Woodfield Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

This school is welcoming and safe.

Pupils are happy and learn well. Leaders place an emphasis on ensuring strong relationships between staff and pupils. Pupils feel valued.

Most staff have high expectations of pupils' behaviour. At social times, pupils play well together. Behaviour in lessons is calm.

There is a wide range of pupil leadership opportunities. For example, some pupils are 'kindness ambassadors'. They make a positive contribution to the school by being role models and rewarding kind behaviour.

The school's curriculum is well designed. Staff have high expectations of pupils' achievement. Pupils generally learn well.

Pupils with s...pecial educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are fully included in the life of the school. Their learning needs are usually well met. Children in the early years get off to a strong start in their education.

They enjoy coming to school.

There is a strong focus on developing pupils' aspirations. Pupils learn about the world of work, for example through problem-solving challenges where pupils work with local railway experts.

Pupils develop a strong sense of community through activities such as fundraising for local hospices, supporting the food bank and litter picking on behalf of the local council.

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

The school has an ambitious curriculum. Subject leaders have clearly identified the important knowledge and skills that pupils should learn, and in what order.

Teachers use a range of strategies, such as regular quizzes, to check how well pupils remember the curriculum. Teachers have strong subject knowledge. They address pupils' misconceptions well.

Leaders have refined aspects of the curriculum to ensure that the knowledge pupils gain is consistently sophisticated. This work is still ongoing in a few subjects.

Staff are well trained to teach early reading.

They check that pupils remember the sounds they are taught. Most pupils learn to read quickly. Pupils who need extra practise get the right support.

Staff regularly read high-quality books to pupils. Most pupils enjoy reading.

The school has effective strategies to identify pupils with SEND early in their education.

Pupils with SEND generally learn well. Staff usually make well-considered adaptations to lesson activities where needed. However, in some instances, the writing tasks assigned to pupils are not fully accessible to some pupils with SEND.

As a result, some pupils with SEND do not develop their writing knowledge as well as they could.

The curriculum for the early years is extremely well thought through. Leaders carefully consider the needs of the children.

They design purposeful and engaging activities for children. Children explore concepts from the curriculum through play. All staff know what children need to learn next.

Staff skilfully develop children's language. The school provides staff who are new to the early years team with high-quality training and guidance. This ensures that children's learning and development needs are consistently well met.

Children play and learn well together.The curriculum for pupils' personal, social and health education is carefully designed to meet the needs of pupils in the local community. Pupils learn about the wider world, including different faiths.

Difference is celebrated. Pupils show high levels of respect for adults and each other. Pupils learn about healthy relationships and staying safe, including when online.

Pupils remember some aspects of the curriculum in more depth than others.

There is a wide range of opportunities for pupils to learn beyond the planned curriculum. For example, the school recently held a 'Tudor theme day' where pupils dressed up and participated in activities to help reinforce their history knowledge.

Pupils regularly enjoy sporting and music events. The school also hosts a family art workshop where pupils and their parents and carers learn from a local expert.

The trust and local governing body regularly check the school's effectiveness.

The school also carries out its own internal checks of different aspects of the school's provision. This work is generally strong. However, occasionally, the school does not recognise when some aspects of the provision could be further improved.

Staff feel valued because leaders support them with their workload and well-being. Staff are trained well and work collaboratively. There are regular opportunities for staff to work with colleagues from other schools in the trust.

Teachers continually develop through these opportunities to share effective practice. Staff morale is high.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• Occasionally, the writing tasks assigned to pupils are not fully accessible to some pupils with SEND. These pupils do not develop their writing as quickly as they could. The school should ensure that all staff make effective adaptations to writing tasks, where appropriate, to meet the learning needs of pupils with SEND.

• Occasionally, the school does not recognise when some aspects of its work could be further improved. This prevents the school from identifying and addressing minor areas for improvement as quickly as it could. The school should ensure that it carefully evaluates all aspects of the provision regularly.