Gillshill Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Leaders have fostered a school environment where respect is embedded and success is celebrated. Pupils are extremely positive about their education. They relish the many opportunities available outside the classroom, such as attending the Rugby League World Cup matches and visiting the local university technical college, film sets and enterprise initiatives.

Behaviour is exemplary. The whole school community understands the clear behaviour routines and expectations. Staff manage pupils' behaviour very well with consistent strategies.

There is a calm and orderly atmosphere in lessons and at playtime.Pupils know what bullying is. They understand that it is different to ...falling out about football.

Records show bullying rarely happens. Pupils will tell an adult if they have a problem and trust adults to sort it out.There are worry boxes in every classroom for pupils to leave a message about a concern.

The class teachers check these daily. Staff have had training to be 'emotionally available adults'. Adults recognise that they have a huge role to play in supporting pupil's mental health.

Children in foundation stage 1 get off to the best possible start. The provision is well organised and is used purposefully by the children. There is an emphasis on speaking and listening activities linked to stories, rhymes and songs.

This helps to develop communication and language skills.

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

Leaders have created a curriculum for Gillshill Primary School that is derived from the trust's curriculum. Subject leaders from schools within the trust have developed the curriculum structure.

Subject leaders in the school have amended and adapted this to meet the needs of their cohort. The curriculum identifies the key concepts, knowledge and vocabulary that leaders want pupils to remember long term. However, in some subjects, pupils are not routinely encouraged to use this key vocabulary in lessons and particularly within their written work.

Pupils are positive about the school's system for checking their understanding. The 'one, three, five model' ensures that teachers check in one week, three weeks and five weeks what knowledge pupils' have retained. However, in some subjects there are long periods of time between learning.

For example, the gap between history units for some year groups is six months. As a result, pupils cannot recall prior knowledge or make connections between their learning.Leaders have prioritised early reading and phonics from Nursery onwards.

Pupils across Years 1, 2 and 3 are grouped by their phonics attainment to ensure that the lesson meets their needs. Pupils read books that match their phonics knowledge. Teachers check pupils' phonics knowledge every six weeks.

Those pupils who are not keeping up receive daily phonics support sessions.This is an inclusive school. Leaders go above and beyond in meeting the needs of pupils with special educational and/or disabilities (SEND).

Leaders keep extensive records. Additional support is well mapped out for these pupils. Appropriate strategies support pupils' needs in the classroom.

As a result, pupils with SEND are included in all aspects of school life.Leaders have considered how what children learn in early years lays the foundations for the rest of their education. Children have access to a range of activities.

Some of these activities are adult directed and some follow what the children show an interest in. On occasion, some adults miss opportunities to encourage and build on what children already know.There are many leadership opportunities for pupils, such as being health and safety ambassadors, mental health young evaluators, play leaders, healthy eating leaders and members of the school council.

Pupils have opportunities to debate and discuss in lessons. For example, Year 6 pupils recently debated the building of a wind farm in Hull. While opinions were diverse, pupils respected each other's viewpoint.

Leaders use an external scheme supported by the trust's safeguarding curriculum to teach personal, social and health education (PSHE) and relationships and sex education. This ensures that pupils develop the knowledge and skills they will need as they grow up.Leaders at all levels are enthusiastic about purposefully improving their area of responsibility.

Staff are positive about the impact that joining the trust has had on their professional development and workload. They recognise that working collaboratively across the trust schools enables them to share resources and good practice. Leaders prioritise professional development for all staff.

It is highly effective and focused on the needs of the school community.Governors have link leadership roles in place. They hold leaders to account for their work.

For example, they use the challenge day at the start of the year to meet with their linked subject leader to support and ask questions about the curriculum. This ensures that governors are well informed about curriculum development.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

The safeguarding culture in the school is strong. Pupils and staff refer to the posters around the building that highlight the school's safeguarding procedures. Pupils can name the designated safeguarding lead, as well as other adults they deem as trusted.

They identify these by a coloured lanyard.Safer recruitment processes are in place. This ensures that appropriate checks are made on staff and visitors in the school.

Pupils know how to stay safe online. They know what cyber-bullying is and what to do if it happened to them. Teachers address any online issues as they arise through the PSHE curriculum.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• In many subjects, leaders have established the most important vocabulary that pupils need to learn in units of work. However, pupils are not routinely encouraged to use this vocabulary in lessons and particularly within their written work. Leaders should ensure that the activities pupils do in lessons consistently support pupils to develop their use of subject-specific vocabulary.

• Some of the adult interactions within early years do not consistently connect to the well-planned curriculum. As a result, occasionally there are missed opportunities to further children's development. Leaders should ensure that staff are confident in knowing the curricular intentions in the provision to maximise their impact on children's learning.

Also at this postcode