Oswaldtwistle St Andrew’s Church of England Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Outcome

Oswaldtwistle St Andrew's Church of England Primary School continues to be a good school.

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are very proud of their school.

They love playing on the well-equipped outdoor areas. Pupils are excited to use the new outdoor gym, which helps them to learn how to stay fit and healthy.

Leaders want everyone to do their best.

Pupils enjoy their learning as leaders have planned an interesting curriculum. Pupils learn well and remember important knowledge and facts across different subjects. This includes pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND).

Those pupils new to the school are made very welcome... and make friends quickly. Pupils said that everyone is treated with respect, no matter what their differences. Pupils feel cared for and safe.

They live up to the school's motto 'respect, achievement and fun' through their work and play.

Pupils, staff, parents and carers strongly agree that pupils behave well. Everyone understands the behaviour policy and pupils think that it is fair.

Bullying does not happen often. When it does, pupils are confident that staff will deal with it appropriately.

Pupils take their leadership roles very seriously.

For example, they are proud to care for the school's racing pigeons. They include Queenie, a royal pigeon given to the school by the Queen.

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

Across different subjects, leaders make sure that pupils, including those with SEND, learn well.

Leaders have decided what important knowledge they want pupils to learn and remember. The curriculum plans ensure that pupils build on their knowledge in a logical order from Year 1 to Year 6. Subject leaders are developing their knowledge about how the pupils' learning will build from the early years curriculum.

These steps in learning are planned precisely in mathematics, but less so in other subjects.

In lessons, teachers make regular checks to see if pupils need any support with their learning. Staff give extra help to pupils where needed.

Leaders' checks to see how well pupils are remembering the curriculum over time are not fully in place. This means that, in some subjects, leaders do not have a firm grasp of precisely how well pupils are learning.

Leaders ensure that pupils with SEND benefit from the same broad, balanced and well-planned curriculum as their friends.

Leaders work closely with other professionals to ensure that pupils with SEND get the help that they need. This includes specialist support for pupils' emotional needs.

Leaders have put reading at the heart of the curriculum.

In each class, teachers share a wide range of books and stories with pupils. Leaders make reading fun. For example, pupils enjoy visiting the school's double-decker reading bus to enjoy books with their parents.

Phonics teaching starts as soon as children begin the Reception Year. Teachers make regular checks to make sure that pupils are keeping up with learning new sounds. Staff ensure that pupils practise reading often, using books that match the sounds that pupils are learning.

Most pupils develop as fluent readers. However, some staff have not had recent training in teaching phonics. This means that they lack the expertise needed to help pupils to catch up.

This slows the progress of some of those pupils who find reading hard.

Pupils' learning is strengthened by a wide range of interesting trips and visits linked to the curriculum. For example, children in the Reception class are excitedly looking forward to their trip to a farm this term, as part of their learning about the world.

Leaders make sure that pupils learn lots of important information about their local and wider community. The local Member of Parliament visits the school and teaches pupils about democracy. Pupils learn about different faiths and cultures.

Through close links with local businesses, pupils find out about the wide range of interesting careers that are available to them.

Pupils are very polite and friendly to visitors. At playtimes, pupils play happily together.

In lessons, they listen carefully and try their best. Rare incidents of misbehaviour are dealt with quickly by staff so that pupils can get on with their learning. In the Reception class, children chat and play together with enthusiasm.

They move around the indoor and outdoor classroom areas calmly and safely.

Governors keep a regular and detailed check on how well pupils are learning, including pupils with SEND. They support and challenge leaders to make the right decisions, such as how best to support pupils when working remotely.

Staff enjoy working at the school. They feel very well supported by leaders. They appreciate the efforts that leaders make to ensure that they have a reasonable workload.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

Staff benefit from regular safeguarding training. This ensures that staff can identify possible signs of abuse and neglect.

Leaders work closely with parents and other agencies to protect pupils who are vulnerable. For example, leaders work closely with the school nurse to share important information. Leaders ensure that pupils and their families get the support that they need.

Through the curriculum, pupils learn how to keep themselves safe. Pupils learn how to stay safe when working online. They learn about dangers that they may face, for example through the misuse of drugs and alcohol.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• Some subject leaders do not have a secure understanding of how learning should be ordered from the early years into Year 1 and beyond. Leaders need to ensure that subject leaders strengthen their understanding of the steps in learning that pupils will make. These leaders should use this information to ensure that, in all subjects, pupils build their learning in a logical way from the early years into Year 1.

• In some subjects, assessment systems to check how well pupils are learning are still being improved. This means that not all subject leaders have precise knowledge of how well pupils are knowing and remembering the taught curriculum. Leaders should ensure that the planned improvements to the assessment system come to fruition.

They should also ensure that the information this system yields is used to identify any support that pupils need with their learning. ? Some adults who teach phonics have not had recent training. This hinders them from supporting those pupils who find reading difficult to catch up.

Leaders should ensure that all staff who teach phonics are well trained in the school's chosen scheme. This will help to ensure that all pupils make the progress that they should in developing their phonics knowledge.

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. We do not give graded judgements on a section 8 inspection. However, if we find some evidence that a good school could now be better than good, or that standards may be declining, 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 convert the section 8 inspection to a section 5 inspection immediately.

This is the first section 8 inspection since we judged the school to be good on 3 and 4 February 2016.

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