Tividale Hall Primary School

Inspection of a good school: Tividale Hall Primary School Regent Road, Tividale, Oldbury, West Midlands B69 1TR

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Outcome

Tividale Hall Primary School continues to be a good school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Throughout the school, there is a sense of calm and concentration. Leaders have high expectations of how both staff and pupils will treat each other. This is clear to hear and see around the school. Pupils are polite, happy and say they feel safe. Inspection evidence supports this view. Pupils know that the adults are always there for them.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils love learning in this lively and happy school. They enjoy the way teachers make lessons fun. They are positive about school. They behave well and have lovely manners. Bullying is rare. If it happens, staff deal with it.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Leaders are ambitious for pupils. Teachers and other staff work hard to make learning memorable. Everything in school is well organised. Teachers get on well with pupils. This helps pupils achieve well. Pupils enjoy the range of trips and residential visits.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are keen to take on responsibilities. These include friendship prefects, leadership council, head boy and head girl. The application process gives a taster of what is to come in life. Pupils show pride of their role in school life. As a pupil said, ‘I want to make a better environment.’ They can give examples of the differences they are making.

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

Leaders have given deep thought to what is taught when, and why. They know what they wish all pupils to achieve by the time they leave the school. Leaders’ belief that pupils’ learning starts in the early years is shown in all subject plans. Teachers are clear about what to teach when, and why. They understand where their part of the teaching sits in the learning sequence. Staff say, ‘they see themselves as part of a whole’. Work in mathematics, history and art, for example, shows clear progression. Pupils show that they know more and remember more over time.

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

Leaders support pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) well. Teachers organise lessons and learning to ensure that pupils with SEND take part, enjoy 4–5 February 2020

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and are successful with their learning. The well-being team bring a range of skills and strengths to the school. They use these to ensure that each individual has the very best chance to develop, learn and to be ready for the next stage in their education.

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Reading is a strong focus throughout the school. Leaders have clear ways of working that are successful across the school. They are currently improving reading areas. Key stage 2 pupils talk about a range of texts and authors that they have studied. Pupils understand the meaning of the school’s motto, ‘Our future starts here.’ They told the inspector that reading was important to help you to be successful in examinations. They also said that you might need it to complete important forms later in life.

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In Nursery, adults help children to develop their speaking and listening. They also help pupils to be aware of sounds around them and to hear rhythm and rhyme in stories. In Reception children get off to a swift start when learning phonics. Staff use consistent sounds and actions across sessions. Struggling readers do not always have books to take home that match the sounds they know. They then meet words they cannot read. This slows their learning.

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In the early years children thrive in a stimulating environment. They know about keeping themselves safe. Staff know the children well and use this knowledge to engage their interests. Real-life experiences bring learning to life, for example through learning about growth and changes following looking at a baby scan. Children soak up new learning. They are happy and have positive relationships with adults. The early years staff are well led.

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Leaders have made sure that the delivery of the curriculum and assessment are consistent across subjects. ‘This year, last year, way back’ quizzes check how well pupils remember their learning over time. In lessons, pupils enjoy the structure of, ‘my turn, our turn, your turn’. They say it helps them to be confident. Occasionally, the learning resources which teachers choose do not enhance pupils’ learning.

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All pupils have many experiences to learn about the wider world. Pupils experience visits, both nearby and further away. They raise funds for local charities. Visitors to school enrich its life. They give pupils new experiences, such as ‘samba drumming’. Assemblies help pupils to understand the world they live in.

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Staff are positive about the support they receive from leaders. All are proud to be part of the school. They appreciate leaders’ attention to their well-being and the steps taken to reduce their workload. This includes how subjects are planned and ‘well-being’ days.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Leaders and staff know their pupils and families well. Staff know what signs to look out for and who to speak to if they have concerns. Communication between staff and safeguarding leaders is strong. The well-being team offer effective support for vulnerable pupils. 4–5 February 2020

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Important safety messages are taught through awareness days, lessons and assemblies. Pupils learn about online safety, road and fire safety. Pupils know the importance of the class ‘medical box’ in keeping them safe. Pupils share any concerns with a trusted adult. Pupils’ safety is of paramount importance to all adults and is taken very seriously.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Books for struggling readers are not always matched to the sounds they already know. This means they cannot independently read some of the words in the books they take home. This hinders the fluency of their reading. Staff should ensure that the books pupils take home are tightly matched to the sounds that they are confident in segmenting and blending. This will help these readers to grow in skill, fluency and confidence.  Teachers carefully choose most resources to support learning. Sometimes, the resources chosen do not quite match the defined progression shown in curriculum plans. This means pupils may not learn as much as they could. Leaders and teachers should review and further refine the choice of resources used to support and deepen learning.

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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 school to be good on 13–14 July 2016.

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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 . 4–5 February 2020

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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 10126215 Type of school Primary

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Website http://www.tividalehall.sandwell.sch.uk

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School details

Date of previous inspection 13–14 July 2016

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Information about this school

 There have been no significant changes at the school since the previous inspection.

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Information about this inspection

 This inspection focused on the following subjects: reading, mathematics and history. I visited lessons, looked at pupils’ work, examined teachers’ curriculum plans and talked with pupils and staff about the way these subjects are planned and delivered. I also looked at work from other subjects and spoke with pupils and staff about the school curriculum.  External performance data about the school, school documents and the website were evaluated.  I talked to pupils, staff, leaders and governors about safeguarding arrangements and routines at the school. The record of employment checks on school staff, other school records and the school site were scrutinised.  Pupils’ behaviour in class and at other times during the day was considered. I spoke to staff, pupils and governors about behaviour. 4–5 February 2020

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 Formal meetings were held with the headteacher, other leaders, a local authority education adviser, four governors, teachers and pupils. I also talked informally with pupils and staff to gather information about school life.  The 81 recent responses to Ofsted’s online questionnaire, Ofsted Parent View, and the responses to Ofsted’s online questionnaires for staff were considered.

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Inspection team

Kirsty Foulkes, lead inspector 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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