St Giles CofE Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Leaders put the interests of their pupils at the heart of all they do. They make sure that all pupils, whatever their needs, are engaged in the life of the school.

As a result, pupils enjoy coming to Saint Giles. They are happy and feel safe. They live up to the school's core values: respect, resilience and responsibility.

Pupils behave very well in lessons and around school. They have positive attitudes to their learning.

Bullying is very rare, but leaders deal effectively with it when it occurs.

Pupils get on very well with each other. Those spoken to said they would tell a trusted adult if anything upset them. They praised the pastoral team which ...helps look after them.

Leaders set high ambitions for all pupils to do as well as possible. This means that standards, including in reading and mathematics, are high by the time they leave school.

Pupils have many opportunities to take on responsibilities.

They can stand for election to the worship, finance, well-being and eco-committees. The school uses a 'polling station' for the school council elections to help pupils' understanding of democracy. These were broadcast on Radio Shropshire, with the headteacher acting as returning officer.

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

The school has put in place ambitious curriculum plans. They are sequenced, so that pupils can build on their previous learning in greater depth or revise their learning. In history, for instance, pupils make comparisons in 'crime and punishment' based on their previous studies of the Romans and the Victorians.

In science, pupils talk confidently about density, applying previous learning to an investigation of fresh and salty water.

In Reception, the curriculum is designed carefully to provide the building blocks for future learning. Many older pupils spoken to could recall their history learning in early years on castles, which helped them prepare them for future topics studied.

Pupils attend school regularly and are enthusiastic about their work. In lessons, including in early years, pupils' work is checked regularly and carefully to see how well they are doing across subjects and themes. Staff use this information well.

They establish which pupils are ready to move on with their learning and those who need further help and support.

Children in Reception settle quickly into routines. They get off to a prompt start.

They learn to read as soon as they join in Reception. The school has recently introduced a new phonics scheme. This scheme is well embedded.

Teachers and additional adults have been trained well to deliver the programme consistently. Books are well matched to the letters and sounds that children know, including for those at the early stage of reading. There are many opportunities for pupils to read widely for pleasure, to widen their vocabulary and enhance their comprehension.

Pupils, including those who have fallen behind, quickly gain the knowledge and skills they need to be confident readers.

The school has experienced a significant rise in the number of pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) who find learning difficult. The school makes suitable adaptions across the curriculum to enable most pupils with SEND to do well.

However, for some with high needs, the adaptions are not always sufficient to enable them to consistently access their work successfully.

The school plans very well for pupils' personal development. Pupils have an excellent understanding and appreciation of diversity in the local community and beyond.

Pupils know and accept there are different types of relationships. They gain a very wide experience of different faiths and extensive experiences of trips and visitors to the school. Pupils meet authors from a wide variety of backgrounds to inspire them to be writers.

Educational visits, such as visiting Carding Mill valley, or workshops on stone age man, bring the curriculum to life. Pupils can perform dramas in French and as part of their religious education studies. They can also become sports leaders.

Every year, older pupils attend a residential trip to Oaker Wood or Kingswood Cholomendy.

Leaders make sure that they take full account of staff workload. This was much appreciated by those who completed the staff survey.

Senior leaders, however, are finding that more of their time is being spent working with pupils with complex needs.

Governors know the school very well through their regular link visits and positive engagement with external support. The have established a unified school community.

As a result, a very large number of parents who responded to their survey said they would recommend the school to another parent.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• The school has an increasing number of pupils with SEND, including some with very high needs.

In some instances, adaptions made to the curriculum do not enable pupils to access their work. As a result, they do not succeed in some tasks. The school should ensure that adaptions made are sufficient to enable all pupils to achieve well, including in early reading.

• Some senior leaders are spending an increasing part of their time working with pupils with complex needs. This means that they do not always have sufficient time to carry out their strategic roles. The school should ensure that the school has the resources and capacity to meet the increasing needs of pupils with SEND, and so relieve senior leaders' workload.