Matthew Arnold Primary School

Inspection of Matthew Arnold Primary School Dingle Lane, Liverpool, Merseyside L8 9UB

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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 4–5 February 2020

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils appreciate the welcoming and supportive environment that this school provides. They enjoy coming to school. This is evident from their happy, smiley faces. Pupils have positive relationships with staff. Pupils are cared for well. They feel listened to and valued. Pupils are respectful to each other and their teachers.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are keen to learn. They thrive because of the expertise and high expectations of adults at the school. Pupils, staff and leaders work together to promote the school’s motto, ‘Developing true potential’. Pupils achieve well because leaders have improved the quality of education.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils behave well in school. They support each other in and out of class. Pupils who we spoke to said that bullying is rare. They said that, if it does happen, it is addressed quickly by staff.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils value the opportunity to eat their lunch and chat with staff at lunchtimes. This promotes good eating habits and conversation.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils told us that they feel safe. They know that they can talk to an adult if they have concerns. Pupils benefit from a range of activities including sports, trips and visits, which extend their development.

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

Leaders have taken decisive action to improve the curriculum. They know the needs and interests of pupils well. Leaders have thought carefully about what they want pupils to learn and the order in which units of study are taught. They have made sure that the curriculum gives pupils the opportunity to have new and interesting experiences. Pupils have responded to teachers’ higher expectations. As a result, pupils achieve well in a range of subjects.

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

Teachers are knowledgeable in the subjects that they teach. Curriculum plans provide pupils with the opportunity to develop their knowledge and skills as they move through the school. The curriculum is particularly well planned in English, mathematics and art. Although improving, this is not the case in some subjects, such as computing and design and technology. In these subjects, planning is not as detailed, and pupils are not given the opportunity to study topics in depth.

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

Reading is given a high priority. Staff encourage a love of reading, and pupils are keen to learn. The phonics programme is well organised. Early reading is taught as soon as children start in the Nursery class. Children have regular opportunities to practise their emerging knowledge of letters and sounds through stories and play activities. Time is dedicated every day to reading. The school’s library is well used. It has created a focal point in the school to promote a love of reading. Staff are quick to recognise if pupils need extra support with their reading skills. The proportion of pupils meeting the 4–5 February 2020

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phonics screening check in Year 1 has improved. Most pupils develop into fluent and confident readers. Pupils achieve well in reading by the end of key stage 2.

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The indoor and outdoor provision for early years is well resourced and stimulating. The Nursery provides a wide range of opportunities for children to explore and to develop their physical skills. However, children in the Reception class are not able to build on this strong start well enough. They do not have the same opportunities to extend their physical development in the outdoor provision.

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Pupils behave well in and around the school. They are friendly and welcoming towards each other and adults. Leaders have worked hard to improve pupils’ attendance. Pupils enjoy receiving rewards for good attendance. Most pupils attend school regularly.

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Pupils’ personal development and well-being are central to the work of leaders and teachers. Pupils have many opportunities to develop their resilience through teambuilding and problem-solving activities. The school embraces and celebrates its diversity. Pupils told us that they welcome everyone to their school.

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Leaders and staff work closely with each other to ensure that the needs of pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are met. This includes those pupils who attend the resource-base provision. Teachers adapt their plans carefully. Pupils with SEND are supported effectively and achieve well. Pupils are helped to recognise their feelings. Staff help pupils to deal with negative emotions so that they can concentrate on their work.

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Governors understand their roles well. They provide effective support and challenge to leaders. This is helping the school to continue to improve. Leaders consider staff well- being and workload. Staff said that they are well supported and are proud to work at the school.

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Parents and carers recognise the strong commitment of staff to their children. One parent commented, ‘We are totally convinced of the way the staff bring all the visions and values to life every day.’

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

There is a strong culture of safeguarding in the school. Staff receive relevant training and are vigilant. They know what to do if they have any concerns about a pupil’s safety. There are clear systems for recording and reporting these concerns. Leaders work closely with other agencies to support vulnerable pupils and their families. Leaders are aware of the risks that are specific to the local area. Pupils are taught to keep themselves safe in a range of situations, including when using the internet and social media. 4–5 February 2020

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Children in the Reception class do not have the same opportunities as children in Nursery to explore and develop their physical skills in the outdoor area. This hampers their physical development. Leaders should ensure that the provision in the outdoor area for those children in the Reception class enables them to build on the positive start they have made to this aspect of their development during their time in the Nursery.  The curriculum is well planned. However, in some subjects, such as computing and design and technology, pupils are not given the opportunities to study topics in depth. Leaders should review the curriculum planning for these subjects to ensure that sufficient account is taken of what pupils need to know and are able to do by the end of each topic. This will help pupils to know more and recall more when they revisit these subjects in later years.

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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. 4–5 February 2020

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School details

Inspection number 10121931 Type of school Primary

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Date of previous inspection 14–15 November 2017, under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 There have been no significant changes to this school since the previous inspection.  The school has resource provision for 32 part-time places for pupils who have speech and language needs.

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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

 During the inspection, we spoke with the headteacher, the deputy headteacher, subject leaders, the special educational needs coordinator and other members of staff.  We also spoke with members of the governing body, including the chair of governors.  We spoke with pupils about their work and school life. 4–5 February 2020

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 We reviewed a range of documentation, including documentation about attendance, behaviour and safeguarding including the checks undertaken on newly appointed staff.  We did deep dives in these subjects: reading, mathematics, art, history and computing. During each of these deep dives, we held discussions with subject leaders and teachers, visited lessons, looked at pupils’ work and talked with pupils.  We considered the four responses to Parent View, Ofsted’s online survey and spoke to parents before school. We also considered the 17 responses from the online staff survey and the 45 responses to the pupil survey.

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Inspection team

Iain Sim, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector

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Inspection team

John Shutt Ofsted Inspector 4–5 February 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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