Crosby Ravensworth CofE School

Inspection of a good school: Crosby Ravensworth CofE School Crosby Ravensworth, Penrith, Cumbria CA10 3JJ

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Outcome

Crosby Ravensworth CofE School continues to be a good school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The pupils that inspectors spoke with told us that they enjoy school so much. Pupils said that they get on well together. They make sure that everyone can join in with games at playtimes. New pupils find it easy to make friends.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils behave well and they feel safe. They listen carefully to their teachers and to each other. Pupils work hard and they do not distract each other from learning. They are adamant that bullying is rare. Any occasional fall-outs are sorted quickly.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school is a hive of activity. Pupils benefit from external visitors such as the local vicar and a range of authors. Pupils experience a wide range of interesting and varied extra- curricular activities. For example, pupils learn circus skills, go horse riding and learn how to play different musical instruments. This includes the ukulele. Older pupils learn important life skills as part of their residential trips.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy their learning. Teachers help pupils when they struggle so that everyone, including pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), can be successful. Pupils really like finding out about history, geography and science through local visits, such as trips to Hadrian’s Wall.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils achieve well across the school and teachers are ambitious for pupils. Older pupils are well prepared for high school. However, some of the early years indoor and outdoor areas are not used as effectively as they could be.

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

Most pupils achieve well in each key stage. This includes children in the early years. Pupils and children are well prepared for the next steps in their education. Leaders keep a close eye on pupils’ performance. They make sure that they understand the reasons for any dips in standards. For example, leaders have recently revised the key stage 1 mathematics curriculum to give pupils more opportunities to reason and to problem solve. 26 February 2020

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Leaders have designed an ambitious curriculum for children and pupils right across the school. The curriculum covers the requirements of the national curriculum. Leaders have thought carefully about what pupils need to learn and when they need to learn it. Leaders organise the topics and concepts in each subject effectively. Pupils are able to use what they already know to help them make sense of new topics.

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Teachers encourage pupils to make connections between the different topics that they learn. They make sure that all pupils, including those with SEND, are able to learn effectively. Teachers make good use of the local area to bring learning to life for their pupils. Teachers assess pupils’ learning effectively at the end of each topic to ensure that pupils know and remember key information. They also check on what pupils remember from previous topics to help them make sense of new learning.

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Teaching staff take good care of children in the early years. They get to know these children well. Teachers build good relationships with children and their parents and carers. Despite the curriculum being well planned and well taught in the early years, some of the indoor and outdoor areas are not sufficiently well developed. These areas do not capture children’s imaginations as well as they should.

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Pupils achieve well in reading across the school. Teaching staff share their passion for reading with pupils. Everyone, including children in the early years, looks forward to choosing new books from the local library van. Older pupils talk to each other about the books that they are reading and make recommendations to each other. Teachers read stories to pupils during the school day.

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The school has adopted a programme to help teachers teach phonics and early reading. However, some teaching staff do not follow this programme systematically, right from the start. Teachers give pupils books and reading activities which do not always match the sounds that pupils know. That said, teachers make sure that there is extra help for those pupils who need to catch up. All teaching staff have attended phonics training. Teachers have delivered sessions for parents so that they know how to support their children with reading.

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Teachers set clear and consistent expectations for pupils’ behaviour. Older pupils are excellent role models to the younger pupils, including children in the Nursery class. Pupils respect and trust the adults who work with them. Any rare bullying incidents are sorted out by teachers. Pupils are proud of how well they get on together and look after each other.

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Teaching staff give pupils a wide range of opportunities. For example, everyone, from the youngest to the oldest pupil, attends swimming lessons. Pupils experience different outdoor activities, including sailing and ghyll scrambling. Pupils know the risks posed by the cold water in local lakes and how to manage risks.

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There has been turbulence in the governing body since the previous inspection. New governors are quickly getting to grips with their roles and responsibilities. They are getting to know the school well. Governors and leaders understand the challenges of working in a small school and support the staff well. 26 February 2020

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Leaders carry out the required checks to ensure that staff, governors and volunteers are suitable to work with pupils.

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Safeguarding

Staff are up to date with their training. Leaders make sure that any concerns are followed up meticulously. Pupils know about the different risks that they may face both online and in the community. Pupils are confident to share any worries with an adult in school. Pupils, staff and parents agree that pupils are well cared for and safe.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Some teaching staff do not systematically follow the school’s agreed phonics programme. Consequently, some of the books that pupils read do not match the sounds that they know. This means that some pupils’ phonic knowledge is not sufficiently secure. Leaders should ensure that teaching staff follow the school’s agreed programme and that pupils are given books and reading activities that match the sounds that they know.  Although the curriculum is well planned in the early years, teachers do not use the indoor and outdoor areas effectively enough. Teachers do not use these areas to promote children’s learning and development sufficiently well. Leaders should ensure that these areas ignite children’s interests and enthusiasm for learning. This is to support children’s learning across the curriculum, including in literacy and mathematics.

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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 or non-exempt outstanding school. We do not give graded judgements on a section 8 inspection.

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Background

This is the second section 8 inspection since we judged the school to be good on 18–19 January 2011.

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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. 26 February 2020

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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. 26 February 2020

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Website www.crosbyravensworth.cumbria.sch.uk

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School details

Date of previous inspection 22 September 2015, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 This is a Church of England primary school.  The school is part of the Diocese of Carlisle. The school’s most recent section 48 inspection took place in July 2016.  A number of pupils join the school at times other than those which are typical.  The school operates a before- and after-school club.

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Information about this inspection

 During the inspection, inspectors held meetings with the headteacher, middle leaders, teachers and support staff. Inspectors spoke with the chair and several members of the governing body. An inspector also spoke with a representative of the local authority by telephone.  Inspectors spoke with staff about their workload and well-being.  There were 16 responses to Parent View, Ofsted’s online questionnaire. Inspectors also spoke to parents and carers at the end of the school day. 26 February 2020

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 Inspectors considered the 10 responses to the staff survey. There were no responses to the pupil survey. Inspectors met with staff and pupils.  Inspectors met with the designated safeguarding leads. Inspectors reviewed documentation relating to safeguarding. They spoke with staff and pupils and considered the survey responses from staff, parents and carers around safeguarding.  Inspectors observed pupils’ behaviour during lessons, at breaktimes and around the school. Inspectors spoke with pupils about bullying, behaviour and leaders’ and teachers’ expectations of them.  Inspectors looked in detail at reading, mathematics and history. For each of these subjects, inspectors spoke to teachers and leaders and visited lessons. Inspectors also talked with pupils about their learning, looked at the work in their books and reviewed other evidence of their learning. Inspectors also considered other subjects across the

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Inspection team

Pippa Jackson Maitland, lead inspector Her Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Paul Edmondson Ofsted Inspector 26 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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