Newbald Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Outcome

Newbald Primary School continues to be a good school.

What is it like to attend this school?

Newbald Primary School is a nurturing place where pupils' well-being is prioritised.

Pupils say that they enjoy coming to school. Caring and respectful relationships between pupils and teachers give pupils the confidence to report any worries that they may have. As a result, pupils say that they feel safe and cared for.

They describe their school as 'just like being at home, but bigger'.

Adults have high expectations of pupils' behaviour and of what they will achieve. Pupils enjoy an exciting curriculum which motivates them to learn.

Teachers introduce pupils to a... wide range of interesting and exciting literature. This supports their understanding of wider-world issues, such as climate change. Older pupils take a real pride in caring for the younger children.

They enjoy the opportunities they get to read with their young 'buddies'.

Pupils say that bullying does not happen at their school. When arguments lead to pupils falling out, they say that adults help them to move on from their mistakes.

Leaders' behaviour records support pupils' views.

Pupils are given the opportunity to take lead roles in school. Whether they are a school councillor or part of the Fairtrade team, they carry out their roles diligently and with pride.

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

Working closely with governors, leaders have been swift to identify areas in need of improvement. Leaders have acted decisively to introduce a new, whole-school curriculum. As a result, pupils experience well-planned, carefully sequenced learning that builds on what they already know.

However, this work is very new and subject leaders have not had the opportunity to check the impact this is having on pupils' learning, particularly in wider curriculum areas.

The newly introduced reading curriculum is supporting pupils to learn phonics. Leaders have provided the training that staff need to teach phonics well.

Teachers make regular checks on the sounds they have taught pupils. The books pupils read are accurately matched to the sounds they know. Because of this, pupils read with enthusiasm and fluency.

Pupils who fall behind get extra adult support to help them catch up. Older pupils read widely and often. They enjoy the rewards that they get when they read regularly.

Pupils enjoy story time in class. They talk with enthusiasm about the books they read and of the many authors they know and love.

Reading is prioritised in the early years.

Regular reading lessons help children to quickly learn letters and sounds. Adults encourage children to use their phonic knowledge throughout the day. Inspectors saw children using their phonics to write a 'waiting list' for the woodwork table.

The mathematics curriculum is well sequenced. Teachers follow it closely. However, teachers do not always adapt what they will teach next based on their checks of pupils' understanding.

Leaders have carefully considered how pupils can use their mathematics skills and knowledge in other curriculum areas. Consequently, pupils get plenty of opportunities to revisit and practise what they have been taught. Pupils described how they had used their knowledge of angles to create catapults in design and technology (DT).

In the early years, adults promote children's understanding of number and patterns while they learn through play. As children designed their holiday beach towels, teachers encouraged them to count the stripes on their design. At the same time, on a hot day, children sold pretend ice creams to their friends, taking payment in plastic coins.

Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities are well supported to learn the curriculum. Pupils' targets are regularly reviewed to ensure they are matched to their needs. The special educational need coordinator (SENCo) visits classrooms to offer teachers support and guidance.

Governors meet with the SENCo to discuss the impact of the support these pupils receive.

Pupils have an age-appropriate understanding of what makes a healthy relationship. The 'pen pals' project with another local school is widening pupils' understanding of cultural differences.

Pupils have a clear understanding of fundamental British values. Leaders give pupils opportunities to be democratic by voting for roles in school. Pupils demonstrate respect in the way they behave towards each other.

Leaders ensure that pupils are aware of wider world issues, such as the ongoing conflict in Ukraine. The school council recently organised a walk to raise money for Ukrainian refugees. However, pupils' knowledge of different religions and cultural beliefs is underdeveloped.

They lack a secure understanding of the many different religious beliefs that exist in modern Britain.

Teachers are proud to work at Newbald Primary School. Members of staff liken their school to a large, happy family.

They say that leaders do all they can to help them manage their workload.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

Leaders carry out all the required checks to ensure that adults are safe to work with children.

All staff have received the training they need to identify pupils who may be at risk and need help. Leaders with safeguarding responsibilities ensure that safeguarding has a high profile in school. Monthly emails refresh teachers' knowledge and understanding of safeguarding topics.

As a result, all staff are vigilant to safeguarding concerns.

Record-keeping systems are well maintained. This ensures that any concerns are well documented and acted upon quickly.

Pupils understand the risks they face when they are online. They know that they must report anything that worries them to a trusted adult.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• Pupils' understanding of different religions, beliefs and places of worship is underdeveloped.

Pupils do not remember the religions that they have been taught. Leaders should review the way in which religious education is taught so that all pupils have a clear understanding of the many different religions that exist in modern Britain. ? Subject leaders have not monitored the impact of the many curriculum changes that have been made.

As a result, the impact of leaders' actions to improve wider curriculum areas is not fully understood. Leaders with curriculum responsibilities should now make regular checks on their subject so that they are clear on the impact their actions are having. ? In subjects such as mathematics, teachers do not use their checks on pupils' knowledge to inform their plans with enough precision.

Where pupils have gaps in their knowledge, this means that they are not always given the opportunities they need to revisit previous learning. Leaders should ensure that teachers make regular checks on pupils' understanding and adapt their teaching to reflect more accurately what pupils know and can do.

Background

When we have judged a school to be good, we will then normally go into the school about once every four years to confirm that the school remains good.

This is called a section 8 inspection of a good or outstanding school, because it is carried out under section 8 of the Education Act 2005. We do not give graded judgements on a section 8 inspection. However, if we find evidence that a school would now receive a higher or lower grade, then the next inspection will be a section 5 inspection.

Usually this is within one to two years of the date of the section 8 inspection. If we have serious concerns about safeguarding, behaviour or the quality of education, we will deem the section 8 inspection as a section 5 inspection immediately.

This is the second section 8 inspection since we judged the school to be good in December 2011.