Huntingdon Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Huntingdon Primary School is an inclusive school where pupils are happy.

They are proud of the sense of care and community that permeates the school. Pupils respect each other and value the school's culture of celebration irrespective of who you are. Parents and carers also appreciate the school's nurturing ethos.

Pupils trust adults in the school to deal with any incidents of bullying if it does occur. Pupils feel confident about going to staff if they have any worries.

Poor behaviour is not accepted, and pupils behave well.

Playtimes are calm and well managed. Staff intervene in a timely manner if play becomes overzealous. Pupils get along well wit...h each other.

The school teaches pupils to be kind to everyone, irrespective of their differences.

Pupils like the fact that staff are ambitious about what they can achieve. Pupils enjoy the different subjects they study and happily talk about what they know.

Pupils value the large range of opportunities they have to take on responsibility. This includes being school ambassadors, playground buddies, subject experts or peer mediators. Pupils also appreciate the many visits that staff organise to enhance their learning.

This includes residential trips.

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

The school has a clear ambition for reading. It wants all pupils to be fluent readers and to develop the skills required to be successful.

This includes pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). The reading curriculum progresses in a structured, incremental fashion, starting with the teaching of phonics in Reception. This ensures that pupils master their learning before they move on to the next step.

Staff carefully check pupils' understanding.

The school has designed an interesting and well-sequenced curriculum. It is clearly planned so that it builds pupils' knowledge and skills in a logical way over time.

Staff are well trained to deliver the curriculum. Pupils speak enthusiastically about their learning. For example, they were proud of how much they have learned in physical education (PE).

However, there are gaps between the curriculum plans and what pupils learn. In a few foundation subjects, teachers do not always follow the curriculum plans. This means that pupils miss out on key content and are less secure in their knowledge for future learning.

Where this occurs, pupils are not always able to remember key vocabulary that they should know.

The early years curriculum is carefully planned. The school considers what children need to know and understand ready for their learning of the national curriculum in Year 1.

Staff actively engage with the children and model correct pronunciation of sounds or words. The children enjoy the way in which the learning environment is set out. For example, the children had fun being creative with musical instruments and shared this by performing for others.

Children understand staff's expectations.

The school ensures that pupils with SEND are well supported. A robust system is in place to identify and meet the needs of pupils who need extra help.

This includes adjusting the learning in class where necessary. Owing to the helpful training they receive, staff have an expert understanding of how to work with pupils with SEND. The use of bespoke programmes helps pupils to be successful at school.

This includes building resilience and anger management.

Behaviour around the school is calm. Pupils enjoy their lessons and are keen to learn.

The vast majority of pupils show enthusiasm and engagement with their learning. Staff are quick to support pupils to self-regulate if they lose concentration.

The school has improved attendance, and persistent absence is reducing.

This is because there are clear daily procedures in place that encourage good attendance.

There are high take-up rates for the many engaging activities to nurture pupils' talents provided by the school. For example, pupils organise activities to support charities such as the air ambulance service and the local food bank.

The school also provides rich experiences linked to the curriculum. These range from trips to the local library and museum to residential visits. Pupils feel that adults at school listen to them and that their views matter.

The school emphasises the importance of respecting different religions and cultures. The pupils also value the school's ethos of tolerance and respect for others.

Governance is strong because governors know the school well.

They understand its strengths and weaknesses. Staff feel well supported by the school, which regularly checks on their workload.

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 minority of foundation subjects, important parts of the school's planned curriculum are not taught. Therefore, pupils do not have the subject knowledge that they need for the next steps in their learning. The school must ensure that the intended curriculum is taught in its entirety in every foundation subject so that pupils have a secure knowledge of the key content they need for their future learning.

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