Moorlands CofE Primary Academy

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy coming here.

They learn how to show respect for one another by being polite, welcoming and helpful. This helps to ensure that the school is a friendly and calm place to learn and make friends. Staff are caring and get to know pupils well.

Pupils feel safe and listened to.

High expectations are embedded across all aspects of school life. Pupils achieve well, particularly in early reading.

In every subject, pupils grow in confidence. They benefit from a well-sequenced curriculum and staff's commitment to helping them remember important knowledge and skills.

Behaviour is calm and orderly.

Pupils understand the school's rul...es and routines. This helps to keep lesson disruption to a minimum. Pupils feel motivated by praise and rewards.

This includes earning points for their house teams.

Pupils can get involved in a range of interesting activities, such as the graphic novel club and the choir. Helping pupils to discover and embrace empathy is a big part of the school's personal development offer.

Pupils learn how to respect differences and celebrate diversity. They become more open-minded and understanding of the world around them. Pupils also take on a range of responsibilities, such as becoming a 'reading champion'.

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

Since the previous inspection, the school has introduced a new, ambitious curriculum. The school provides teachers with resources, time and guidance to design lessons that help pupils to learn well and remember more. The school regularly checks how well the curriculum is being delivered.

Leaders use this information to make decisions about how to further improve the curriculum. This strengthened curriculum has helped to ensure that pupils are prepared well for the next stage of education.

Teachers model and explain new concepts clearly.

This helps pupils to understand what they are learning. Teachers also ensure that pupils have suitable opportunities to practise their learning. This helps pupils to improve in confidence and build their knowledge securely.

Teachers regularly check how well pupils have learned the curriculum. However, in some subjects, teachers do not always use the information from these checks to inform their teaching. As a result, pupils occasionally miss out on opportunities to revisit knowledge or deepen their understanding further.

As soon as pupils join the Reception Year, the school's intensive approach to early reading provides them with a swift and successful introduction to the joys of reading. Pupils quickly learn the sounds that letters make. There is plenty of practise and effective additional support for those who need it.

Reading lessons introduce pupils to a range of stories and poems. As a result of the school's work, reading becomes a source of pleasure for pupils, and they look forward to sharing their reading interests with others. Consequently, many pupils become confident and fluent readers.

The school ensures that pupils, including pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), can access the full curriculum. The school has appropriate systems to collect, share and analyse information about pupils' individual needs. This supports the school to identify and meet pupils' specific needs from an early stage.

This enables parents and carers, and teachers to easily access and contribute information about pupils' needs.

A typical day in the nursery or the Reception Year involves plenty of stories, songs, rhymes and discussion. This helps children to learn new words and gain a deeper understanding of the stories they encounter.

Children learn stories off by heart. Activities are well-chosen, helping children to practise important skills such as counting and writing.

The school's approach to behaviour emphasises consistency and fairness.

Pupils know what is expected of them. The school analyses patterns of behaviour. Leaders combine this information with their knowledge of pupils' needs to create effective support strategies for those pupils who need extra help.

The school is keenly aware that some pupils do not attend school as often as they should. The school works closely with families to identify and successfully overcome barriers to attendance.

The school is rightly proud of its work to develop pupils' personal development.

The school carefully chooses activities and projects that support pupils' character. This is helping pupils to understand different faiths, cultures and people. The school's curriculum is augmented by a range of well-chosen trips and visitors.

For example, visits from emergency service representatives teach pupils about safety.

Trust and school leaders have an accurate understanding of the school's strengths and priorities for development. Staff have opportunities to collaborate with, and learn from, experts in areas such as special educational needs, mathematics and the early years.

Leaders have facilitated networks of support across the two schools in the federation. Staff feel, and are, supported with their workload and well-being.

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 do not always use the information from checks on learning to inform their teaching. As a result, pupils occasionally miss out on opportunities to revisit knowledge or deepen their understanding. The school should ensure that teachers further develop their teaching strategies in these subjects so that pupils, including pupils with SEND, can learn more and remember more.