Western Church of England Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Main findings

Western Church of England Primary School continues to be a good school. It has some outstanding features. The warm, caring atmosphere of the school contributes to the outstanding care, guidance and support that many pupils receive.

Pupils enjoy coming to school and feel exceptionally safe. Other outstanding features include the spiritual, moral, social and cultural development of pupils, and the effectiveness in which the school uses partnerships in promoting learning and well-being for its most vulnerable pupils. The headteacher and staff at all levels, including the governing body, provide good leadership.

Staff feel very valued and supported by senior leaders and have worked effectively to...gether to improve pupils' learning experiences. They share a common desire to ensure that pupils develop into confident, caring individuals who are proud of their achievements. Staff have a joint understanding of whole-school priorities, which is underpinned by a clear, concise 'raising attainment plan'.

However, the school recognises that the success criteria in some subject action plans are not always specific enough to measure the impact of whole-school initiatives. Self-evaluation is accurate and thorough. Information from the school tracking document is used to identify pupils who are in danger of underachieving.

This information is used effectively in regular progress meetings to identify appropriate interventions. The school is now considering how best to ensure that curricular targets set in these meetings are evaluated in respect of pupils' outcomes. The governors are conscientious in their responsibility of holding the school to account.

They can demonstrate the positive impact they have had within the school. The school's procedures for safeguarding pupils are robust, thorough and efficient. Together, this ensures that the school's capacity for sustained improvement is good.

Children join Reception with varying skills and make good progress by the time they join Year 1 As pupils move through Key Stage 1 they make consistently good progress. In Key Stage 2, progress is more variable between subjects and year groups. However, by the time pupils leave Year 6, they have made good progress based on their varying starting points and reach above average attainment.

Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities make similar progress to their peers, as do pupils who speak English as an additional language. This is as a result of the good support they receive. Teaching and assessment are good overall, but there are variations within year groups.

In the strongest lessons, expectations are challenging and pupils are motivated and keen to learn. The use of the 'learning tree' is especially effective in classes and has helped to develop pupils' thinking skills well, such that they are confident, articulate learners. Consequently, pupils' progress in these lessons is good.

In some other lessons, the work set does not always challenge the most-able pupils. Where marking is at its best, such as in writing, it provides pupils with their 'next steps in learning', and pupils can talk about their targets and how these support them in improving their work. However, this good practice is not consistently applied across the school or in mathematics.

Attendance has been steadily improving over several years and is above average. This, along with pupils' good basic skills in literacy and numeracy, ensures that they are prepared well for their future. Behaviour around the school is good.

Pupils are polite and courteous, and respect the school environment.

Information about the school

Western Church of England Primary School is a larger-than-average primary school. It has an Early Years Foundation Stage that admits children full time into Reception.

The proportion of pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities is similar to the national average. The proportion of pupils known to be eligible for free school meals is lower than the national average, as is the proportion of pupils from minority ethnic heritages and the percentage who speak English as an additional language. There is an on-site breakfast club that is not managed by the governing body and will be inspected separately.