Newington Church of England Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Outcome

Newington Church of England Primary School has taken effective action to maintain the standards identified at the previous inspection.

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are happy to come to this welcoming school where they feel safe and valued. Right from the Nursery Year, pupils work together effectively as partners, in small groups or teams.

Pupils of all age groups play kindly together at social times. As a result, the school is a calm and harmonious place where pupils are ready to learn.

Pupils learn consistent classroom routines and positive behaviours for learning throughout the school.

They show great interest in their lessons. Pupils participat...e eagerly in discussions and work hard to live up to the school's high expectations.

Pupils contribute to the school community including in their roles as worship leaders and school councillors.

They are proud to make a difference in the wider community through organising fundraising events for charities of their choice.

Pupils' achievement is stronger than current published outcomes data shows. The many pupils who join this school at untypical times in the school year are warmly welcomed by adults and pupils alike.

Staff quickly identify any gaps in their learning and make sure they have the support that they need. The school is highly ambitious for pupils, determined they will recognise their strengths and meet their full potential.

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

The school is determined that pupils will achieve highly, both academically and personally.

The school's curriculum is broad and ambitious. It builds logically so that right from the Nursery, children develop, learn securely and attain well. Many pupils at the early stages of learning English join throughout the school year.

They are supported highly effectively and make rapid progress. However, the school's current published outcomes data for phonics and the end of key stage 2 does not reflect how well newly arrived pupils achieve.

Reading is a main feature of the curriculum throughout the school.

Pupils focus intently during phonics lessons. Teachers provide many opportunities to practise saying and blending sounds. Adults systematically check pupils' understanding and correct misconceptions straight away.

Pupils who do not meet the phonics screening check expectations in Year 1, because they have recently joined the school, catch up in Year 2 and are ready for the next stage of their education. Once fluent, pupils continue to develop their reading stamina and comprehension skills through the school's progressive and ambitious reading curriculum. Pupils who join the school later than is typical are well supported through a careful transition plan.

Staff are trained to recognise where pupils struggle with phonics. They identify pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) and adapt learning accordingly.

Teachers demonstrate and explain the curriculum in interesting ways that pupils understand.

This particularly helps pupils with SEND, who achieve well. For example, in key stage 1, teachers use partition grids and counters to help pupils consolidate their knowledge of number bonds to solve simple mathematical problems. In key stage 2, teachers carefully select historic television news footage to help pupils understand the difficult choices politicians faced prior to the Second World War.

Where the school's curriculum is more established, pupils understand and remember what they have been taught. However, in some subjects in the wider curriculum, where the school is still refining ways of checking pupils' understanding, pupils have gaps in their knowledge and struggle to connect new learning with larger curriculum ideas. Sometimes, this means that pupils do not attain as well as they could in these areas.

The school keeps attendance high on its agenda and this relentless work is having an impact. Staff understand pupils and their families well and provide highly effective support to help them overcome the barriers to attendance.

The way the school builds pupils' characters is a strength.

Pupils learn about different faiths and visit places of worship. They appreciate the importance of respecting others' points of view. Pupils are supported to experience different kinds of job-related work such as tending the kitchen garden at a local place of historic interest.

This inspires them to explore their own interests and ambitions for their future careers.

Behaviour in lessons is calm and purposeful. Pupils concentrate well and persist when learning is difficult.

They trust and respect adults and work hard to live up to the school's high expectations of them.

Leaders and governors have a shared vision that pupils and staff alike will achieve their true potential. Strategic plans focus on making the curriculum more ambitious for pupils.

Leaders focus staff development sharply on areas that will enable pupils to achieve highly. Staff are rightly unanimously proud to work as part of this school.

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 in the wider curriculum, the school has not fully embedded an approach to successfully check pupils' understanding. As a result, gaps in pupils' knowledge are not always identified and addressed, and pupils do not connect new learning with what they already know. The school should strengthen assessment in some foundation subjects, so that pupils develop a deep and interconnected understanding of the wider curriculum.

Background

Until September 2024, on a graded (section 5) inspection we gave schools an overall effectiveness grade, in addition to the key and provision judgements. Overall effectiveness grades given before September 2024 will continue to be visible on school inspection reports and on Ofsted's website. From September 2024 graded inspections will not include an overall effectiveness grade.

This school was, before September 2024, judged to be good for its overall effectiveness.

We have now inspected the school to determine whether it has taken effective action to maintain the standards identified at that previous inspection. This is called an ungraded inspection, and it is carried out under section 8 of the Education Act 2005.

We do not give graded judgements on an ungraded inspection. However, if we find evidence that a school's work has improved significantly or that it may not be as strong as it was at the last inspection, then the next inspection will be a graded inspection. A graded inspection is carried out under section 5 of the Act.

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

This is the first ungraded inspection since we judged the school to be good for overall effectiveness in May 2019.