Radbrook Primary School

Inspection of a good school: Radbrook Primary School Calverton Way, Bank Farm Road, Shrewsbury, Shropshire SY3 6DZ

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Outcome

Radbrook Primary School continues to be a good school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are proud to be part of Radbrook Primary School. They greet visitors with a smile and say, ‘welcome to Radbrook’. They are then quick to share how much they enjoy the school. Staff look after pupils well, and pupils feel safe. The playground is a very pleasant place to play. This is because pupils went to so much effort last year to redesign it with colourful planters, benches and other play equipment. Pupils respect the school environment and each other. They play nicely during play time and make sure that nobody is left out. Occasionally there are squabbles, but they do not last long because staff step in and resolve them quickly.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Staff want pupils to be prepared for life. They promote respect, loyalty and collaboration and have high expectations. Pupils behave well in lessons and are hungry to learn. One pupil told me that he would do ‘one hundred mathematics questions a day’, if he could.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy a variety of activities outside the school. These have been carefully chosen to build on what they are learning in lessons. For example, last year pupils visited a chocolate factory to learn how cocoa beans are used to make chocolate, when studying rainforests.

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

Children in the early years enjoy learning about the world around them. They play imaginatively and communicate well with each other. However, the number of children with a strong grasp of phonics by the end of Year 1 has fallen for the past three years. Leaders have recognised this and have put plans in place to reverse the trend. Phonics is taught from the beginning of the Reception Year, and leaders know exactly where they want each child to be by the end of each term. Teachers and teaching assistants have recently had more training in teaching phonics. They are now much better at checking to make sure that children have mastered sounds before moving on. Reading is now prioritised across the school. Every day, time is allocated to teaching phonics and reading. Pupils are given books to take home to read with their parents and carers. Teachers make 8–9 January 2020

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sure that books are appropriate and match the sounds pupils have learned. Reading is fast becoming a strength of the school. One pupil told me that it would be her ‘dream home to live in a library’.

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Pupils study a broad range of subjects in key stages 1 and 2. This is preparing them well for secondary school. Mathematics is a strength of the school, and many of the pupils I spoke to were quick to tell me that mathematics was their favourite subject. The mathematics curriculum is well planned. From the beginning of the early years through to the end of Year 6, pupils build up knowledge incrementally. Leaders and teachers make sure that lessons are taught in a sensible sequence so that pupils can use what they have learned in one lesson in subsequent lessons. Mathematics is taught in a way that ensures pupils have the basic knowledge in place early on, so that they can handle more complex mathematical problems later. The curriculum is not as well planned in all subjects, for example history. In history, topics are sometimes taught in a haphazard way. Leaders are aware of this and are redesigning the history curriculum so that topics are taught in a

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Pupils behave well in lessons. They respect each other and their teachers. There is very rarely any low-level disruption. All pupils are treated equally and all study the full range of subjects during their time at the school. Staff are quick to identify pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). This group of pupils achieve well. However, they could do even better. Some staff have not had the training they need to ensure that lessons are adjusted as well as they could be to meet the needs of pupils with SEND.

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Pupils benefit from a rich set of experiences outside the school. Pupils told me that they enjoyed visiting Conway last year. They particularly enjoyed learning about the coast, which reinforced what they were studying in geography. Pupils enjoy learning about different faiths and festivals in religious studies, such as Diwali and Eid. They also like to support their local community. This year they have helped at a local foodbank and donated the school Christmas tree to a local care home for elderly people.

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Occasionally, pupils move to another school mid-year, but this is rare. When pupils do move, it is usually because they are relocating to a new area.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Leaders take their responsibility to keep pupils safe seriously. Pupils feel safe in the school, and parents are confident that they are safe. All staff receive regular safeguarding training. When new staff join the school, they are given clear guidance about what to do if they are concerned about a pupil. When pupils do need help, staff respond quickly. Occasionally leaders decide that they need to pass on concerns to other agencies. When this is necessary, they act swiftly and make sure that pupils get the help they need. 8–9 January 2020

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Lessons are not sequenced consistently well in all subjects. For example, in history, topics are sometimes taught in a disjointed way. This hinders pupils from building their knowledge and developing their skills incrementally. Leaders and teachers should ensure that topics and lessons are sequenced consistently well in all subjects.  Some staff have not had the training they need to help pupils with SEND achieve as well as they could. Leaders should ensure that all staff have the knowledge they need to adapt lessons appropriately for pupils with SEND.

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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 the predecessor school Radbrook Primary School to be good in October 2013.

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How can I feed back my views?

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 are the school and you are 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 8–9 January 2020

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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. 8–9 January 2020

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School details

Inspection number 10122534 Type of school Primary

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School details

Date of previous inspection Not previously inspected

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Information about this school

 The school converted to an academy in April 2017. The predecessor school was last inspected in October 2013. The school is part of the Severn Bridges Multi-Academy Trust.

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Information about this inspection

 I met with the head of school, executive headteacher and assistant headteachers. I also met with the special educational needs coordinator , curriculum leaders and a range of staff including those relatively new to the teaching profession. I met with members of the academy trust, including the chief executive officer, and the local governing body.  I focused on reading, mathematics and history during the inspection. I considered the school’s curriculum plans, visited lessons and scrutinised pupils’ work. I also met with pupils to discuss their learning in these subjects.  When inspecting safeguarding, I looked at the school’s procedures for recruiting staff and the procedures that are in place to keep pupils safe. 8–9 January 2020

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 I reviewed leaders’ records for pupils who move to other schools mid-year. I spoke to a range of staff about their experiences of working in the school, and a range of pupils about their experiences of the school.

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Inspection team

Niall Gallagher, lead inspector Her Majesty’s Inspector 8–9 January 2020

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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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