Westlands First School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Westlands First School's motto is 'Together, we are a rainbow of possibilities.' This captures exactly what the school is all about.

Pupils are happy, polite, well behaved and keen to learn. Leaders and staff have created a safe space for pupils.

Leaders work with parents, carers and pupils to ensure that everyone knows what bullying is.

Bullying is rare and pupils say that they know staff will sort it out if it does happen. One parent, reflecting the view of many, told us that 'Staff are kind, caring and considerate, and work closely with me to ensure my child's happiness and safety.'

Staff expect the very best of the pupils.

Pupils rise t...o meet these expectations. Paintings of 'Pepe the Penguin' pop up around the school to remind pupils and visitors of the school's values. These paintings help pupils to remember the standard of behaviour staff expect from them.

Leaders provide a good quality of education. More pupils are working at the expected level for their age.

Parents are rightly proud of the school.

One parent said: 'I would wish that every child could come here so everyone can see what an amazing place it is!'

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

Leaders have thought carefully about what pupils will learn and experience during their time at the school. This is clear in reading, writing, mathematics, science and history. It is less clear in other subjects, such as geography and art.

In some subjects, pupils can remember things they have learned earlier. For example, when learning about animals in science, a child talked knowledgeably about reptiles. Pupils enjoy talking about their learning.

Leaders' focus on improving reading is having a positive impact. Leaders give careful thought to the sounds pupils learn when they begin to read. All staff have been trained to know what sounds pupils should learn by when.

As they move through the school, pupils become fluent readers who know the importance of reading. Most pupils enjoy reading but leaders are striving so that all pupils feel the same. Pupils enjoy listening to their teachers reading stories to them.

In 2019, the proportion of pupils achieving the expected standard in the phonics screening check in Year 1 was well above the national average. This was a big improvement from the previous year.

Adults support children in the Nursery and Reception well.

They help them to settle quickly. Children know how to behave and learn confidently and independently. There is a strong focus on developing social and language skills, as well as reading and writing.

However, some areas of the curriculum, such as understanding the world and art and design, are less developed.

Staff say they want pupils to 'live it to learn it', and this underpins the curriculum. Pupils told inspectors that they enjoy the visits they go on.

These include visits to farms, museums, Tudor houses and theatres. There are regular visitors to the school who speak to pupils about a range of topics, including rainforests, personal safety and sport. This helps to bring learning to life.

In many subjects, leaders and staff regularly check how well pupils are doing. Staff are quick to spot pupils that begin to fall behind. They act quickly to help them catch up.

Staff and pupils enjoy positive relationships. They are respectful towards each other in lessons and during playtime and lunchtime. Pupils know how they should behave.

They behave well in lessons and this helps them to focus. Sometimes, the work pupils – and, in particular, high-attaining pupils – are given is too easy. This is noticeable in writing lessons.

But, even then, pupils maintain their positive attitudes and behave well.

Leaders, including governors, lead and manage the school well. One way they do this is by making sure that pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities are achieving well.

The work to help these pupils is coordinated effectively by the special educational needs coordinator (SENCo). Staff know how to help pupils learn.

All pupils join in a wide range of activities to help them understand their place in the wider world.

Leaders open pupils' hearts and minds to life beyond their local community, for example by learning to play an instrument, by singing in public in a choir and by visiting different places of worship.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

There is a strong culture of safeguarding.

Leaders check and support pupils who are known to be vulnerable. Leaders know the context of the school community well. They work tirelessly to engage parents.

The families and safeguarding lead makes a real difference to keeping pupils safe.

Staff know who to go to if they have a concern. Leaders follow up any concerns rapidly.

Systems of monitoring absence and lateness are robust. They are making a difference.

Pupils know how to keep themselves safe.

They spoke to inspectors about fire safety, bicycle safety and learning to swim.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

The school's curriculum is not yet sufficiently well planned and sequenced in all subjects, for example geography and art. However, leaders are in the process of improving this.

Leaders should ensure that the curriculum plans for all subjects are sequenced in a logical way to help pupils know more and remember more over time. . Teachers do not always provide work that challenges high-attaining pupils.

This means these pupils do not always achieve as well as they should. Leaders should ensure that the ambitious curriculum is consistently implemented to support the highest-attaining pupils. .

The school's curriculum in the early years foundation stage (EYFS) is not yet sufficiently well planned and sequenced in some areas, such as understanding the world and expressive arts and design. Some children do not have the building blocks on which to base future learning. Leaders should ensure that all areas of the EYFS curriculum are equally well developed.