Frampton Cotterell Church of England Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Outcome

Frampton Cotterell Church of England Primary School continues to be a good school.

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are proud to attend this happy and welcoming school. Christian values are at the heart of life in this strong community.

These values motivate pupils to be polite and respectful. Pupils enjoy their learning and work hard in lessons.

The acting headteacher, together with other senior leaders, knows the school well and has high expectations.

Pupils have positive relationships with staff in school. Pupils' well-being is a priority. Pupils feel cared for and safe because staff look after them.

Pupils behave well. Staff model good be...haviour and, consequently, pupils know what is expected of them. Pupils are enthusiastic about the well-equipped playground.

Pupils play well together during social times. There is very little bullying. Leaders have robust systems for dealing with this, and pupils trust them to resolve any problems.

Parents and carers are positive about the school. One comment, typical of many, is: 'I consider my children lucky to attend such a caring and supportive school.'

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

Leaders are ambitious for all pupils in the school, particularly those pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND).

Leaders, some of whom are new to post, have improved the quality of education in a short space of time. They have achieved this by working closely with staff to develop an ambitious and interesting curriculum.

Leaders have prioritised reading.

They have adopted a new early reading curriculum and have ensured that all staff are trained to teach it well. As a result, they teach pupils to read effectively.

Pupils read daily in school.

They enjoy reading a range of interesting books which are well matched to the sounds they know. Older pupils say they love reading and enjoy the class novels that are shared with them. They help to develop pupils' understanding of important topics such as slavery.

Staff make good use of assessment to check for any gaps in pupils' reading knowledge. Pupils who need to catch up receive the support they need. Consequently, most pupils become fluent readers by the time they leave school.

Leaders have ensured that the mathematics curriculum is well sequenced and enables pupils to build on their prior knowledge. Children in the early years and Year 1 are supported to develop a love of number. They make good use of a range of equipment to help them learn key number facts.

Pupils in Year 2 use their knowledge well to show their understanding of calculations. Older pupils have a firm grasp of the mathematical concepts they have been taught, for example fractions. However, they are not always able to recall important facts quickly, such as times tables, to help them solve problems.

This slows the progress they are able to make.

Leaders have focused on improving the way some subjects are planned. Leaders are clear about the design of subject curriculums and the knowledge that staff need to teach these effectively.

However, in some subjects, pupils do not have secure knowledge to enable them to learn new concepts. In music, for example, leaders' plans make clear the key knowledge that needs to be taught and in what order. Younger children play music using a range of instruments, while older pupils also compose music.

However, pupils are not always able to add detail to their responses as they cannot recall confidently the musical knowledge that they have previously been taught.

The leadership of SEND is a strength of the school. Leaders have a clear and ambitious vision for what pupils with SEND can achieve.

They work closely with staff. Together, they plan, implement and review support to ensure pupils' needs are met consistently. Staff receive useful training.

Pupils' needs are identified from the early years onwards. Staff closely monitor children's speech and language development and ensure that children who need additional support receive it promptly.

Pupils' personal development is strong.

Pupils take great pride in their fundraising efforts for local charities. They talk positively about the range of clubs that are on offer and their 'enrichment' days. A particular highlight is the engineering club.

This develops pupils' understanding of budgets, teamwork and technology.

Staff say unanimously that they are proud to work at the school. They value the way everyone works as a team.

Leaders, including governors, are considerate of staff's workload. Governors are aware of the school's strengths and priorities for improvement.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

Leaders know their pupils and their school community very well. Leaders check staff's suitability to work with pupils before they start to work at the school. Staff act in the best interests of keeping pupils safe.

They know how to identify risks to pupils and how to record any concerns. Leaders follow up on any concerns with external agencies quickly.

Pupils have a clear understanding of how to stay safe online.

They know what to do if they see something online that makes them feel uncomfortable and how to respond to scams. Staff and parents are confident that pupils are safe in school.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• In some areas of the curriculum, pupils do not make connections between their current learning and what they have learned before.

They do not always remember, or apply, what they have been taught over time, and this slows the progress that they are able to make. Leaders need to ensure that pupils can draw on their previous knowledge to develop a deeper understanding of the subjects they learn.

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

Usually this is within one to two years of the date of the section 8 inspection. If we have serious concerns about safeguarding, behaviour or the quality of education, we will deem the section 8 inspection as a section 5 inspection immediately.

This is the first section 8 inspection since we judged the school to be good in January 2017.

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