Fleetwood Chaucer Community Primary School

Inspection of Fleetwood Chaucer Community Primary School Chaucer Road, Fleetwood, Lancashire FY7 6QN

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Overall effectiveness Requires improvement

The quality of education Requires improvement Behaviour and attitudes Requires improvement Personal development Requires improvement Leadership and management Requires improvement Early years provision Requires improvement Overall effectiveness at previous inspection Good 3–4 December 2019

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What is it like to attend this school?

Leaders and staff do not plan the curriculum in some subjects well enough. Some pupils do not develop the knowledge that they need by the time that they leave the school. Staff have started to make some improvements, such as changing their choice of topics for pupils to study. It is too soon to see the difference these actions will make to pupils building their knowledge. Pupils’ achievement in reading, writing and mathematics is improving but is not good.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Staff provide pupils with worthwhile activities to take part in after school, including art, singing and healthy eating. Recently the school won an award for physical education. Pupils compete regularly against other schools in sports competitions. Pupils enjoy eating their vegetables and the opportunities to develop their skills in many sports, including dodgeball while wearing fluorescent clothing in semi- darkness.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The behaviour of pupils varies. A few pupils who met with us were rude and unruly, while others were sensible. In some classrooms, pupils did not behave as well as they should. Most of the older pupils are sensible and self-disciplined in classes so that their classmates can learn. Pupils told us that staff and leaders halt bullying as soon as they know it is happening.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are reasonably happy and said that they feel safe at the school. Pupils said that when they share their worries and concerns with staff, action is taken.

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better?

Pupils study topics that are interesting and enjoyable. Staff use trips well, for example to a local garden centre, to enhance reception children’s understanding of plants. However, some of the work that staff expect of pupils does not match the school’s intentions. Leaders and staff are already changing the topics and units of work to improve links to the national curriculum. Staff have much work to do to organise the knowledge that they teach in all subjects in a clear, logical order. Each year some pupils leave the school without the reading, writing and mathematics skills that they need. Despite this picture, pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) do well. This is because of the extra help that they receive from staff.

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better?

Leaders and staff plan the vocabulary pupils need to learn in English and mathematics more clearly than in the past. Planning of the vocabulary to teach in geography, history and science is far less clear.

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better?

Leaders are improving the teaching of reading. For instance, in Year 6 staff make sure pupils who have fallen behind in reading improve their reading skills and confidence. Staff give older pupils a fascinating range of books, and they listen to readers practising regularly. Teachers are selecting and using books in all subjects 3–4 December 2019

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far more thoughtfully than in the past. Yet nursery children do not have enough access to a wide range of books, poems and other written materials. Some staff and volunteers receive too little training to improve pupils’ reading skills. Several teachers and teaching assistants do not say the sounds that letters make accurately. These weaknesses hold back pupils’ success. Each year too few pupils in Year 1 can use letter sounds to read unfamiliar words.

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We saw some instances of low-level disruption by pupils. Pupils told us of some other examples. This problem is not widespread. Nevertheless, it does affect how well staff teach the curriculum, and it holds back pupils’ learning. A few school staff told us that they do not feel well supported by leaders to manage pupils’ behaviour.

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Pupils support the work of the school, such as in the role of trained lunchtime buddies to support other pupils. Pupils understand the importance of running businesses to help the local community and the environment. Pupils recognise the importance of raising funds for local and national charities. Pupils understand the importance of respect and equality for all.

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The headteacher has taken much needed action to improve the school. Consequently, the achievement of pupils has started to improve. Leaders use their links with the local authority and other schools to help Fleetwood Chaucer Primary School to get better. Leaders know where they need to strengthen the curriculum in key stages 1 and 2. Leaders’ oversight of the curriculum in the early years is less clear.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Leaders and staff take their responsibilities for safeguarding seriously. Their work is ably supported by the school’s family learning mentor, who plays a significant role in helping pupils to stay safe. Staff safeguarding training and knowledge is up to date and the school is a safe place for pupils to study and learn. The recently resigned chair of governors was the link governor for safeguarding and made a good range of checks on the work of the school. The governing body has not yet planned how to support the new link governor.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 In several subjects, the curriculum is not well planned. Pupils do not know and remember enough essential information by the time that they leave for secondary school. Leaders should make sure that staff have enough opportunities and help to plan the curriculum sufficiently ahead of when they teach it. Leaders and staff should carefully plan in a logical order the knowledge, including vocabulary, that they will teach pupils. 3–4 December 2019

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 Governors have depended too much on the chair of governors to make many of the checks on the school’s work to keep pupils safe. Now that that person has resigned, governors need to learn more about their shared responsibilities for safeguarding. By doing this, they can continue to check the work of the school properly.  The curriculum for early reading is not fully effective. Some children in the early years and pupils in key stage 1 and 2 do not read as well as they should. Leaders must make certain that the school meets the legal requirement for children in the early years to have access to books, poems and written materials. They need to ensure that staff always give pupils reading books that match the sounds that they know. Leaders should make sure that members of staff and adult volunteers have enough training and that they teach reading well. They should double- check that all adults at the school say the sounds that letters make correctly.

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 Leaders make sure that staff in the early years develop children’s communication and language successfully. Staff also help children to develop their physical coordination. However, leaders have not yet identified which aspects of the curriculum in the early years, besides reading and writing, need improving. This means that improvements to the curriculum are not happening as quickly or as strongly as needed. Some children do not achieve as well as they should. Leaders need to review the school’s early years curriculum and use this greater knowledge to make improvements to the work of the school.  Some children and pupils do not behave properly. Some staff are not skilful enough in how they respond to low-level issues. This negatively affects some pupils’ learning. Leaders need to make certain that staff have the support that they need and ensure that pupils always conduct themselves well.

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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. 3–4 December 2019

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School details

Inspection number 10082085 Type of school Primary

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Acting chair of governing body John Hall

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School details

Date of previous inspection 11–12 December 2014

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Information about this school

 The headteacher is new to the school since the previous inspection.  The chair of governors recently resigned from their role.

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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

 To evaluate the quality of education, we looked in depth at reading, mathematics, history and geography. We made visits to lessons, spoke with leaders, teachers and pupils about these subjects and checked samples of pupils’ work. The lead inspector listened to pupils from Years 1, 2 and 3 read individually to their teachers. We also considered how the curriculum is organised in science.  We spoke with groups of pupils about behaviour at the school and opportunities for their personal development. We visited all classrooms and areas of the school to watch pupils’ behaviour and conduct. Some of our visits to classes were made with the headteacher.  We met with the headteacher and the family learning mentor to discuss the school’s work to safeguard pupils. We considered some school documents and policies about safeguarding. We reviewed evidence of checks made on the 3–4 December 2019

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suitability of staff and governors to work with pupils. We considered the views of pupils, parents, carers and staff about safety.  We met with leaders to discuss behaviour, attendance, special educational needs, early years and provision for pupils’ personal development.  The lead inspector met with a representative of the local authority. Inspectors reviewed evidence of the local authority’s support of the school.  The lead inspector met with four members of the governing body, including the acting chair of governors. Inspectors checked documents about the work of the governing body.  We spoke with several staff to ask about their work at the school and considered responses from 15 staff to an Ofsted questionnaire.  We spoke with some parents as they brought their children to school. We reviewed six responses to Ofsted’s online Parent View questionnaire, including three free-text responses. We considered information from a recent school survey

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Inspection team

Tim Vaughan, lead inspector Her Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Michelle Joyce Ofsted Inspector 3–4 December 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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