Holy Trinity Church of England Primary School, Cuckfield

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Outcome

Holy Trinity C of E Primary School, Cuckfield continues to be a good school.

What is it like to attend this school?

The whole-school community embodies the school values of perseverance, aspiration, respect and teamwork. Pupils feel safe and are happy.

They benefit from nurturing relationships with staff across the school. Pupils feel listened to, and any incidents of bullying are dealt with by adults appropriately. They are clear that unkindness is not tolerated in their school.

Pupils are keen to meet leaders' high expectations of them. They enjoy learning and delight in talking about the lessons that they have enjoyed and the books that they are reading. The school make...s good use of the outdoor space available to extend learning beyond the classroom.

Welly walks, trips to the mud kitchen and use of the forest school all provide pupils with ways to broaden their knowledge. Opportunities for pupils to take on leadership responsibilities across the school are highly prized. Pupils enjoy representing the views of their peers through the student council, being an anti-bullying ambassador or a 'rainbow rep'.

There are a wide range of clubs and activities to participate in, ranging from football club to Minecraft club.

As one parent said, 'I would recommend this school to prospective parents as the sense of community here is fantastic for everyone.'

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

Inclusivity sits at the heart of the decisions that leaders make for the school community.

The school maintains this unwavering focus throughout all of its provision. This includes, for example, through the books that are selected so that each pupil can see themselves represented within literature. The school also makes careful decisions about external speakers in order to inspire pupils to be inclusive.

Children get off to a good start in early years. Children in Reception are well supported by knowledgeable adults who prioritise high-quality interactions and purposeful play. Staff use careful checks to ensure that all children have the practice time that they need to learn important knowledge.

As a result, children confidently develop their use of number, early reading and communication skills.

All pupils are supported to thrive. Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities are well supported to participate in all aspects of school life.

Staff prioritise helping all pupils to read confidently and fluently. Books are mostly well matched to the sounds that pupils are being taught. Most staff have received precise training to provide them with the subject knowledge that they need to teach the curriculum.

However, there are some inconsistencies in the quality of phonics teaching. Sometimes, there are missed opportunities to check what pupils know and can do. This means that misconceptions are not always identified and addressed.

Some pupils require additional help and feedback to improve their reading accuracy.

Subjects in the wider curriculum have been thoughtfully designed. For example, in geography, pupils are well supported to develop an increasingly complex understanding of their local area.

They do this through learning about other regions that they compare and contrast to where they live. This helps pupils to gain insights into other cultures and deepen their understanding of important themes, such as diversity. In many subjects, what knowledge to teach has been clearly identified and linked to specific vocabulary that staff want pupils to learn.

Where teaching is strongest, staff have high expectations and maximise learning time in classrooms. They do this by regularly and precisely checking what pupils know and can do, encouraging them to explain their thinking in discussions and reducing the time lost between different learning activities. However, in a small number of lessons, not all pupils are challenged quickly to meet leaders' high expectations.

This means that occasionally learning time in lessons is not used effectively.

Pupils confidently discuss what they learn in personal, social and health education lessons. The curriculum is broad and covers a range of important age-appropriate knowledge.

Leaders are proactive in inviting external speakers to support them giving important messages, for example 'Show Racism the Red Card'.

Any incidents of behaviour that fall below leaders' high expectations are dealt with swiftly and effectively. Staff know their pupils well and ensure that positive behaviour is promoted.

As a result, pupils respond well to the behaviour expectations in and around the school. Attendance is another clear priority in the school. Leaders are aware of the gaps in attendance for some groups of pupils and are addressing them appropriately.

The school has established positive relationships with the community that they serve. Staff feel that their workload and well-being are considered. Staff speak positively about the impact of recent changes to report writing and the subject-specific training they have received.

They feel that their voices are heard when making decisions. Together with governors, leaders know the strengths of the school well and the areas to further develop. They are reflective and regularly look for ways to improve what they do for all of their pupils and staff.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• Some struggling early readers are not yet receiving precise enough support to help them to read confidently and fluently. This means that some pupils demonstrate gaps in their knowledge that have not yet been addressed, which hinders them from catching up quickly.

The school should ensure that all staff have received the training and support required to use the most effective strategies to help all pupils to read with accuracy. ? In some lessons, opportunities are missed to engage all pupils in the important knowledge being taught. This means that some pupils are not fully focused on the learning at hand.

Although pupils do not disrupt the learning of other pupils, they are not being suitably challenged to engage in the lesson content. The school should ensure that clear expectations are communicated in order to ensure that instruction, practice and feedback within lessons maximises learning.

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 October 2013.

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