Sutton Upon Derwent Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Outcome

Sutton Upon Derwent Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School continues to be a good school.

What is it like to attend this school?

Leaders provide a caring, friendly and safe environment for all pupils. They place great importance on ensuring the school's Christian vision allows every child to 'follow their pathway' linked to their interests.

Many parents who responded to Ofsted's Parent View questionnaire used the same words to describe the staff and leadership. These were 'friendly, approachable, welcoming and valued'.

Leaders have recently introduced a new behaviour policy in response to parent feedback.

This policy focuses on restorative conversat...ions. Pupils understand the policy and spoke confidently about the school rules, 'Ready, Respectful, Safe'.

Pupils were cooperative in lessons, taking turns and sharing resources.

Pupils know the definition of bullying and were confident that teachers would sort it out if it happened. Pupils have positive attitudes to learning, they listen well and concentrate in lessons.

There are many after-school clubs for all pupils to take part in, like sewing, Lego, football and baking.

Some key stage 2 pupils run their own drama and dance clubs at lunchtime.

Since federating with Bugthorpe Church of England Primary School in September 2021, the executive headteacher has secured a strong unity between the two schools. This has enabled the school to strengthen subject leadership to develop effectively the federation's shared curriculum.

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

Leaders introduced a new curriculum in 2019. It is well sequenced and builds on what pupils already know. For example, in history pupils develop a sense of chronology.

They begin to make links across time in aspects like clothing, housing, settlements and invasion. Teachers choose appropriate texts to support their studies. In Class 3, when they were learning about the Stone Age, they enjoyed the book 'The Boy with the Bronze Axe'.

This term, leaders have developed an assessment system to focus on recording pupils' achievements in the wider curriculum. This is based on pupils' recall of the essential knowledge identified for each unit of work. Staff have had training on how to complete it but have not gathered any information yet.

Leaders should ensure that the information collected is relevant and used to inform future planning.

Leaders have developed subject leadership teams across the federation. These teams include one teacher from each school.

They lead and develop different aspects of the federation curriculum and report to the governing body. This has been particularly successful in reducing staff workload.

Leaders have recently begun trialling the use of a new phonics programme.

Leaders are using the electronic reading books linked to the scheme during the teaching sessions. However, when pupils read to a familiar adult, they read books from a different scheme that are not as well matched to the sounds pupils know. Adults need more training to ensure they focus only on encouraging pupils to use their phonics knowledge to blend sounds in unfamiliar words, as small inconsistencies were evident.

Teachers are assessing throughout their phonics lessons to identify pupils who need more support. These pupils have extra phonics interventions. However, teachers are using a different phonics programme for these interventions.

This will not help pupils or staff build the necessary familiarity with the structure of the new scheme.

The mathematics curriculum ensures pupils develop the knowledge and skills they need for the next stage of their learning. Pupils have very positive views of mathematics.

They enjoy mathematics lessons and relish the challenges they are presented with. They especially enjoy applying mathematics in real life, meaningful ways. Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities are fully involved and well supported to access the mathematics curriculum.

Children in the early years have access to a range of resources indoors and out that are carefully selected to develop independent learning. Each child has a 'challenge passport' that identifies challenges they must complete each week. These are usually linked to the week's core book.

Children use the outdoor provision daily, including a garden, two large fields, ponds, vegetable patches, a greenhouse, play equipment, a small forest area and a reflection space.

Leaders ensure that educational visits enhance the curriculum. The residential visit for Years 5 and 6, with their partner school, allows pupils to build friendships in readiness for secondary school transition.

The personal, social and health education (PSHE) and relationships and sex education curriculums ensure that there is a whole-school approach to teaching about healthy relationships, differences and consent. Pupils enjoy reading to the school's reading star volunteers and to Beck the ambassador hearing dog.Governors have a knowledgeable oversight of the school's curriculum through their work as link governors.

They know the school well.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

Leaders have ensured that staff understand how to handle reports of peer-on-peer abuse and the indicators of harm through their annual safeguarding training.

Leaders have produced a fact sheet for volunteers to ensure that they know how to keep pupils safe. Leaders use the local authority partnership advice line when deciding whether to make a referral to an external agency. Pupils have good relationships with trusted adults and know to tell them if they are worried about something.

Pupils also have an opportunity to share their concerns in PSHE lessons, in collective worship or with the school's emotional literacy support assistant.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• Staff are trialling a new phonics scheme, recently introduced by leaders. Staff have not received any recent training.

This means there are some small inconsistencies in the support adults give when hearing pupils read and in the delivery of interventions. Leaders should ensure consistency of practise as staff use the new programme. ? Leaders do not have a fully embedded assessment system across the wider curriculum.

Leaders have redesigned their system to assess the essential knowledge identified for each unit. Leaders should monitor the use of the system to ensure that the information recorded is used to inform future planning.

Background

When we have judged a school to be good, we will then normally go into the school about once every four years to confirm that the school remains good.

This is called a section 8 inspection of a good or outstanding school, because it is carried out under section 8 of the Education Act 2005. We do not give graded judgements on a section 8 inspection. However, if we find evidence that a school would now receive a higher or lower grade, then the next inspection will be a section 5 inspection.

Usually this is within one to two years of the date of the section 8 inspection. If we have serious concerns about safeguarding, behaviour or the quality of education, we will deem the section 8 inspection as a section 5 inspection immediately.

This is the second section 8 inspection since we judged the school to be good in May 2012.