Plaistow Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are happy, safe and enjoy their learning. The school has created an ambitious and interesting curriculum to ensure that all pupils can learn and succeed, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND).

Pupils' behaviour is impeccable.

They are kind to each other and listen well to staff and to each other. Discrimination is never tolerated.

Pupils enjoy lots of activities to enrich their learning.

For example, musical theatre lessons and inter-school debating competitions develop pupils' confidence to speak and perform to an audience. Pupils take up after-school clubs widely, including cookery, cricket and street danc...e. Pupils benefit from a range of visits, including to museums and parks in the capital.

The school encourages pupils to take on responsibilities, including as lunchtime play leaders or as members of the eco-action team and growing vegetables in the school's garden. Pupils contribute to their local area by litter-picking and collecting items for local food banks.

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

The curriculum matches the scope of the national curriculum and has high expectations for all pupils.

Typically, the curriculum is clearly sequenced and ambitious. For instance, in mathematics there is an emphasis on problem-solving and reasoning skills. Pupils readily recall previous learning and use it to help them understand new content.

In art, pupils learn about a range of techniques, materials and styles and use them to create their own pieces. The early years curriculum is carefully designed with high-quality texts at its centre.

In some other subjects, where the curriculum has been more recently developed, the content is newer and pupils have had less opportunity to learn it.

As a result, some pupils are sometimes less secure in remembering important ideas, making links to prior learning or discussing more complex concepts.

Leaders provide training and mentoring to support staff in delivering the curriculum effectively. Typically, teachers present information clearly, they check pupils' learning and correct any misconceptions.

Beginning in the early years, pupils benefit from a focus on learning vocabulary. This supports pupils in talking about key concepts with accuracy. The needs of pupils with SEND are identified swiftly and teaching is adapted to enable all pupils to learn the school's curriculum.

Reading is treated as a priority in the school and leaders provide all staff with training in the chosen phonics programme. Children start learning phonics in early years and routinely practise the sounds they are learning with carefully matched books. Leaders identify pupils throughout the school who would benefit from additional help with reading and provide support to ensure that they catch up quickly.

Pupils' attitudes to their education are positive. They participate in the classroom enthusiastically. Any minor disturbances to learning are addressed quickly and effectively by staff.

Pupils can identify members of staff who they would talk to if they were worried about anything.

The school has robust processes to improve attendance rates. They identify pupils whose attendance is at risk of becoming a concern and take action to improve it.

Where absence becomes persistent, the school puts in place additional targeted support to remove any barriers to regular attendance. Pupils understand the importance of being at school and appreciate the rewards they receive for good attendance, such as certificates and medals.

Pupils are aware of commonalities between different communities as well as fundamental British values and what they mean.

The school has ensured that many different backgrounds are represented in its curriculum. Pupils are taught about different kinds of discrimination and have routine opportunities to discuss these. Pupils also learn about the rule of law and the important mechanisms of democracy, such as parliament and voting.

They learn to understand and respect the importance of treating everyone equally and with respect in school and the wider community.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• In areas where the curriculum has recently been refreshed, the content is newer and pupils have had less opportunity to learn it.

As a result, pupils sometimes struggle to remember important ideas, make links to prior learning or to discuss more complex ideas. Changes are not fully embedded. Leaders need to continue to develop staff expertise, ensure key knowledge and skills are identified and ensure that new developments are in place securely across the curriculum.

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