Harden Primary School

Inspection of Harden Primary School Long Lane, Harden, Bingley, West Yorkshire BD16 1LJ

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Overall effectiveness Good

The quality of education Good Behaviour and attitudes Good Personal development Good Leadership and management Good Early years provision Good Overall effectiveness at previous inspection Requires improvement 18–19 September 2019

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils thrive at this happy and caring school. Staff commit to making learning interesting. Classrooms ‘buzz’ with excited pupils keen to learn and to find out more. Pupils told us that they enjoy their learning and get to do ‘lots of fun stuff!’

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils respect the school values known as ‘six ways to shine’. Around the school and in lessons pupils are polite and courteous to each other and to adults. Pupils do what they are asked to do straight away. They told us that they feel happy and safe in school. One pupil said, ‘I’m really happy, everyone here is my friend.’

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What is it like to attend this school?

There is lots to do at playtime. The daily mile is great fun, with everyone taking part. Bullying is rare. Pupils know what bullying is and the different forms it can take. They know how important it is to tell. On the very few occasions when bullying does happen, staff are quick to sort it out.

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better?

Leaders want the best for all pupils. They have created a climate where pupils work hard and behave well. Leaders have improved the curriculum. It is used to ignite pupils’ love of learning. Curriculum plans incorporate lots of visitors and trips to bring learning to life. ‘Floor books’ show the wide variety of interesting activities that pupils in all year groups get. Long-term plans for English and mathematics are well sequenced to build upon what pupils already know and can do. Pupils make good progress.

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better?

Teachers have good subject knowledge. They plan for important concepts to be repeated so that pupils can remember more. For example, pupils told us how the work that they had already done on fractions was helping them to add and subtract fractions now. Teachers use assessment information well. They adapt their teaching to plug any gaps in pupils’ knowledge or to iron out misconceptions. Occasionally teachers provide too many resources for pupils to use. This confuses pupils as they are not always clear which one will help them the best. Pupils’ outcomes in the statutory tests at the end of key stage 1 and 2 have improved. They are above the national average in reading, writing and mathematics, at both the expected and higher standard.

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better?

Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities are well supported. The special educational needs coordinator (SENCo) makes sure that staff know how to help the pupils learn.

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better?

Leaders share a commitment to want every child to love reading. Class stories are chosen to fire pupils’ imagination. Pupils talk about their favourite stories and characters. In the early years, children get off to a good start in their reading. Children learn sounds straight away. The programme for phonics (letters and the sounds they represent) continues to move at a pace, with lots of opportunities to 18–19 September 2019

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practise. At the end of Reception class, children can use their phonics for reading and spelling. Immersion into songs and rhymes supports this further. The same focused teaching continues into key stage 1. Any pupil who has fallen behind in their reading gets extra support.

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For subjects beyond English and mathematics, curriculum plans vary. Some are not coherently planned and sequenced. For example: in geography plans identify when pupils will use maps of the UK, Europe and the world. Plans do not identify how pupils’ mapping skills will be developed so that pupils can use grid referencing by Year 6. It is clear from the actions leaders have already taken that they are improving this.

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Leaders expect pupils to work hard and to respect others. Pupils approach their learning with good attitudes and behave well. They take pride in their work. Pupils’ books are very well presented in all subjects.

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Pupils can take part in a wide range of after-school clubs. These support pupils’ personal development well. Pupils learn about keeping safe, including online safety. Their understanding of the risks of grooming and exploitation are less well developed. Older pupils look after the Reception children when they start school. This is part of a well organised and thoughtful induction programme. It helps Reception children and their parents settle into their new school.

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The headteacher values the support she receives from the multi-academy trust. It has provided training for aspiring leaders. This increases the school’s capacity to improve further. Curriculum leaders are enthusiastic in their roles. However, they do not always consider the early years when developing their curriculum plans.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

All staff get regular safeguarding training. This helps them to be up to date with the most recent guidance. Staff know pupils and families well, which means that they spot any changes in a pupils’ behaviour straight away. Systems for staff to report concerns are straightforward and well understood. The designated leaders for safeguarding are quick to follow up any concerns. They seek the advice and support of other professionals when they need to. Leaders know the local risks and use this information to keep staff vigilant.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Leaders need to ensure that all subjects have long-term plans that set out the essential subject-specific knowledge and skills that pupils in all years groups need to acquire, and that this knowledge is sequenced to enable pupils to know more and remember more. Such plans should span across the early years and Year 1 18–19 September 2019

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wherever possible.  Training and support need to be available for curriculum leaders, so that they are confident in identifying the foundations of subject-specific learning within the early years curriculum, and to know how this supports pupils’ future learning.

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How can I feed back my views?

or to find out what other parents and carers think. We use Ofsted Parent View information when deciding which schools to inspect, when to inspect them and as part of their inspection.

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How can I feed back my views?

The Department for Education has further guidance on how to complain about a school.

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How can I feed back my views?

If you’re not happy with the inspection or the report, you can complain to Ofsted .

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Further information

You can search for published performance information about the school.

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Further information

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. 18–19 September 2019

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School details

Inspection number 10110592 Type of school Primary

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Information about this school

 The school is smaller than the average-sized primary school.  The proportion of disadvantaged pupils is below the national average.  The proportion of pupils with an education, heath and care plan is below the national average. The proportion of pupils with special educational needs support is above the national average.  Most pupils are of White British heritage.  The school joined the Exceed Academy Trust in October 2018.  The school was last inspected in March 2017. It was judged to require improvement. The school received a monitoring visit in May 2018.

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Information about this inspection

We carried out this inspection under section 5 of the Education Act 2005.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors met with the headteacher, assistant headteacher, SENCo and curriculum leaders. Inspectors held meetings with the chief executive officer of 18–19 September 2019

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the trust, the chair of the local advisory board and the school business manager.  The subjects considered as part of the inspection were: reading, mathematics, science and geography.  Inspectors visited lessons in those subjects. Afterwards, we talked to some of the pupils and teachers from the lessons we visited. We looked at pupils’ work in books. Inspectors talked to senior and curriculum leaders about their ambitions for the curriculum.  Documents relating to safeguarding were reviewed, along with training records and any referrals to the local authority’s children and young people’s services. We examined safeguarding policies and procedures. We talked to staff about their role in keeping pupils safe.  We checked attendance and exclusion rates, and reviewed any recorded behaviour incidents. We reviewed leaders’ actions to resolve such incidents.  We observed pupils at playtime and lunchtime and talked to them about what it

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was like to be a pupil at the school.  We talked to staff about their workload, and about the amount and quality of training and support they receive from leaders.  Inspectors took account of four responses to the staff survey and 94 responses to Ofsted online questionnaire, Parent View, including 90 free-text commentaries.

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Inspection team

Diane Buckle, lead inspector Her Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Eleanore Pickard Ofsted Inspector 18–19 September 2019

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regulates and inspects to 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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