Graiseley Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are happy to be at school and feel safe.

This is because they feel cared for by staff, who they describe as the best thing at the school. Pupils also enjoy positive relationships with the other pupils. They play well together at social times and work well together in lessons.

Pupils know that if there was a problem with anything, staff would help to sort it out.

Leaders have raised their expectations for pupils' achievement. Pupils are now starting to achieve higher standards in reading and mathematics.

However, there are still some gaps in their knowledge. This means they sometimes find it difficult to do the work appropriate for their age. I...n other subjects, they remember what they have been taught, but this is not always what is most important to learn.

Sometimes, pupils repeat learning they have done before, without building on it or deepening their understanding. This is because the curriculum in some subjects is not designed well enough.

Pupils have a range of opportunities to widen their experiences.

Pupils enjoy trips to places of local interest and having inspirational visitors to school. Through their roles as young interpreters and in the school council, they become active citizens.

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

The passion and the determination of the new headteacher have united the staff and governors to provide a better quality of education for the pupils at Graiseley Primary School.

The standards pupils achieved in the past were too low. This is starting to change.

In a short space of time, the school has reviewed the curriculum in the core subjects, and in the early years.

In these areas, there is a clear and progressive sequence of learning. It covers what is most important and builds on prior learning.

Children make a good start in early years.

Staff have a good understanding of children's needs. There is a clear emphasis on widening children's vocabulary. The carefully organised environment promotes language and communication.

Books are used to engage children and provoke their curiosity. Children are eager to learn and share their learning with confidence and enthusiasm. When writing, however, many children have not secured the basic letter formation they need to write successfully.

Reading is a high priority throughout the school. Pupils read widely and often. Staff teach reading daily through a well-structured programme.

The school supports staff to teach reading effectively through ongoing training. Those pupils at the early stages of reading have extra support to help them catch up. This is starting to improve pupils' confidence and fluency.

In mathematics, changes to the curriculum are having a positive impact. Children in the early years learn to count and understand numbers. Through the mathematics curriculum, pupils' knowledge starts to build.

However, for older pupils, there are still some significant gaps in their knowledge which prevent them from making the progress they need to.

In some of the other subjects, the school has not identified the most important knowledge that pupils need to learn. As a result, in some lessons, staff do not always emphasise the most important learning or build on what pupils have learned before.

This leads to pupils having a surface knowledge of a range of subjects but not a deep understanding. So, in religious education, for example, pupils know about a range of religious practices, but they do not always understand how these practices link to religious beliefs.

The school works with a range of agencies to accurately identify the needs of pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND).

Staff use a variety of programmes to target areas such as language and communication and reading. They also use a range of adaptations to make the curriculum accessible to all pupils. These strategies are increasingly having a positive impact for pupils.

Most pupils attend school regularly. However, there are several pupils who do not attend as often as they should. The school works with families and other agencies to try and improve the attendance of these pupils.

The wide-ranging curriculum supports pupils to be prepared for life in modern Britain. Pupils learn about healthy relationships and how to stay safe online. They make positive contributions to school life through the jobs they do, such as playground leaders and peer supporters.

Staff work well together as a team. They feel well supported by leaders and appreciate the changes made to try and reduce workload.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• Not enough children in the early years form their letters correctly. This hinders their ability to write successfully. The school should sharpen their focus on supporting children to learn correct letter formation from the start to reduce the barriers to writing.

• Some of the older pupils have some significant gaps in their knowledge in mathematics. This hinders their ability to make the progress they need to. The school should sharpen their focus on closing the gaps in older pupils' knowledge to enable them to make more progress.

In some subjects, the curriculum does not make clear the most important knowledge they want pupils to know and remember. As a result, pupils do not achieve as well as they could in these subjects. Leaders must ensure that they identify what they want pupils to know and sequence learning in all subjects so that pupils' knowledge builds progressively year on year.

• Several pupils miss too much time from school. As a result, they do not achieve as well as they could. The school should continue to work with families to increase the attendance of these pupils so they can reach their full potential.