Croscombe Church of England Primary School

Inspection of Croscombe Church of England Primary School Long Street, Croscombe, Wells, Somerset BA5 3QL

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Overall effectiveness Requires improvement

The quality of education Requires improvement Behaviour and attitudes Requires improvement Personal development Good Leadership and management Requires improvement Early years provision Requires improvement Overall effectiveness at previous inspection Good 26–27 November 2019

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy school. They are safe and well cared for. Pupils say that bullying is rare. Pupils are confident that the adults in school will help to resolve any disagreements quickly.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils express their opinions and discuss pertinent issues, such as racism in football, with confidence. They understand the importance of individual liberty, while not discriminating against others. Pupils learn about other world faiths and key festivals celebrated, such as Diwali.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school offers a range of after-school clubs and pupils enjoy these. They understand how to keep themselves healthy, mentally and physically.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Nevertheless, leaders’ expectations for what pupils can achieve are not ambitious enough. This includes pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Consequently, pupils have gaps in their knowledge and understanding in a number of subjects. Pupils are not well enough prepared for the next phase in their education.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Most of the time, pupils behave well and play well together at breaktime and lunchtime. However, pupils’ attitudes to learning are not consistently positive and this leads to low-level disruption in some classes. This is because teachers’ expectations of what pupils can learn and remember are not high enough.

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better?

Pupils do not receive a good quality of education. They do not learn as well as they should in some subjects, including science and history. This is because leaders have not thought carefully enough about what they want pupils to know, do and understand. Leaders have not considered the order in which pupils will learn things to enable them to build on previous learning. Although there are clear plans in place to make improvements, these have not yet had enough impact.

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better?

From Reception, children learn sounds and letters to help them to read. However, teachers do not build on what pupils know and can do sufficiently well. As a result, pupils who struggle with their reading do not have their gaps in learning addressed quickly enough. As a result, pupils in their first few years of school do not make the gains they are capable of. Many older pupils are avid readers and are familiar with the work of a range of writers. They enjoy the opportunities they have to meet different authors. Pupils speak positively about the reward system for reading at home. Teachers read good-quality books regularly to the pupils, which they enjoy.

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better?

Pupils do not achieve well in mathematics. Older pupils do not have a firm grasp on their times tables and basic number work. They find it hard to use and apply their mathematical knowledge. Leaders have introduced a new approach to teaching mathematics, but this has not yet made a notable difference to raising standards. 26–27 November 2019

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Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) do not do as well as they could. This is because the targets for their learning do not match their needs well enough. The special educational needs coordinator (SENCo) has started to put systems in place to tackle this. However, these changes are not yet having sufficient impact. Some pupils with SEND are not making the progress that they are capable of.

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Children in the early years are happy and have positive relationships with adults. Children develop their communication skills well in the early years. In mathematics, for example, adults support children’s use of mathematical language such as ‘taller’, ‘smaller’ and ‘longer’. However, teachers do not use all the information they have about children to ensure that the curriculum is demanding and meets their needs and abilities well enough over time.

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Pupils are proud to demonstrate that they are responsible citizens through the charity work they do. The spoke enthusiastically about the child in Africa that they sponsor.

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Despite pupils’ positive personal development, their behaviour is not as good as it could be. When work is not sufficiently challenging, or pupils lose interest in their learning, their behaviour sometimes stops others from concentrating. This has an impact on the progress that pupils make.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Leaders make the right checks on staff before they start work at school. Pupils say that they feel safe and are confident to talk to staff if they have any worries or concerns. Staff know what to do when they have a concern about a pupil because they have received the required training. The school works effectively with external agencies to provide additional help and support for pupils.

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Safeguarding

Pupils learn about safety in personal, social, health and economic (PSHE) education lessons. As a result, pupils know how to keep themselves safe, both in school and online.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 The curriculum is not yet sufficiently well planned and sequenced. It lacks ambition and demand so that pupils’ progress is reduced. Leaders need to make sure that the curriculum is planned effectively so that teachers can build pupils’ knowledge sequentially, over time, allowing them to know more and remember more.  The teaching of phonics in the early years and key stage 1 is not effective 26–27 November 2019

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enough. Staff do not routinely check on what pupils already know. When this happens, they do not notice that pupils’ work is not matched closely to their abilities. Leaders need to ensure that staff acquire the subject knowledge and skills they need to teach phonics well. Leaders need to ensure that pupils who struggle to read catch up quickly.  Teachers do not use assessment information well enough to meet the needs of pupils, including children in the early years, effectively. As a result, pupils, including the most able, do not achieve as well as they could. Leaders should ensure that all teachers know how to assess pupils’ learning effectively, so that they can adapt their teaching to focus on what pupils need to learn next.  Pupils with SEND do not receive the support they need to achieve their potential. Leaders should ensure that targets in their individual plans and the support that they receive are well matched to their needs.

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 Recently appointed leaders bring strengths to the school, but they have not yet had time to have an impact in their subjects. The quality of education is not yet good. Senior and middle leaders should ensure that their plans are implemented and reviewed so that pupils secure in-depth knowledge of a broad range of subjects and achieve 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. 26–27 November 2019

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Date of previous inspection Not previously inspected

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Information about this school

 The school is a Church of England voluntary-aided school and is part of the Diocese of Bath and Wells. A SIAMs inspection took place in April 2015.  Croscombe Church of England is a smaller than average primary school.  Most pupils are from a White British background.  The proportion of pupils who are eligible for free school meals is below the national average.  The school was judged to be good at the previous inspection on 27–28 January 2015.  The school formed a federation with Stoke St Michael Primary School in 2016.

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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 senior leaders, governors and teachers.  Inspectors did deep dives in these subjects: reading, mathematics, history, science and writing. This entailed discussions with subject leaders, visits to 26–27 November 2019

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lessons, looking at examples of work, discussions with teachers, discussions with pupils and listening to pupils read.  The lead inspector had a telephone discussion with a representative from the local authority and Somerset education partner (SEP).  Inspectors took account of 18 responses to Parent View, Ofsted’s online questionnaire. There were no responses to the staff questionnaire or the pupil survey.  Inspectors reviewed a wide range of documents relating to safeguarding, including the school’s single central record and behaviour and bullying records.  Inspectors talked to different members of staff about the safeguarding training they have received.

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Inspection team

Wendy D’Arcy, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector

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Inspection team

Marcia Northeast 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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