Shenley Primary School

Inspection of Shenley Primary School London Road, Shenley, Radlett, Hertfordshire WD7 9DX

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Overall effectiveness Requires improvement

The quality of education Requires improvement Behaviour and attitudes Good Personal development Good Leadership and management Requires improvement 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?

This is a friendly and caring school. The staff work hard to make sure all the pupils are well looked after and kept safe.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Children get off to a good start in the Nursery and Reception. They learn to play together and to be independent of staff. The outside area has lots of equipment to help children learn and be active.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils attend lots of interesting trips. They enjoy using the outside forest area. They also have the opportunity to attend a wide range of clubs.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Leaders have worked hard to create an interesting and enjoyable curriculum. However, too often pupils do not learn as much as they should. This is when the work pupils are given is too easy and does not interest them.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy reading. However, reading lessons are not as helpful as they should be because leaders and teachers do not give pupils clear enough guidance on how to improve their reading.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils behave well at lunchtimes and breaktimes and move around the school calmly. In lessons, pupils concentrate when the activities are interesting and when they know exactly what to do. Pupils say bullying is rare but that, if it does happen, staff deal with it quickly.

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better?

Assemblies cover a wide range of themes such as Diwali, Black History Month and Roald Dahl. Pupils raise money in events such as Jeans for Genes day. They have taken part in apple pressing, forest school work at the local park and learning first aid. ‘Wow’ days are planned to encourage pupils to be excited about learning.

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better?

The school has recently planned a new curriculum to challenge pupils and help them to learn more. However, teachers do not use the new curriculum well. Too few teachers make sure that what they teach builds upon what the pupils have learned before. Pupils do not know important information which they need in order to understand the topics teachers move on to.

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better?

School leaders are working hard on developing pupils’ enjoyment of reading. They are also trying to increase the range of vocabulary pupils use. There are lots of books to read in the school and to take home. Parents and carers can attend book fairs and workshops. They can take home ‘story sacks’ to help their children become better readers.

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better?

However, teachers do not plan precisely enough how time will be spent improving pupils’ reading. Teachers do not provide pupils with enough guidance on what to read or how much to read. Some pupils who fall behind take too long to catch up 18–19 September 2019

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with their phonics in key stages 1 and 2. Leaders have not carefully planned to help them do so. Pupils’ reading does not progress as well as it should.

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Teaching assistants know the pupils well. There are detailed support plans in place to help pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). These are used effectively by staff to ensure that pupils with SEND have full access to the curriculum.

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Behaviour in and around the school is good. Pupils are proud of their school and enjoy learning. They are well-mannered and kind to each other.

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Parents praise the care and guidance which leaders and teachers provide for pupils. Parents value the strong sense of community and partnership the school provides.

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Children in Nursery and Reception get off to a good start. They mix well together because they have lots to keep them occupied. There are a variety of activities both inside and outside. Leaders plan carefully for children based on children’s own interests. They make sure the purposeful activities children take part in help them to progress and, if they have fallen behind, to catch up. As a result of leaders’ effective training of staff, adults in the early years help children to develop their communication skills well.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Leaders use effective strategies to support pupils and their families who need help. This has had a positive impact on those families. All staff know what to do if they are concerned about a pupil. They act quickly in order to keep pupils safe. Governors and the local authority make regular checks to ensure that records are well kept, that the single central record of recruitment and vetting checks is up to date and that the school’s work with external agencies supports families effectively.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Teachers do not check pupils’ understanding well enough. Too few teachers know whether pupils have understood what they have been taught, either recently or in the past. Too many teachers, therefore, do not know whether more time needs to be spent on some aspects of the curriculum or if pupils need to revisit topics they should have learned before. Leaders should ensure that teachers use assessment effectively to identify what pupils have learned and to inform teachers’ planning of what to teach in the future.  Teachers do not use long-term and medium-term curriculum plans well enough to ensure that pupils remember what they need to know. Leaders need to monitor more closely what the teachers are planning and how they implement these plans 18–19 September 2019

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in order to ensure that they help pupils learn well over time.  The teaching of reading is not good enough to ensure that enough pupils are confident, fluent readers . Leaders should ensure that they amend their plan for teaching phonics in key stages 1 and 2 to make sure that those who fall behind catch up. They should also ensure that specific reading skills are taught effectively as pupils move through the school.

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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 10110199 Type of school Primary

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Date of previous inspection 27–28 June 2017

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Information about this school

 Since the last inspection, the school has had an interim headteacher and a recently appointed substantive headteacher.  The school runs its own breakfast club and after-school club.

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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 a range of school staff, including staff new to the school, the headteacher, senior leaders and members of the governing body.  During this inspection, inspectors focused on the subject areas of reading, mathematics, science and geography, visiting lessons, speaking with teachers and pupils, listening to pupils read, reviewing pupils’ work and discussing curriculum plans with leaders.  Inspectors discussed the school’s curriculum with members of the governing body and senior leaders.  Inspectors observed pupils’ behaviour during breaktimes and lunchtimes. They spoke with pupils informally and in groups and held discussions with parents as 18–19 September 2019

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they dropped their children off at the start of the school day.  An inspector held a telephone discussion with a representative from the local authority.  Inspectors considered the 32 responses to Ofsted’s online survey, Parent View, the 12 responses to Ofsted’s staff survey and the 14 responses to Ofsted’s pupil survey.  Inspectors held meetings with the designated safeguarding lead, interviewed staff to ascertain their understanding of safeguarding and scrutinised a range of documents relating to safeguarding, including the single central record. They also considered a parental complaint.

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Inspection team

Sean Tobin, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector

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Inspection team

John Craig 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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