West Chiltington Community Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are proud of their school with its motto of 'be kind, work hard, have fun'. They know that these aims are kept at the forefront of the school's work. Pupils thrive here.

They develop well into confident, articulate young people with a thirst for learning. Pupils listen well in lessons and in conversations. They enjoy discussing their ideas with each other and with their teachers.

The school is ambitious for all pupils to learn the knowledge and skills they need to be successful. Generally, pupils achieve well. Children in the early years get off to a great start in school.

They benefit from a well-resourced and thoughtfully considered environment that ...sparks their imagination.

Pupils feel safe. They trust adults to help them with their worries or concerns.

Pupils learn how to keep themselves safe, including when online. They know exactly what constitutes acceptable online behaviour and what does not.

Pupils benefit from well-considered opportunities to enrich their learning.

For example, visits to places of worship, such as a Hindu temple and the local church, introduce pupils to different religions represented in modern Britain. Furthermore, visits to museums and galleries enhance pupils' understanding in subjects such as history and art.

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

The school has an ambitious curriculum.

For all subjects, it identifies the important knowledge that pupils must learn and the order in which they need to learn it. Teachers know exactly what knowledge to check that pupils know to be ready for their next steps. The school has adapted the curriculum appropriately so that pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) can access learning alongside their peers.

Careful identification of additional needs ensures that pupils with SEND experience a highly inclusive environment. This enables them to learn well.

Generally, the curriculum is delivered well.

Mostly, pupils complete work that enables them to develop and deepen their understanding securely. For example, in art and design, pupils have a wide range of opportunities to learn and apply a broad range of techniques with confidence and finesse. However, on occasion, teachers do not use strategies and resources that enable pupils to achieve as well as they could.

For example, in mathematics, pupils do not always have sufficient, appropriate opportunities to explore mathematical concepts and ideas.

In some subjects, including reading, most pupils achieve very well. More-established subject leadership ensures that the curriculum is implemented effectively.

However, in a few subjects, subject leadership is at an earlier stage of development. Some subject leaders have not had the opportunity to check how well pupils are learning in their subjects. In addition, they have not been able to support teachers to deliver the curriculum in the most effective manner.

The school prioritises reading. Children learn to read right from the start of Reception using a well-structured programme. Pupils who need extra support with reading receive carefully targeted interventions.

This helps them to practise reading and catch up quickly. The school wants all pupils to love reading and appreciate literature. Pupils willingly share their well-thought-through ideas and preferences about different authors' writing styles and techniques.

Pupils behave well. Lessons are calm and orderly. Children in the early years learn how to organise themselves and how to follow routines consistently.

The school values provide pupils with a toolkit of acceptable learning behaviours. Pupils demonstrate these with increasingly high levels of competence. Most pupils attend school regularly and on time.

However, a few pupils do not attend school as well as they should. The school is taking appropriate action to improve attendance for these pupils. This is beginning to have the desired positive effect.

The school is determined to prepare pupils well for life in modern Britain. The recently revised curriculum for personal, social, health and economic education has understanding diversity and inclusion at its heart. Pupils also enjoy opportunities to develop as responsible and active citizens.

They willingly propose ideas to improve their school. Most recently, this has led to the formation of an eco-council and the introduction of a 'pollination education station' in the school grounds. The school endeavours to develop pupils' talents and interests through a range of clubs, including cricket, drama and science and technology.

Governors know the school well. They carry out their statutory duties effectively. All adults work closely together to continue to improve the school.

Staff feel valued. They enjoy working at the school and appreciate the support they receive to do their jobs well.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• Teachers' knowledge about how to deepen pupils' understanding is stronger in some subjects than it is in others. This means that pupils do not consistently achieve as well as they could. The school needs to strengthen teachers' subject and pedagogical knowledge so that they can ensure that pupils know and remember more across the whole curriculum.

• Subject leadership in some subjects is at an early stage of development. Leaders do not have a sufficiently clear understanding of the strengths and weaknesses in their subjects and in what they need to do to support staff to implement the curriculum more effectively. The school should ensure that subject leadership across the whole curriculum improves.

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