Grange Moor Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Grange Moor Primary School is welcoming and friendly.

This is a school where everyone is valued. Leaders know all pupils well and ensure that vulnerable pupils get the support they need. Pupils arrive at school each morning happy and looking forward to the day ahead.

The school community is united in its ambition to make 'Grange Moor Great.' There is a culture of high expectations for all. Pupils are proud of their school, enjoy learning and achieve well.

They are polite and well mannered. Pupils play cooperatively together, and older pupils willingly take care of younger ones. Bullying is rare.

Pupils are confident any problems will be dealt with qu...ickly and sensitively. Pupils say adults are kind and listen, and this makes them feel safe.

This is a small school, but this is certainly not a barrier to pupils accessing wider experiences.

Pupils enjoy attending clubs such as gymnastics, art, and football. They also value opportunities for trips such as the residential visit, where pupils are proud they had the courage to try kayaking for the first time.

Parents and carers are positive about the care and education their children receive.

One parent, sharing the views of many, rightly commented, 'This is a great school. They put children at the centre of everything they do.'

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

There have been recent changes to the school's leadership.

Important improvements to the curriculum and other aspects of the school's work are well underway. Working closely with the local authority and in partnership with a local trust, the school has managed these changes effectively and with sensitivity. Parents feel well informed, reassured, and positive about the changes.

The school's curriculum is ambitious for pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). The school has considered the important knowledge pupils should learn across the curriculum, beginning in the early years. Leaders have considered carefully how to teach children effectively in mixed-age classes.

The curriculum is well sequenced to help pupils build their knowledge over time. However, the ways in which teachers check pupils have understood their learning are still under development. Staff are not always sure pupils have secured each step in their learning.

They do not consistently address errors in pupils' books. This means mistakes are sometimes repeated over time. The curriculum is well sequenced to help pupils build their knowledge over time.

This is especially developed and embedded in reading and mathematics.

Reading is at the heart of the curriculum. There is a rigorous approach to the teaching of phonics and early reading.

Pupils at the earliest stages of reading develop phonics knowledge quickly and securely. Adults are swift to identify and support those pupils who need extra help. These pupils catch up quickly.

Older pupils are enthusiastic about reading and look forward to sitting around the library 'campfire' to listen to a story.

The curriculum to teach writing is less secure. It focuses on developing writing linked to a range of high-quality texts.

However, pupils' understanding of the basic skills in writing are not secure. This is because the teaching of early letter formation and simple sentence construction has not been effective. This means some pupils are not fluent in the fundamental skills of writing before moving on to more complex writing tasks.

Children in the early years are curious about their learning. For example, children used their senses to explore and describe chunks of melting ice with great enthusiasm. Staff focus on developing children's spoken language very effectively.

They use traditional stories, songs, and rhymes well, often linking these to the wider curriculum.

Staff's knowledge and insight into the needs of pupils with SEND ensures that they give the right support at the right time, both in and out of lessons. This allows pupils with SEND to be fully included and involved in the life of the school.

The school works positively with pupils and their families to maintain high pupil attendance. The school tracks and monitors attendance daily. This helps the school identify and remove barriers to attendance quickly.

Pupils are very well prepared for life beyond the school. They know how to stay safe and healthy. Pupils have a keen sense of equality.

They demonstrate respect for those from different backgrounds and beliefs. Pupils relish the opportunity to take on leadership roles. These include being 'play leaders' and members of the school council.

School leaders and governors have a clear, shared vision for the school. They have effective processes in place to make sure that improvement priorities are making a positive difference. The school makes sure staff's workload and well-being are considered at every stage.

Staff are proud to work at Grange Moor.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• The school has not ensured that pupils' early writing transcription skills are securely embedded.

This means some pupils move through the school with a lack of fluency in writing. The school should ensure that early writing skills are taught effectively so pupils build the same fluency in their writing as in their early reading. ? The school has not fully established systems to check how successfully pupils remember and apply key knowledge.

Pupils do not always receive useful feedback to address errors and misconceptions. Errors in books are not addressed consistently, and the same errors are repeated over time. The school should ensure that there are effective systems to check how well pupils are learning and that this information is used to ensure that any gaps in knowledge are addressed, and pupils are given suitable feedback to address the errors they are making.

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