Thomas Bullock Church of England Primary and Nursery Academy

Inspection of Thomas Bullock Church of England Primary Academy Pound Green, Shipdham, Thetford, Norfolk IP25 7LF

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Overall effectiveness Good

The quality of education Good Behaviour and attitudes Good Personal development Good Leadership and management Good Early years provision Good Previous inspection grade Requires improvement 8–9 January 2020

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy attending this friendly and welcoming school. Despite changes in leadership and staffing, pupils learn and achieve well across the curriculum.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Almost all pupils behave well in lessons and show positive attitudes to learning. They like their teachers and respond well to high expectations of behaviour. Learning is rarely disrupted. Pupils are polite and considerate to one another. They told us that bullying and acts of unkindness are rare. Any incidents are sorted out quickly. Pupils understand the school’s values. This contributes to a culture where pupils want to do their best in all respects.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are proud of opportunities to take on responsibilities, such as helping in lessons, being library monitors or taking part in the school council. All classes have grown vegetables in the school farm, which have been sold or used for meals. Pupils have lots of opportunities to take part in sporting activities and competitions. Pupils enjoy a wide range of clubs and visits that add to what they learn in lessons.

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better?

School leaders are keen for pupils to do as well as they can. Despite changes in leadership, the focus has remained improving the quality of education. The Diocese of Norwich Education and Academies Trust (the trust) has provided much needed stability at this time. Alongside leaders and governors, the trust has raised expectations of staff. Staff have responded positively. They feel valued, well led and have embraced opportunities for training and development. As a result, teaching and pupils’ work are of a good and improving quality across the curriculum.

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better?

Children in Reception make a good start to their education. They respond very well to adults’ consistently high expectations. Children play and learn well together. Adults teach the skills of early reading, writing and mathematics effectively. They thoughtfully plan activities in all areas of the curriculum that grasp children’s interests. We saw this in a topic on space, when children were enthused and very inquisitive. Children achieve well and leave Reception ready for learning in Year 1.

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better?

Adults teach reading consistently well across the school. Teachers ensure that pupils develop and use their phonics skills confidently. They also teach the skills pupils need to fully understand what they read. Pupils told us how teachers encourage them to read for pleasure. Many do so regularly, in school and at home.

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better?

Pupils develop the skills and ability to write for different purposes effectively, over their time in the school. They use these skills to good effect in other subjects to produce written work of the same good quality as that in their English books. 8–9 January 2020

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Leaders have thought carefully about what pupils need to learn in different subjects. Subject plans set out the knowledge that pupils should learn in a logical order. This helps pupils build on what they know already. Some parents would like more information about what their children will learn.

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In mathematics, leaders have taken effective action to improve some of the weaknesses in the curriculum and pupils’ learning. They have provided training to help teachers plan learning that better meets pupils’ needs. This is helping to ensure that pupils understand the basic mathematics knowledge they need before moving on to harder tasks. However, occasionally teachers are still setting tasks that are too hard. This slows pupils’ learning.

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Teachers adapt activities for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). They ensure that these pupils access the full curriculum, achieve well and enjoy their learning.

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Teachers have the knowledge needed to teach the full range of subjects well. They regularly check pupils’ understanding in lessons. However, teachers’ use of assessment in foundation subjects is underdeveloped. Teachers do not check on what pupils know and can do in these subjects as well as they can in English and mathematics.

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Pupils understand the school’s values of courage, thankfulness, perseverance, respect, compassion and responsibility. These contribute to a friendly, caring atmosphere and good behaviour. Pupils value learning and attend well. They know why they learn about others’ beliefs and cultures. Pupils learn that they should treat everyone equally and with respect. There are many trips that pupils enjoy. Pupils participate in music and sports activities and support the local community and charities. These contribute strongly to pupils’ personal development.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Leaders, governors and the trust ensure safeguarding has the highest priority. Staff receive regular training and updates to keep their knowledge up to date. They are confident to identify and pass on concerns. The designated safeguarding leader makes referrals to outside agencies promptly, so that pupils and their families get any help that they need. Leaders ensure that they carry out the checks required before someone works in the school. The record of these checks is accurately maintained.

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Safeguarding

Pupils learn to keep themselves safe from harm. Visitors, from external organisations, add to the work done by teachers. 8–9 January 2020

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 In mathematics, teachers accurately identify gaps in pupils’ knowledge and understanding. Teachers usually plan activities that support pupils’ learning effectively. Occasionally, activities involve too many mathematical concepts before pupils are secure in their learning, which slows progress. Leaders should ensure that challenge is well planned by teachers against what pupils already know and can do.  In English and mathematics, teachers use assessment effectively to plan lessons. This does not make unacceptable demands on teachers’ time. In other subjects, teachers do not have a precise understanding of what pupils already know and can do. Foundation subject leaders should ensure that assessment underpins the curriculum in their subjects more effectively to support teachers’ planning. This should be done in a way that does not add to teachers’ workload.  There are well sequenced plans in place for all subjects. The school website

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

provides information about what pupils learn each year. The detail provided varies between subjects in the quality of information that it provides. Some parents do not feel that they know enough about what their children are learning. Leaders should improve this aspect of communication so that all parents know what their children will learn and how they can support this.

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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 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 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 10121368 Type of school Primary

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School details

Date of previous inspection 13–14 September 2017, under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 Thomas Bullock Primary Academy is a Church of England school in the Diocese of Norwich. It has been sponsored by the Diocese of Norwich Education and Academies Trust since November 2014. The trust provides overall governance for the school. The trust also provides training and professional development for staff and school leaders. A local governing body carries out some responsibilities delegated to it by the trust.  The previous headteacher left the school in April 2019. The trust appointed an interim headteacher who supported the deputy headteacher to lead the school two days per week. From September 2019, an interim headteacher, employed by the trust has been running the school full-time.  A number of staff have left the school since the previous inspection.  The religious character of the school was inspected under section 48 of the Education Act (2005) in September 2017 and was judged to be good.

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Information about this school

 Almost all pupils are of White British heritage. The proportion of pupils with SEND is broadly average. The proportion of disadvantaged pupils is lower than in most primary schools. 8–9 January 2020

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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 met with the headteacher and deputy headteacher, the chief executive officer of the trust, two other trust representatives and the chair and vice-chair of the local governing body.  To evaluate the quality of education, we carried out deep dives in these subjects: reading, writing, mathematics, art and science. In each subject, we visited lessons in all key stages, scrutinised pupils’ work, which included listening to pupils read, and held discussions with subject leaders, teachers and pupils. We also reviewed curriculum plans in a range of other subjects, reviewed pupils’ topic books and made short visits to lessons to see pupils learning a range of subjects.  To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding, we reviewed a range of documentation, including school policies, procedures and records. The lead inspector met with the designated leader for safeguarding to discuss their work and review examples of the actions taken to keep pupils safe. We also checked

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Information about this inspection

staff members’ understanding of how to keep pupils safe from harm.  We reviewed a range of school documentation and policies, including records of governors’ meetings, the work of the trust and information relating to pupils’ attendance and behaviour.  We gathered pupils’ views on the school by speaking to groups of pupils from the lessons that we had visited, speaking to pupils in their lessons and speaking to pupils at informal times, such as lunchtime and breaktime. We also considered the 52 responses to Ofsted’s online pupils’ questionnaire.  An inspector spoke to parents at the start of the school day and we considered the 51 responses and 34 free-text responses submitted to Parent View, Ofsted’s online survey.

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Inspection team

Paul Wilson, lead inspector Her Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Julie Harrison Ofsted 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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