St Anne’s CofE (VC) Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Leaders and staff care for pupils' well-being at St Anne's.

Pupils recognise this. They say they are well looked after and happy. Parents and carers feel welcome at the school.

Leaders, staff, pupils and governors talk about school values, such as honesty, frequently. They show kindness and respect in their day-to-day work. Leaders have created a strong sense of community at the school.

Children get off to a good start in their reading. They learn reading skills from the beginning of the Reception Year. These skills help pupils learn about different subjects as they move through the school.

Pupils acquire knowledge well. Pupils enjoy their learning.<...br/>
Pupils behave well.

They respect other pupils, staff and their school environment. In lessons, pupils get on with their learning as instructed by their teachers. Bullying incidents are very rare.

Pupils understand what bullying is. They are confident that staff would deal with any incidents should they arise.

Throughout the school day, pupils are kept safe.

Staff are vigilant. They show this by looking out for the pupils. Pupils say they feel safe and secure at St Anne's.

Pupils learn and play in a safe environment.

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

Since the previous inspection, the school has improved well. Leaders have taken the time to design an effective curriculum.

The curriculum is ambitious for all pupils. Pupils acquire knowledge in a range of subjects.

Teachers plan lessons carefully.

They give pupils time to recap on their learning from previous lessons. Pupils, notably those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), learn well. When teachers know what they want pupils to remember and do at the end of a sequence of work, pupils often acquire the skills they need to do this.

However, such end points are not always identified in subject plans.

Leaders ensure that reading is prioritised. Leaders and teachers are passionate about reading.

They promote a love of reading among pupils. Leaders and teachers know the skills that pupils need to secure as they progress through the early years and key stage 1. The teaching of phonics is effective.

Staff support weaker readers well. As a result, they catch up with their classmates.

Leaders check that teaching is effective in every year group.

They identify areas where staff could improve their performance. Leaders do not carry out subsequent checks to see if agreed ways to improve teaching have been implemented. Therefore, they cannot be sure that actions have been implemented.

Children enjoy their learning in the early years. Staff have thought carefully about the design of the indoor and outdoor environments. The range of activities provided encourage children to explore and be curious.

Occasionally, staff in the early years do not question children as well as they could. This is because they do not ask more than one question to probe children's understanding. This means that, sometimes, the activities subsequently presented are not sufficiently challenging.

When children move into Year 1, at times they could be challenged with harder work.

Teachers have good subject knowledge. They know what they need to do to support pupils with SEND.

Through the additional support of adults and resources in the classroom, pupils with SEND acquire the knowledge they need to be successful.

Disadvantaged pupils are supported effectively. This is because leaders spend pupil premium funding wisely.

Staff know what each pupil needs to do to overcome their own barriers to learning, such as weak phonics skills. Staff are given more time to work with pupils. Staff choose the best resources to support pupils' learning.

This leads to disadvantaged pupils achieving well in different subjects.

The headteacher is ably supported by the deputy headteacher. They ensure that St Anne's is a school where pupils and staff can learn and work free from unwanted distractions.

Staff agree with pupils that they are very well cared for. This is owing to leaders paying attention to everyone's well-being. Staff work collegiately, making sure that workload is managed appropriately.

Pupils regularly attend school. Attendance rates have been good, when compared with the national averages, over the past few years. Pupils enjoy their studies.

They show their positive attitudes to learning by listening attentively to adults and then getting on with their work.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

The headteacher and governors ensure that all staff understand and carry out their duties.

A vigilant culture exists at the school. Staff understand school systems, designed to keep pupils safe. All staff adhere to these systems.

For example, if staff are concerned about a pupil, they know what to do.

Pupils are able to talk about what the school does to help keep them safe. For example, they know that visitors should wear lanyards to show that the school office has permitted them to enter the school.

Parents say the school keeps their children safe.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

Leaders have designed and implemented a curriculum which enables pupils to learn and remember knowledge. When teachers plan sequences of lessons, they do not always specify what skills pupils need in order to reach desired end points.

Consequently, pupils do not secure skills as they progress through some units of work. Leaders should ensure that all subject plans make clear what skills and knowledge pupils need to acquire. .

Children in the early years are taught well. However, children are sometimes capable of making stronger progress through the Reception Year. When they enter key stage 1, teaching does not frequently expect pupils to build on their skills and knowledge secured in the early years.

This means that learning slows at the start of this key stage. Teachers should ensure that pupils receive sufficiently challenging work when they move from the early years into Year 1. .

Teaching has improved since the previous inspection. Leaders monitor the effectiveness of teaching well. They identify how teaching could be improved and agree with teachers how to do this.

Leaders, however, do not frequently check that agreed actions have been implemented by staff. This means that variability in teaching remains. Leaders should follow up their monitoring to check that actions have taken place.