Baydon St Nicholas Church of England Primary School

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

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Mrs Caroline Knighton Headteacher Baydon St Nicholas Church of England Primary School Ermin Street Baydon Marlborough Wiltshire SN8 2JJ

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Short inspection of Baydon St Nicholas Church of England Primary School

Following my visit to the school on 18 May 2017, I write on behalf of Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Education, Children’s Services and Skills to report the inspection findings. The visit was the first short inspection carried out since the school was judged to be good in November 2012.

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Short inspection of Baydon St Nicholas Church of England Primary School

The leadership team has maintained the good quality of education in the school since the last inspection. All members of the school community are proud to be part of its supportive environment and family ethos. The well-mannered and eager learners consider it to be ‘amazing’. The vast majority of parents report that it is ‘awesome’ with ‘a strong team spirit’. They also feel that there are ‘some fabulous teachers and a very able headteacher who is bringing an exciting and challenging presence to the school’. Your knowledgeable and challenging governors are justifiably proud of their decision to appoint you in September 2016.

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Short inspection of Baydon St Nicholas Church of England Primary School

At the time of the previous inspection, the school was asked to ensure that work for the most able pupils stretched and challenged them fully in their learning. They were also asked to provide more opportunities for the pupils to think for themselves. Class teachers have a secure understanding of the needs of the different groups of pupils they teach. You have helped them to have a clearer focus on the most able pupils and those who are vulnerable. You have encouraged them to work more closely together to ensure that pupils’ progress builds on from Reception and is consistently maintained throughout the school. You have helped teaching staff to gain a better awareness of the different groups of pupils and developed further a clear and rigorous process by which their progress is checked regularly. The introduction of the current curriculum approach, which includes a wide range of opportunities for pupils to challenge themselves, has resulted in

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Short inspection of Baydon St Nicholas Church of England Primary School

pupils gaining confidence in the application of problem-solving skills. They proudly talk of the mathematics and ‘Easter egg’ challenges they have recently been involved with. As one parent commented, ‘The school nurtures its children in challenging and dynamic ways.’

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Short inspection of Baydon St Nicholas Church of England Primary School

The leadership team has ensured that all safeguarding arrangements are fit for purpose and records are detailed and of high quality. Rigorous recruitment and vetting procedures, coupled with detailed checks on any visitors to the school, ensure that pupils are kept safe. All staff and governors have had detailed child protection training, including identifying signs of abuse, female genital mutilation, child sexual exploitation, and extremism. When there is a concern about a pupil, all staff are clear about informing the designated safeguarding lead without delay. Regular meetings between the designated safeguarding lead and the governor responsible for safeguarding ensure that child protection is given the highest priority. The emotional and pastoral support that the school provides to all pupils is an impressive feature of the school. Close working relationships with external specialist agencies support the safeguarding work of the school well.

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Short inspection of Baydon St Nicholas Church of England Primary School

Pupils report that they feel safe in school and know that they can always approach a member of staff to help them if they have a worry or concern. Pupils talk knowledgeably about e-safety and are clear about how to keep safe when they use their mobile phones and electronic tablets. They know that some drugs help you to get better if you are unwell. However, pupils are fully aware that other drugs are dangerous and they know that they must never be pressurised into taking them. The vast majority of parents who responded to Parent View, the online inspection questionnaire, agreed that their children feel safe in school and are well looked after.

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Inspection findings

 We agreed that during my visit I would explore the reasons why Year 6 pupils, over the last few years, especially boys, were not doing as well in mathematics as they were in reading and writing. We also agreed that I would look at the attendance patterns of some vulnerable pupils and explore some of the improvements you have made to the quality of learning in the school since your arrival.  A freshness of approach to subject leadership, and a clear focus on key areas requiring improvement in the teaching and learning of mathematics, have had a strong impact on pupils’ progress. Teachers appreciate the opportunities they get to meet with other local schools and discuss their pupils’ work. This has helped them to raise their aspirations and provide pupils with further challenge.  Adjusting the school day to enable teachers to spend more time on teaching mathematics has had a positive impact on pupils’ outcomes. A more rigorous and

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Inspection findings

consistent approach to tracking pupils’ progress has enabled teachers to plan more accurately to meet the needs of individual pupils. Stringent systems to check the quality of teaching and learning have also played an important role in improving the current pupils’ mathematical skills. You, together with your mathematics leader, and also well supported by governors, have relentlessly checked the consistency of teaching and learning through visits to lessons, talking to pupils and looking at their books. Emphasising key mathematical words, reinforcing pupils’ knowledge and learning by solving problems has helped the most able pupils to extend their learning.  Boys are making better progress in mathematics and are responding well to the mathematical challenges they work on outdoors. A high percentage of fathers attended a recent mathematical workshop for parents and this has had an impressive impact on the engagement of boys.

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Inspection findings

 Last academic year, a small minority of disadvantaged pupils did not attend school as regularly as they should. You keep a very close eye on these pupils and work closely with their parents. You also liaise regularly with external agencies to ensure that these pupils are not at risk.  Since your appointment, the quality of pupils’ written work has improved. This is because, together with your English subject leader, you have introduced a consistent approach to handwriting which is adhered to in all classes and has improved the quality of handwriting across the school. You and your early years leader have improved the outdoor area for the younger pupils to develop their social, physical and creative skills. This has been a much-welcomed addition to their provision.  Pupils and teachers respond very well to the more creative way of teaching different subjects. School topics such as ‘explorers’ and ‘inventors’ enable the

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Inspection findings

pupils to work together to solve a range of problems, which helps them develop their knowledge and skills across a wide range of subjects.  You have accurately identified the need to develop the role of those teachers who have specific responsibilities across the school. Providing them with training opportunities has enabled them to start to think beyond their own classrooms but this is at an early stage of development. Working more closely with other schools and engaging in a wide range of professional development opportunities has enabled both teachers and teaching assistants to improve their teaching skills. You are very clear about your teachers’ strengths and know that these need to be shared more widely across the school.

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Next steps for the school

Leaders and those responsible for governance should ensure that:

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Next steps for the school

 those teachers with leadership responsibilities develop greater responsibility for improvement throughout the school  teachers share their individual strengths with each other so that there is a greater consistency in approach.

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Next steps for the school

I am copying this letter to the chair of the governing body, the director of education for the Diocese of Salisbury, the regional schools commissioner and the director of children’s services for Wiltshire. This letter will be published on the Ofsted website.

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Information about the inspection

I met with you to discuss improvements made since the last inspection, the school’s self-evaluation and the development plan. I looked at the safeguarding records and explored your recruitment and vetting procedures. I also held discussions with eight governors, including the chair of the governing body, and met with the deputy headteacher and four middle leaders. Together, we briefly visited all the classes to look at the progress that pupils were currently making across all the curriculum subjects. I had a discussion with the local authority school improvement officer and spoke to six Year 6 pupils. I took account of 37 responses from Parent View, the online inspection questionnaire, and considered the comments that had been submitted by parents.

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