Toll Bar Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy coming to this caring school. Everyone is welcomed at Toll Bar Primary School.

Parents spoke positively about the support they get from school staff. Pupils benefit from strong and supportive relationships with staff and each other.

Pupils behave well.

They are well mannered and respectful towards others in school. Leaders deal with incidents of poor behaviour swiftly and sensitively. Bullying is not tolerated.

If it does happen, pupils know that staff would deal with it straight away.

Leaders have high aspirations for pupils, including those pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). However, these aspira...tions are not fully realised.

Pupils do not achieve as well as they should in a number of subjects. This is because, over time, pupils have not benefited from a well-sequenced curriculum that enables them to build on their prior learning.

The quality of education pupils receive is improving but it is not consistently good.

Pupils have gaps in their knowledge and understanding. The curriculum does not outline all the important content for pupils to build on previous learning. Pupils do not know and remember as much as they could.

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

Until recently, the school's curriculum has not been clear enough about what pupils need to learn over time. Leaders have designed a more aspirational curriculum for pupils to learn. They have begun to ensure that the essential knowledge is identified in curriculum plans.

However, in some subjects they have not sequenced the order in which pupils need to learn the important content. As such, the impact of the new curriculum on pupils' learning is variable.

The curriculum is better thought through in reading and mathematics.

In these subjects, leaders have identified the important knowledge that pupils need to learn and when this will be taught. This allows pupils, including those with SEND, to build on what they have learned before. In these subjects, pupils achieve well.

Assessment in reading and mathematics is effective and enables teachers to quickly identify pupils who are not keeping up with their learning.

In other subjects such as history and art and design, leaders are at the early stages of pinpointing what pupils should learn and when this will be taught. As a result, teachers are not clear about what to teach or how this learning builds upon what has come before.

Teachers are also unsure about precisely what to assess to check that pupils have retained knowledge over time.

Pupils get off to a good start with their reading. This starts in early years.

Staff are well trained, so they are able to help pupils effectively. Pupils confidently apply their phonics knowledge when reading. They practise their reading using books that match the sounds they are learning at school.

Leaders closely monitor any pupil who may be falling behind and put additional support in place to help these pupils catch up.

In Nursery, staff implement a rich and carefully thought-out curriculum. It includes all the required areas of learning and prioritises getting children talking, knowing more and taking an active part in learning.

However, staff do not routinely build on these rich experiences. Teachers do not use their assessments of what children know already well enough. This means that some planned activities do not extend children's learning or keep children interested for more than a few minutes.

This is not helping some younger children to secure the basic vocabulary, knowledge and skills they require to do well.

Pupils with SEND are accurately identified. Teachers are well trained to adapt activities to ensure these pupils access a full curriculum.

Pupils are taught about the diversity that exists in modern Britain. For example, pupils are encouraged to understand a range of religious traditions and different types of families. Pupils are taught about healthy relationships from the early years onwards.

Pupils have opportunities to take part in educational visits. This includes visits to a museum and to 'Crucial Crew' events. Visitors also help pupils learn the curriculum.

For example, representatives from Yorkshire Water spoke to pupils in Year 4 about their learning about rivers. Pupils take part in a range of clubs. These include music, choir and football.

Leaders, including those responsible for governance, have a broad understanding of the school's strengths and weaknesses. An appropriate range of external support is in place to guide leaders in their work. Governors know that there is more work to do with the curriculum.

Staff are proud to work at the school. They appreciate the support that leaders give to their workload and well-being.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

Leaders have a strong understanding of what to do when pupils are at risk. They know how to refer concerns to the appropriate authorities and have a secure understanding of all necessary systems and processes. Staff are clear about reporting their concerns promptly.

Pupils are well informed of the risks around them, including using social media. Staff are trained in the most recent guidance and legislation to keep pupils safe.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• Leaders have not fully considered the content and sequencing in curriculum plans for some foundation subjects, such as art and design and history.

As a result, it is unclear what the most important content that pupils should learn is, from the early years to the end of Year 6. Leaders should ensure that the essential knowledge they want pupils to learn is identified and sequenced carefully, to allow pupils to build on their previous learning. ? Assessments in some foundation subjects are not as effective as they could be.

This is because, in these subjects, teachers do not have a clear overview of the essential knowledge that pupils need to know and remember. As a result, teachers cannot be sure of how well pupils are remembering their learning over time. Leaders should ensure that teachers check carefully what pupils know and remember from the curriculum, so they can close any gaps in pupils' learning.

• The curriculum in early years does not effectively build on children's knowledge or help develop their vocabulary. This means that children's knowledge and vocabulary does not build as well as it could over time. Leaders need to clearly define what knowledge and vocabulary children need to learn at different phases of the early years setting.