Warren Wood Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy school because they feel happy and safe. They have positive attitudes to learning and they work hard in lessons to achieve their best. Pupils feel that teachers give them work that challenges them.

Pupils understand the trust's guiding 'recipe': respect, enjoyment, cooperation, independence, perseverance and excellence. They can explain the meaning of the words and say how they use these to help them become better at what they do.

All staff have high expectations for pupils' behaviour.

They make sure that pupils who find it difficult to manage their behaviour are given the help that they need. Pupils understand what bullying is. They say that bul...lying is rare in their school.

They are confident that teachers will deal with it quickly if it ever happens. There are good relationships between pupils and staff. Pupils know that they can always talk to an adult in school if they are worried about anything.

Pupils say that learning is fun. They like the reading bus on the playground, where many pupils read at lunchtime. They spoke enthusiastically about the 'caveman day' experience, where they made fires and cooked food on the school field.

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

Children get off to a positive start in the early years. The curriculum is planned so that it meets the needs and interests of all children. Teachers are quick to spot children who need extra help with their learning.

They help children to catch up quickly. There is a strong focus on teaching phonics (letters and the sounds they represent) and early language skills. This encourages children to develop a love of reading from an early age, which continues to deepen as they move through the school.

Leaders are well supported by the multi-academy trust. Subject experts from different schools in the trust are used in a highly effective way. They work with teachers so that their knowledge of different subjects improves.

This has helped teachers to plan clear sequences of lessons with ambitious goals in a wide range of subjects. The well-designed curriculum provides most pupils with the knowledge and skills they need to achieve well. For example, in physical education (PE), pupils develop their skills in a wide range of sports, including cricket and golf.

They take part in many sporting events in their local area. Some pupils talked proudly about winning their first mini-youth games in hockey. All pupils are encouraged to take part, including those pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), and they are keen to learn in PE.

The school's curriculum is not yet planned sufficiently well in all subjects. However, it is clear from the actions that leaders have taken so far that they have this work in hand. Curriculum leaders have recently updated guidance in all subjects so that teachers are confident about what to teach and when.

Standards in English are improving over time. Phonics teaching is structured effectively, and most pupils can apply the skills they learn to their reading and writing. In key stage 1, reading books are well matched to most pupils' abilities.

In key stage 2, teachers introduce pupils to high-quality texts. They often use questions skilfully to check that pupils understand unfamiliar words and to draw out pupils' understanding of what they are reading. However, this is not always the case, so some pupils in key stage 2 do not read as well as they could.

Leaders have put in place a range of approaches to improve pupils' attendance. As a result, pupils' rates of absence have decreased over time. However, leaders do not always evaluate which strategies are working or make changes when they are not.

This means that some pupils still miss too many days of school through absence.

Pupils with SEND are well supported in the main school and in the Evergreen Centre. The special educational needs coordinator (SENCo) helps teachers identify pupils' needs quickly and effective learning plans are in put in place.

The SENCo seeks support from external agencies where necessary so that pupils get the right help.

Pupils are taught about the importance of respecting others and being tolerant of other people's beliefs and opinions. They understand about equal opportunities.

Pupils say that all pupils in their school have the same opportunities to learn and take part in clubs because they 'all deserve the same thing'.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

Staff receive appropriate training to help them carry out their roles in keeping pupils safe.

Staff are good at spotting signs that pupils may be at risk of harm and they are quick to report these concerns to leaders. Leaders take timely and effective action when concerns are raised and make referrals to external agencies when needed. The school's curriculum and values provide meaningful opportunities for pupils to learn how to keep themselves safe.

Leaders provide parents and carers with information and guidance to help keep their children safe at home, for example when using the internet.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

The curriculum is much improved. Some subjects are well sequenced and effectively delivered.

However, in other subjects, planning is relatively recent, and teachers' subject knowledge is still developing. Leaders should ensure that staff continue to receive high-quality professional development so that all subjects are taught to an equally high standard. .

Phonics is taught well in the early years and key stage 1. However, some pupils in key stage 2 have not developed the knowledge and skills needed to read and comprehend texts. Leaders need to make sure that all teachers in key stage 2 are proficient at teaching reading.

. Leaders need to place greater emphasis on evaluating the actions they take to improve pupils' attendance, including for those pupils who are frequently absent. They need to think carefully about developing different strategies to make sure that more pupils attend school regularly.

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