Laurel Lane Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Leaders and staff care for pupils at Laurel Lane. Pupils are proud to be a member of their school and feel safe.

They feel valued by their teachers and are happy to come to school. Any concerns about bullying are managed effectively.

Pupils understand the new rules in place to help them behave well.

They like how they are expected to 'be ready, be safe and be respectful'. A few pupils are still getting used to the new expectations for behaviour, particularly in lessons. Staff support these pupils well.

However, sometimes pupils' behaviour disrupts the flow of learning.

Leaders have a clear and aspirational vision for pupils. They want pupils... to achieve highly.

However, they have not made sure that the curriculum is taught well enough. Pupils do not build up their knowledge effectively in some subjects. This is because teaching does not routinely follow on from what pupils already know.

Some pupils, particularly those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), do not get the practice they need to make progress through the curriculum.

Pupils enjoy the range of clubs on offer, such as netball and gymnastics. These clubs are well attended.

Pupils also spoke positively about their special curriculum days and assemblies, for example to celebrate World Book Day.

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

Leaders have reviewed what they intend pupils to learn. They have established clear aims in all subjects.

All pupils learn the full range of subjects on offer, including pupils with SEND.

A high proportion of pupils join and leave the school at various points during the school year. Leaders have not given staff enough guidance on how to make adaptations which cater for these pupils' starting points.

One reason for this is that leaders and staff do not check what pupils already know. Consequently, what pupils learn does not build well on their prior knowledge. Pupils find it hard to make sense of the new ideas that they are taught.

Over time, pupils do not understand knowledge securely. As a result, they are not prepared well for the next stages of their learning.

Leaders have put in place a suitable approach to early reading.

Phonics starts in the early years and the programme is delivered effectively. Well-trained staff support children's early reading development and foster a love of reading. However, in other year groups, teachers' subject knowledge of how to teach pupils to read is not strong enough.

This leads to inconsistencies in how well pupils progress through the phonics programme. Some pupils fall behind and leaders and staff do not identify these pupils swiftly. This means that pupils do not receive the support needed to become confident readers.

Strategies aimed at enthusing children about stories and books are not well established. This too hinders pupils from making progress in their reading.

Leaders and staff understand the additional needs of pupils with SEND.

However, leaders have not developed a coherent approach to meeting pupils' needs. Some pupils are well supported, while others do not routinely receive the adaptations they need to learn well, including in early reading.

Alongside getting a strong start in reading, Reception- and Nursery-aged children learn well in the other curriculum areas.

They are taught important knowledge that they will need for learning in Year 1. This includes knowledge of number and shapes and how to form letters correctly. Staff help children play well with each other and to share and look after resources.

Leaders have focused on improving behaviour across the school. Staff spoke positively about the training they have had on how to implement the behaviour policy. A small number of pupils find it hard to meet leaders' high expectations for behaviour.

At times, their behaviour interrupts learning in lessons. Staff typically manage this well. Leaders are also making sure that these pupils get the support they need to follow school routines.

This includes bespoke support from external professionals, where necessary.

Leaders plan for and promote pupils' personal development effectively. Pupils learn how to ask for help and share their feelings.

They can talk about the ways in which they are different, and how important it is to show respect and tolerance. Pupils are taught to be resilient and ready to learn from their mistakes.

Pupils were keen to talk about the various opportunities they take part in outside of lessons and how these link to what they are learning.

Pupils who recently took part in an overnight camping experience on the school grounds valued the opportunity to develop team-building skills.

Governors and the trust carry out checks on leaders' work, but the agreed actions are not always acted on swiftly. Leaders' checks on the quality of education lack rigour and do not provide them with an accurate oversight of the quality of education.

Staff feel well supported by leaders. They said that leaders are considerate of their workload and well-being.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

The safeguarding team is made up of experienced and qualified staff. Leaders act quickly on concerns that staff bring to their attention. They closely monitor pupils who have been identified as vulnerable.

Staff have regular training and know who to report concerns to when a pupil may be at risk. All staff are expected to be vigilant and understand their role in keeping pupils safe. Leaders work with external agencies to make sure that any vulnerable pupils and their families get the support they need.

Pupils understand how the curriculum teaches them to keep safe, including about online safety and road safety. Pupils are well supervised.

What does the school need to do to improve?

• Pupils' needs and starting points are not routinely considered in the way the curriculum is delivered.

Adaptations to teaching do not take into account pupils' prior knowledge sufficiently well. This affects how effectively pupils are able to develop their knowledge over time. Leaders need to ensure that teachers know how to make adaptations that enable pupils to learn the planned curriculum and remember important ideas.

Leaders should ensure that any actions taken to address the less developed aspects of the curriculum are timely. ? Leaders have not prioritised early reading. Pupils do not quickly gain the knowledge and skills that they need to become confident, fluent readers.

This means that pupils are not prepared well for their next stage of education. Leaders need to ensure that pupils, including the weaker readers, receive the teaching and support that they need to learn to read fluently. This includes making sure that they regularly practise applying their phonics knowledge when reading.

• In a few instances, pupils find it hard to follow the routines and expectations for behaviour. When this happens, their behaviour distracts the learning of others in class. Leaders and staff need to continue to provide these pupils with additional, well-targeted guidance to help them behave consistently well, particularly during lessons.