Southwick Community Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Southwick Community Primary School is a happy place where pupils feel safe and thrive. Leaders have created a welcoming environment that promotes a sense of community. Parents and carers describe the school as, 'the beating heart of the community'.

Pupils and parents enjoy school events such as the lantern festival and family art.

Pupils say that adults help them to feel calm and relaxed. They appreciate the strong relationships they have with adults who take the time to understand their needs.

Some pupils say, 'everyone has an adult in school they can trust.' Pupils, including children in the early years, get on well together. They say that bullying does not... happen.

Pupils know that adults would help them if it did.

Leaders have high expectations for pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Pupils know what is expected of them and enjoy living up to the challenge.

Classrooms are calm places where learning takes place with little interruption.

Pupils say that by, 'being kind, you can make the world a better place'. They enjoy the opportunities to meet new people and dancing at the Sunderland Empire.

Leaders help pupils to learn to become leaders themselves, for example, through Young Leaders Club and by becoming reading ambassadors.

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

Since the last inspection, leaders have redesigned the curriculum and improved many aspects of subject leadership. Most subject leaders are now more able to support teachers in implementing the revised curriculum.

Developments in the curriculum are more advanced in some subject areas than others, especially in mathematics and science. For instance, the mathematics curriculum is well sequenced. New learning builds on what pupils already know.

Teachers have identified pupils' missing knowledge and skills because of COVID-19. Teachers plan opportunities for pupils to learn about mathematics in other subjects. For example, in science, pupils learn to take measurements and record data.

This is making sure pupils have the knowledge and skills they need for the next stage in learning.

Leaders have ensured that the wider curriculum is ambitious. For example, in the early years, children go on walks in the local area and make their own maps.

In upper key stage 2, in geography, pupils create ordnance maps. The music curriculum enables pupils to develop their expertise in music. Pupils learn to play percussion instruments and learn musical terms to describe what they hear.

They listen to music from different cultures, places and times. This helps develop pupils' cultural capital. Pupils also get the chance to perform what they have been learning.

They enjoy this very much.

However, in a small number of subjects in the foundation curriculum, such as history, leaders have not been precise enough in identifying the knowledge and skills they want pupils to learn over time. As a result, pupils do not always build their knowledge of important historical concepts, such as empire, well enough.

In addition, some subject leaders do not monitor how well pupils are learning the revised curriculum.

Leaders have ensured that teaching staff have expertise in all aspects of early reading, including early language development. As a result, pupils learn to read well across the school.

In Reception, the reading programme is preparing children well for learning the sounds that they need in order to read whole words. Books are accurately matched to the phonics knowledge of pupils. This helps pupils to practise and apply their phonics skills.

Teachers use assessment to identify pupils who need support. They make sure targeted pupils receive additional help so that they catch up.

The implementation of the curriculum is strong throughout the school.

Teachers use effective questioning to check pupils' understanding. Questioning and assessment enable teachers to identify pupils with SEND quickly. Many pupils with SEND access the curriculum in smaller groups.

This helps teachers to plan the right support for each pupil, so that pupils with SEND access the same ambitious curriculum as everyone else. As a result, pupils' needs are well met.

Leaders ensure that pupils have positive experiences of their local community, for example, taking part in activities with the local fire and police services.

Leaders engage these services to give pupils an early understanding of the work they do. The personal development curriculum focuses on the importance of pupils respecting the beliefs and opinions of others. The election of school councillors helps pupils to understand democracy.

Pupils learn about equality and difference. They understand that everyone deserves respect. This helps prepare pupils for life in modern Britain.

Governors care about the school. They are mindful of staff well-being. As a result, staff feel supported.

Staff enjoy working in the school and are proud to be part of the staff team. However, the level of scrutiny governors provide has not focused sharply on how well leaders' actions improve the quality of education in the school.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

Leaders make sure that staff attend training so that they have the knowledge to identify pupils who may be at risk. Systems for reporting concerns are known and used by all staff. Staff bring the slightest concerns to the attention of leaders and they are followed up quickly.

Leaders work well with other agencies to ensure that pupils and their families get the early help that they sometimes need. Leaders ensure that safeguarding arrangements, including recruitment processes, are thorough. Leaders know the local community well.

They use their knowledge to identify contextual safeguarding risks.

Pupils are taught about safeguarding risks. They know who to speak to and how to get help when they are worried.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• In some foundation curriculum subjects, such as history, the curriculum is not precise enough. Curriculum end points are too far apart. In addition, expectations of what pupils will learn in each year are not always clear.

Leaders should make clear the curriculum expectations for what pupils will learn and when. ? Leaders' monitoring activities do not place enough focus on the effect of their work and that of staff on what pupils have learned. Leaders need to improve their monitoring so it includes checks on whether pupils are taught subject-specific knowledge in a suitable sequence so that they understand better the impact this is having on pupils' knowledge and skills.

• Governors checks on leaders' work and the effect it has on pupils' learning are not strong enough. This means that leaders are not thoroughly challenged for the decisions they make. Governors should ensure that they sharpen the way in which they hold leaders to account for the quality of education in the school.

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