Grasby All Saints Church of England Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Outcome

Grasby All Saints Church of England Primary School continues to be a good school.

What is it like to attend this school?

Grasby school is at the heart of the community. Pupils say that they enjoy coming to school. One pupil said: 'School is a place where we are kind and thoughtful.

We know the difference between right and wrong.'

Pupils are keen to learn. They feel safe in school.

They are resilient and show determination when work is challenging. In lessons, pupils behave well. Around school, pupils are polite and courteous.

It is rare that pupils struggle to follow the rules. When they do, they get help.

Uniqueness is celebrated in this school....

Pupils say that 'Difference is a good thing. We learn about each other in this way.' This work is helping pupils prepare for life in modern Britain.

Pupils take part in a wide range of clubs, including construction and choir. There are also opportunities to take part in a wide range of sporting activities. Pupils make full use of these.

The majority of parents and carers have positive views of the school. They value the support and opportunities their children get. Parents of pupils who are new to school praise the work of leaders in making them feel welcome.

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

Senior leaders have given careful thought to the planning of the curriculum. In most subjects, identification of key knowledge and skills is in place. In a small number of subjects, leaders have not yet set out the small steps of knowledge that they want pupils to learn.

Leaders are addressing this.

Leaders have an embedded phonics scheme. This is carefully sequenced.

Pupils start learning to read as soon as they join school. Staff have had training to teach phonics. This is successful.

Pupils that fall behind get help to catch up. Books that pupils read are matched to the sounds they are learning. Use of assessment is not onerous.

Teachers use information gained to support pupil progress.

Older pupils in school develop a love of reading. Children in the early years enjoy stories.

They join in with actions and remember key words from the story in these sessions. Pupils enjoy reading a range of texts. Pupils are very enthusiastic about comic characters when reading to a familiar adult.

Staff talk about books. Pupils vote to choose their favourite stories.

Teachers make lessons engaging.

Pupils talk about experiments in science. They have investigated how seeds grow. They have learned about solids, liquids and gases.

Pupils learn new words, such as deciduous and evergreen. They know what these words mean. Pupils can remember learning from science experiments.

In the early years, children learn a broad curriculum. Subjects such as mathematics and science start in the early years. Teachers use questioning to check pupils' understanding of 'greater than' and 'smaller than'.

Children talk about planting seeds and growing flowers. Children have lots of opportunities to revisit prior learning. They remember new words because they often recall them with teachers.

Pupils with special educational needs, and/or disabilities are well supported in the classroom. Teachers plan the curriculum to ensure that these pupils access the full curriculum. Teachers adapt the curriculum when it is appropriate.

Support is in place, when needed. Leaders check the progress of these pupils.

The wider development of pupils in school is broad.

Pupils learn how to keep safe online. There is a wide range of clubs that pupils can attend. These include sports clubs and cooking club.

There is also a school choir. There are opportunities for pupils to play the keyboard and the clarinet. Pupils enjoy theatre performances.

There are many opportunities for pupils to appreciate the arts. Pupils learn about other cultures and faiths. They have visited Lincoln Cathedral.

Pupils understand democracy. The school council represents the pupils. They make suggestions about issues pupils have raised.

Pupils talk about how this helped to get a trim trail in school. One pupil said: 'A group of people get to decide what we want, like government.'

Governors provide challenge to leaders, while being supportive.

They check on the well-being of staff. They have carried out workload surveys. This has helped leaders make changes to help support the staff.

Staff feel well looked after, and they are proud to work in the school.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

Governors know their safeguarding responsibilities.

Regular checks take place to ensure that safeguarding procedures are effective. Leaders have planned regular training for all staff. Staff know what to do if they have concerns about a child.

The recording and reporting of concerns are carefully done. Staff work with external agencies, in partnership. Leaders and staff are vigilant about safeguarding.

They take prompt action when they have concerns about a child. Record-keeping is robust.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• Leaders have not fully developed the curriculum in a small number of foundation subjects.

The curriculum in these subjects is not as effective as it is in other areas of the curriculum. Leaders should continue with their plans to improve the curriculum in these subjects so that all pupils' learning is consistently strong across all areas of the curriculum.Background

When we have judged a school to be good, we will then normally go into the school about once every four years to confirm that the school remains good.

This is called an ungraded inspection, and it is carried out under section 8 of the Education Act 2005. We do not give graded judgements on an ungraded inspection. However, if we find evidence that a school would now receive a higher or lower grade, then the next inspection will be a graded inspection, which is carried out under section 5 of the Act.

Usually this is within one to two years of the date of the ungraded inspection. If we have serious concerns about safeguarding, behaviour or the quality of education, we will deem the ungraded inspection a graded inspection immediately.

This is the second ungraded inspection since we judged the school to be good in September 2013.