Drybrook Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils arrive at Drybrook Primary School with smiles on their faces.

They are happy to see their teachers and eager to start the day. Throughout the day, they behave well, work hard and play happily together. They feel safe and believe that their teachers want the best for them.

The school makes significant efforts to ensure that pupils and their families feel welcome and cared for. Pupils trust their teachers to help if they struggle with their work or fall out with a friend. Parents appreciate the chance to 'Stay and Play' with their children in the Nursery or attend a coffee morning.

The school has worked hard to create an inclusive environment. Pupils are... kind to one another and appreciative of differences. They understand that some people need extra help to behave well and follow the school rules.

The school makes sure that pupils learn to read as soon as possible and build strong foundations in mathematics. The school is at an early stage of making sure pupils learn as well in other subjects. The curriculum is improving, but there is still more to do.

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

Since the school joined the trust, there has been much improvement. Pupils behave better and they achieve higher standards in reading, writing and mathematics. This is reflected in published outcomes.

However, the journey continues as some aspects of the quality of education continue to need improvement.

As soon as children join the Nursery, they begin to learn to read. They start by learning to hear letter sounds when they say words.

Many are well underway with mastering phonics by the time they finish the Reception Year. By the time pupils start Year 3, almost all can read fluently. Pupils who fall behind catch up with learning to read due to the high-quality extra help they receive.

Pupils achieve well in reading and mathematics because teachers make sure that they learn what they need, step by step. Teachers check as they go that pupils have remembered what they have been taught. If needed, teachers reteach previous content to be sure that pupils understand it securely.

For example, in mathematics, a clear, detailed and progressive curriculum helps teachers to gradually build pupils' recall of mathematical facts. This helps pupils to apply what they know to more complex mathematical thinking.

Staff are quick to spot when a pupil might have special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND).

Teachers are skilled at adapting their teaching so that pupils with SEND can keep up in reading and mathematics.

Pupils do not learn as well in some areas of the wider curriculum. This is because the school does not plan and teach these subjects as effectively.

The school has not precisely mapped out what to teach and when. It tries to cover too much content in lessons and does not know how to check if pupils have learned what they need. This makes it difficult to choose activities that help pupils to remember what they have been taught.

Some pupils struggle with basic skills like handwriting. They have to focus a lot on these basics when they write down their ideas or longer pieces. This can make writing difficult, and some pupils lose interest.

For example, in history or geography, many pupils find it difficult to know what to write. Some pupils find the act of writing very challenging and, as a result, learn little about the subject in that lesson. Pupils with SEND are affected by this even more than others.

The school is calm and orderly. Pupils understand and follow the behaviour code. Lessons are rarely disrupted by misbehaviour.

Some pupils do struggle to behave well, but the school helps them to learn, bit by bit, how to manage this.

Staff take pupils' personal development seriously. There are lots of opportunities for pupils to try new experiences through clubs and trips, and by visitors coming into school.

Pupils are learning to appreciate different religions and cultures and are becoming morally responsible citizens. Pupils and their parents appreciate the lengths that the school goes to in support of their well-being.

Trustees have set a clear vision for the school.

They have set up a local governing board to oversee school improvement. This approach has driven the school's improvement forward. Trustees are generally well informed of how well the school is performing.

However, trustees have not been aware of the need to improve the school's curriculum.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• The curriculum in many subjects does not identify what pupils need to learn at each stage.

As a result, teachers are not well placed to ensure that pupils are learning what they need. The school needs to ensure that teachers know what they need to teach in each subject, each term. ? There is lack of clarity about what pupils need to learn in many subjects.

This makes it difficult for teachers to make appropriate activity choices in lessons. As a result, teachers sometimes choose unhelpful activities that hinder learning. The school needs to ensure that activities suit the intended learning in all lessons.

• Some pupils have not developed fluency in their handwriting skills. As a result, they struggle to convey their ideas in writing. The school needs to help pupils improve these basic skills, ensuring that they can express their thoughts clearly and confidently in written form.