Pilgrims’ Way Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Outcome

Pilgrims' Way 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 and enjoy learning here. The school's values guide pupils to act responsibly and to work together.

Parents and carers said that the school keeps them informed of their children's progress regularly and that the staff are helpful and welcoming.

The school teaches pupils to be honest and to respect each other. In class, pupils work sensibly and calmly.

Leaders have high expectations of pupils. They ensure that pupils gain the knowledge and skills that they need for their next educational stag...e. While leaders' expectations of pupils' attendance are high, some pupils are persistently absent from school.

Pupils have access to many clubs, which they enjoy attending. These include multi-sports, boys' and girls' football, embroidery club and choir. Pupils also attend educational visits, which broaden their understanding of subjects.

Year 6 visit historic places, including the Tower of London, to learn about English history. Pupils travel to central London to find and see key national landmarks. The school ensures that all pupils attend these outings, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND).

Pupils also raise money for national charities, write to pen pals in France and learn to ride a bike.

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

The school teaches pupils a balanced and broad curriculum that is ambitious. Pupils, whatever their starting point, achieve well and can read and write with age-appropriate fluency by the end of Year 6.

In addition, leaders ensure that pupils have regular opportunities as part of the curriculum to broaden their experiences within and beyond the classroom. For example, as part of the ambitious art curriculum, pupils visit art galleries each year and work with professional artists. In the early years, children regularly use arts and crafts to express themselves and to develop their movement skills.

The school provides staff with relevant and helpful training and development. Recently, this has included work on checking that all pupils understand and remember what has been taught. This has been successfully implemented across classrooms.

Teachers regularly check that pupils, including those with SEND, understand their learning. Teachers also routinely break down big ideas into small steps so that all pupils understand new information and build their curriculum knowledge steadily. Staff in the early years revisit new vocabulary from books and rhymes that children should know, so that children remember and use them.

In a small number of subjects, teachers' knowledge of the content that they teach is less secure. Where this is the case, pupils do not learn as much as they could. Leaders are aware of this and have plans in place to develop teachers' knowledge in these areas.

The school identifies quickly any emerging additional needs of pupils. The school ensures that staff know how to meet the pupils' needs, including those with SEND. Teachers then adapt learning successfully to ensure that pupils with SEND understand what is taught and the work that they are given.

Pupils are enthusiastic about school and are respectful. They listen to teachers in class and settle quickly when asked. They are keen to contribute answers during class discussion and to attempt challenging work confidently.

If they have a concern, they are confident that teachers will deal with it quickly. In Nursery and Reception, staff interact clearly with the children. They model how to resolve problems, to take turns and provide targeted care for children who need it.

Children know how to share and when to listen.

The early reading curriculum is well organised. Pupils access a rich variety of books and texts through the curriculum.

Teachers ensure that pupils learn and remember new sounds. Any pupils who require additional support, including those who may have recently arrived at the school speaking English as an additional language, are identified and given the intensive support that they need to catch up with their peers.

Since pupils returned to school following the COVID-19 pandemic, their attendance has not returned to previous levels.

Leaders have put in place new measures to improve pupils' attendance. However, the school's procedures for improving attendance are not implemented as swiftly and as rigorously as they could be. As a result, absence and persistent absence rates remain high for some pupils.

The leadership opportunities for pupils contribute noticeably to the life of the school. Pupil playground buddies help everyone to play kindly and share equipment during breaktimes. Pupils learn about democracy by voting in elections for the student councillors.

Elected councillors then contribute to decision-making in school.

Those responsible for governance know the context of the school well and understand the local community. They provide support for leaders, and check that staff are happy and that pupils are kept safe.

Staff enjoy working here. They feel highly valued and know that leaders take account of their workload and well-being.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• Absence and persistent absence rates remain high for some pupils. This means that they miss key learning over time. The school should ensure that its policies and procedures are implemented rigorously and effectively in order to improve attendance rates.

• In a small number of subjects, teachers' subject knowledge is less secure. In these subjects, pupils do not learn and remember as much as they could and the quality of pupils' work is less high. Leaders should continue to develop teachers' subject knowledge and confidence in these subjects, so that pupils build their curriculum knowledge as effectively as possible.

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 second ungraded inspection since we judged the school to be good for overall effectiveness in July 2015.