Keevil CofE Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Outcome

Keevil C of E Primary School has taken effective action to maintain the standards identified at the previous inspection.

The headteacher of this school is Lindsey Hermon.

This school is part of Acorn Education Trust, which means other people in the trust also have responsibility for running the school. The trust is run by the chief executive officer (CEO), Sara Edwards, and overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by David Middleton.

What is it like to attend this school?

The school's guiding principle of 'Always treat others as you would like to be treated' underpins its inclusive ethos.

Pupils of all ages interact well with each other. Staff thread the 'Keevil C...haracteristics', such as 'teamwork', throughout school life. Older pupils delight in becoming a buddy to children in the Reception Year.

This helps the youngest children to settle in quickly and become part of the friendly team spirit.

The school is ambitious for pupils, including those pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Over recent years, it has continued to strengthen its mixed-age curriculum.

Pupils are keen to talk about what they have learned. Most pupils work hard in their lessons and achieve well as a result.

Pupils uphold the school's values in the way they behave.

For example, pupils know the importance of good 'communication' if they need to sort out any minor problems. Across the school, learning flows without disruption because pupils choose to do what is right.

Pupils' service to the school and the wider community is commendable.

For instance, they lead worship, support local charities, plant trees and read to residents at a local care home. At Keevil, pupils learn to become active and responsible citizens.

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

The school has developed a curriculum which is well constructed and engaging.

It outlines the knowledge and skills pupils need to learn and when. The school has broken down learning into the most important 'need to know' content and vocabulary. This helps pupils to build their knowledge well.

For example, in history, pupils in Year 4 understand why the Vikings came to Britain and can make links to concepts such as settlement and invasion.

In many subjects, teachers use their ongoing checks to find out what pupils know and remember. For example, teachers use retrieval tasks in mathematics to help pupils recall their recent learning.

In the Reception Year, this helps children understand how to combine numbers to make different amounts. However, the school does not routinely check pupils' learning and recall in some of the wider curriculum subjects. This affects how well some pupils secure essential knowledge over time.

The school wants pupils to enjoy reading and prioritises teaching pupils to read well. Staff teach the phonics programme from the start of the Reception Year. They have the knowledge and skills to teach phonics effectively.

The school ensures that any pupils at risk of falling behind receive timely and targeted support to keep them on track, including those who lack reading fluency. Older pupils enjoy reading, and they do so with growing expression and confidence.

The school identifies the needs of pupils with SEND accurately and quickly.

Pupils receive a range of personalised interventions, such as speech and language and reading fluency, to help narrow any gaps. A well-considered programme of emotional support, including time with 'Mr Moose', the therapy dog, helps to boost pupils' self-esteem.

Occasionally, however, the school's expectations of pupils' handwriting, grammar and presentation are not consistently high, including for pupils with SEND.

This means that some pupils do not develop their writing fluency and accuracy as well as they could.

Pupils move around the school in a calm and orderly manner. They strive to earn house points and have their name added to the 'good learning book' for their achievements.

The school has effective systems in place to promote attendance. Consequently, pupils attend school regularly and on time.

The school places pupils' personal growth at the heart of its decisions.

For example, pupils take on leadership responsibilities as prefects and school councillors. Through the curriculum, pupils celebrate different cultures and faiths. They confidently challenge gender stereotypes and discrimination.

Visits from the police and national charities educate pupils about important themes such as healthy relationships and personal safety. Listening to different composers in worship inspires pupils to learn to play a musical instrument. Regular visits to a farm support pupils to understand their local community and learn about sustainability.

All this work and much more helps to develop pupils' character.

A positive team spirit exists at Keevil. Staff unanimously agree that school leaders carefully consider their workload and well-being.

They value the learning opportunities provided by the trust. Trustees and the local academy council perform their duties effectively. They make a tangible contribution to the school.

Parents and carers endorse the 'striking sense of community' and how the school 'goes above and beyond' for its pupils. The vast majority hold the school in high regard.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• Systems for checking what pupils know and understand are not well established in some of the wider curriculum subjects. Where this is the case, some pupils do not secure the essential knowledge the curriculum outlines. The school and trust must ensure that teachers check pupils' learning closely in each subject and use this information to inform what comes next.

• Occasionally, the school's expectations of pupils' handwriting, grammar and presentation are not consistently high. This means that some pupils do not develop their writing fluency and accuracy as well as they could. The school and trust need to support staff to improve how to teach the foundational skills for writing so that pupils produce high-quality writing.

Background

Until September 2024, on a graded (section 5) inspection we gave schools an overall effectiveness grade, in addition to the key and provision judgements. Overall effectiveness grades given before September 2024 will continue to be visible on school inspection reports and on Ofsted's website. From September 2024 graded inspections will not include an overall effectiveness grade.

This school was, before September 2024, judged to be good for its overall effectiveness.

We have now inspected the school to determine whether it has taken effective action to maintain the standards identified at that previous inspection. 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's work has improved significantly or that it may not be as strong as it was at the last inspection, then the next inspection will be a graded inspection. A graded inspection 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 for overall effectiveness in December 2019.