Furley Park Primary Academy

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils work hard and achieve well at this calm and caring school. They have excellent attitudes to learning and strive to meet the high expectations of teachers. Pupils concentrate well and share their learning excitedly.'

Time flies at this school,' said one pupil. This starts in the early years, where teachers embed strong routines quickly. As a result, classrooms are busy and purposeful.

Pupils know the school values, including respect, well. This helps them to treat each other with courtesy and kindness. Pupils have warm and positive relationships with each other and staff.

Teachers apply the well-defined school rules consistently. As a result, pupils beh...ave well. Pupils feel happy and safe.

They know that staff care and will address any concerns they may have.

Pupils learn important skills of leadership at school. They are keen to take up prestigious roles such as head boy and girl or represent their class on the school council.

Pupils aspire to these roles and are proud of the work they do. Year 6 pupils have clearly defined responsibilities as part of their class rota. They take these responsibilities seriously.

The school values pupils' opinions. For example, pupils choose the clubs that the school offers or select new playground equipment.

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

The school has been through a period of significant change since the last inspection.

The trust has built an increasingly strong understanding of the school. This has allowed it to take decisive action to empower key staff within the school. As a result, the school has acted swiftly to design an ambitious and engaging curriculum.

The curriculum sets out the knowledge, skills and vocabulary that pupils need to learn clearly.

Pupils become confident and independent readers. This starts in early years, where well-trained staff teach phonics consistently well.

Staff select books carefully matched to the sounds and letters pupils know. This helps pupils to practise their reading and become increasingly fluent. Staff identify pupils who fall behind accurately.

This helps them to plan support to help pupils catch up quickly. Older pupils read widely, including a range of poetry and plays.

Teachers have secure subject knowledge.

They use this to select well-designed activities that help pupils to learn the curriculum content they need. Teachers explain learning clearly. They choose high-quality resources that help pupils to deepen their understanding.

Children in early years benefit from an exciting and well-designed learning environment. Teachers' checks on pupils' learning are not consistent enough. Teachers do not always identify pupils' gaps in learning quickly.

Staff know the pupils well. This allows them to identify the needs of pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), accurately. Teachers adapt learning effectively.

As a result, the majority of pupils with SEND learn the same curriculum content as their peers. The small number of pupils not working at age- appropriate levels are well supported and learn skills and knowledge matched to their individual needs.

The school has rightly prioritised the teaching of writing and has introduced a new approach to this.

Pupils' work shows that they write accurately at length and apply the techniques they learn effectively. Pupils, including those with SEND, are well prepared for their next steps. They learn the important skills of reading and mathematics they need and can recall the majority of their prior learning accurately.

Pupils move quietly around the school and take great pride in their environment. Consequently, the school is calm and orderly. Children in the early years share resources happily and play together cooperatively.

Breaktimes are well ordered and pupils chat excitedly with each other.

The school has worked hard to improve attendance, tracking pupils' attendance and responding quickly to any absences. The school's pastoral team offers a range of support, including referral to external agencies that break down barriers to attendance effectively.

As a result, the majority of pupils attend regularly and this is improving over time. However, the persistent absence of disadvantaged pupils is still too high. As a result, the most vulnerable pupils are missing too much of their vital education.

The school recognises the value of experiences beyond the curriculum. Pupils have a range of opportunities to develop their skills and talents. They enjoy a wide range of clubs at breaktimes and after school.

These include football, choir and gymnastics. Pupils share these talents within school and beyond. For example, pupils represent the school in a range of successful sports teams or perform Shakespeare in local theatres.

The school ensures that pupils have these opportunities to develop their sporting prowess or deepen their cultural experiences.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• Occasionally, the use of assessment is not precise enough.

It does not always identify gaps in learning and inform future teaching. As a result, some pupils do not fill gaps in learning swiftly enough. The school should ensure that teachers use assessment to identify gaps in learning and inform their next steps of teaching consistently well.

• Persistent absence at the school is too high for too many pupils, particularly those who are more disadvantaged. This means that the most vulnerable pupils are missing out on too much of their vital education. The school must continue and strengthen its work to support these pupils in attending more frequently and learning more over time.

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