Great Wilbraham CofE Primary Academy

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils at Great Wilbraham School do not always get the support they need to prevent them from being at risk. While some pupils say that they feel safe, leaders' actions have not ensured that this is the case. Despite this, pupils say that they enjoy school and know whom to speak to about any worries they may have.

They say that there is very little bullying. Leaders do not know that this is the case as they do not log or review incidents of bullying in sufficient depth.

Pupils are polite in lessons and well behaved around school.

However, pupils are too often distracted and confused in lessons because the curriculum is unclear. They pay insufficient attention... to the work they should complete.

Pupils experience a disorganised curriculum.

This is because leaders have not set out the knowledge they want pupils to learn at each stage. New learning is not linked to pupils' previous experiences. Expectations of pupils are low.

Pupils at the early stages of reading do not get the support they need to become independent readers.

Pupils enjoy the extra-curricular clubs on offer, such as choir and dance. Parents are overwhelmingly positive about the work of the school.

Leaders know pupils and their families well.

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

Leaders are not sufficiently ambitious for pupils. They have low expectations and have not planned the curriculum in enough detail.

Plans do not identify the precise knowledge pupils need to learn at each key stage. Teachers do not link new knowledge to pupils' prior learning when delivering lessons. As a result, pupils do not recall what they already know and use it to help them in lessons.

Subject leaders have not had training on how to develop or monitor the curriculum.Leaders have not devised a clear, logical plan for the teaching of reading. They have not identified exactly what knowledge pupils need to develop as readers.

Nor have they considered why and when pupils read the books they recommend. This means that pupils are not given precise support to become independent readers.

Leaders have introduced a new approach to teaching phonics.

Some staff have received training to support this and there has been investment in new books. However, leaders have not checked how well staff are delivering the phonics programme. Some staff do not spot when pupils do not understand or make mistakes.

The books that pupils read are not matched to the sounds they know. Consequently, pupils at the early stages of reading struggle to master the basics. Children in Reception are not prepared for future learning in key stage 1.

In the early years, children have access to a range of different activities but there is no planned curriculum in place. As a result, pupils move through different activities with no clear purpose. Adults do not routinely ask children questions to extend or guide their thinking.

Children are not provided with enough opportunities to practise and secure new learning. However, children do learn the routines for behaviour, and play well together.Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities have the same educational experience as their peers.

Teachers struggle to adapt learning for pupils' needs because there are no universally agreed goals. The special educational needs and disabilities coordinator (SENDCo) has improved processes for identifying pupils' needs. Teachers consider the views of parents and pupils when writing these.

There is a marked difference between pupils' behaviour in lessons to that around the school. In lessons, pupils switch off and do not complete the tasks teachers ask of them. Teachers do not readily address pupils' disengagement.

Around the school site, pupils are polite to visitors and play well together. Relationships between staff and pupils are positive.Leaders have purchased a curriculum to develop pupils' personal, social and health education (PSHE).

However, staff do not routinely follow these plans, nor do they adapt these for the learning needs of pupils. This leaves pupils underprepared for life in modern Britain. Pupils like the extra-curricular clubs on offer.

They enjoy taking part in the school parliament. Pupils know how to keep safe online.

Governors have not held leaders sufficiently to account for the quality of education over time.

They are overly reliant on what leaders tell them and have not checked the impact of curriculum delivery. They have not ensured that staff receive effective training. Governors have not checked that the safeguarding arrangements are effective with sufficient rigour.

They are not aware of the weaknesses of the school's safeguarding processes and therefore cannot see the failings.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are not effective.

Leaders do not efficiently or effectively identify safeguarding concerns.

They rely too heavily on historic personal knowledge of families rather than systematically considering referrals from staff and liaising with statutory agencies when required. Important safeguarding information is not always written down.

Leaders have not developed clear systems to identify, record and monitor safeguarding issues.

Support for vulnerable pupils is not always implemented swiftly enough. Staff do not always identify when an issue needs to be treated as a safeguarding concern.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• Safeguarding processes are not effective.

Pupils do not always receive timely support. Some serious issues are not identified as safeguarding concerns and are not handled and referred appropriately. Leaders and governors must ensure the school's processes for identifying, recording and sharing safeguarding concerns are robust and that all staff understand their safeguarding duty.

• The curriculum from Nursery to Year 6 is not sufficiently well planned and organised. Pupils' starting points are not considered when new learning is introduced. Subject leaders have not received sufficient training to understand how to plan and monitor the curriculum.

As a result, pupils experience lessons in isolation with little reference to prior learning. Leaders must review the curriculum and set out the knowledge and vocabulary they want pupils to know and remember. They must develop clear and effective systems to ensure this is implemented effectively.

• Leaders have not planned the reading curriculum in sufficient detail. Phonics teaching is inconsistent. Pupils struggle to read the books they are given.

Leaders must ensure staff receive the necessary training and support to deliver the school's phonics programme effectively and to monitor the impact of this training. Staff must precisely match pupils' reading books with their phonics knowledge. ? Behaviour systems and policies do not focus on helping pupils to display positive learning behaviours and engagement in lessons.

As a result, pupils do not all focus on their learning. Leaders must set out and monitor their expectations for pupils' behaviours for learning and ensure staff follow these precisely. ? Leaders and governors do not have an accurate view of the school's performance.

They rely too much on data to assess the effectiveness of leaders' work rather than monitoring if pupils are making progress through the school's planned curriculum. Leaders and governors require further training on how to design an effective curriculum that enables all pupils to progress and achieve well. ? Leaders and those responsible for governance may not appoint early career teachers before the next monitoring inspection.

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