Tuckswood Academy

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy being at Tuckswood Academy and are happy here.

They benefit from a caring school culture. Many pupils come from vulnerable and disadvantaged backgrounds. At school they get the support they may lack elsewhere.

Pupils are safe and appreciate the kindness of staff.

Behaviour is mostly calm. However, some lessons are disrupted by less positive behaviour because some pupils do not understand what is expected of them.

Bullying is not common, and pupils are comfortable approaching staff to share any worries.

Pupils, including children in early years, do not benefit from an effective curriculum. They do well in English and mathematics,... but in other areas, the curriculum content and delivery do not help pupils remember what they have learned so they can use it to help them learn more.

Pupils enjoy a range of opportunities for personal development. They go on regular trips to build on what they learn in class. Pupils go to clubs, for instance yoga, comic books and sports.

That said, some of these have been on pause during the pandemic. Pupils learn how to be caring and responsible citizens, such as by helping to stock the local food bank.

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

In the main, leaders identify the most important knowledge pupils should learn.

In some aspects of the curriculum, pupils build up rich knowledge. For example, they learn the difficult vocabulary in texts they are reading.

Leaders prioritise reading throughout the school.

They have ensured the phonics programme is effectively implemented. Leaders think carefully about the books pupils will read and the knowledge pupils need to understand them. Staff are well trained and confident in teaching reading.

Leaders make sure pupils get the help they need to learn to read quickly and fluently. This includes pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Consequently, pupils in all year groups see reading as both important and a pleasure.

For example, Year 5 pupils describe the books they read with considerable enthusiasm.

Teachers are beginning to successfully deliver what leaders intend. In some areas of the curriculum, they do this well.

Pupils are proud of what they know, for instance their ability to multiply complex fractions. However, in other areas, teachers do not check what pupils know and remember effectively. Consequently, pupils do not remember enough of what they learn and have gaps in their knowledge.

Pupils are not sufficiently well prepared for the next stage of their learning. Leaders know this and have put in place actions to address it. However, it is too early to judge the impact of these.

In the early years, leaders identify the end goals they want children to achieve to be able to access Year 1 well. However, leaders do not break down the knowledge children need in all areas of learning. For example, when children learn through play, the activities are not consistently planned effectively enough based on what children know and can do.

This results in gaps in their learning and so they are not able to increase their knowledge securely.

Pupils with SEND get appropriate help to access the same curriculum as others. Leaders are knowledgeable and liaise well with agencies to ensure pupils get the support they need.

Leaders make sure staff know how to help these pupils effectively. However, as with all pupils, the curriculum pupils with SEND receive is not supporting them well enough. Consequently, while leaders are managing many of the barriers to learning effectively, pupils with SEND do not achieve as well as they might.

Leaders have improved some aspects of behaviour. The number of behaviour incidents has fallen, and suspensions have reduced. However, leaders have not established clear enough expectations for managing behaviour.

Teachers do not follow the behaviour policy consistently. Teachers do not always deal with misbehaviour effectively. When this happens, pupils' learning is disrupted.

Leaders have recently reviewed the content of their curriculum for personal development. Pupils learn about respect and to understand others different from themselves. However, they do not apply this enough in their day-to-day lives.

This does not help pupils to develop the right attitudes that lead to better behaviour.

The trust does not support leaders as well as it could. Trustees do not ensure they use information about the school's provision effectively enough.

Consequently, their challenge and support of leaders' work do not always bring about needed improvement. While this is the case overall for the quality of education, the trust has supported leaders well in some areas of the curriculum, such as reading.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

Leaders have established a vigilant culture of safeguarding. They train staff thoroughly in how to spot and report concerns. Leaders know the potential risks that come from the local area.

They do a lot of work to address these, particularly supporting the most vulnerable families.

Leaders deal effectively with safeguarding concerns. They have put in place rigorous processes to ensure information does not get missed.

Leaders keep detailed records and liaise promptly with agencies when needed.

Leaders teach pupils how to stay safe. Pupils learn, for example, about staying safe online and talk knowledgeably about this.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• In some areas of the curriculum, teachers do not use assessment effectively to deliver their teaching based on what pupils know and remember. Consequently, pupils have gaps in what they know. Leaders must ensure teachers are sufficiently well trained so they know how to use assessment to help pupils remember what they have been taught in all areas of the curriculum.

• Leaders have not put in place a well-designed curriculum in the early years. As a result, staff do not match activities well enough to what children need to know. Leaders must implement a curriculum for the early years that identifies the key knowledge to be learned and assessed so that children are well prepared for key stage 1.

• Leaders have not ensured staff follow the behaviour policy consistently. This means teachers do not respond effectively to low-level disruption, and there is disruption to learning. Leaders should ensure that teachers get the training they need to know how to apply the behaviour policy consistently and well so that they manage any misbehaviour effectively and pupils are able to focus on their learning.

• While leaders have reviewed the curriculum for personal development, it is not effective enough at helping pupils apply their understanding of respect to their day-to-day lives. Because of this, pupils do not develop the knowledge they could of how to behave with respect towards others. Leaders need to ensure the curriculum teaches pupils how to develop a more secure understanding of and respect for others.

• Trustees do not ensure they know what they need to about leaders' work. Therefore, they do not hold leaders to account well enough for the quality of their work. Trustees need to ensure they use information more effectively so that they are able to successfully challenge and support leaders, holding them to account for school improvement.