Green Meadow Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

The atmosphere in school is supportive, friendly and welcoming of all. In the words of several parents and carers, 'The staff go above and beyond to help the pupils here.' As the school vision states, pupils are indeed ready, respectful and safe.

They arrive happily and settle quickly to their work. They love learning and always show positive attitudes towards everything they are asked to do.

Pupils achieve well and are proud and excited to talk about their learning.

They benefit from the tasks that teachers provide. These are purposeful and well designed to help pupils learn and remember what they are taught.

Whether in class, in the innovative virt...ual reality suite or on the exciting lunchtime playground, pupils behave well and treat one another kindly.

This is because they learn a great deal about how to behave, mutual respect and equality. There are clear rules and high expectations of everyone.

On the rare occasions when behaviour falls short of expectations, school staff are highly skilled at helping pupils to make amends.

Pupils trust staff to sort out any issues quickly, and they do so.

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

The school, with support from the trust, has put in place an ambitious, broad and successful curriculum. Enhancements to the curriculum in some subjects, including history and mathematics, have had more time to embed than others.

Pupils are successful in these subjects, gaining secure mathematical and historical knowledge. However, in a small number of other subjects, the curriculum is well designed but is at an earlier stage of implementation. This means that, although pupils enjoy these subjects, they are not remembering as much as they might.

Teachers encourage and intentionally teach all pupils to communicate effectively in speech. This starts in the early years. This is consistent across the school and is highly effective.

Pupils share their ideas and opinions clearly, and this helps deepen learning. It has also helped them win a local public speaking competition involving other schools.

Teachers successfully modify and adapt learning so that all pupils, including pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities, can access the whole curriculum.

As a result, pupils from Reception to Year 6 progress well through the curriculum.

Children get off to a good start learning to read. They begin phonics from the start of Reception and quickly learn how to put letter sounds together to read simple words.

Adults know which sounds pupils can read because they hear them read often. Throughout school, if pupils fall behind with their reading, adults help them to catch up.

Pupils enjoy hearing the high-quality books that adults read to them.

This happens regularly, and pupils love following along with the text and talking about the books. This inspires them and gives them a real love of reading.

In the early years, children settle quickly into routines.

The curriculum is ambitious and well structured. Teachers know the children well and adjust activities to provide exactly what they need. The classroom environment is engaging and staff make effective use of high-quality resources to support children's learning.

Although it is so early in their life at school, children are already independent, smiling and able to focus well on the learning they do.

The school and the trust engage successfully with parents. Parents feel informed and valued.

They praise the school for the ambition it shows for all pupils and for the many opportunities it provides. Parents visit school regularly to celebrate their children's accomplishments and find out how to support learning.

Pupils develop an excellent knowledge of personal, social and health education.

They are learning to become active citizens who are tolerant, empathic and sensitive to differences and diversity. They are being very well prepared for life in modern Britain.

The curriculum extends well beyond the academic.

Pupils get a range of wider experiences. The school carefully selects opportunities that help widen pupils' personal development. These include residentials, theatre trips and inviting visitors into school to inform and inspire pupils about the world of work.

Many pupils benefit from a wide range of clubs, which they enjoy attending enormously. Various sporting and creative arts clubs are offered, and there is even a club where pupils learn to touch-type.

Leaders at all levels share a highly ambitious vision for this school.

They have high expectations and a passion to provide the absolute best for every single pupil. They put their plans into action, enabling the school to go from strength to strength.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• In a small number of subjects, the school has not fully implemented curriculum improvements as effectively as in other subjects. This means that pupils do not retain as much knowledge and understanding as they could. The school should continue to implement and review these subjects so that they become as embedded and effective as those subjects which are current strengths of the school.