Grampound-With-Creed CofE Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Leaders do not have effective safeguarding procedures in place.

There is a lax attitude towards safeguarding. Staff lack an awareness of the different kinds of risks that can potentially harm pupils. As a result, pupils are at an increased risk of harm and are not reliably kept safe.

Leaders and teachers do not have high enough expectations of pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Pupils do not learn as well as they could through a well-planned curriculum in some subjects. Consequently, pupils do not build consistently well on their prior knowledge.

In some subjects, teachers are not clear about the key knowledge p...upils need to learn. Pupils do not always understand if they have done well or what successful learning looks like. However, pupils learn well in other subjects, such as physical education (PE), because leaders have considered how to build pupils' learning over time.

Most pupils feel happy in school and behave well in lessons. However, pupils' conduct at other times is not as positive. They say that bullying does not usually happen.

However, a few pupils lack confidence about what would happen if an incident of bullying did occur.

Pupils feel lucky to have opportunities to play a range of sports. They know how to keep healthy.

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

Senior leaders and governors do not have the expertise to fulfil their roles well, including to keep pupils safe. Leaders, including governors, have limited capacity to improve the school. The information governors receive about pupils' learning is inaccurate, especially in reading and mathematics.

There are not rigorous systems for monitoring the school's effectiveness. As a result, governors fail to hold senior leaders to account, which has contributed to the school's decline since the previous inspection.

Senior leaders do not have an accurate view of the quality of education.

They are too generous in their evaluations. They do not check rigorously enough how well pupils are learning the curriculum. Leaders do not identify appropriate areas for how to improve the school.

Subject leaders do not know how well pupils learn across the school in their subjects.

Pupils do not learn to read as well as they could. Some staff who teach reading do not have sufficient knowledge or skills to do this effectively.

There is a lack of understanding of the school's approach to phonics. Too many pupils have books that do not match their reading ability. This makes it hard for them to become confident and fluent readers.

Nevertheless, pupils enjoy reading and listening to adults read aloud. Children in the early years foundation stage (EYFS) have too few opportunities to develop their communication and language skills in readiness for learning to read.

The curriculum is not sufficiently ambitious for pupils, including those with SEND.

Learning is not sequenced well enough in some subjects in order to enable pupils to build their knowledge over time. An exception to this is physical education (PE), where the sequence of learning has been carefully considered. Teachers' use of assessment is inconsistent across the curriculum.

They do not focus well on what pupils need to know and remember over time. Leaders have made some links between subjects, but this is underdeveloped. In some subjects, for example mathematics, the teaching approach is inconsistent.

Pupils do not benefit from the resources they are given to help them learn.

Teachers do not have high enough expectations for what pupils can achieve. Pupils do not always try hard or present their work with pride.

The curriculum does not consistently motivate pupils to participate fully or enjoy their learning.

Pupils learn about different types of relationships and think that it is important to treat everyone the same. Some pupils have opportunities to hold roles of responsibility.

For example, they can be part of the school council. Pupils do not know enough about different cultures and beliefs. They find these difficult to explain.

Pupils lack a secure understanding of British values.

Staff enjoy working at the school. They feel that leaders consider their well-being and workload.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are not effective.

Leaders have not ensured that there is a strong culture of safeguarding. They do not identify risks to pupils appropriately.

Risk assessments are not fit for purpose or understood by some staff. Leaders are complacent about safeguarding procedures. They do not evaluate the day-to-day systems for keeping pupils safe.

Governors do not hold an accurate view of how leaders protect pupils from potential harm. This poor culture of safeguarding from leaders and governors puts pupils at unacceptable risk.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• Safeguarding is ineffective.

Senior leaders have not ensured that there is a strong culture of safeguarding. Pupils are at risk of harm. Senior leaders, including governors, must ensure that they identify risks appropriately and regularly evaluate the procedures for keeping pupils safe.

Leaders, including governors, have an overly generous view of the quality of education. The curriculum, including in the EYFS, is not sufficiently ambitious for all pupils, including those with SEND. Consequently, pupils do not learn as well as they could.

Leaders must ensure that the curriculum design enables all pupils to build knowledge well and deepen their understanding. ? Leaders do not ensure that all adults involved in the teaching of early reading have the knowledge or skills to do this well. Some pupils do not learn to read as well as they could.

Children in the EYFS are not prepared well for learning to read. Leaders must ensure that teachers are well-equipped to implement the phonics programme effectively. ? Teachers do not consistently use assessment well to check pupils' understanding.

As a result, some teaching is not routinely adapted to meet the needs of pupils, including those with SEND. Some pupils' learning does not always build well on what they know. Leaders must ensure that assessment is used effectively in order to check pupils' knowledge across the curriculum.