Houghton Regis Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Outcome

There has been no change to this school's overall judgement of good as a result of this ungraded (section 8) inspection. However, the evidence gathered suggests that the inspection grade might not be as high if a graded (section 5) inspection were carried out now. The school's next inspection will be a graded inspection.

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are curious and caring. They try hard to collect house points and achieve the coveted 'star awards'. Pupils benefit greatly from the whole-school events that broaden their experiences.

For instance, the 'cultural week' introduces pupils to languages, food and religions found around the world. Because the school teaches ...positively about difference, pupils feel comfortable being themselves. This ensures they feel happy and safe in school.

The school encourages pupils' aspirations. For example, there is a strong focus on sport and the performing arts. The extra-curricular clubs complement pupils' experiences in lessons.

Many pupils access additional ballet and gymnastics lessons with trained professionals. Pupils then go on to complete graded exams and take part in inter-school competitions to demonstrate their sporting prowess.

Pupils' achievement varies.

For example, Year 2 pupils are expert at counting in multiples and Year 5 pupils remember lots from their lessons on South America. However, dotted across the school are some shortcomings in the teaching pupils receive. At this time, these shortcomings are not being addressed as well as they could be.

This is affecting how well pupils achieve.

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

During and shortly after the pandemic, the school went through a period of turbulence. There was a turnover of governors and staff.

Leaders are working hard to steady the ship. They recruit colleagues with valuable experience and expertise. However, issues remain that hamper pupils' achievement.

The school's curriculum is well thought through. This is because curriculum leaders access appropriate training to strengthen their subject expertise. It shows in their ability to adopt or compile detailed curriculum plans.

Staff welcome the guidance. They like how they have lesson planning and resources that they may tweak as opposed to having to start from scratch.

However, curriculum leaders are not given enough time to monitor teaching and learning.

This makes it difficult to identify training needs and provide effective support. For example, sometimes staff ask questions that pupils cannot answer and they fail to adjust their teaching. This causes some pupils to lose interest and miss subsequent demonstrations, leading to mistakes in their work.

Starting in the early years, the school is steadfast in children securing the sounds letters make so they become successful readers. Leaders ensure that staff receive the training and resources required to teach the phonics programme well. Meticulous checks identify pupils who need extra help.

These checks set out the required support to address gaps in pupils' understanding. Consequently, pupils' phonics achievement is improving.

However, the success in phonics is not translating into success in pupils' writing.

This is because there are inconsistencies in teaching. For example, sometimes staff do not model the mechanisms of how to complete a written exercise. Because pupils are not shown and reminded how to do it well, they continue to make the same mistakes.

Over time, these mistakes become entrenched and harder for staff to resolve.

The school shows strong dedication to aiding pupils with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), offering a wide range of support services. This involves training staff through external experts, such as speech and language therapists.

However, some parents seek more involvement from leaders to grasp the support process better. Staff also express concerns about the frequency and quality of SEND provision checks by the school and the lack of feedback on effectiveness.

The school has updated attendance and behaviour policies to clarify their approach.

This has resulted in more pupils attending regularly and behaving well. However, there are still challenges, especially regarding the consistent teaching of behaviour expectations. For instance, sometimes, staff praise good manners while at other times they do not.

This leads to inconsistent expectations.

The school's personal development programme is its crown jewel. Fostering pupils' creativity, musicality, and sporting prowess is crucial.

For instance, swimming lessons exceed the minimum requirement. Dedicated staff offer pastoral support to make the school safe. For example, the 'lunchtime nurture club' gives vulnerable pupils a secure place to eat and socialise.

Parents and staff have mixed views about the school. Some parents value what it offers, and most staff enjoy working there. Yet, there are others who feel they lack information.

They are sometimes unclear about the school's plans, expectations, and issue resolutions. Leaders and governors acknowledge the need for better engagement. There are plans to improve communication and systems, but these are not yet in place.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• Staff do not explain and remind pupils enough about important foundational knowledge in writing. As a result, pupils struggle to communicate their ideas clearly in the written form.

Leaders should ensure staff understand how best to approach the teaching of writing, as well as how to use their checks on pupils' writing to inform the feedback and support pupils receive. ? Leaders do not sufficiently prioritise curriculum implementation. There are too few checks on how well the curriculum and additional support for pupils with SEND, is being realised.

As a result, leaders are unable to quickly spot how teaching could be improved. Leaders should be enabled to regularly evaluate the teaching of the curriculum to provide training and support to staff, so that pupils, including those with SEND, can learn more and remember more.

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 first ungraded inspection since we judged the school to be good in May 2019.

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