Manifold Church of England Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

This small primary school serves a rural community. It is a warm and welcoming place for pupils to learn. There is a strong 'family feel', which, parents and carers say, enables their children to 'bloom and flourish'.

Pupils enjoy coming to school. They feel safe and trust adults to help them when needed.The school has recently joined a new trust.

Pupils enjoy the new rewards system and appreciate how their positive behaviours are celebrated. The positive behaviour and conduct around the school demonstrate that the new expectations are securely established.The school ensures that all pupils study a broad range of subjects.

A new curriculum is now in place. Th...is focuses on high-quality texts that seek to broaden pupils' understanding of the wider world. Staff work hard to bring the curriculum to life, and pupils enjoy the active learning opportunities on offer.

All pupils learn well and are prepared for the next phase of their education by the time they leave.The school provides a variety of educational trips, visits and clubs. These enable pupils to explore new talents and interests.

Pupils are also invited to apply for a wide range of leadership roles. They value these and talk enthusiastically about opportunities to help across the school and community.

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

Trust leaders have put in place a new curriculum.

This identifies the information that pupils are expected to know and remember in each subject. Pupils build this knowledge from early years onwards. For example, they learn about the lives of people who are familiar to them, moving on to events and people that shaped British history.

This helps pupils to make connections through the curriculum so that they have better understanding over time. However, in some subjects, teachers are still developing their understanding of the new curriculum. In these cases, pupils do not always recall and apply their learning effectively.

The school makes reading a priority. Pupils benefit from a text-rich curriculum, much of which they enjoy and remember. The new phonics scheme gives opportunities for children to practise reading.

Books are well matched to their knowledge and stage. The majority of pupils are fluent readers by the time they reach Year 3.Vocabulary develops from early years in a clear and deliberate way and is linked to topics and themes.

Teachers present new information in clear and exciting ways. They provide useful explanations and activities to help pupils remember concepts. For example, in key stage 2 science, pupils linked healthy eating to reducing the build-up of fat deposits in the arteries.

In addition, 'Muddy Mondays' enable pupils to learn through the local environment.Teachers successfully adapt learning activities to support pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Staff know the children well and have a secure understanding of their needs.

They often break information down into smaller steps and use extra resources to support pupils' learning. As a result, pupils with SEND make good progress from their starting points. They are able to access the full curriculum and all aspects of school life.

The trust promotes a collaborative approach to school improvement work. Trust subject leaders work alongside school staff to help them with the implementation of the new curriculum. They coach and mentor staff on both subject knowledge and pedagogy.

Staff know whom they can speak to for support and value the training and guidance that the trust brings. However, the school's approach to monitoring the curriculum is not as well developed as it might be. The checks made do not always focus sharply enough on how well the curriculum is delivered or its impact on what pupils know and remember in all subjects.

The school provides a calm and orderly environment. New systems implemented by the trust and school leaders set out clear expectations for behaviour. Pupils live up to these expectations.

They are kind to each other, look after one another and respect each other's differences.A wide variety of leadership roles help pupils to think about their responsibilities in the school and the community, such as those of eco-warriors, digital leaders and community carers. However, some pupils have not yet gained a sufficient understanding of how British values relate to other cultures and communities.

Leaders are now focusing on supporting pupils to gain a fuller understanding of how British values relate to less familiar cultures and communities.Those responsible for governance fulfil their roles well. The trust supports school leaders to grow and develop in their roles.

They have fostered a purposeful school vision that benefits pupils. This vision is recognised by parents and children, along with the staff, all of whom are proud to belong to and work at the school.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• In some subjects, teachers have not fully developed their understanding of the learning required in the curriculum. This means that pupils do not build their knowledge and make links across the curriculum as well as they might. The trust should continue to support teachers to develop a deeper understanding of the curriculum and learning links across subjects so that pupils can enhance their recall and apply their learning more fully.

The school has not ensured that there are precise checks on how well the curriculum is being taught. As a result, some inconsistencies in how well the curriculum is delivered and how well pupils are achieving are not identified well enough. The school should ensure that all leaders carefully check how well teachers are delivering the curriculum and pupils' achievements and provide any additional support to make improvements where needed.

• While the curriculum is planned to prepare pupils for life in modern Britain, this is at the early stages of implementation. As a result, some pupils have not yet gained sufficient understanding of other cultures and communities and how these relate directly to fundamental British values. The trust should continue to develop this aspect of the curriculum so that teachers can ensure that pupils are fully prepared for life in modern Britain.

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