Prestbury CofE Primary School

Inspection of Prestbury CofE Primary School Bollin Grove, Prestbury, Macclesfield, Cheshire SK10 4JJ

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Overall effectiveness Good

The quality of education Good Behaviour and attitudes Good Personal development Outstanding Leadership and management Good Early years provision Good Previous inspection grade Outstanding

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Overall effectiveness Good

The previous ‘outstanding’ judgement reflected the school’s overall effectiveness in June 2007 under the relevant inspection framework at that time.

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Overall effectiveness Good

The new judgement of ‘good’ reflects the current inspection framework as well as any changes at the school since the last inspection.

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Overall effectiveness Good

The school has not been inspected for 12 years, which is longer than the five-year maximum interval between inspections. Changes in school effectiveness may have happened at any point in that period. The long time between inspections is because the law changed in 2011; it made outstanding schools exempt from routine inspection. 25–26 February 2020

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils who spoke to us told us what makes their school special to them. They said, ‘It is caring.’ They also said that everyone follows the Christian values that are at the heart of the school. Pupils are happy and feel safe. A large majority of the parents and carers who gave an opinion said that their children develop well.

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What is it like to attend this school?

There are high expectations from all staff that pupils will do their best in everything. This is one of the school’s ‘high five rules’. Pupils live up to these expectations. They work hard. They get on very well with each other and with staff. They show good manners and are polite.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils behave well most of the time. They said that there is hardly any bullying in school. They know that the headteacher and his staff will not put up with it, if it does happen.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy a wide range of opportunities outside the classroom. Leaders provide lots of clubs, with activities as different as singing in the school choir and curling. Pupils also go on trips that help them better understand what they are learning. For example, they visit places like a zoo, a mill or a castle.

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better?

The curriculum is ambitious. Leaders organise it well. They allow for the mixed-age classes in key stage 2 when they are planning. Leaders also adapt the curriculum well to cater for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities. Across almost all subjects, it is clear what pupils should be learning and when. Teachers check pupils’ understanding well. This helps them to plan the next part of pupils’ learning. Consequently, pupils achieve well.

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better?

Leaders have organised reading very carefully. There is a clear structure to the teaching of phonics. Teachers receive good training and their knowledge of the subject is strong. They make sure that children begin to learn phonics soon after they start in Nursery. Children are very good at reading by the time they finish the Reception Year. A large proportion of pupils meet the expected standard in the phonics check at the end of Year 1. Those who need it get help to catch up. Attainment at the end of key stage 1 is high.

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better?

Pupils continue to strengthen their knowledge of reading as they move through key stage 2. Pupils enjoy reading and show strong fluency and understanding. Attainment by the end of Year 6 has been very strong in recent years. However, progress has been no better than average. Leaders have recognised this. They introduced a new approach to teaching reading 18 months ago. They focus on specific skills, like explaining the meaning of a text. This helps pupils to understand what they are reading more fully. 25–26 February 2020

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In mathematics, leaders realised that some areas of pupils’ performance have not been as strong as others. They have adjusted the curriculum to bring about improvements. For instance, there is a sharper focus on pupils knowing about place value and number more securely. This led to improved progress by the end of key stage 2 in 2019.

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In other subjects, the curriculum typically enables pupils to know more and remember more as they progress through it. However, in foreign languages and history, leaders sometimes do not organise what pupils need to know in as clear an order as possible. Where this happens, pupils do not build on earlier learning as well as they could.

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The curriculum in the early years meets children’s needs well. Staff have strong knowledge across the areas of learning. There are many resources in classrooms that help children learn how to read and write. However, there are not as many that help them to learn mathematics. Almost all children reach a good level of development by the end of the Reception Year.

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Pupils mostly behave well and show positive attitudes to their learning. As a result, staff can teach the curriculum with little disruption. Staff deal with occasional misbehaviour effectively.

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Leaders provide pupils with a rich variety of things to do outside the classroom. They can take on responsibilities by being ‘buddies’ to younger pupils or house captains. They take part in sports competitions and find out about healthy eating. They even get the chance to think about what jobs they could do when they finish their education.

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Governors and senior leaders understand what the school does well and where it needs to improve. Staff who spoke with us said that leaders care about their well- being.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

There are strong safeguarding systems in school. The safeguarding leader keeps detailed records of any worries about pupils’ safety. He follows up any issues when required. He makes sure that pupils get the help they need.

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Safeguarding

Staff are well trained in safeguarding procedures. They know the different signs of abuse and how to report any concerns.

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Safeguarding

Pupils know how to stay safe in various situations, such as when using the internet. This is because staff regularly tell them what they need to know to avoid harm.

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Safeguarding

Leaders carry out the required checks on people who work at the school. 25–26 February 2020

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 The curriculum is sometimes not as coherently sequenced as it could be in foreign languages and history. There are some parts where the intended learning does not build on earlier knowledge firmly enough. Leaders need to ensure that, across all subjects, the curriculum is clearly organised to teach knowledge that consistently builds on previous learning.

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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. 25–26 February 2020

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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Information about this school

 The school received its last inspection under section 48 of the Education Act 2005 in November 2017.

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Information about this inspection

We carried out this inspection under section 8 of the Education Act 2005. We deemed the inspection a section 5 inspection under the same Act.

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Information about this inspection

The previous ‘outstanding’ judgement reflected the school’s overall effectiveness in June 2007 under the relevant inspection framework at that time.

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Information about this inspection

The new judgement of ‘good’ reflects the current inspection framework as well as any changes at the school since the last inspection.

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Information about this inspection

The school has not been inspected for 12 years, which is longer than the five-year maximum interval between inspections under section 5 of the Education Act 2005. Changes in school effectiveness may have happened at any point in that period. The long time between inspections is because the law changed in 2011; it made most outstanding schools exempt from routine inspection. 25–26 February 2020

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 We held meetings with the headteacher and members of the senior leadership team. We met with the designated safeguarding lead, the special educational needs coordinator, the early years leader and other members of staff.  We spoke with members of the governing body and representatives of the local authority and the diocese.  We spoke to pupils informally in class and around the school at breaktimes to find out their views of the school. We also spoke to a group of pupils about their experiences in school.  We reviewed the school’s website and a range of school documents. These included the school’s self-evaluation document, its improvement plan and records about behaviour, safeguarding and attendance.  We spoke with a number of parents and carers informally during the inspection  We looked in depth at reading, mathematics, history and foreign languages. We spoke with curriculum leaders, visited lessons, looked at a range of pupils’ work

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and met with teachers and pupils. We also heard pupils read and talked to pupils about their reading.

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Inspection team

Mark Quinn, lead inspector Her Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Schelene Ferris Ofsted Inspector 25–26 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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