Marhamchurch CofE Academy

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Marhamchurch is a happy, calm and safe environment for pupils. They enjoy school and have positive attitudes to learning. Children in the early years show sustained concentration in tasks.

Older pupils show care and compassion towards their younger peers at playtimes. Pupils speak to visitors with both courtesy and confidence. Bullying is not an issue.

However, the school is recovering from a period of steep decline. The transfer to the current trust has been a positive one. It has started to address the many weaknesses in the curriculum.

There are green shoots emerging, particularly in pupils knowing more and remembering more over time. The recently appointe...d headteacher has been the driving force behind this. Parents rightly regard her highly.

Nevertheless, there is still a lot more to do. The school recognises this.

Sport has a high profile at the school.

Pupils enjoy participating in tournaments and representing the school. Nevertheless, the school has started to broaden its offer beyond the academic further in order to align with its vision of 'Life in all its fullness'. Pupils learn to play a range of musical instruments.

Playground leaders and 'Values Champions' give pupils an active role in the running of the school, such as leading assemblies.

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

In the past pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), have not learned well. This was caused by an ill-defined curriculum.

Staff were not given the necessary training to teach it effectively. As a result, in 2023 the vast majority of pupils transferred to secondary school without the essential knowledge and skills needed in reading, writing and mathematics.

On the transfer to the trust, it quickly reviewed the school's work using both internal checks and external audits.

It accurately identified the severity of the situation. Its improvement plans are both cohesive and timely.

Above all, the trust recognised the urgent need to introduce a well-sequenced and ambitious curriculum from early years to Year 6 so that pupils would build on their learning in a logical order.

This has helped to establish a coherent learning journey for pupils. For example, in science, detailed curriculum thinking means pupils' learning builds well over time. However, some subject plans need further refinement so that they more precisely identify the knowledge pupils need to know.

The school has put in place an extensive amount of training and support for staff to help them to teach well. This includes the accurate identification of pupils with SEND. Teachers have started to better adapt provision to meet pupils' needs.

Although the scale of changes has been significant, the school has balanced staff's workload and sought to reassure them of the rationale behind the changes. In particular, the headteacher has been a calm, composed and well-respected figure throughout this time. Staff have received this support positively and are grateful for leaders helping to settle things down.

As one member of staff described it, 'We have been on a rollercoaster'.

There is a clear initial impact to this work. Pupils have started to recall their knowledge over the long term.

Teachers have begun to check how well pupils have remembered previous learning. In subjects such as mathematics and history, pupils can discuss their learning in increasing depth. However, they can still learn more.

On some occasions teachers provide pupils with tasks that do not match the curriculum intent or are ambitious enough. Consequently, their depth of learning varies.

Reading is at the front and centre of the school's curriculum.

It has introduced a more structured approach to the teaching of early reading. This starts in the Reception Year. Historically, too many pupils fell behind in reading and did not catch up.

The school now has clear systems for identifying pupils who are struggling. Through targeted support, staff are helping these pupils to become fluent readers. However, while outcomes are rising, some staff require further support to help them teach reading in the agreed way.

Sometimes they confuse pupils in their explanations or the help they give.

Pupils are well prepared for life in modern Britain. They talk with excitement about the upcoming trip to Bristol to learn about more diverse parts of the country.

Pupils demonstrate great maturity and tolerance when discussing issues of discrimination, such as racism and sexism. They know about potential dangers in society, such as vaping.

Trustees and members of the local ethos and advisory committee have an accurate picture of the school.

They are clear that while many improvements have been made, much of the work is at a relatively early stage.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• The curriculum is at various stages of development.

In some subjects, the trust has not precisely identified the important knowledge that pupils need to learn and remember. This means that pupils do not always build their knowledge well over time. The trust needs to ensure that all subjects identify the knowledge that pupils must learn and when.

• On some occasions teachers provide activities which do not match the curriculum intention or are ambitious enough. As a result, pupils do not learn some new knowledge securely. The trust must ensure that the work given to pupils closely matches the curriculum intention, is ambitious and takes into account pupils' prior knowledge.

• Some staff do not have the necessary subject knowledge to deliver the phonics programme as the school intends. This means that some pupils do not learn to read quickly enough. The trust should ensure that staff are supported and trained to teach phonics in line with the school's agreed approaches.

Also at this postcode