Giles Brook Primary School

Inspection of a good school: Giles Brook Primary School Holborn Crescent, Tattenhoe, Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire MK4 3GB

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Outcome

Giles Brook Primary School continues to be a good school. There is enough evidence of improved performance to suggest that the school could be judged outstanding if we were to carry out a section 5 inspection now.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils love their school. Learning excites them because their curriculum is ambitious and engaging. There is always something new to learn and a new challenge to take. Leaders’ expectations of pupils’ achievements are high. Pupils’ outcomes in reading, writing and mathematics are consistently above the national average.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils feel safe at the school. Their parents and carers agree. Staff and pupils treat each other respectfully. Staff are consistent in the way they manage any poor behaviour. They have high expectations of how pupils should behave. As a result, pupils’ behaviour is exemplary. Pupils say that bullying is very rare. Should any incidents of unkind behaviour happen, leaders manage these effectively.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Leaders think very carefully about how to bring the curriculum to life for all pupils. They ensure that every pupil experiences rich and meaningful learning. Teachers plan lessons making good use of the local community. For example, at Silverstone race circuit pupils learn about scientific forces. The school recently achieved an art award. This was to celebrate pupils’ high-quality designs. Nearby sculpture trails motivated pupils to create their own sculpture trail in the school. They used a range of materials and their newly learned knowledge and skills to create very high-quality art work.

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

Leaders have worked with staff to develop an effective curriculum for all pupils. It helps pupils to develop knowledge and skills across all subjects. Pupils read and write well. They make good use of their mathematical knowledge to solve problems. Having secure basic skills means pupils learn successfully across the full curriculum.

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

Teachers plan lessons that help pupils ‘think, talk and do’. As a result, pupils learn more and remember more. For example, pupils talked about the Mayan culture they had 14–15 January 2020

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explored before. Using a map, they indicated where the civilization developed. They made interesting comparisons with their current learning in history.

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Leaders ensure that staff receive regular high-quality training. This results in a highly effective and consistent approach to teaching across the school. Leaders want the teaching to remain of the highest quality. Their plans to extend staff training will ensure that this is the case. Teachers’ subject knowledge is good. They teach in practical ways. This helps pupils understand how their learning is useful in their everyday lives. For example, pupils brought their scooters to school to practise turns and learn about angles.

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Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) achieve good outcomes. Leaders make sure that adults know how to support pupils with SEND well. Teachers have a thorough understanding of the needs that pupils with SEND have. Teachers adapt lessons to ensure that these needs are well met.

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Leaders have ensured a highly structured approach to the teaching of reading. Children get off to a good start when learning to read. This is because there is a well-planned and effective approach to teaching phonics. The books pupils read are well matched to the letters and sounds they are learning. This helps pupils to read with confidence. Staff support pupils who need extra help to catch up. Pupils get many opportunities to practise and improve their reading. Pupils further up the school love to read and do so frequently. It helps them to develop their use of vocabulary and grammar across all subjects.

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The curriculum is not limited to academic subjects. Every pupil in key stage 2 has the opportunity to take part in competitive sport and enjoy learning through drama. Pupils relish their different responsibilities. For instance, digital leaders meet every week to learn about new software and hardware. They are the experts who manage any computing issues that arise in class.

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Children settle into the early years happily. Adults help children to feel secure, gain confidence and communicate well with others. Children listen to stories and enjoy learning and playing together. Staff encourage children to learn about the world around them. For example, in mathematics children sort different objects. They find out which numbers are bigger, and which are smaller. Parents value the care that adults show their children in the early years.

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Leaders expectations for behaviour are high. Pupils work well together and help one another out when learning in a group. Lessons are so engaging there is no time or inclination to misbehave.

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The vast majority of parents are very positive about the school. They have confidence in leaders. Staff know that leaders’ expectations of them are high. Staff say their workload is manageable. Every member of staff is proud to work at the school. The work of governors is effective. They hold leaders to account and keep a careful lookout for the well-being of staff and pupils. 14–15 January 2020

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Leaders make sure that there are well-understood systems and procedures for keeping pupils safe. Staff receive regular safeguarding training. They are vigilant and know what to do if they have concerns about a pupil. Leaders follow up concerns swiftly.

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Safeguarding

Teachers ensure that pupils learn about the steps that they can take to keep themselves safe. This includes ensuring that pupils know how to use digital technology safely.

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Safeguarding

Pupils say that they know that staff will listen carefully, and help them, if they need to talk about something that is worrying them.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Pupils learn well at Giles Brook Primary, because the curriculum is well sequenced in all subjects and teachers’ subject knowledge is secure. Leaders should provide opportunities for teachers to reflect on and refine their practice to ensure that all teaching is as good as the very best. Work on this is underway.

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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 second section 8 inspection since we judged Giles Brook Primary School to be good on 17 November 2011. 14–15 January 2020

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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 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. 14–15 January 2020

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School details

Inspection number 10122277 Type of school Primary

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Chair of governing body Dr Tracey Bailey

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Information about this school

 The headteacher is also the executive headteacher for another local school. This arrangement is for three days each week and is in its second year. The deputy headteacher is head of Giles Brook Primary school on those three days.

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Information about this inspection

 I met with the headteacher, the deputy headteacher, the inclusion leader, the school secretary and four governors.  I held a phone conversation with the local authority school improvement partner.  I did deep dives in these subjects: reading, mathematics and history. I met with subject leaders and visited lessons with them. I talked to pupils about their work and discussed the school’s approach to curriculum delivery with teachers.  I reviewed the single central record and attendance information, including exclusions. I met with the designated safeguarding lead to discuss systems and processes to keep pupils safe.  I met with a range of staff to gather their views on the quality of education, on pupils’ behaviour and on their work–life balance. 14–15 January 2020

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 I considered 156 responses to Ofsted’s Parent View, along with a number of written comments.  I considered the views of the 47 staff and 64 pupils who completed Ofsted’s online questionnaires.

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Inspection team

Sarah Varnom, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector 14–15 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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