Oak Lodge Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Outcome

Oak Lodge Primary School has taken effective action to maintain the standards identified at the previous inspection.

The headteacher of this school is Diane Lowton. This school is part of Mosaic Schools Learning Trust, which means other people in the trust also have responsibility for running the school. The trust is run by the chief executive officer (CEO), Andrea Harris, and overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by Scott Pinder.

What is it like to attend this school?

This is a happy and positive learning community for pupils. Pupils enjoy being at school, attend well and make positive progress through the curriculum. The school experience delivers on its core values; pupils ar...e 'respectful, resilient, resourceful'.

Leaders have high expectations for pupils in all areas of learning, starting in the early years. Pupils work hard and want to do well. They behave sensibly, are polite and show positive attitudes towards their learning.

Pupils understand their responsibility to behave with kindness and respect. Bullying is not tolerated. On the rare occasions when bullying does happen, staff deal with it quickly.

Pupils are kept safe and feel safe in school.All subjects make a contribution to pupils' personal development. This is as a result of planned activities to enrich their experience of learning.

For example, the school organises visits and trips that are part of the core offer for each year group. Pupils have many opportunities to make a positive contribution to their school community.Pupils are successfully prepared for their next steps at secondary school.

By the end of Year 6, they have a well-developed body of knowledge in a range of areas, especially reading, writing and mathematics.

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

All pupils, including pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), study a curriculum that matches the breadth and scope of the national curriculum. The school has carefully set out the knowledge that it wants pupils to learn, including in the early years.

The curriculum in early years is designed so that children receive the right foundations to be successful in future learning. This ambition is supported by an engaging learning environment.Leaders prioritise reading from the moment children start school.

As a result, the majority of pupils develop the phonics knowledge that they need to read confidently and write accurately. With the support of parent volunteers, staff encourage pupils to engage with and enjoy a wide range of books by the end of Year 6.The curriculum in most subjects is well designed.

It includes carefully selected opportunities for pupils to revisit important knowledge. In mathematics and phonics for example, pupils regularly recap prior learning. This provides pupils, including disadvantaged pupils, with a solid foundation for future learning.

The school has recently developed approaches in other subjects to revisit knowledge with the same level of consistency as happens, for example, in English.Curriculum delivery is more established in some subjects than others. This has had an impact on how well pupils learn in different subjects.

In a few areas, such as design and technology, history and music, the school is still in the process of making sure that the curriculum gives pupils the building blocks of knowledge that they need to learn each subject successfully. The school has clear plans to check how well the changes that it makes are working in practice.Leaders provide teachers with helpful and regular training to support the delivery of the curriculum.

This enables teachers to develop their subject knowledge. Teachers typically tackle any gaps or misconceptions in pupils' knowledge. This includes for pupils with SEND.

However, sometimes teachers do not use what they know about pupils' learning to enable them to build on what they have been taught previously. When this happens, it makes it harder for pupils to deepen their understanding successfully.Staff expect pupils to behave well and to concentrate on their work.

They deal with any off-task behaviour quickly and effectively. This ensures that classrooms are calm and purposeful places to learn. The promotion of positive relationships is a clear strength of the school.

Leaders prioritise attendance and communicate clear expectations to families about its importance. As a result, pupils are punctual and attend well.The school seeks to provide a school experience that develops 'good people with good skills'.

As a result, the school provides an impressive range of experiences to support pupils' wider development. These range from weekly outdoor learning sessions to taking on leadership responsibilities, such as being sports leaders or playground buddies. Pupils support their community through charitable acts, for instance by raising money for local groups or litter picking.

The school provides a wide range of after-school activities, which help pupils to explore their different talents and interests.Leaders, including governors and trustees, have a clear understanding of their strategic roles and work well together to maintain standards at the school. They help staff manage their workload effectively.

They promote staff well-being with thought and care. Staff said that they appreciate the support provided by school leaders to carry out their roles and responsibilities.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• Some checks on pupils' learning in the foundation subjects are not helping the school to promote pupils' knowledge as well as they could. This means that gaps in pupils' knowledge sometimes go unaddressed. The school should ensure that there are more regular opportunities to check pupils' understanding of the curriculum and then adapt teaching if required.

• The content of some subjects is currently being reviewed to better support staff knowledge so that standards in the foundation subjects match the very strong standards evident in English and mathematics. Although this work is already making a difference, leaders' aims for pupils' achievement in the foundation subjects are not fully realised. The school should continue to extend staff expertise, through planned professional development activities, in order to realise leaders' ambition for 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 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 June 2019.

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