Mayplace Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Mayplace succeeds in making pupils feel valued and included.

Pupils are proud of their school and show respect and care for all members of its community. Pupils feel safe and are kept safe. They can name a trusted adult that they would talk to who would deal with any concerns they had appropriately.

Pupils' behaviour is excellent, both in lessons and around the school. Pupils listen to each other and to adults and love to share their thoughts and ideas. Older pupils act as role models for younger pupils.

For example, play leaders help younger pupils in the playground.

Pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), ...benefit from an interesting and challenging curriculum. Pupils' learning builds from year to year and most pupils achieve well by the time they leave the school.

The school identifies any changes needed to continue to improve achievement across the curriculum.

Pupils from the on-site specially resourced provision for pupils with SEND (specially resourced provision) are involved in all aspects of school life. Pupils from across the school learn and play together.

Pupils are encouraged and supported to attend clubs, both before and after school. They also enjoy visits to places, such as museums and a farm and taking part in residential trips.

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

The school has designed an ambitious curriculum from the early years through to Year 6.

Staff appreciate the training opportunities that they are offered, including support and advice from subject leaders. This helps ensure that staff can present learning clearly and effectively in lessons.

Pupils with SEND benefit from the broad and balanced curriculum on offer.

There are a range of strategies which help them access the curriculum, including visual resources. The 'rainbow classes' which form the specially resourced provision provide an exceptional quality of education for the pupils who attend, whether full or part time.

Reading is a priority as soon as pupils enter the school.

Nursery children enjoy sound games and stories and from Reception children access the phonics programme. This has been carefully selected to match the needs of pupils and their progress through it is carefully tracked. Pupils can use phonics to blend sounds and read words and books read are at an appropriate level.

If any pupils fall behind they are offered additional support to catch up. A love of reading is fostered throughout the school, for example, by pupils participating in book fairs and sponsored reads.

The curriculum is designed to ensure pupils' knowledge and understanding grows and is built on throughout their time at the school.

For example, in early years children learn about the properties of ice and Arctic animals. By Year 4, pupils can compare and contrast the Arctic and Antarctica and discuss global warming.The school has carefully considered the essential vocabulary that it wants pupils to know in each subject.

This helps pupils to learn and use a range of words. For example, in science pupils describe plastics to each other as either flexible or rigid.

In some subjects, the school has made changes to the curriculum.

These changes are not fully embedded, and staff are still familiarising themselves with new curriculum content and approaches to assessment. This means that, at times, staff do not identify and correct pupils' misconceptions in lessons.

Pupils' behaviour is a delight to see.

Clear routines are firmly embedded, and this means that classrooms are purposeful environments. Teaching staff deliver learning effectively and pupils respond well to this and have excellent attitudes to learning. Pupils with SEND benefit from the school's clear expectations.

Staff manage any dysregulated behaviour calmly and sensitively.

The school is doing all it can to continue to improve attendance. It works to build trust and collaboration with parents and carers by offering support, identifying barriers, and putting in place solutions.

Pupils' personal development is a strength of the school. Pupils know how to stay healthy, both physically and mentally. They learn about different types of families and the importance of persevering at tasks that they may find difficult.

Tolerance is taught throughout lessons and assemblies and pupils know to treat everyone with respect. The school invites visitors to enrich the curriculum, including the fire brigade, historical workshops, and parents to give information about careers.

Staff are overwhelmingly positive about working at this school.

They know that leaders are supportive and that they are mindful of their well-being and workloads. Parents praise the staff, the support for pupils with SEND and the pupils' behaviour. Governors and members of the trust understand their roles.

They know the school well and hold leaders to account. They appreciate the school's constant striving for improvement and its service of the local community.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• Improvements to the curriculum are at an early stage in some subjects, including approaches to assessment. At times, gaps in pupils' knowledge and misconceptions go unnoticed. The school should finish its work to embed improvements to the curriculum, including devising suitable assessment strategies that help pupils to make the progress they should through the curriculum.