Westminster Church of England Primary Academy

Westminster Church of England Primary Academy Westminster Road, Bradford, West Yorkshire BD3 0HW

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Overall effectiveness Requires improvement

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Requires improvement

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Requires improvement

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Personal development, behaviour and welfare Requires improvement

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Outcomes for pupils Requires improvement

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Early years provision Requires improvement

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Overall effectiveness at previous inspection Not previously inspected

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

This is a school that requires improvement

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

 Pupils’ outcomes have declined over time. Recent actions by trust and school leaders have stemmed this decline. Pupils’ outcomes are beginning to improve.  Many leaders are new to their roles. They do not check consistently the actions taken to improve the quality of teaching and pupils’ progress.  The quality of teaching is improving. However, some teachers do not sufficiently probe pupils’ understanding. As a result, pupils’ misconceptions are not picked up quickly enough.  The quality of the teaching of reading is improving. However, there are not enough opportunities for pupils to read across the wider curriculum.  Too many children in the Reception classes are not prepared well for the demands of Year 1.  The funding the school receives to support disadvantaged pupils is not always used effectively to enable these pupils to make good progress over time.  Leaders do not ensure that pupils develop their

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

knowledge, skills and understanding across a wide range of subjects.  Leaders do not check robustly enough the effect of actions to support the small number of pupils who demonstrate challenging behaviour. This means that these pupils do not consistently receive the support they need.  Despite leaders’ actions, too many pupils are regularly absent from school.  Some boys, including those in the Reception classes, lose interest in their learning too easily and do not have the stamina they need to be successful learners .

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

 In Nursery, adults have high expectations of children’s behaviour and effectively develop children’s early speaking and writing skills.  The school’s personal development curriculum is designed around the needs of the pupils and the local context. Pupils demonstrate respectful and tolerant attitudes.  Effective teaching in science ensures that pupils make good progress. Pupils use scientific vocabulary effectively.  Leaders, including governors, are ambitious for the school. Consequently, the quality of teaching is improving.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve the quality of leadership and management by: – successfully implementing the school’s newly designed curriculum to ensure that pupils develop their knowledge, understanding and skills across a wide range of subjects – ensuring that all leaders, including new middle leaders, can demonstrate the effect of their actions to improve the quality of teaching and learning, and pupils’ progress – ensuring that there is a culture of reading across the school where pupils can develop their comprehension and discuss their understanding of the books they read – making sure that plans to support disadvantaged pupils are effectively implemented so that these pupils make good progress from their starting points and catch up with other pupils nationally.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve the quality of teaching learning and assessment by: – developing pupils’ understanding of subject-specific vocabulary so it matches that seen in science – improving teachers’ questioning so that teachers address pupils’ misconceptions more quickly, and encourage pupils to think more deeply about their learning – providing more opportunities for pupils to develop their mathematical problem- solving and reasoning skills.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve pupils’ personal development, behaviour and welfare by: – developing the resilience and stamina of boys so that they can focus on tasks for longer periods – ensuring that support plans for those who demonstrate challenging behaviour are robustly recorded and evaluated – reducing persistent absence and improving pupils’ attendance so that it is at least in line with the national average.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve provision for all pupils in the early years, particularly in Reception, by ensuring that teachers’ assessment of children’s learning is precise and activities are well matched to children’s needs.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 An external review of the school’s use of the pupil premium funding should be undertaken in order to assess how this aspect of leadership and management may be improved.

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Requires improvement

 The principal and trust leaders are beginning to respond to a decline in outcomes. The school has had a narrowly focused curriculum based around English, mathematics and science and this is beginning to change. Higher expectations and work to build a positive learning culture are evident more firmly in some parts of the school than others.  In some year groups, particularly Year 5 and Year 6, too much time is spent on English and mathematics at the expense of other subjects. This means that pupils are not developing a deep and rich knowledge of subjects such as history, geography, art and technology. Leaders have recently reviewed the curriculum and have plans in place to ensure that pupils are taught a wide range of subjects across all year groups.  Many senior and middle leaders are new to their roles. Some middle leaders have not had the opportunity to evaluate the actions they have taken and consider the effect these

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Requires improvement

actions have had on improving pupils’ progress. Too much emphasis is placed on checking compliance of policies rather the difference actions are making to the quality of teaching, learning and assessment.  Leaders are often over-generous in their evaluation of the quality of teaching and learning. They place too much emphasis on how well pupils perform in tests. Consequently, teaching is variable across the school. Trust leaders are working with new leaders in the school to develop their skills further in order to evaluate the quality of teaching effectively.  Leaders provide experiences which interest and engage disadvantaged pupils. For instance, visits to museums, theatre trips and overnight stays in Whitby. This enhances and supports pupils’ learning in school. However, the school’s pupil premium strategy is not implemented successfully enough to help pupils make greater gains in their knowledge, understanding and skills. Additional funding is not always used well enough to

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Requires improvement

enable disadvantaged pupils to make the progress they should, particularly in reading.  Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) have historically attained well below other pupils nationally. The SEND leader identifies pupils with specific needs and has set up interventions for them. Additional funding for pupils with SEND has been used effectively and, as a result, pupils with SEND are making better progress across the curriculum.  Leaders provide effective support for pupils who arrive in the school with little or no English. This is successful in supporting these pupils to settle into school and quickly develops their basic skills in speaking, reading and writing. However, leaders do not ensure that the needs of all pupils who are new to the school, not just those who are new to English, are met.  The additional funding which the school receives for physical education is used effectively.

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Requires improvement

Pupils enjoy a wide range of sporting activities. Leaders encourage pupils to lead a healthy lifestyle and make sure that all pupils take part in regular exercise through sports lessons, after-school clubs and playground activities, such as completing a daily mile.  Leaders have ensured more high-quality professional development to enhance teachers’ subject knowledge in English, mathematics and science. Consequently, the quality of teaching in these subjects is improving. However, although teachers have received some training on the wider curriculum, in subjects such as history and geography, training is less well developed. Teachers are less well equipped to teach these subjects.  Staff who made their views known to inspectors are positive about leaders’ consideration of their workload when introducing new polices and initiatives.  A small proportion of parents and carers responded to the Ofsted online survey, Parent

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Requires improvement

View. Some expressed positive views about the school. However, some parents were concerned about communication between home and school. The school’s own surveys of parents are more positive. Leaders and governors understand that there is further work to do to raise the profile of the school within the community.

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Governance of the school

 Governors recognise that in the past they have focused too much on pupils’ attainment. They did not challenge leaders sufficiently when the quality of education began to decline.  Governors now hold senior leaders to account. They ensure that the school’s main priorities are discussed and reviewed, such as improving pupils’ attendance. Governors visit the school regularly to provide challenge and support for leaders. In the past, governors have not held leaders effectively to account for pupils’ progress across the curriculum.  Governors, including recently appointed governors, understand the school’s strengths and weaknesses. They have a broad range of skills. They understand the context of the local community well.  Governors have ensured investment in enhancing school facilities. Pupils talk positively about the improvements made to school facilities, for instance the new library and the re-

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Safeguarding

 The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.  Staff training is up to date and meets requirements to ensure that children are kept safe. Referrals are made to children’s social care swiftly. The designated safeguarding lead makes sure that robust electronic records are kept of any actions taken.  Parents value the parent workshops run by the school, which support them to keep their children safe online. Pupils understand how to stay safe online. They also learn about keeping safe outside of school. For instance, they learn about the dangers of drugs and alcohol.  Leaders ensure that correct procedures are followed for children who go missing in education. They carry out home visits for pupils who do not attend and whose parents cannot be contacted.  Governors and the trust board have prioritised significant funding to ensure that the school site is safe.  Some errors were found on the school’s central record, which records the recruitment

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Safeguarding

checks made on staff. These errors were rectified during the inspection.

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Requires improvement

 Although improving, the quality of teaching is variable across the curriculum and requires improvement.  Teachers do not always match work to pupils’ needs. New assessment systems have been introduced, but teachers do not use these effectively to plan learning. This is most evident for those pupils with lower starting points. Consequently, these pupils do not retain the knowledge intended by the teacher and continue to make errors throughout their learning.  At times, teachers do not address pupils’ misconceptions sufficiently. As a result, pupils continue to make mistakes, particularly low prior attaining pupils. At times, pupils do not have an accurate understanding of what they are learning.  Some teachers’ questioning does not probe pupils’ understanding so that pupils think more deeply about their learning. In lessons, most questioning focuses on whether pupils have completed a task, rather than whether they understand their learning. This means that

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Requires improvement

opportunities are missed to deepen pupils’ knowledge.  Leaders recognise the importance of pupils developing accurate, subject-specific vocabulary. In science, teachers develop pupil’s scientific vocabulary well. However, subject-specific vocabulary is not as well developed across the wider curriculum. This limits pupils’ understanding of what they are learning, and their ability to confidently speak and write about their knowledge.  Teachers now assess pupils’ progress in writing more effectively. As a result, pupils are developing the skills that enable them to improve their writing across a sequence of learning. The most able pupils are supported well and make good progress. However, teachers are not picking up the misconceptions of pupils with lower starting points. Consequently, they do not develop confidence in using basic grammar and handwriting, which means that their progress is limited.  Some children do not get off to the very best start in their reading. Not all phonics

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Requires improvement

teaching in the early years is effective, because children do not have enough opportunities to practise and revisit the sounds they have already learned. The teaching of phonics is effective in key stage 1, because it provides pupils with opportunities to revisit previous content. They also practise writing new words and sounds so that reading and spelling become fluent and automatic.  In key stage 1, reading books are well matched to pupils’ phonics understanding. Although the teaching of reading is improving, the school lacks a strong culture of reading. This is because some teachers do not teach pupils how to understand what they have read through questioning and discussion. As a consequence, too few pupils demonstrate the enthusiasm or comprehension that they need in order to become confident readers.  In mathematics, teachers focus on arithmetic and the basics in number skills. This helps pupils to become functional mathematicians. However, opportunities are limited across the

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Requires improvement

wider curriculum for pupils to practise their numeracy skills.  Pupils who have SEND receive effective and appropriate support through well-focused teaching with additional adults, which is designed to boost their basic skills. This means that they are making more progress in basic skills in English and mathematics. However, class teachers do not always match work to the needs of these pupils. This means that they have limited opportunities to apply and develop these skills in lessons.  The teaching of science is effective. As a result, pupils carry out experiments and acquire new knowledge with increasing confidence. Teachers ensure that pupils understand the meaning of scientific vocabulary. Pupils’ written work in science is of a higher quality than that seen in other subjects.

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Personal development and welfare

 The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare requires improvement.  Support plans for a small number of pupils with social and emotional needs are not sharp enough. Leaders do not evaluate the effect of actions sufficiently to support these pupils. Consequently, some of these pupils are not developing the positive attitude to their education that they need in order to be successful.  Breakfast club provides a calm and purposeful start to the day. Pupils who attend enjoy the activities that are on offer.  The school’s personal, social and health education programme supports pupils’ personal development well. Pupils discuss relevant topics such as identity, society and equality, and consider how these affect their lives. This ensures that they understand British values such as respect and tolerance. Some pupils told an inspector that ‘we cannot judge people’.  Pupils learn about the importance of safe and healthy relationships. The school links with

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Personal development and welfare

organisations such as the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children and local charities. Pupils say this helps them to understand how to stay safe outside of school, and the importance of being a good citizen.

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Behaviour

 The behaviour of pupils requires improvement.  Too many pupils are regularly absent from school. Despite leaders’ actions to address this, the proportion of pupils missing school regularly has increased. Leaders have accurately identified that attendance declines on Fridays, when the school closes early.  Most pupils behave well and demonstrate positive attitudes to their learning. However, some boys become easily distracted, meaning that they miss important information or they do not complete their work. This leads to gaps in their learning. Some pupils told inspectors that there are incidents of poor behaviour at lunchtimes.  Behaviour records and support plans are not robust enough for the small minority of pupils who demonstrate challenging behaviour. Leaders do not always check the effectiveness of these plans and make changes to reflect what is needed. Consequently, some of these pupils do not improve their behaviour.

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Behaviour

 During the inspection, pupils were polite and sensible around the school. They were respectful to adults and spoke to their peers with courtesy. Pupils demonstrate respect and tolerance of others. They enjoy learning about different religions and cultures.  Pupils understand the different types of bullying. They told inspectors that bullying is rare, but when it does happen it is dealt with quickly by staff. However, some parents do not feel that the school deals with bullying effectively.

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Outcomes for pupils Requires improvement

 In 2017 and 2018, the proportion of Year 6 pupils attaining the expected and higher standards in reading, writing and mathematics combined was well below the national average. Too few pupils have been well prepared for secondary school.  In 2018, Year 6 pupils made progress in mathematics and writing that was in line with similar pupils nationally. However, the progress and attainment of pupils in reading were below average.  Pupils’ attainment in reading, writing and mathematics in key stage 1 improved in 2018. More pupils met the expected and higher standards compared to previous years. However, attainment for these pupils was still below the national average.  In 2017 and 2018, the proportion of Year 1 pupils passing the phonics screening check was below the national average. More pupils this year are on track to pass the phonics screening check due to more effective teaching of phonics. However, this is not the case

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Outcomes for pupils Requires improvement

for disadvantaged pupils, who are underachieving compared to other pupils nationally.  Pupils are now making better progress in their reading as a result of the improving teaching and more regular assessments. This has led to the proportion of pupils who are able to read fluently increasing in most year groups. Pupils read books which are well matched to their reading abilities and they can read these books confidently. However, the extracts from texts used in guided reading lessons are sometimes not accessible for some pupils, particularly for pupils with lower starting points. Teachers do not pick up on pupils’ misunderstandings in these texts. This means that pupils’ comprehension of what they are reading is not improving quickly enough.  In reading, disadvantaged pupils are not catching up quickly enough with other pupils nationally. In 2017, 71% of disadvantaged pupils in Year 1 passed their phonics screening

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Outcomes for pupils Requires improvement

test. In 2018, this dropped to 54%. Not enough is done to address these gaps and so, currently, only half of the disadvantaged pupils in Year 2 are at the expected level in reading. Attainment of disadvantaged pupils in reading is variable across year groups, and is consistently less than that of other pupils nationally.  Attainment for pupils with SEND has historically been well below that of other pupils with similar starting points nationally. The progress and attainment of pupils with SEND are improving due to the provision of more effective support that better meets these pupils’ individual needs. However, they are still not making good progress, as many of their misconceptions are not picked up by teachers.  Most-able pupils’ progress is improving, especially in key stage 1. In Year 2 in 2018, the proportion of pupils securing greater depth in their reading and mathematics improved significantly from 2017. Most-able pupils benefit from the increased challenge teachers are

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Outcomes for pupils Requires improvement

now giving them. This is backed up in books where, particularly in writing, these pupils make good progress and are able to edit and improve their own work. However, the proportion of pupils leaving Year 6 in 2018 at the higher standard was still well below the national average.  Pupils make good progress in science. This is due to improved teacher planning which has been supported by trust leaders. As a result, current pupils’ writing in science demonstrates a good understanding of the concepts they have learned.

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Early years provision Requires improvement

 Many children arrive at the school with starting points that are lower than those typically found. The proportion of children reaching a good level of development by the end of the early years has been well below the national average since the academy opened. In 2017, 59% of pupils achieved this benchmark. In 2018, the figure increased to 61%, but remained below the national average.  Although children get off to a good start in Nursery, the variability of teaching across the rest of early years means that many children are not well prepared for Year 1. Phonics is taught less well in Reception and children do not stay focused on their learning in writing. As a result, pupils move up to Year 1 with inconsistencies in their phonic knowledge and understanding.  Leaders’ evaluation of the early years is not accurate. They have been overgenerous in their assessment of the quality of teaching and learning, and the progress children make.

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Early years provision Requires improvement

Too much emphasis has been placed on the improvements to the environment and not how it is used by children.  Pupils’ behaviour is variable across early years. When learning is not well planned or based on the child’s knowledge, they become uninterested and lack focus. This can be seen more in boys, who, as a result, do not develop the positive attitudes to learning they need as they enter Year 1.  In Nursery, children have a range of opportunities to develop their writing. For instance, during the inspection, children were seen writing holiday postcards, noting favourite recipes and naming characters on a clipboard. Children were keen to write and were engaged in their learning. However, in Reception, not enough children are keen to write, and they do not focus on their writing for sufficient time.  The progress children make is variable throughout the early years. Leaders have identified that children who are summer born and those who are disadvantaged are making less

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Early years provision Requires improvement

progress than other pupils. However, actions taken to address this have not been effective. This means that these children still make less progress than their peers.  The early years environment has been extensively improved. It is now an exciting and engaging space for children to learn in. When it is used well by adults, children develop key skills in speaking and mathematics, both inside and outside. For instance, during the inspection there was a ‘train station’ where children were phoning the office to book tickets. They wrote down names and counted the fares from passengers. This was effectively modelled and enhanced through adult interactions. However, not all adults model how to use the space well, and so not all children access resources in a way which helps their learning.  Expectations of pupils in Nursery are high. Children behave well and listen to adults and other children with interest. Adults know the children well, and speak to them clearly and

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Early years provision Requires improvement

with effective modelling. This means that children talk to each other, look after resources and stay focused on their learning. For instance, during the inspection, teachers told the children some parts of the outside were too muddy to go into. Children listened carefully to this and understood why they were not allowed to enter certain parts of the outdoor area. They then instructed other children, repeating what had been said originally.  The breakfast club in Nursery, run by the school, is supported by parent volunteers. This provides opportunities for parents and their children to learn together, supporting children to build up their confidence to speak to adults and other children.  Leaders ensure that the early years safety and welfare requirements are met.

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School details

This inspection of the school was carried out under section 5 of the Education Act 2005.

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School details

Email address office@westminsterschool.co.uk

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School details

Date of previous inspection Not previously inspected

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Information about this school

 The school became an academy in 2016 and is part of the Bradford Diocesan Academies Trust. The predecessor school was last inspected in January 2014, when it was judged to be good.  The principal took up her post in September 2016.  The school is much larger than the average-sized primary school.  The proportion of pupils eligible for support through the pupil premium funding is much higher than the national average.  The proportion of pupils who speak English as an additional language is well above the national average, with most of these pupils being of Pakistani heritage.  The proportion of pupils with SEND is less than the national average. The proportion of children who are supported by an education, health and care plan is in line with the national average.  The early years consists of a Nursery and three Reception classes.  The school runs a breakfast club.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors observed teaching in all year groups. Several lesson visits were carried out jointly with leaders.  During visits to lessons, inspectors spoke with pupils and looked at their work to find out more about how well they are learning.  Inspectors scrutinised pupils’ current work with school leaders.  Meetings were held with senior and middle leaders, five members of the governing body, including the chair of the governing body, the chief executive officer and the director of primary education from the trust. A phone conversation was held with the assistant director of education for the Diocese of Bradford.  Inspectors considered 30 responses to the Ofsted survey, Parent View, including six free-text responses. Inspectors spoke to parents informally at the start of the school day. Inspectors met with two groups of parents.  Inspectors scrutinised governing body minutes, school improvement planning and self-

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Information about this inspection

evaluation documents, pupils’ progress and attainment information, as well as attendance, behaviour and safeguarding, and curriculum documents.  Discussions took place with a group of staff.  An inspector met with pupils from Years 3, 4, 5 and 6. Inspectors spoke informally with pupils around the school during breaktimes and lunchtimes. Inspectors also listened to several pupils read, and talked with them about their reading.

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Inspection team

Matthew Knox, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector

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Inspection team

Michele Costello Her Majesty’s Inspector guidance ‘Raising concerns and making a complaint about Ofsted’, which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.gov.uk/government/publications/complaints-about-ofsted . If you would like Ofsted to send you a copy of the guidance, please telephone 0300 123 4234, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk .

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Inspection team

In the report, ‘disadvantaged pupils’ refers to those pupils who attract government pupil premium funding: pupils claiming free school meals at any point in the last six years and pupils in care or who left care through adoption or another formal route. www.gov.uk/pupil-premium-information-for-schools-and- alternative-provision-settings .

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Inspection team

You can use Parent View to give Ofsted your opinion on your child’s school. Ofsted will use the information parents and carers provide when deciding which schools to inspect and when and as part of the inspection.

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Inspection team

You can also use Parent View to find out what other parents and carers think about schools in England. You can visit www.parentview.ofsted.gov.uk , or look for the link on the main Ofsted website: www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ofsted .

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Inspection team

achieve excellence in the care of children and young people, and in education and skills for learners of all ages. It regulates and inspects childcare and children’s social care, and inspects the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (Cafcass), schools, colleges, initial teacher training, further education and skills, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It assesses council children’s services, and inspects services for children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspection team

If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk .

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Inspection team

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Inspection team

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Inspection team

T: 0300 123 4234 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/ofsted

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