Meadow Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Meadow Primary is a happy school which values every pupil. Pupils go about their school day smiling. This includes the two-year-olds who have just started in the brand-new nursery.

Relationships are strong. Pupils show an interest in all they do, whether performing in the choir at the O2 Arena or participating in regular swimming lessons in the school pool.Adults expect pupils to try their best.

Leaders have recently introduced a new behaviour policy. Even though it is early days, pupils know what leaders expect of them. They behave well.

Pupils show the learning behaviours in lessons that leaders want them to, such as resilience and resourcefulness. They lov...e winning 'magic minutes' for doing the right thing. Teachers deal with low-level disruption promptly.

Bullying is rare. The school council has just published a pupil version of the anti-bullying policy. Together with lessons and assemblies, this makes sure that pupils understand how to recognise and act if bullying were to happen.

Leaders take bullying seriously. They investigate thoroughly and put detailed support programmes in place. Pupils feel safe.

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

Leaders have carefully sequenced the knowledge, skills and vocabulary for all subjects from Nursery through to Year 6. They are ambitious about what they want pupils to know, remember and do. Leaders use expertise from across the trust well to support their curriculum thinking, for example in designing the Spanish curriculum.

This has helped staff to develop strong subject knowledge. The nursery opened three weeks prior to this inspection. Children in the early years, including those in the provision for two-year-olds, show great interest in exploring their new surroundings.

Staff guide them well.

Subject leaders are enthusiastic and knowledgeable in their areas of expertise. They take an active role in ensuring that teachers understand what to teach and how best to help pupils remember what they have learned.

Teachers deliver their lessons well and focus on the right content. Teachers successfully provide pupils with time to practise and embed learning. For example, pupils sing songs in Spanish to remember key vocabulary.

Teachers make regular and useful checks on what pupils know in English and mathematics. However, this is not the case in some other curriculum subjects. At the time of the inspection, leaders were considering the best way forward for this area of work.

This means that, currently, teachers are not always sure about what and how best to check pupils' understanding. Subject leaders cannot always use assessment information to reshape the curriculum if needed.

Leaders have made reading a priority in the school.

In early years, staff share stories and songs frequently. This helps pupils to become enthusiastic readers. Children in Nursery already have opinions on what they like to listen to.

Older pupils love recommending books to each other via the class reading scrapbooks. Leaders introduced a new approach to teaching phonics in September 2021. They have ensured that staff teach phonics well.

Pupils read books that match the sounds they are learning. Teachers regularly check which letters and sounds pupils know. Staff quickly provide effective support for pupils who need extra help.

Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are fully included in school life. Leaders identify pupils' specific needs well. Teachers think carefully about what pupils with SEND need to help them learn best in English and mathematics.

However, sometimes, in foundation subjects, pupils with SEND struggle with their work. This is because teachers do not always adapt work well enough if needed. This affects pupils' learning and their behaviour.

Some pupils with SEND lose focus.Leaders make sure that pupils have many wider opportunities beyond the academic curriculum. Pupils learn about different cultures, beliefs and lifestyles.

They respect difference. As one pupil said, 'If everyone was the same, the world would be a very bland world'. Pupils recognise the difference between right and wrong.

They confidently discuss the benefits of the school rules and rules in society. They are well prepared for life in modern Britain.Staff appreciate leaders' efforts to support their well-being.

They value the training they receive to hone and develop their skills. Leaders have created a collaborative culture where teachers plan together and ask each other advice. Governors work well with subject leaders to check for themselves that pupils receive a good quality of education.

They know the school well.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

Staff invest in the well-being and safety of their pupils.

They show this through their dedication to following procedures to the letter. Staff are well trained to spot pupils at risk of harm. Safeguarding leaders communicate well with each other.

They take swift action when necessary to support pupils and their families. As one parent wrote, 'The teachers work very hard to make sure the children feel safe and cared for, which allows them to meet their academic goals'.

Leaders make sure that pupils know how to keep themselves safe, for example through road safety lessons.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• In foundation subjects, staff do not adapt their teaching sufficiently for pupils with SEND. This means that, in these subjects, some pupils with SEND do not achieve as well as they could. Leaders should ensure that staff have the training and support they need so that they know how best to help pupils with SEND to learn well in all subjects.

• In foundation subjects, teachers are not always clear about the most important knowledge that pupils need to learn. This means that teachers cannot build on pupils' learning consistently well over time. Leaders should ensure that teachers know what the key information is that pupils should retain.

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