Temple Grafton CofE Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Main findings

Temple Grafton Church of England Primary is an outstanding school and provides its pupils with an excellent education.

The main reason for the school's success is the drive and commitment of the headteacher and of the whole staff in treating every child as an individual. Equality of opportunity is at the heart of the school's work. All staff work together extremely well.

They have a detailed understanding of the needs of all pupils based on regular and thorough tracking of their progress throughout the school. The headteacher and school staff are supported exceptionally well by the governing body which ensures that all pupils are comprehensively safeguarded and feel extremely safe in school a...t all times. Rigorous analysis of pupils' performance and self-evaluation means that leaders have an accurate view of the school's strengths and areas for improvement.

All staff and governors play an active role in working towards realising the school's key priorities and are clearly focused on what needs to be done to improve outcomes for pupils. Good progress has been made on the issues raised in the previous inspection report and there have been significant improvements to a number of inspection areas. This reflects the school's excellent capacity to secure further improvement.

The curriculum is outstanding in that it ensures pupils have high-level basic skills, and offers creative and challenging first-hand learning experiences. It contributes extremely well to pupils' good personal and social development. Excellent partnerships with a local cluster of schools and community groups enhance the curriculum and provide pupils with a wider range of experiences which may not otherwise be possible in such a small rural school setting.

Parents' and carers' views of the school are extremely complimentary and many feel valued and listened to. The school's pastoral care is a particular strength. Several parents and carers commented on how their children's happiness and confidence had increased significantly as a result of the school's caring approach.

Children enter the Early Years Foundation Stage with skills above those expected for their age. They learn and develop well in their Reception Year because adults are skilled in providing a range of stimulating activities which allow them to practise new skills across all areas of learning. However, the outdoor area is not used extensively enough for children to be able to further explore their imaginative ideas.

Pupils make outstanding progress and, by the time they leave the school in Year 6, they have skills which are significantly above average overall. Attainment is high and has been so for the last five years. Currently, attainment in writing is not as high as it is in reading and mathematics.

All groups of pupils do equally well. This is because the school rigorously tracks pupils' progress and uses assessment information well to provide pupils with additional or different activities. These are extremely well-matched to their specific needs and interests.

As a result, pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities make exceptional progress from their starting points.

Information about the school

Temple Grafton Church of England Primary School serves the villages of Temple Grafton, Ardens Grafton, Binton and surrounding areas. It is much smaller than most schools in the primary sector.

A well-below average proportion of pupils are known to be eligible for free school meals. The proportion of pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities is similar to the national average, as is the proportion of pupils with a statement of special educational needs. Their needs include: autistic spectrum disorder; behaviour, emotional and social difficulties; and a wide range of other specific learning difficulties.

Most pupils come from White British backgrounds. Average proportions of pupils come from minority ethnic heritages and of these none speaks English as an additional language. The number of pupils joining and leaving the school at different times during the year is above that normally found.