how to use a protractor accurately.

By selecting helpful resources, teachers enable pupils to choose the best ways to build their understanding. As a result, pupils develop accurate mathematical methods.

In some subjects, elements of pupils' understanding and their use of subject-specific vocabulary are not as secure.

Teachers make connections between what pupils have learned before and what they are learning now. This helps pupils to build knowledge over time. Staff use assessments to inform their approach to forthcoming topics.

Sometimes, teachers' checks of what pupils understand are less systematic than they could be. For instance, in phonics, teachers make sure that pupils' pronunciation is correct. However, there are other instances when misconceptions are not picked up directly.

In these cases, pupils need further reinforcement to make sure that they understand.

Pupils' writing reflects the fact that they are learning well. They are proud of how their writing develops, such as when learning how to create a persuasive letter.

Disadvantaged pupils benefit equally from the ambitious curriculum, and they achieve well. Pupils with SEND learn alongside their peers and achieve highly from their starting points.

Attendance is a high priority for staff across the school.

Leaders work closely with families to explore barriers to attendance. They provide specific support for groups of pupils with lower attendance, such as those with SEND. If parents request time out of school, this is handled thoughtfully but firmly.

Staff make sure that the school is a welcoming place, such as by running family learning mornings. The school's approach to behaviour is clear and consistent. As a result, pupils know what is expected of them.

There are occasions when some pupils lose focus on tasks, but low-level disruption is rare.

The school provides many opportunities for pupils' broader development. Teachers draw out themes from texts in English to help pupils consider moral questions.

Learning about how to be a good friend is threaded through the curriculum, including in early years. As well as organising interesting trips and visits, the school provides on-site workshops and guest speakers. This enables leaders to make these opportunities as inclusive as possible.

Governors, trustees and leaders give consideration to the well-being of staff. Leaders encourage teachers to provide in-the-moment support for pupils in an effort to keep staff workload manageable. Staff have access to shared resources and assessment tools.

As the school develops areas of the curriculum, this helps all pupils to access high-quality resources.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• At times, teachers do not check pupils' understanding as systematically as they could.

As a result, some pupils' misconceptions are not addressed and rectified swiftly. Leaders should ensure that teachers are rigorous in identifying and responding to misunderstandings and gaps in pupils' knowledge. ? In some subjects, pupils' disciplinary knowledge and subject vocabulary are not developed as fully as they could be.

As a result, some pupils find it difficult to apply their knowledge or to integrate new learning into larger ideas about the subject. Leaders should make sure that teachers emphasise concepts and vocabulary as well as factual knowledge and methods, to help deepen pupils' understanding.

Background

When we have judged a school to be good, we will then normally go into the school about once every four years to confirm that the school remains good.

This is called an ungraded inspection, and it is carried out under section 8 of the Education Act 2005. We do not give graded judgements on an ungraded inspection. However, if we find evidence that a school would now receive a higher or lower grade, then the next inspection will be a graded inspection, which is carried out under section 5 of the Act.

Usually this is within one to two years of the date of the ungraded inspection. If we have serious concerns about safeguarding, behaviour or the quality of education, we will deem the ungraded inspection a graded inspection immediately.

This is the first ungraded inspection since we judged the school to be good in September 2018.