Pottery Primary School

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About Pottery Primary School


Name Pottery Primary School
Website http://www.pottery.derbyshire.sch.uk
Inspections
Ofsted Inspections
Headteacher Mr Darren Hooley
Address Kilbourne Road, Belper, DE56 1HA
Phone Number 01773823383
Phase Primary
Type Community school
Age Range 4-11
Religious Character Does not apply
Gender Mixed
Number of Pupils 318
Local Authority Derbyshire
Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are happy at Pottery Primary School.

It is a welcoming place. Parents and carers value the warm greeting they get each morning at the school gate. It reflects the school's positive ethos.

The school has built strong and trusting relationships with parents. They value how much the school cares about the wider development of the pupils. This includes the wider development of children in the early years.

Pupils say that they enjoy the range of opportunities to attend clubs and go on visits.

Pupils say that they feel safe. They show consideration to each other and play well together at breaktimes.

The school has introduced a new behaviour... policy. Staff have high expectations of pupils' behaviour and have established clear and consistent routines. Pupils say that behaviour has improved.

Bullying is rare. The school provides 'worry boxes' for pupils to share any concerns with staff. Pupils know that if they have any worries there is always someone at school who can help them.

Parents and pupils value the encouragement of friendship through the 'kindness cafe'.

Some governors are new to their roles. Some school leaders are new, too.

They have shared ambitions as a relatively new team. Collectively, everyone has high ambitions for all pupils to achieve well. They have introduced some much-needed changes.

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

The school has established a broad and balanced curriculum. Many of the curriculums in key stage 1 and key stage 2 are new. The school is developing the curriculum further to ensure that it is ambitious for all pupils.

In most subjects, the curriculum is well sequenced. However, some staff are not using the most appropriate activities and strategies to teach all subjects as well as they could. This means too many pupils do not achieve as well as they might.

The school is inclusive. The 'nurture nest' provides effective support for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). However, the targets for some pupils with SEND are not broken down as precisely as they could be.

As a result, teachers do not always adapt lessons for some pupils with SEND to help them achieve as well as they could.

Children are warmly welcomed into the school in the early years. They settle into routines quickly.

Parents value the good relationships adults develop with the children. The school ensures children learn to be independent. Children enjoy learning mathematics through rhyme and song.

They enjoy looking at picture books as well as listening to adults read to them. In particular, children in the early years enjoy 'Wet Welly Wednesdays', when they take part in outdoor learning.

The teaching of early reading is a priority.

This ensures that children learn sounds straight away in the early years. Staff help pupils with extra practice if they need to catch up with mastering new sounds. Pupils' reading improves from this early support.

Pupils are developing their fluency in reading. The school is ensuring that the books pupils are given to read match the sounds they know to help improve their reading confidence. The school encourages and promotes reading.

It is working hard to engage parents to read more with pupils at home. Older pupils can speak about a range of authors they read.

The school has prioritised improving pupils' behaviour.

Lessons are generally calm. Staff remind pupils to listen, and they praise the good behaviour choices pupils make. There is a strong inclusive culture in the school.

Pupils recognise when some of their peers with SEND struggle to concentrate and need different help. They are understanding, tolerant and respectful.

Pupils know and understand about life in modern Britain.

They are aware of discrimination. The school promotes pupils' development with themed events. Pupils talk about achievements of important people during Black History Month.

Pupils are taught about a range of different faiths and cultures. For example, children in the early years learn about Diwali through their topic on light. Pupils also learn about the importance of being physically and mentally healthy.

Many governors are new to their roles. They understand their statutory duties. They support and check on the positive ethos of the school and on safeguarding.

They are mindful of staff's workload. They have a dedicated governor for staff well-being. Leaders recognise that there are further improvements to be made at the school.

The school has not yet set up all the approaches it would like for checking the impact of changes it is making. For example, there has not been enough time yet to fully check on the implementation of the curriculum.

Parents are supportive of the care the school provides and of the changes the school is making.

Staff enjoy working at the school and are proud to do so.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• The curriculum, particularly in foundation subjects, is not consistently well implemented.

Teachers often do not consistently use the most appropriate activities and resources to impart important knowledge well enough, and they do not check precisely enough if it has been remembered by pupils. As a result, pupils do not learn as well as they could. The school must ensure that teachers have a firm grasp of the curriculum and use the most effective methods to teach and assess it.

• The targets for pupils with SEND are not broken down sharply. As a result, teachers do not always adapt lessons for some pupils with SEND to help them achieve as well as they could. The school must ensure that the targets for pupils with SEND are more precisely broken down and that teachers use these to adapt their teaching to help pupils with SEND achieve consistently well.

• Leaders have not had the time to monitor and evaluate the curriculum changes that have already been made. As a result, the curriculum continues to be inconsistently implemented by teachers. The school must ensure more robust quality assurance of the curriculum to ensure teachers have the knowledge, skills and understanding to implement all aspects of the curriculum effectively.

Also at this postcode
Pottery After School Scheme

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