Greenbank Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils, and children in the early years, are happy to belong to this vibrant school community.

The warm and positive relationships that pupils build with both the staff and each other help them to feel safe and important. Pupils are confident that if they reported any concerns, including about bullying, staff would act swiftly to resolve them.

Pupils are happy at school. They feel well cared for, valued and protected in this safe haven.

Pupils understand the importance of respect for all.

They embrace their differences and get on well with each other. They said that everyone is welcome in their school. Pupils who have recently joined the school confi...rm this.

They said that they have settled in quickly and made friends easily.

Pupils behave well both around the school and in lessons. Pupils are polite, articulate and enthusiastic when talking about their learning.

They understand leaders' high expectations for their behaviour and achievement. Pupils and children are keen to do their best. Pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), achieve well.

Pupils value the many exciting opportunities that they have to participate in a rich variety of outdoor, adventurous learning activities, for example annual residential visits and kayaking and canoeing locally. Pupils mix regularly with pupils from other schools. This helps them to develop their social confidence and resilience.

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

Leaders have designed an interesting, varied and ambitious curriculum for all pupils, including those with SEND. In most subjects, leaders have decided on the important content, including the subject-specific vocabulary, that pupils need to learn. Leaders have carefully considered the order of this content so as to enable pupils, including children in the early years, to deepen their knowledge and understanding over time.

Subject leaders have been well trained. In most subjects, they provide helpful guidance and information for teachers. This helps to develop teachers' subject knowledge and supports them to deliver these subject curriculums effectively.

In most subjects, pupils' learning closely follows the curriculum that leaders have designed. As a result, pupils know more and remember more over time and achieve well. Occasionally, in a few subjects, teachers are not clear enough about the building blocks of knowledge that pupils, including children in the early years, should learn and when this should be taught.

This makes it difficult for teachers to check how well pupils have secured their knowledge before moving on to new learning. This hinders how well some pupils learn in these subjects.Children in the early years are happy and confident.

They develop independence and socialise well. Staff encourage children to listen attentively to stories and to develop their spoken language and vocabulary. Children are prepared well for the demands of key stage 1.

Leaders have recently reviewed the early reading curriculum. Staff are well trained to deliver the phonics programme effectively. Children and pupils practise their reading regularly with books that match the sounds that they know.

For the most part, staff provide additional and appropriate help to those children and pupils who fall behind in reading. However, there are occasions when staff do not identify precisely enough the gaps in these children's and pupils' reading knowledge. This affects how quickly these children and pupils catch up with peers.

Older pupils enjoy reading. They are enthusiastic about their favourite books and authors.

Leaders ensure that the needs of pupils with SEND are identified early.

Teachers deploy a range of effective approaches to ensure that pupils with SEND are supported effectively. These pupils access the full curriculum and achieve well.

Pupils' positive attitudes to their learning mean that teachers can focus on delivering the curriculum without disruption or distraction.

Leaders provide a range of opportunities for pupils to foster an understanding of diversity in modern British society. Pupils develop empathy for others. They understand that everyone, regardless of their differences, should be treated with respect.

However, leaders have not ensured that all pupils are taught about different types of families.

Members of the governing body are highly committed to supporting leaders' determined efforts to further improve the quality of education that pupils receive. They are proud of the work of staff to support vulnerable pupils and their families.

Staff morale is high. Staff, including teachers at the early stages of their careers, value the support that they receive from their mentors. Staff appreciate that their well-being and workload are of high importance to leaders and governors.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

Leaders ensure that staff have regular training to help them to recognise the signs that could indicate that a pupil is at risk from, or suffering, harm. Staff are aware of the procedures for reporting concerns.

They understand that safeguarding is everyone's responsibility.

Staff in the pastoral team use their expertise to ensure that pupils and their families benefit from effective, timely support when needed.

Leaders ensure that the school's curriculum provides opportunities for pupils to learn how to keep themselves safe.

For example, pupils have regular lessons about online safety. Pupils have a secure understanding of some of the features of healthy relationships.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• From time to time, leaders do not pinpoint the deficits in children's and pupils' reading well enough.

This means that, on occasion, teachers do not provide the most effective support in the first instance. Consequently, some children and pupils do not catch up as quickly as they should. Leaders should ensure that gaps in children's and pupils' reading knowledge are identified accurately so that they can catch up quickly with their peers.

• In a small number of subjects, leaders have not ensured that staff are clear about the essential knowledge that pupils should learn. As a result, there are occasions when teachers are unable to check how well pupils have learned the essential building blocks of knowledge before introducing new ideas. Leaders should ensure that teachers are clear about the knowledge that pupils should learn so that staff can check that pupils' prior learning is secure.

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