Willingham Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

This is a good school The school has improved greatly since the previous inspection. Leaders have worked hard to address the areas identified for improvement. Pupils are now making good progress throughout the school.

Disadvantaged pupils make good progress because of the good support that they receive. Teaching in the early years is now good and, as a result, children make good progress. The quality of teaching and learning has improved since the previous inspection.

For example, the introduction of a new phonics scheme has led to improvements in outcomes in this area. Revised assessment and tracking processes in English and mathematics enable leaders to clos...ely monitor the quality of teaching and learning and pupils' progress. As a result, any underachievement is quickly identified and appropriate intervention is put in place.

Pupils show positive attitudes to learning. They work well together in lessons. Pupils are courteous and respectful to adults and to each other.

The school's safeguarding procedures are effective. Pupils rightly feel safe at school. The governing body has a thorough understanding of the school.

Governors provide good levels of support and challenge to school leaders. They are committed to securing improvements. Younger pupils have limited opportunities to use and apply their mathematical skills.

This limits the progress that a few of them make in the subject. While the school meets the requirements for providing information on its website, a few parents and carers expressed concern about some aspects of communication with the school. In some year groups, the quality of teaching in other subjects is not as consistently high as it is in English.

Assessment systems are not well-developed in subjects other than English and mathematics.

Information about this school

The new headteacher has been in place since the beginning of the spring term. He is supported by a strong team of school leaders.

Willingham is larger than the average primary school, with 307 pupils. The school runs its own pre-school provision, 'Honeypot', for children between 2 and 4 years. There are currently 60 children on roll.

The proportion of pupils eligible for the pupil premium is well below the national average. The proportion of pupils from minority ethnic backgrounds is well below the national average. The proportion of pupils who speak English as an additional language is below the national average.

The proportion of pupils who have SEN and/or disabilities is above the national average. The school has an after school club every afternoon as well as a breakfast club every morning. The school meets the current government floor standards, which set minimum requirements for attainment and progress in reading, writing and mathematics by the end of Year 6.

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