Flitcham Church of England Primary Academy

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Outcome

Flitcham Church of England Primary Academy continues to be a good school.

What is it like to attend this school?

On their arrival to the school, in Reception, children are taught to live up to the school values. They 'learn and grow together, play and pray together'.

Older pupils enjoy putting these skills into practice, supporting younger pupils at playtimes and school events. Pupils are proud that their school is a happy and welcoming place.

Pupils value learning.

They take pride in their achievements and appreciate the many awards leaders put in place. Pupils concentrate in lessons and follow instructions well. They leave well prepared for learning in secondary... school.

Pupils' behaviour is calm, both in lessons and at social times. They understand the high expectations that leaders have of their behaviour. Bullying happens rarely, and pupils know that, when it does, staff will deal with it quickly.

Pupils feel safe in school. They know that staff are willing and able to help, if necessary.

Pupils readily take positions of responsibility, for example by being librarians, members of the worship team or school councillors.

Pupils talk enthusiastically about extra-curricular clubs. They are grateful that they have the opportunity to vote for which clubs are made available. Pupils particularly enjoy the junk modelling, multisport, tennis and soft archery clubs.

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

Leaders' curriculum, including in the early years, is ambitious and well planned. In many subjects, leaders have identified the important knowledge that pupils should learn and have organised what pupils will learn in a logical order. This helps teachers plan lessons that build on what pupils know and can do.

Teachers use their checks on pupils' learning to adapt the curriculum well. In a few subjects, leaders' curriculum plans are new and less established. In these subjects, leaders have not yet identified all of the important knowledge that pupils need to learn and how best to check this.

This means teachers sometimes do not have the information they need to plan lessons that build as effectively on what pupils have learned before.

Leaders have prioritised reading. Children in the early years are introduced to stories, rhymes and books from the very start.

This helps to develop positive attitudes to reading. Leaders ensure that pupils in the early stages of learning to read have the knowledge to enable them to recognise sounds to read new words. This builds pupils' confidence and enjoyment of reading.

Staff are well trained to teach phonics and help pupils to read with fluency. Teachers quickly identify pupils who struggle with reading. These pupils get appropriate support to help them catch up.

Pupils enjoy reading. They talk proudly about the books they like to read.

Leaders make sure that pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) receive the right support.

Staff accurately identify their needs. Teachers plan effectively for pupils with SEND. They adapt their plans to enable pupils with SEND to access the same opportunities as their peers.

Pupils with SEND are well supported to make good progress with their learning and independence.

Pupils understand the school's values of generosity, compassion, courage, forgiveness, friendship and respect. These contribute to a friendly, caring atmosphere and pupils' good behaviour.

Leaders have made clear their expectations for pupils' behaviour and how staff should manage it. Children in the early years follow routines. They learn how to learn and play alongside others.

Pupils listen respectfully to others. Lessons are typically calm, focused on learning and free from any disruption. Leaders provide effective support for those pupils who find it hard to manage their emotions and control their behaviour.

Pupils value learning and attend well.

Leaders promote pupils' personal development well. They have thoughtfully designed a curriculum and programme of enrichment activities to help prepare pupils for life in modern Britain.

Pupils learn about the different cultures within their community, across the UK and globally. They celebrate the differences between themselves and others. Pupils are well supported to try new things, persevere and communicate with others.

This helps pupils to develop their character.

Governance is effective. Trustees, members of the local governing board (LGB) and trust leaders use their knowledge effectively to hold school leaders to account for all aspects of the school's work, including the quality of education.

Staff feel valued and appreciate the support that leaders provide. They say that leaders and governors carefully consider their workload.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

Leaders have established a robust set of systems to keep pupils safe from harm. Staff are well trained to spot the signs that a pupil may be at risk of harm. Staff report and record concerns appropriately.

Leaders act on concerns promptly to get the right support for pupils.Pupils learn how to keep themselves safe and recognise risks. They know about potential risks of working online and using social media.

They know who to go to if they have concerns.

Those responsible for governance have the correct procedures in place for managing recruitment and any concerns about staff.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• In a small number of subjects, leaders have not identified the precise knowledge pupils need to remember or broken it down into manageable chunks.

In these subjects, teachers are not always able to check how well pupils are learning new knowledge. Leaders should ensure that, in all subjects, they identify precisely the knowledge teachers need to teach so that teachers can plan lessons that build effectively on previous learning, and they should check how well pupils are remembering this knowledge.

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/outstanding in 20 and 21 April 2017.