Roundhill Primary School

Store Street Manchester M1 2WD T 0300 123 4234 www.gov.uk/ofsted

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Mrs Susan Adams Roundhill Primary School Mount Road Southdown Bath Somerset BA2 1LG

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No formal designation monitoring inspection of Roundhill Primary School

Following my visit with Alison Cogher, Ofsted Inspector, to your school on 6 and 7 July 2016, I write on behalf of Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Education, Children’s Services and Skills to confirm the inspection findings. Thank you for the professional manner in which you engaged with the inspection.

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No formal designation monitoring inspection of Roundhill Primary School

This monitoring inspection was conducted under section 8 of the Education Act 2005 and in accordance with Ofsted’s published procedures for inspecting schools with no formal designation. The inspection was carried out because Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector was concerned about the effectiveness of safeguarding arrangements at the school.

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Evidence

Inspectors scrutinised school improvement plans, staff performance management records, the single central record and other documents related to leadership and management and, in particular, to safeguarding arrangements. Meetings were held with governors, parents, teachers, support staff and a local authority representative. Telephone conversations also took place with two other representatives from the local authority. A recent local authority audit of the school’s safeguarding arrangements, external partner reports, governing body minutes, attendance records, behaviour and conduct logs and exclusions information were also scrutinised. The school’s analysis of its own parental survey was taken into account. Inspectors met with 20 pupils from key stage 2 in two groups. Inspectors also observed behaviour at the start of the day and at break and lunchtimes. Inspectors spoke informally to a number of pupils in the breakfast club, in lessons and around

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Evidence

the school to gather their views on behaviour at the school. Visits to classes were also conducted to evaluate pupils’ attitudes towards their learning. Inspectors spoke with parents bringing their children to the school in the morning. Having considered the evidence, I am of the opinion that at this time:

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Evidence

Safeguarding arrangements are effective.

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Context

Roundhill Primary School opened in April 2015 as a result of the amalgamation of Southdown Infant and Junior Schools. There are currently 324 pupils on roll and numbers are growing. The proportion of pupils known to be eligible for free school meals is above the national average. The majority of pupils are of White British background, with a small proportion of pupils who speak English as an additional language. The proportion of pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities is above average. The amalgamation of the school has resulted in considerable changes in staffing and governance. In addition to the changes that have already taken place, a new chair of governors, two new teachers and a new senior leader have been appointed for September 2016.

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safeguarding and child protection arrangements keep pupils safe

Leaders, managers and governors ensure that pupils’ safety is given the highest priority across the school. Their good understanding of safeguarding is illustrated through clear and effective lines of communication. Staff and volunteers are acutely aware of their safeguarding roles and responsibilities. For example, checks conducted to ensure the suitability of adults to work with children are carried out and recorded to the required standard. Clear and uncomplicated guidance exists in the school’s child protection and e-safety policies. As a result, these policies are universally followed and any concern, however slight, is shared and followed up. However, not all policies have been updated since the opening of the new school and some records are not efficiently organised. This results in some information being replicated unnecessarily.

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safeguarding and child protection arrangements keep pupils safe

New staff and volunteers receive formal induction training and have mentor support to ensure that they are well informed about the school’s safeguarding procedures. Leaders provide a regular rolling programme of safeguarding training. With the exception of the planned training in how to prevent female genital mutilation, training for all staff and volunteers is up to date and ensures that early signs and symptoms of concerns are identified quickly and the necessary action taken.

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safeguarding and child protection arrangements keep pupils safe

Leaders use their strong links with a wide range of external agencies to ensure that pupils and their families receive the support they need. Good relationships exist with the local authority safeguarding team. School leaders are resolute in ensuring that when concerns are referred, they are followed up in a timely manner.

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safeguarding and child protection arrangements keep pupils safe

Risk assessments are comprehensive and include educational visits, curriculum subject areas and individualised personal assessments for pupils with medical needs or those who might be at risk of exclusion. This approach is also adopted for personal plans such as intimate care or positive handling.

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safeguarding and child protection arrangements keep pupils safe

Governors have had recent and relevant training and have established a new committee to further raise the profile of safeguarding. The committee has recently carried out an audit of the school’s safeguarding procedures in accordance with local authority’s guidelines. Governors are speedily working their way through a comprehensive action plan to ensure that they are systematic in checking the school’s work. For example, governors know which staff have been trained for various levels of first aid. Governors have been rigorous in checking with the local authority to make sure that the school is compliant with regulations. Inspectors found the headteacher’s reports to governors provide a comprehensive and accurate account of the school’s work.

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safeguarding and child protection arrangements keep pupils safe

There is a calm, purposeful atmosphere in the school. Relationships between adults and pupils in the school are strong. Adults start the school greeting pupils with a smile and words of encouragement. Parents are confident that the school’s leaders promote good behaviour and strive to ensure that pupils are safe and happy.

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safeguarding and child protection arrangements keep pupils safe

Children in Reception Year develop secure relationships with adults and their peers. Home visits and close links with the feeder pre-schools enable early identification of children’s needs. The governing body’s decision to admit two-year-old children is proving effective in supporting children and their families at an earlier stage. These procedures, combined with sophisticated analysis to identify any barriers to learning, including safeguarding issues, help the school to match provision to pupils’ needs quickly. Support staff are effectively deployed and are highly skilled in supporting pupils with emotional needs. One-to-one and small-group work supports pupils’ developing confidence.

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safeguarding and child protection arrangements keep pupils safe

Records of behaviour incidents are meticulous. Leaders analyse records carefully to identify patterns in the causes of misbehaviour and take action to put systems and processes in place so that incidents do not reoccur. A new behaviour policy has been developed with the whole staff; although it is in its infancy, teachers are already applying the policy consistently across the school. Pupils clearly understand teachers’ expectations of behaviour and the rewards and sanctions that are in place. Staff report a reduction in the number of incidents, and pupils concur with this view.

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safeguarding and child protection arrangements keep pupils safe

Pupils reported that they enjoy coming to school and seeing their friends. They say that bullying happens sometimes but that teachers deal with it promptly. All adults know pupils well and provide strong and nurturing support for those who need it. Pupils are particularly positive about the new lunchtime arrangements, where they have a choice of six zones to play in around the extensive school site. Inspectors observed well-supervised play times, with pupils playing happily alongside each other and interacting positively with the adults on duty. Older pupils carry out roles of responsibility as lunchtime leaders for younger pupils, so contributing to the school’s enabling environment. Pupils’ attendance remains in the lowest 10% of schools nationally. The actions leaders have taken to improve attendance have not been far-reaching or rigorous enough to make a difference. There is little evidence that governors have

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safeguarding and child protection arrangements keep pupils safe

Leaders recognise that the current scheme of work to develop pupils’ personal, social, health and economic (PSHE) education is inconsistently used across the school. A local authority adviser is currently supporting the school to develop a comprehensive programme across all year groups. Pupils know how to keep themselves safe online but their understanding of other aspects of keeping safe, such as how to resist persuasion or how to eat healthily, are less well developed. The pupils were enthusiastic in telling inspectors about the work they have been doing in developing an anti-bullying policy, although this work is at an early stage.

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safeguarding and child protection arrangements keep pupils safe

Effective links with local secondary schools, which start early in Year 6, are enabling pupils to prepare for smooth transfer to the next phase of their education. Leaders provide a bespoke transition for pupils who have special educational needs and/or disability, which typically involves them in a visit accompanied by an adult from Roundhill. Pupils say that this really helps them. As one pupil put it: ‘I’m not worried about moving to a big school now; I know where to go and what to do. I will be safe.’

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External support

The school works effectively with local partners, including other local schools. The local authority has provided effective support to enhance the leadership capacity in the school during the period of transition leading up to the opening of the new school. Regular meetings with police, health and social care representatives provide a cohesive level of support for pupils and their families. The school meticulously follows appropriate specific advice and support from social care professionals at case conference meetings. It is held in high regard by the local authority for the effective work that it does in supporting pupils and their families to overcome personal difficulties.

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Priorities for further improvement

 Ensure that school leaders take urgent steps to tackle poor attendance.  Improve the curriculum for PSHE education and monitor the impact on pupils’ achievement.  Improve the quality of record-keeping so that documents are efficiently organised.

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Priorities for further improvement

I am copying this letter to the chair of the governing body, the regional schools commissioner and the director of children’s services for Bath and North East Somerset. This letter will be published on the Ofsted website.

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