Hindley All Saints CofE Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are proud to attend this school.

They said that the school is like a family and that everyone is included. Pupils especially love their school dog, Bramble, who is a gentle companion and helps pupils when they feel upset. Children in early years even receive their very own toy dog when they start school to welcome them.

Pupils said that adults listen to them and help them. This makes them feel happy, safe and secure.

The school has high expectations for pupils.

Most pupils achieve well and enjoy the programme of enrichment activities that supports their learning inside the classroom and outdoors. Most pupils try to follow the school rules. The...y are calm and orderly around the school.

Pupils are respectful of others. For example, from early years to Year 6, children and pupils are taught to take turns and to listen to each other.

Pupils appreciate the range of clubs and activities on offer.

Pupils take on a range of responsibilities to develop their leadership skills, such as managing the school library or caring for the school's bees. Pupils who hold the role of school ambassador take their duties seriously so that they make a valuable contribution to school improvement.

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

The school provides a curriculum that is broad, ambitious and interesting.

All pupils learn from this curriculum, including those pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND).

For each subject, the curriculum sets out the key knowledge that children in early years and pupils across Years 1 to 6 will learn. Pupils learn this key knowledge in small, well-ordered steps.

The school helps pupils develop their learning by building new knowledge on what they already know. Most pupils achieve well and are prepared for the next stage in their learning.

The school works effectively to identify any pupils who may have SEND.

Appropriate resources are designed and used to enable these pupils to learn the curriculum. However, on occasions, the information that the school holds about pupils' needs does not trigger the support that they need quickly enough. When this happens, pupils with SEND learn less well.

There are regular checks to make sure that pupils can remember what they have learned. The school uses information from these checks to identify any pupils who are not keeping up with the intended learning. These pupils receive effective support to catch up.

The school prioritises early reading. Children in early years develop strong communication and language skills. This helps to prepare them for the phonics programme, which begins straight away in the Reception class.

Children quickly learn a range of letters and sounds. These become more complex in Year 1. The words in pupils' reading books usually contain the sounds that pupils have learned.

This helps pupils to read successfully. However, on occasions, some pupils at the earliest stage of reading receive books that contain sounds that they do not know. This makes it difficult for them to read these books with success.

Across each year group, pupils have access to a broad range of books. The school promotes a love of reading through activities such as book fairs and regular visits to the school library.

Most pupils attend school regularly.

Pupils typically stay focused on their learning. They listen carefully, work hard and respond well to instructions. This means that lessons usually proceed without any disruption.

Pupils are enthusiastic about their learning activities. For example, children in early years spoke excitedly about the game that they played to develop their language and technology skills.

Pupils enjoy their weekly discussions about news and current affairs.

These activities help pupils to develop an appropriate awareness of the world beyond their local area. Pupils accept and celebrate differences between themselves and other people. They understand tolerance and acceptance as being essential to life in modern Britain.

The school provides many opportunities to ensure that pupils learn important life skills. For example, pupils make use of the outdoor environment to grow their own produce, which is then sold or used in school.

The governing body maintains a clear oversight of what is working well and what needs to improve further.

It supports and challenges the school on relevant issues. The school makes sure that it considers the impact on staff's workload when making any changes. Staff are overwhelmingly positive in their support for the school and value the consideration for their well-being.

Parents and carers appreciate the frequent communication from school. This helps them know what their child will learn throughout the year.

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 does not ensure that the information it has about some pupils with SEND is used quickly enough to put effective support in place. This means that some pupils with SEND do not progress through the curriculum as well as they could. The school should ensure that pupils with SEND receive timely and responsive support with their learning.

• The school does not ensure that those pupils at the earliest stages of learning to read have books that match their phonic knowledge. This means that a small number of pupils are not able to access their reading books and do not achieve as well as they could. The school should ensure that the books read by these pupils are matched to their phonic knowledge so that they catch up more quickly.

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