The Sibsey Free Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Main findings

Sibsey Free School is a good school in which pupils achieve well and make good progress.

By the time they leave at the end of Year 6 their attainment in English and mathematics is above average. The school is very much at the heart of the community it serves. The majority of parents and carers and pupils have very positive views and are pleased with the quality of education the school provides.

As one parent commented, reflecting the views of many, 'I feel incredibly lucky to have such a fantastic school on my doorstep, which offers my children a great start in life.' The care, guidance and support the school provides are outstanding, including the arrangements to ensure that pupils are safe.... The school is also exceptionally effective in the promotion of equality of opportunity and the elimination of all forms of discrimination.

This results in pupils feeling valued and able to do their best. Teaching is good. Teachers and teaching assistants make an effective contribution to introducing the basic skills of literacy and numeracy that are essential for the youngest children and underpin their future good progress.

The introduction of strategies to increase the proportion of pupils attaining at higher levels in English and mathematics has resulted in steady but clear improvements in attainment over the last three years. However, attainment in English, and writing in particular, has tended to lag behind that in mathematics. Pupils are proud of their achievements.

Their behaviour is excellent and they respond with great enthusiasm to the challenges set for them during lessons. The majority of pupils are eager to answer questions and participate in the discussions. However, teachers sometimes miss opportunities to extend pupils' speaking and listening skills by including them in extended questioning and ensuring they can contribute to discussions.

The ability of older pupils to undertake extended writing is improving well. However, the younger pupils' understanding of how letter and word sounds lead to correctly structured sentences, and subsequent extended writing, is not always sufficiently coherent. Many good features are evident in the way the school is led and managed.

Pupils' attainment and progress are assessed accurately. The information provided by these assessments is analysed closely and used effectively to set out ways in which further improvement can be promoted. The impact of all strategies for improvement is then analysed in terms of their direct effect on pupils' attainment and progress.

The close working partnerships forged with other schools also have a significant positive effect on pupils' attainment, progress and personal development. The school's capacity for sustained improvement is also good. This is illustrated by the success of actions taken to improve attainment and by the way in which the school has addressed the relative weaknesses identified at the time of the last inspection.

For example, the provision for outdoor play for children in the Early Years Foundation Stage is much improved. A clear plan for the promotion of community cohesion has been implemented and evaluated, and as a result community cohesion is now outstanding.

Information about the school

Sibsey Free is slightly smaller than the average-sized primary school.

The proportion of pupils known to be eligible for free school meals is low. The percentage of pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities, including those who a have a statement of special educational needs, is broadly average. Almost all pupils are from White British backgrounds with very few who speak English as an additional language.

The school holds a number of awards in recognition of its work, including a British Educational Communications and Technology Agency Award, Healthy School status, a Basic Skills Quality Mark, Football Association Chartermark, Activemark and Eco Schools Silver Award. Onsite childcare provision consists of breakfast, after-school and holiday clubs. The governing body does not manage this provision, which is inspected separately.

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