All Saints CofE Primary School and Nursery, Nuneaton

Inspection of a good school: All Saints CofE Primary School and Nursery, Nuneaton Knebley Crescent, Nuneaton, Warwickshire CV10 7AT

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Outcome

All Saints CofE Primary School and Nursery, Nuneaton continues to be a good school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school’s motto is ‘learning for life, building a firm foundation’. This shines through in lessons and school life. Equal opportunities, fairness and respect filter through all aspects of the school. Pupils at All Saints thrive. They develop into mature and caring citizens.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school is inclusive. Leaders provide excellent guidance for families who need extra support. Pupils reach high standards in their work by the time they leave.

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What is it like to attend this school?

There is a calm atmosphere around the entire school. Most pupils behave very well in lessons and when moving around school. For example, pupils open doors for visitors and greet them politely. However, some pupils reported that on occasions a few pupils do not behave in the way they should. They said that adults deal with any negative behaviour well. They feel safe. Pupils understand what bullying is. They know you must tell an adult. Bullying rarely happens. It is dealt with if it occurs. Pupils value the different adults available for them to talk to.

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What is it like to attend this school?

There are many chances for pupils to take on extra responsibilities – peer mediators, the ‘singing playground’ and being part of the eco council to name a few. Pupils enjoy these important roles.

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What does the school do well and what does it need to do better?

As soon as pupils start school, books surround them. Children in Nursery happily join in with rhymes and stories. The quality of education in nursery is exceptional. There is not a second wasted. Every moment is a learning moment. Adults use ‘concentrating crocodile’ and ‘exploring elephant’ to help children join in and learn. The teacher has a strong link and connection with every single child. This allows children to feel safe, happy and make good progress. These young children receive the very best start to their school life. This carries on in Reception, where children are independent and involved learners across all 17–18 December 2019

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Phonics is taught from the start of nursery. A highly skilled teacher seamlessly weaves learning into every session. The Reception teacher builds upon this and extends pupils’ prior learning in phonics. The Reception teacher makes the most of opportunities to link phonics to handwriting. Teachers give pupils books that match to the phonics children are learning. This allows pupils to practise their developing reading skills. Leaders have outlined what letters and phonics pupils should know by the end of each year. However, not all teachers know how to break this down into smaller sequenced steps. This is the same for spelling patterns across the school. As a result, teachers do not always help pupils to deepen their learning. This means that not enough pupils achieve their full potential in these areas.

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Pupils enjoy reading. Senior leaders carefully choose books that link to learning in other lessons. For example, pupils in Year 6 said that reading ‘Street Child’ helped them when studying the Victorians. Pupils say they ‘like how it links to our topic and gives you an idea of what it would have been like to be a child at that time.’ Features of the text help pupils improve their own writing, for example using suspense, cliffhangers and choosing better words. Pupils, including disadvantaged pupils, do well in their writing by the end of Year 6. This has been a major focus for the school since the last inspection.

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Staff use a raft of help and strategies to support pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) very well. They ensure consistent expectations for behaviour which helps all pupils to learn well. Pupils show great empathy in understanding why some behaviours happen. Older pupils appreciate how their time developing their ‘Fantastic Elastic Brain’ is helping them to gain strategies to cope with feelings, stay safe and be tolerant and respectful of each other.

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Most subjects, including history, geography, science, art and design and technology, are linked through topics such as the Victorians, Extreme Earth and Cracking Contraptions. Pupils have opportunities to learn through visits and practical activities. Pupils enjoy these experiences. They use some subject-specific vocabulary for each subject, especially in science. However, pupils often talk about the activity they did, rather than remembering the specific learning. Leaders have recently put plans in place to improve the focus in helping pupils to gain knowledge and apply skills in a way that sticks with them. Teachers are just beginning to use these.

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Staff work well together for the benefit of all. They value leaders’ focus on their well- being and reducing workload. The school is well led. Parents are supportive of senior leaders. One parent commented, ‘The headteacher is a special person who has a listening ear and is always there for you.’

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

The strong culture of safeguarding is secure in all aspects of school life. Leaders carefully monitor pupils who are known to be vulnerable. Leaders know the school community. 17–18 December 2019

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They work tirelessly to engage parents. This fosters positive relationships. Staff know who to go to if they have a concern. Leaders follow up any concerns rapidly. Systems of monitoring absence and lateness are robust and gradually make a positive difference.

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Older pupils are trained to take responsibility for peer mediation. This helps playtimes to be safe and happy times. Pupils have a good understanding of how to keep safe in different situations.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Teachers know what phonics should be taught within a given year group. They are less clear about the specific content required each term in order for pupils to reach age- related expectations. This means that not enough pupils reach the expected standard in the phonics screening check. Leaders need to set out the specific phonics content that they want pupils to have mastered by particular points in time and the associated vocabulary to be used.  Teachers know what spelling patterns should be taught within a given year group. They are less clear about the specific content required each term in order for pupils to reach age-related expectations. As a result, pupils incorrectly spell words that they should know. Leaders need to set out the specific spelling patterns that they want pupils to have mastered by particular points in time. Teachers should insist that pupils spell words with known spelling patterns correctly.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Leaders have recently introduced a new curriculum. Plans for the development of knowledge and skills in the foundation subjects are still at an early stage of implementation. These should be embedded more consistently across the school. Leaders need to ensure that the curriculum plans for each subject help pupils to know more and remember more over time.

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Background

When we have judged a school to be good we will then normally go into the school about once every four years to confirm that the school remains good. This is called a section 8 inspection of a good school or non-exempt outstanding school. We do not give graded judgements on a section 8 inspection. However, if we find some evidence that the school could now be better than good or that standards may be declining, then the next inspection will be a section 5 inspection. Usually this is within one to two years of the date of the section 8 inspection. If we have serious concerns about safeguarding, behaviour or the quality of education, we will convert the section 8 inspection to a section 5 inspection immediately.

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Background

This is the first section 8 inspection since we judged All Saints CofE Primary School and Nursery, Nuneaton to be good on 3–4 February 2016.

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

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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. 17–18 December 2019

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Chair of governing body Catherine Arrowsmith

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School details

Website www.allsaintsceprimaryschoolandnursery.co.uk

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School details

Date of previous inspection 3–4 February 2016

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Information about this school

 The school is a Church of England faith school. Its religious character was last inspected in June 2016.  There has been a significant increase in pupils with SEND attending the school over the last three years. The proportion of pupils with SEND is double the national average. This is the same for the proportion of pupils who have an education, health and care plan.

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Information about this inspection

 Subjects considered as part of this inspection were reading, science and history. I looked at pupils’ work. I talked to pupils about their work. I spoke to teachers who taught these subjects and held discussions with subject leaders. I listened to pupils read. I also looked at work from some other subjects in less detail.  I met with the headteacher, deputy headteachers, school business manager and six governors. I held telephone conversations with a consortium representative and with the director of education for Coventry Diocesan Board of Education.  I explored safeguarding arrangements by reviewing safeguarding records, checking how staff manage risks, talking to staff and pupils about how they keep safe and 17–18 December 2019

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checking the school’s single central record. I met with the school’s designated safeguarding leads.  I considered behaviour and attendance information, policies and procedures relating to pupils with SEND, pupil premium funding, medicines, safeguarding and child protection. I checked the school’s website.  I considered 20 responses to Ofsted’s staff survey, 20 responses to Ofsted’s Parent View questionnaire and 15 responses to the Ofsted pupil survey.  I talked to pupils to gather their views about the school, behaviour, their safety and learning.

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Inspection team

Kirsty Foulkes, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector 17–18 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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