Pegasus Primary School

Inspection of Pegasus Primary School Turnhouse Road, Castle Vale, Birmingham, West Midlands B35 6PR

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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 26–27 November 2019

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils like school, behave well and are safe. Bullying or unkind behaviour is rare and as one group of pupils said, ‘Things are better. We understand the consequences of bad behaviour.’ A few parents and carers are worried about bullying, but inspectors found that it is dealt with well.

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What is it like to attend this school?

In Reception and key stage 1, pupils get good support to help them read. Pupils in key stage 2 are increasingly reading and writing independently, but should still be doing better. Leaders have raised the profile of reading. The new library is a good start. Pupils like visiting this to choose new books.

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What is it like to attend this school?

In mathematics, there are gaps in pupils’ learning. Teachers have to re-visit topics that should have been covered before. Although improving, pupils have a lot of ground to catch up.

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What is it like to attend this school?

In other subjects, such as science and history, pupils learn new skills and knowledge, but not in enough depth or with full understanding.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Some parents are unsettled because of the uncertainty caused by changes to leadership and staffing in recent years. Increasingly, parents recognise that things are getting better because of more permanent staff and leaders. Most now see improvement and would recommend the school to others.

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better?

Leaders, staff, governors and the multi-academy trust are ambitious for pupils. They help pupils work hard, but pupils should be doing better. There has been a legacy from the past of pupils underachieving in reading, writing and mathematics.

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better?

The trust has stepped up its support for the school. The board of trustees, chief executive officer, education director, local governing board and school leaders are improving the school.

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better?

The principal joined in April 2019 and has contributed well to improvement. New teachers are being supported well. The trust provides a programme of training and support for all staff that is raising expectations and morale.

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better?

The trust’s curriculum network of teachers with expertise in different subjects is being used well to improve the school’s curriculum. Teachers are now using a more sequenced curriculum, helping pupils learn new skills and knowledge by building on what they have learned before. The staff plan a series of ‘projects’ for pupils to study, for example, ‘dinosaurs’ in Year 1 and ‘star gazers’ in Year 5. This has improved the way pupils learn, but in some classes, they are not learning enough or with full understanding.

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better?

Leaders are improving pupils’ progress in reading. There are early signs that pupils 26–27 November 2019

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are reading more widely and often. The new library is well stocked and being used well to promote a love of reading.

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Children in Reception get off to a good start in learning their phonics skills. This continues in key stage 1. Reception children are provided with a good range of stimulating indoor and outdoor activities. They learn well, and a large proportion reach a good level of development.

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Improved teaching of mathematics helps pupils achieve better than before. There is still room for improvement though. To make up for a substantial amount of lost ground, teachers are going over basic calculation skills and number facts that had not been covered before.

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Leaders have made improvements to the broader curriculum so that pupils learn more and remember more. Each project that pupils study makes learning fun and interesting. This is having a positive effect on their personal development and attitudes to learning. The promotion of British values is well planned in the curriculum and supported by visiting speakers, educational visits to different places of worship and special events.

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Pupils like school and are well behaved in lessons and at other times. Pupils told an inspector that they are looking forward to going to the Birmingham Sea Life Centre. This school visit is part of a project called ‘the blue abyss’. Projects such as this combine subjects, for example science and geography. This helps pupils remember new facts that relate to each subject. For example, in Year 6, pupils are learning more about their topic ‘revolution’. This combines historical facts about London with, for example, their science work. Teaching and improvements to the curriculum are better organised than previously, but pupils are not being offered enough challenge in some lessons to help them think harder and learn in greater depth.

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Changes to the management of special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) provision are improving pupils’ support and progress. The new SEND leader has already carried out meetings and workshops with parents. This helps to restore some confidence among those parents who were not happy with the way SEND provision was managed previously. Leaders are rightly aware of the need to restore parental confidence and satisfaction, after a significant period of instability.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

The trust and school leaders provide very good support for safeguarding. The staff have a good understanding of the risks pupils face in the local area. They teach pupils to keep themselves safe when using computers. Pupils know whom to speak to if they have problems, and say that bullying is rare.

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Safeguarding

Training and staff briefings help to keep staff up to date with current safeguarding and child protection procedures. Leaders keep in touch with vulnerable families. The 26–27 November 2019

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staff know whom to inform in the local authority if they have concerns. Risk assessments are carried out to ensure that pupils are safe and protected.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 The school has gone through a difficult period of instability. This included a period of leadership and staff turbulence. Leaders and staff should continue focusing on helping all pupils learn, recall and practise relevant knowledge and skills to help them catch up on previously lost ground.  Leaders and staff should continue to focus on raising standards in reading, writing and mathematics and improve pupils’ vocabulary, language and literacy skills. They should ensure that those pupils who have fallen behind the most catch up so that more reach or exceed the standards expected for their age. Teachers should assess and identify gaps or misunderstandings in pupils’ learning, particularly in mathematics.  In some classes, the curriculum is not being implemented well or with enough challenge and so pupils are not learning with full understanding and in enough depth. Leaders are working closely with the trust’s directors and curriculum teams

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

to plan projects that provide interesting and enjoyable learning activities for pupils. Although there is now much better curriculum planning, teachers should re-focus their efforts on helping pupils learn new knowledge and skills in greater depth.  There has been turbulence in leadership and this has meant some parents have lost confidence in the school. The trust and governors should now build on the start made in improving the school’s leadership team. Newly appointed and permanent leaders and teaching staff are bringing welcome stability to the school. This should continue. While reinforcing and sustaining improved leadership, the school should now focus on restoring confidence among parents and carers and communicate with them 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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You can search for published performance information about the school.

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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. 26–27 November 2019

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School details

Inspection number 10088499 Type of school Primary

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School details

Date of previous inspection 9–10 May 2017

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Information about this school

 There have been large-scale changes to staffing and leadership since the school’s previous full inspection. The principal joined in April 2019. Before her appointment there had been several headteachers, principals and staff, some of whom were on temporary contracts. The current principal was appointed by the trust on a permanent contract.  The multi-academy trust, Summit Learning Trust, was at the time of the previous inspection known as Ninestiles Academy Trust.  There are eight academies in the trust. At the time of this inspection, leaders and staff from across the trust’s networks have been deployed to support the school’s leaders and staff.  The school runs before- and after-school clubs for its pupils.  Early years provision comprises a Reception class for up to 30 children aged four and five. 26–27 November 2019

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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

 We held discussions with the chair of the local governing board, a member of the board of trustees, one of the trust’s education directors and the chief executive officer of the trust, the principal and one of two assistant principals, and teachers who manage different subjects, together with leaders from the trust’s curriculum network.  The lead inspector spoke with an administrator to check staff vetting and safeguarding records. A meeting was held with the teacher responsible for managing SEND provision, together with senior leaders who are designated safeguarding leaders and the trust’s director of SEND provision.  We spoke with some parents to seek their views about the school and analysed responses to the online survey, Parent View, as well as responses from the school’s most recent parent survey. We spoke with some staff to discuss their views about the support they receive and their workload.

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Information about this inspection

 We focused on reading and the teaching of phonics, as well as in-depth investigations into mathematics, science and history.  We visited parts of lessons in all classes. Visits were made jointly with curriculum leaders. We looked at samples of pupils’ work and heard four groups of pupils read. We also met with groups of pupils, both formally and informally, at break- and lunchtimes, to discuss their work and views about behaviour, bullying and how safe they feel.  We considered a range of documentation, including leaders’ evaluations of the school’s effectiveness, the school’s improvement plans, and monitoring reports produced by the trust, leaders and staff.

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Inspection team

Charalambos Loizou, lead inspector Her Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Amarjit Cheema Ofsted Inspector 26–27 November 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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