Scawthorpe Sunnyfields Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Outcome

Scawthorpe Sunnyfields Primary School continues to be a good school.

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy coming to school and learning with their friends.

They are polite, respectful and friendly to each other and to adults. Pupils always have someone who will play with them at lunch or breaktimes.

Pupils behave very well.

The school is a calm and orderly environment that is well looked after. Bullying is rare. Leaders do not tolerate it.

Pupils know that, if they are worried, there are staff who will help them. They have great trust in staff.

Pupils speak knowledgeably about modern Britain and its values.

They have a tho...rough understanding of current affairs and link values such as democracy, tolerance and respect to current events.

Leaders and teachers have high expectations of all pupils. This includes disadvantaged pupils and those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND).

Teachers plan lessons that encourage pupils to contribute well. Pupils say learning is fun.

The headteacher and staff are highly respected by parents, carers and pupils.

The strong systems for school communication reassure parents that their children are taught well. Almost all parents appreciate the work that the school is doing for their children. This is a school at the heart of its community.

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

Leaders have planned a well-organised curriculum that develops pupils' knowledge and expertise across a broad range of subjects. They have made sure that the curriculum is carefully sequenced from early years to Year 6. Leaders are ambitious for all pupils.

Disadvantaged pupils, and those with SEND, follow the same curriculum as others. Adults provide them with effective support.

Teachers build learning in a logical way to meet the needs of all pupils.

They are clear about what pupils should know. Teachers check pupils' knowledge and spot errors quickly to help pupils learn well. There is a strong team ethos, with teachers planning lessons together and subject leaders supporting their planning.

Physical education is taught exceptionally well. The subject leader and teachers work together in an exemplary way. However, in some other subjects, staff do not consistently challenge pupils to deepen their learning further.

Occasionally, teachers do not link pupils' previous learning or question pupils in depth. This means that, in a few subjects, pupils are not deepening their learning to reach the highest standards.

Phonics is taught very effectively across the school.

This helps children in the early years and pupils in key stage 1 to learn new sounds quickly. Books are well matched to the sounds pupils are learning. Those who find phonics and reading more difficult get skilful support to help them keep up.

Pupils recall words and sounds quickly. This helps them to read fluently. Parents attend 'book and bite' sessions to listen to their children reading and to learn how to help with phonics at home.

Older pupils enjoy reading and developing their comprehension skills. There are reading for pleasure sessions at the start of each afternoon. Pupils bring books from home or read books from the school's well-equipped libraries.

There are many books to choose from. Teachers focus well on developing pupils' fluency and tone, giving expert support to those who find reading difficult.

Children's personal development and learning is exceptionally strong in the early years.

Children are very attentive, cooperative and willing to help each other. From the start of Nursery, they learn how to 'share and care'. All the children in the early years, including those with SEND, love it when adults read to them.

They enjoy the many songs and rhymes that teachers use to help them learn. Well-organised outdoor areas support children's development well. For example, children strengthen their physical development by riding bikes and using slides safely.

Pupils enjoy clubs such as tap dancing, creative arts, sports, chess and cooking. They have very clear views on equality and diversity. Pupils have learned about the local Pride Day.

They say, 'everyone is unique, with different views and beliefs that should be respected'. The junior leadership team members apply for their roles and are elected by the rest of the school. They responsibly take pupils' suggestions to leaders and governors.

Leaders and governors consider staff workload in all they do. For example, they make sure assessment is not onerous but remains effective. They give extra time for staff and subject leaders to plan and develop the curriculum.

Staff appreciate the care, attention and support leaders provide. Governors check the effectiveness of the school and ensure the needs of the community are considered by leaders.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

Staff are vigilant and know their safeguarding duties well. Leaders make sure staff complete frequent safeguarding training. Scripts of potential safeguarding incidents are used during training.

This gives staff experience in deciding what should be done if incidents occur. Leaders work with parents and external agencies to make sure children are safe. Governors and leaders make thorough checks on the suitability of adults to work with children.

Pupils learn how to stay safe when online and know to report matters if they have concerns. They learn how to ride bikes safely and how to stay safe when out of school.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• In a minority of subjects, leaders have not identified the steps teachers need to take to deepen pupils' subject knowledge.

This means that, in some subjects, pupils are not reaching leaders' ambitious curriculum goals. Senior leaders should support subject leaders to equip staff with the strategies to extend pupils' knowledge further.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 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 would now receive a higher or lower grade, then the next inspection will be a graded inspection, which 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 first ungraded inspection since we judged the school to be good in June 2017.

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