Grampound Road Village CofE School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

At Grampound Road Village, staff and pupils live out the ethos of 'Together with love, we can inspire, discover and thrive'.

Pupils enjoy school and reflect this in their highly positive attitudes to learning. They attend well. When talking about their work, pupils speak with passion and enthusiasm.

Staff nurture and care for pupils. They feel safe and secure.

Leaders ensure that staff apply the behaviour policy consistently.

As a result, pupils behave well in class and at social times. Children in the early years follow adults' instructions closely. Pupils say that occasionally there is some silly behaviour but that staff deal with this quickly.
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Older pupils enjoy helping younger pupils as 'lunchtime buddies'.

Leaders carefully plan trips to enhance pupils' knowledge of the curriculum, such as a visit to Truro Cathedral in religious education. Older pupils visit London to better understand diversity in modern Britain.

Pupils have a range of extra-curricular clubs in which to pursue their talents and interests. These include choir, yoga and rounders. Pupils demonstrate their sporting prowess in sports tournaments against local schools.

Pupils have a voice in the school. They take on leadership roles, such as the school council and sports leaders. Pupils speak with pride about raising money for charities they choose.

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

Since the previous inspection, the school has been through a number of changes. The school has transferred to a new multi-academy trust. Some staffing arrangements have changed.

Leaders have overhauled much of the curriculum. Despite this turbulence, leaders have managed these changes well. The school has improved since the last inspection.

Much of this is due to the high-quality support from the trust. The trust has wasted no time in getting to know the school through frequent checks. As a result, it knows the school's strengths and weaknesses well.

Leaders have created a well-sequenced curriculum from early years to the end of key stage 2. They have been mindful of the scale of these changes. Therefore, leaders have focused on key subjects, such as history, to ensure that staff implement them well.

In these subjects, teachers explain new concepts clearly. They check what pupils have learned in the past. Consequently, pupils learn well.

For example, younger pupils talk knowledgeably about important themes, such as monarchy. Older pupils discuss the use of propaganda in World War II. Leaders ensure that pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) have the curriculum adapted to their needs.

However, the curriculum's high ambitions are not yet present across all subjects. Pupils do not learn as well in less well-developed subjects, such as art and design.Teachers do not expect enough of pupils.

They do not provide pupils with tasks that deepen their knowledge or that closely align with the aims of the curriculum.

Leaders have continued to ensure that reading is at the heart of the curriculum. They have recently trained all staff so that they teach reading in line with their expectations.

Teachers ensure that pupils learn to read books that are closely matched to the sounds they know. As a result, pupils learn to read well.

Children in Reception Year learn phonics as soon as they start school.

This ensures that they learn to read quickly and are well prepared for Year 1. Staff swiftly identify pupils who have fallen behind. These pupils catch up and keep up.

Older pupils enjoy reading a range of books from the school library.

This is an inclusive school. Leaders have a high ambition for pupils with SEND.

They have established clear systems to identify their needs. They train staff to support this. Pupils' plans include measurable targets which staff review regularly.

Leaders regularly check the impact of their provision and make changes as necessary.

Leaders have established a strong personal development curriculum. Staff celebrate pupils' achievements in assemblies.

Pupils have a strong grasp of equality. For example, they know that in the past society viewed some jobs as being gender specific, and that families come in different forms.

The majority of parents have positive views on the school.

They feel that staff care for pupils well. However, some parents express concerns about communication. They feel that the school needs to explain decisions or changes better.

Leaders acknowledge that there is more to do on this.

Governors support and challenge leaders in equal measure. They rightly feel that the school has improved rapidly in the new trust.

Staff echo this. They feel that leaders take account of their workload when they make changes. Staff feel proud to work at Grampound Road Village CofE School.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

Leaders have established a prominent safeguarding culture. Leaders have trained staff so they can identify pupils at risk of harm.

They note any concerns promptly and in a detailed manner. Leaders act decisively upon these. Staff know their families well.

They work closely with other agencies to help families get additional support.

Leaders make rigorous checks on staff and visitors to check their suitability to work with children. They have robust sign-in procedures to the school site.

Pupils know how to stay safe online. For example, they know the importance of not sharing personal details with strangers.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• Some parents feel that the school does not communicate with them effectively.

As a result, they are not clear about decisions that are made at the school. Leaders need to improve the way they communicate with parents so that parents feel better informed about the school's work. ? In some subjects, teachers' expectations of what pupils can do are not high enough.

Pupils are provided with tasks that do not sufficiently deepen their knowledge. As a result, these pupils do not learn as much as they could. Leaders need to ensure that teachers provide pupils with appropriate tasks so that they know and remember more.