Shoreside Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils know exactly how leaders expect them to behave.

They benefit from leaders' high expectations and the clear and consistent routines in place. These help pupils to behave exceptionally well across the school.

Pupils, including pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), also know that leaders expect them to thrive academically.

Pupils are confident and articulate when expressing their thoughts and ideas to others. By the end of Year 6, they are ready to embrace all that their next schools have to offer.

Pupils take pride in their various roles of responsibility.

They are keen to make a positive contribution and kno...w that they have a voice in school. Pupils who act as well-being ambassadors help to make the school a greener and healthier place to learn. For example, leaders welcomed their suggestion that potted plants feature across the school environment.

Pupils think of others. For instance, they engage in regular fundraising and charity work. This includes supporting local charities that are close to their hearts, such as the lifeboat appeal and foodbank.

Pupils trust staff to support them fully with any worries they may have. If bullying is reported, staff are quick to address it. This helps pupils to feel safe and happy in school.

Parents and carers also appreciate how well staff care for their children.

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

Leaders make sure that staff are highly trained to carry out their roles successfully. Staff's ongoing professional development underpins the high-quality education that pupils receive.

Leaders at all levels, including within the multi-academy trust, have used their combined curriculum expertise to design a bespoke and ambitious curriculum for pupils. The curriculum aligns fully to the national curriculum and meets the requirements of the early years foundation stage.

Leaders' curriculums are well established in most subjects.

Teachers have strong subject knowledge and well-understood approaches to assessment. They use this expertise to skilfully introduce, revisit and check pupils' learning. This means that pupils have secure foundations on which to build in these subjects.

In a small number of other subjects, leaders' curriculum improvements are in the earlier stages. In these subjects, pupils remember their recent learning well. However, some pupils do not recall their learning as well as they should over time.

Staff in the early years immerse children in a world of beloved books and rhymes. They introduce children to lots of new words through stories and play. Two-year-old children join in with well-known songs and stories gleefully.

Occasionally, some early years staff miss opportunities to reinforce or extend children's knowledge across other areas of learning. As a result, some children do not deepen their learning as quickly as they should.

Leaders have created a strong reading culture across the school.

Staff are expert storytellers. Their well-considered choice of reading materials encourages pupils' love of reading. Older pupils discuss their reading preferences enthusiastically.

They leave the school as confident and insightful readers.

Leaders ensure that all staff deliver the established phonics curriculum with fidelity. Staff identify pupils who have fallen behind with their reading knowledge swiftly.

These pupils receive well-focused support to address the gaps in their knowledge. As a result, they catch up quickly. Staff make sure that pupils practise reading using books that closely match the sounds they know.

Pupils quickly learn to read with accuracy and fluency.

Leaders ensure that staff know how to identify pupils' additional learning needs accurately. Teachers ensure that pupils with SEND receive effective support.

This means that these pupils experience the same ambitious and carefully designed curriculum as their peers.

Leaders and staff act as strong role models. Pupils emulate their polite and respectful conduct.

Pupils' behaviour in lessons and around school is exemplary. They focus wholly on learning.

Leaders make sure that pupils' wider development is a strength of this school.

All pupils have access to a wide variety of high-quality enrichment activities. They are keen to benefit from these. Leaders prepare pupils well for success in the wider, diverse world.

Pupils develop a strong understanding and respect for differences between people. They show sensitivity when discussing issues such as racism and disability.

There is an unmistakable sense of teamwork among staff.

Staff, including those at the start of their careers, were overwhelmingly positive about the support and consideration they receive from school leaders. This includes how well leaders manage their workload and well-being.

Leaders' unerring commitment to school development has brought about considerable improvement.

Those in positions of governance, including trustees, have clear moral purpose. They are passionately aspirational for all pupils. Governors and trustees check robustly on leaders' work to enable 'each and every child' to succeed.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

Leaders make sure that keeping pupils safe remains a high priority for all staff. Staff are well trained and understand the need to be vigilant.

They report any safeguarding concerns quickly and appropriately. Leaders' records show that they take timely actions to keep pupils safe. Leaders work effectively with a range of agencies to provide suitable support for vulnerable pupils and their families when necessary.

Leaders make sure that pupils understand how to stay safe in their community. This includes when they are close to railway lines and water. Pupils understand the benefits and potential risks of using the internet to learn and to play.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• Leaders' revised curriculums are relatively new in some subjects. Over time, some pupils have not learned and remembered key knowledge as well as they should in these subjects. Leaders should ensure that, as they fully implement their ambitious curriculums, teachers are equipped to support pupils to build their knowledge well.

• Some staff in the early years miss opportunities to deepen children's knowledge in some areas of learning. This means that some children do not build on their learning as quickly as they should. Leaders should make sure that staff in the early years know how to build on what children know and can do in readiness for key stage 1.

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