Northbrook Primary Academy

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Everyone is made to feel welcome at this caring school. Pupils are taught about the importance of treating others with respect. They value the supportive relationships that they have with staff.

The school has raised its expectations of how well pupils should behave. Pupils walk sensibly around school and behave well in lessons. They enjoy the roles of responsibility provided to them, such as being part of different school leadership teams.

Pupils are happy in school. They value the opportunities provided to them to develop their talents and interests. Pupils attend a range of clubs.

They enjoy belonging to various groups, including the ecological team and th...e school choir. Older pupils support children in the Reception class to help them to settle into school and to develop their social skills and confidence.

The school is ambitious for all pupils to achieve well, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND).

However, due to weaknesses in the previous curriculum, a number of pupils, including those with SEND, have gaps in their learning that have not been fully addressed. This means that these pupils do not achieve as well as they should in a range of subjects, including reading and mathematics.

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

The school has renewed its curriculum in recent years.

It is ambitious. The curriculum clearly sets out what pupils should learn, and in what order, from the early years to Year 6. The school has taken effective action to improve how the curriculum is delivered in some subjects, including reading and mathematics.

However, due to weaknesses in the previous curriculum, some pupils have gaps in their knowledge. This means that they do not have a secure foundation on which to build when new learning is introduced. As a result, some children in the early years, and pupils in key stages 1 and 2, do not achieve as well as they should.

The school places a high priority on teaching pupils to read. Books are widely available for all pupils. Pupils are encouraged to read for pleasure at every opportunity, including social times.

The school's exciting reading areas entice pupils to pick up a book.

Children start to learn to read as soon as they begin in the Reception class. Staff are well trained in the school's chosen phonics programme.

However, at times, staff in the early years miss opportunities to reinforce or extend children's reading knowledge and vocabulary. As a result, some children are not as equipped as they should be to embrace the challenges of the Year 1 curriculum. In addition, some pupils in key stage 1 do not read books that are closely matched to the sounds that they know.

These pupils receive insufficient support to develop into fluent and confident readers. This hinders how well they are able to access the full breadth of the curriculum.

Leaders have brought about swift improvements to the school's provision for pupils with SEND.

The school has a clear process to identify the additional needs of these pupils. Teachers get the right information about pupils' needs. This ensures that pupils with SEND receive the support that they need so that they can access the full curriculum.

Pupils with SEND take a full and active part in the wider life of the school.

Pupils are polite and helpful. Behaviour across the school is positive and learning is rarely interrupted.

Children in the early years learn cooperatively alongside one another and engage positively with adults. Pupils enjoy their leaning and the opportunities that staff provide to them to develop their skills and interests. For example, pupils can participate in drama, track and field events or be part of an art or sports club.

The school prioritises pupils' attendance. Well-developed attendance systems, and procedures to support pupils who are persistently absent, allow the school to work with families whose children do not attend as regularly as they should.

Pupils have many opportunities to develop their work in the community.

For example, they have successfully lobbied the local council to pass a rule that prevents environmental damage from festive lanterns. Pupils learn to value and respect others, including those that are different to themselves. They are taught how to develop and maintain healthy relationships and how to keep themselves safe online.

Pupils do have the opportunity to learn about different religions and cultures, and how to eat healthily and the consequences of not doing so. However, they struggle to recall their learning. This is because their knowledge of these concepts is not sufficiently developed.

Leaders are considerate of the workload and well-being of staff. Staff value the opportunities that they receive to develop their own expertise by visiting other schools in the trust. Trust leaders and members of the local governing body have an accurate understanding of what the school needs to do to improve.

Their actions to help the school improve the quality of education on offer are realistic.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• Some children in the early years, and pupils across key stage 1, who find reading difficult do not receive the support that they need to catch up.

Some pupils read books that do not match the sounds that they know. This hinders their reading fluency and accuracy and hampers them from accessing the full curriculum. The school should ensure that staff are well equipped to offer support that enables pupils to read with confidence.

• Weaknesses in the previous curriculum mean that some pupils have gaps in their knowledge. This makes it difficult for them to build on what they know when they learn from the newly refined subject curriculums. The school should ensure that staff have the expertise to identify and address these gaps so that pupils are equipped with the knowledge that they need to approach subsequent learning with confidence.

• Some pupils struggle to recall what they have learned about different religions and cultures and how to maintain a healthy diet. This is because their knowledge of these concepts is not sufficiently developed. The school should ensure that pupils have greater opportunities to learn about these aspects so that they are fully prepared for life in modern Britain.