Khalsa Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils love coming to Khalsa Primary School. They relish their learning and they excel here.

As one parent reflected, 'It is like winning the lottery having your child attend this school.'

The five Sikh virtues of love, compassion, contentment, humility and truth underpin all that the school does. Pupils flourish in an exceptionally caring and inclusive learning environment.

Secure, trusting relationships between staff and pupils ensure that pupils feel very well supported. In turn, pupils' outstanding behaviour and their impeccable manners make this a very special place to be.

Visionary and inspiring senior leadership underpins the shared high aspi...rations and first-rate academic standards here.

The highly dedicated team of staff ensures that all pupils get a wonderful range of experiences and learn a wide range of subjects. Pupils respond to teachers' very high expectations with gleeful enthusiasm and give all activities their full commitment and concentration. They become confident learners, achieve exceptionally well and are very well prepared to become exemplary citizens.

Senior leaders make sure that all pupils are safe. Pupils and families are supported particularly well if they feel anxious or have worries.

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

Since his arrival, the headteacher has boosted the capacity of senior leadership, raised standards and reinvigorated the curriculum.

Together, his new team of senior leaders have certainly made their mark on the school and its community. They have ensured that pupils achieve exceptional standards across a full range of subjects. Parents and carers enthuse about how much the school offers their children.

They have nothing but praise for the headteacher and his team.

Right from their first days in Nursery and Reception, adults expertly support children's language skills, encouraging their imaginations and confident communication. Highly effective communication with families and expert teaching ensure that pupils who speak English as an additional language are supported particularly well.

Teachers ensure that sequences of lessons build upon and challenge what pupils already know, understand and can remember. Engaging themes and thought-provoking questions stimulate pupils' curiosity, creativity and problem-solving skills. Skilled planning and bespoke interventions ensure that disadvantaged pupils and those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) get the support and challenge that they need.

All groups of pupils at Khalsa Primary School achieve exceptionally well.

The teaching of reading is first class. Pupils in Year 1 and children in Reception carefully practise the sounds they have learned and relish forming simple sentences.

They learn to read very well and delight in stories. The well-equipped library provides access to a wide range of stimulating fiction and non-fiction books. All pupils have regular opportunities to read to staff and visiting parents in school.

Older pupils develop a strong understanding of how writers convey characters, ideas and themes in texts. Consequently, they achieve very well in reading by the end of key stage 2.

Pupils become talented writers, diligently drafting and refining their work to make it the best it can be.

Pupils enjoy using an extensive vocabulary. Staff make explicit links between the high-quality books pupils read and their writing skills. As one Year 3 pupil told me: 'It's really motivating.

I read much more and can see that this helps my writing to be more expressive and show my emotions.'

Similarly, pupils enthusiastically and articulately recall their achievements in mathematics, sports, art, music, language, humanities and science. Pupils' books, displays of work and newsletters clearly demonstrate exceptional achievement across the curriculum.

Leaders are striving for even better and are currently refining the sequence of learning across science and the foundation subjects to improve learning still further.

Spirituality underpins the academic standards here and Khalsa Primary School contributes exceptionally well to pupils' character development. The promotion of equalities, tolerance and respect underpins all that the school does.

During regular heart-warming 'super citizen' assemblies, pupils delight in celebrating the academic achievements and positive character traits of their peers. Pupils make a big impact on their community. They willingly take on positions of responsibility and engage in charity work.

Pupils' physical and emotional health are promoted very well. Pupils greatly value the uniqueness of their education here, praising the school's holy meditation space and the opportunities for music, sport and games.

Governors know the school well and share the headteacher's vision.

They use frequent visits to the school to pose effective challenge. Staff are unanimous in their praise of the school. They feel exceptionally well supported and really value their roles.

Staff, parents and pupils described the school to inspectors as a family.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

Safeguarding leaders have up-to-date expertise in all aspects of safeguarding.

Appropriate checks are made on all adults who work with the children in school. Leaders maintain meticulous recording systems and ensure that a comprehensive package of training is available for all staff. Safeguarding leaders work well with external agencies and act determinedly should any pupils require extra help.

Teaching staff know their pupils and the local community very well. Teachers modify the curriculum to ensure that what they know about local and national risks becomes included. Pupils understand how to keep themselves safe when outside of school and when online.

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