St Andrew’s Church of England Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils feel a great sense of pride in belonging to this close-knit school community.

They are known well by staff who take time to forge strong relationships with them. This helps them to feel they can share their feelings. Pupils develop compassionate friendships that centre on kindness and respect.

The school has high expectations for pupils' behaviour and achievement. They rise to these and behave well. Pupils want to learn and seek out new information.

They eloquently talk about trips that interest them, such as to a mosque to learn more about Islam. Here, they learned about different ways to be spiritual. They are highly tolerant of others' faiths.
<...br/>Pupils have a strong understanding of the fundamental British values such as what it means to live in a democracy.

Pupils make their mark on the school through leadership roles, such as being school councillors. For example, they organised a school disco.

Older pupils get to be lunch time 'stars' who sit at the head of the school's 'family lunch tables' supporting younger pupils to use their table manners. Pupils engage with the community by hosting a harvest lunch where they cook and serve bread rolls and soup.

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

Since the previous inspection, leaders have navigated the school well through a period of staff instability.

This has now steadied. The school has worked effectively with external support to make the required developments to the curriculum. This is having a positive impact on pupils.

They learn the curriculum well.

The school has set out what pupils need to learn and by when through an ambitious curriculum. Pupils achieve well from a broad range of starting points.

From the very start, children are encouraged to use challenging vocabulary. The curriculum is adapted well for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). The school has clear processes to identify and support these pupils.

Staff help them to build independence. This helps pupils with SEND to achieve and progress well.

Reading underpins the curriculum.

Children in early years independently choose to look at books in their play. For example, they proudly show off their diva lamps when talking about a Diwali book. Pupils practise reading books that help to consolidate the sounds they have learned.

Staff check pupils' knowledge of sounds and provide additional help if they need it. Because of this, pupils quickly become fluent readers who treasure sharing books. Pupils further up the school read with expression.

This is because of the great emphasis placed on reading fluently.

Teaching helps pupils to remember their learning over time. 'Review and connect' tasks help pupils to link previous knowledge to new learning.

This means that pupils can articulate what they have learned well. For example, pupils explain what artefacts have told us about the Shang dynasty in history. In many areas of the curriculum, subjects are led well.

Staff check how well the curriculum is taught and adjust the curriculum to suit what pupils need. However, in some areas, the curriculum is not being taught as well as leaders intend. In these areas, the leadership of subjects is less developed.

This minority of subjects are not evaluated as effectively to check how well pupils are learning the curriculum. This means that some pupils do not develop the same depth of knowledge as they do in more established subjects.

Pupils have positive attitudes towards their learning.

For example, children in early years take turns and share well. Pupils are polite and courteous. Meticulous tracking and personalised support ensure that pupils' attendance is high.

The school has created a well-sequenced programme to develop pupils beyond the academic. From early years, children learn to look after their environment and recycle. They learn to 'choose it, use it and put it away'.

Pupils fully understand that discrimination is wrong. They can talk extensively about significant people in history that tackled discrimination. Pupils enjoy clubs like art and construction, as well as serving the local community through litter picking initiatives.

Staff report high levels of support for their well-being and workload. They are proud to work at this school. Due to the many changes in leadership, some parents and carers feel that communication from the school could be improved.

The school is making a concerted effort to engage with members of the community. For example, it has held phonics and mathematics workshops to help parents learn about the curriculum. Governors work effectively to hold leaders to account for the quality of education.

Together with leaders, they are ambitious for the school.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• Systems for checking how well the curriculum is taught are in the early stages of implementation.

Because of this, the curriculum in a minority of subjects is not being implemented as leaders intend. The school does not have a detailed understanding of how well pupils are learning in these subjects. The school should develop the expertise of all leaders so they can evaluate the effectiveness of the curriculum and check how well pupils are learning.

• Because of the many recent changes in leadership of the school, parents do not always feel they are well communicated with about their child. As a result, some parents hold negative views of the school. The school should continue to strengthen its relationship with parents to ensure that they are fully aware of the work being undertaken to develop pupils' educational experiences further.

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