Roehampton Church Forest Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are happy, confident and courteous.

Pupils are kept safe and secure because of the caring community. Leaders know pupils and their families well. Leaders have high ambitions for all pupils to access the curriculum, including pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND).

Pupils embrace the school's motto of being 'responsible, caring and secure'. Pupils work hard and behave well, meeting the expectations that staff have of them.

Pupils learn about decision-making and taking responsibility.

For example, the school council and eco-council recently supported a local food fundraising campaign. There are a range of extra activiti...es available for pupils to develop their talents and interests, including rounders, football and mindfulness.

The school has undergone recent changes in leadership.

The ambitious curriculum, including for reading, is newly introduced. Teachers are still getting to grips with how to teach it most effectively, in some subjects.

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

Leaders have built an ambitious curriculum.

In most subjects, they have set out precisely what pupils need to learn and when. This is sequenced so that pupils, including those with SEND, build their knowledge securely over time. For example, in geography, children in Reception begin to understand the world around them by making treasure maps of the school.

They apply this knowledge in key stage 1 when creating increasingly complex maps using simple keys. As pupils move through the school, they use a range of maps, atlases and aerial photographs with confidence. They are able to apply this knowledge to their orienteering work in physical education.

A few subjects are at the earlier stage of development. In these instances, teachers do not routinely check that pupils' understanding of previous content is secure before new ideas are introduced. This means that knowledge and vocabulary are not sufficiently practised.

As a result, pupils do not develop the same depth of knowledge as they do in other subjects.

Leaders have made reading a priority from the start of early years onwards. Stories are important, and children learn to share them with each other.

However, in early years, children are not given sufficient opportunity to acquire a wide vocabulary. This limits some children's readiness to access the broad curriculum offer from Year 1 onwards.

When learning phonics, adults make sure pupils read books that are well matched to the sounds that they know.

This helps most pupils become fluent readers. However, on occasion, adults do not model effective reading strategies. Where this is the case, some pupils who struggle to read fluently are not as well supported as they need to be.

Leaders have a detailed overview of the needs of pupils with SEND. Staff are trained to make sure that pupils get the support they need to access the same ambitious curriculum. Leaders ensure that pupils with SEND engage fully with the broader opportunities provided, including attending clubs and educational visits.

Pupils show positive attitudes towards their learning. They work well with their peers and rise to the high expectations staff have of them. This includes children in early years.

Pupils are considerate of each other, and their conduct reflects the school's ethos.

Leaders have put in place a comprehensive programme of personal, social and health education. Pupils are supported to understand important ideas such as maintaining a balanced diet and good oral hygiene.

Pupils also learn about a range of different religions. Pupils are provided with opportunities to develop as responsible citizens. For example, pupils recently organised a clothes collection to raise money for the World Wildlife Fund.

Staff, including those at the early stage of their careers, are very proud to work at the school. They feel that leaders are considerate of their well-being and workload. Governors are aware of their statutory duties and understand the school's priorities for improvement.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

Leaders have established a strong culture of safeguarding. All staff and governors receive regular training and updates, and they know how to identify and report signs of harm.

Systems are in place for staff to report concerns, and leaders manage these effectively, involving appropriate external agencies when required.

Pupils are supported to understand how to keep safe, including when online. Through the curriculum, pupils learn how to stay healthy both physically and mentally.

Pupils spoken to knew how to raise concerns if they needed to. They know staff would keep them safe and do everything to help them if they needed support.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• Across early years, children are not given sufficient opportunity to acquire a wide vocabulary.

This limits some children's readiness to access the broad curriculum from Year 1 onwards. Leaders should continue to prioritise the development of communication and language in early years, so that children develop secure foundations for future learning. The curriculum in a few subjects, including the programme for phonics, is newly introduced.

This means that staff are still getting to grips with how best to teach it. Leaders need to ensure that teachers receive ongoing support in implementing the curriculum. This includes ensuring sufficient opportunity to check pupils' understanding so that they are well supported to learn and remember more.