Latymer All Saints CofE Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Outcome

Latymer All Saints CofE Primary School continues to be a good school.

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy coming to school. All pupils we spoke with said that their teachers make lessons interesting. Pupils told us that everyone in the school helps them to stay safe.

Pupils said that staff listen to them if they have any issues and deal with problems quickly. Leaders have adopted a reflective approach to supporting pupils' behaviour. Pupils respond well to this.

During breaktimes, staff lead activities to support pupils in their play. We saw staff and pupils enjoying dance sessions and playing games, such as 'four square'.

Staff expect pupils to ac...hieve well.

Pupils learn well while they are at school. Leaders know that there is more work to be done to ensure that the most able pupils are challenged to reach their potential.

Pupils from a wide range of cultural and faith backgrounds attend this school.

Through the school's Christian ethos, staff support all pupils. Throughout the school, 'big questions' are posed. These are used to help pupils to consider moral ideas and to spark discussion.

Pupils told us that staff are very effective at dealing with any bullying. Pupils feel confident that if they have issues which they are not able to resolve, they know that staff will support them.

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

Leaders have designed a programme of learning which is well matched to the needs of pupils at this school.

They have taken time to consider which topics will be taught. Nevertheless, leaders have not ensured that the order in which pupils learn knowledge and skills is well thought out for the history curriculum.

Leaders have considered carefully how reading is taught.

Teachers provide pupils with class reading texts a week before lessons about the texts start. This provides an opportunity for pupils to learn new vocabulary and have an understanding of the text before analysing it in detail with their classmates.

Pupils are given time to read in pairs.

Pupils support each other with reading of their own choice of books. We saw pupils listening to stories read to them by their teachers. Pupils in one class listened attentively to their teacher reading 'Beowulf', a book which they had been sharing over a number of lessons.

Pupils in younger years are taught phonics. Teachers provide pupils with appropriate reading books which are generally well matched to pupils' phonic knowledge. Currently, teachers are using a range of different resources to teach early reading and this sometimes affects the consistency of pupils' learning.

Leaders have recognised that there is a need for a more focused approach to ensure that pupils have consistently strong learning experiences in all classes. A significant number of pupils join Reception and Year 1 who are new to English. By the end of Year 2, these pupils have a phonic knowledge appropriate for their age.

Mathematics is well planned. Children in Nursery start with opportunities to explore numbers through play. We saw children choosing parking spaces to match the numbers on their wheelbarrows.

The programme of learning builds on pupils' previous learning. An example of this was seen in pupils' work on fractions, moving from fractions of a whole number to adding and subtracting fractions. Staff take care to look at what pupils know already and where they may have gaps in their understanding.

Leaders are reviewing what is taught in mathematics, ensuring that the curriculum is demanding for the most able pupils.

Pupils' art work is displayed and celebrated throughout the school. Pupils are proud of the work they do in art.

Pupils have studied a wide range of artists from different backgrounds and cultures, for example Yayoi Kusama and Vincent van Gogh. Pupils use their sketchbooks to record their work. These books demonstrate that pupils develop art skills over time.

In Reception, we saw children exploring art through printing with objects, collage and junk modelling.

History is taught through the topics which pupils study each term. The order in which pupils learn history is disjointed and so they do not develop secure knowledge and skills over time.

Leaders recognise the need for greater clarity over the sequence of learning. Despite these areas for development, pupils in older year groups were able to describe what they had learned about Hadrian's Wall. They had some understanding of the order of events in British history.

Lessons are enriched by visitors to the school and trips. Pupils in Year 5 had recently visited the Ragged School Museum to better understand the differences between school now and school in 1900.

The neighbouring church plays a large part in school life.

In this multicultural school, pupils, parents and carers all said how respectful staff and pupils are of all faiths.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.Staff have a good understanding of the risks pupils may face outside school, such as the dangers of knife crime and gang affiliation.

Leaders arrange workshops, including those run by the NSPCC. This, together with the school's personal, social, health and economic (PSHE) education programme help pupils to learn how to stay safe.

Leaders have robust safeguarding procedures in place.

Staff have received training and know how to recognise the potential signs that a pupil may be at risk. Leaders work closely with the appropriate authorities when referrals are made about pupils' safety. All staff know pupils well and have found ways of developing strong and purposeful relationships with parents.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

The curriculum has been in place for more than one year. There are some aspects of the history curriculum where the sequence of learning needs to be clearer so that pupils' knowledge and understanding build over time. Leaders should take time to further develop this so that parts of the curriculum are not seen in isolation to the rest of the subject.

. Leaders have begun to improve teaching to set more demanding work for the most able pupils. This is not yet fully embedded.

Leaders must monitor teaching to ensure that all pupils reach their full potential. . There are several different resources used for the teaching of early reading.

This is leading to some inconsistencies in the quality of teaching and having an impact on pupils' learning. Leaders need to ensure that there is a consistent approach so that pupils achieve well and their outcomes in phonics improve further.

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 a section 8 inspection of a good school or non-exempt outstanding school. We do not give graded judgements on a section 8 inspection. However, if we find some evidence that the school could now be better than good or that standards may be declining, then the next inspection will be a section 5 inspection.

Usually this is within one to two years of the date of the section 8 inspection. If we have serious concerns about safeguarding, behaviour or the quality of education, we will convert the section 8 inspection to a section 5 inspection immediately.

This is the second section 8 inspection since we judged Latymer All Saints CofE Primary School to be good on 29–30 November 2012.

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