St Michael’s Church of England Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils have a love for learning at this warm and friendly school. They demonstrate this through their hard work and enthusiastic discussion of the subjects they learn.

The school has high expectations of all. This enables pupils to learn the important skills and knowledge they need.

Starting in early years, pupils learn the school's well-designed routines.

This helps them to feel safe and happy. Pupils are polite and move carefully around the school. They are happy and know that staff will deal with any concerns they may have.

Pupils also receive high-quality support to manage their emotions. For example, play therapy sessions help pupils to express ...their worries.

Pupils have ample opportunities to develop their skills and talents.

They learn about a wide range of sports in their physical education lessons, these include cricket and handball. Pupils further develop these talents through the high-quality extra-curricular clubs the school offers. They also compete regularly and excel in a variety of sporting competitions.

All pupils have the chance to represent the school in house competitions and against other local schools. As a result of this approach, pupils have a strong understanding of the value of exercise and how to stay healthy.

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

The school's ambitious curriculum identifies the important knowledge that pupils must learn and the order in which they need to learn it.

This begins in early years, where children learn the foundational knowledge they will need to access the wider curriculum. The school has prioritised phonics and writing as a result of low published outcomes in these subjects. The impact is clear in phonics, where well-trained staff teach the chosen scheme consistently well.

However, the teaching of writing is not consistent. Consequently, some pupils do not always learn how to form letters or spell well enough.

The school identifies the needs of pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), accurately.

As a result, staff understand pupils' barriers to learning and help them to overcome these through effective adaptations and support. The school works well with other agencies to support pupils who require additional help. For example, pupils with communication needs receive regular speech and language therapy.

Teachers have secure subject knowledge and have benefited from high-quality training. They use this to explain learning clearly and to accurately model the important vocabulary that pupils need. Teachers check pupil's understanding in lessons carefully.

They address misconceptions quickly.

The school checks pupils' understanding in all subjects. In some, this is very effective.

Staff identify gaps in pupils' learning accurately. They design interventions that help them to address gaps in pupils' knowledge swiftly. However, in some subjects, the work to spot pupils who need to catch up is not careful enough.

Teachers do not always address gaps in these subjects quickly enough.Pupils love reading. Teachers select a range of high-quality texts that enhance pupils' learning.

Younger pupils read books that are well matched to their phonics knowledge. Staff listen to pupils read frequently and help them to catch up quickly if they fall behind. Weekly 'reading for pleasure' sessions allow pupils to share their favourite novels or read stories that teachers recommend.

Pupils say this helps them to read widely.

The work that most pupils produce, including those with SEND, shows they are well prepared for their next steps. They have secure mathematical knowledge and read at age-appropriate levels.

They develop a clear understanding of the world beyond their community. For example, they can identify the importance of holy books in world religions and how these may help people to live their lives.

The school has prioritised pupils' personal development.

They enjoy a range of trips that enrich their learning. For example, they visit the Houses of Parliament when learning about democracy. Pupils learn leadership skills through the varied responsibilities they hold.'

Good Samaritans' represent the school community. They work with leaders to share the views of pupils. All pupils elect team leaders, who work hard to encourage pupils to participate in school competitions.

Pupils are proud of these roles.

The school analyses incidents of behaviour rigorously. Incidents are quickly followed up and repeat incidents of poor behaviour are rare.

The school tracks pupil absence precisely and speaks to parents and carers promptly. Key staff also offer a range of additional support to help the most vulnerable pupils to attend frequently. Consequently, pupil attendance has improved significantly.

Governors and trustees maintain a strong balance of support and challenge. They hold leaders to account well. Staff are positive about the support they receive to manage their workload.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• The schools' newly introduced approach to writing is not yet fully embedded. Consequently, it is not having the required impact as the teaching of transcription is not yet consistent.

As a result, pupils are not always accurate in letter formation and some older pupils do not spell well enough. The school should ensure that they continue to embed the programme and develop consistency so that all pupils can write accurately and spell important vocabulary correctly. ? In some subjects, the use of assessment is not precise enough.

It does not consistently identify gaps in learning and inform next steps for teaching accurately. As a result, some pupils do not catch up with their learning swiftly. The school should ensure that teachers use assessment to spot gaps in learning and to plan support to help pupils catch up quickly.

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