Setting

Store Street Manchester M1 2WD T 0300 123 1231 www.gov.uk/ofsted

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Diana Atkinson Executive Headteacher Gorsley Goffs Primary School Gorsley Ross-on-Wye Herefordshire HR9 7SE

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Ofsted visit to Gorsley Goffs Primary School

Following my visit with Claire Jones, Her Majesty’s Inspector (HMI), to your school on 1 October 2020, I write on behalf of Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Education, Children’s Services and Skills to confirm the visit’s findings. Thank you for the time you made available to discuss your actions since September 2020, when the government expected all schools to open fully to all pupils.

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Ofsted visit to Gorsley Goffs Primary School

This visit was conducted under section 8 of the Education Act 2005 (as amended) and in accordance with Ofsted’s published procedures for visiting schools while routine inspections are temporarily suspended.

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Ofsted visit to Gorsley Goffs Primary School

Ofsted’s visits to schools during the autumn term are not inspections. We are not giving graded judgements. We did not undertake the usual range of inspection activities and were unable to check other sources of evidence, such as visits to lessons or looking at pupils’ work. The content of this letter gives an overview of our discussions about what has happened in your school this term.

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Ofsted visit to Gorsley Goffs Primary School

During the visit, we spoke to you and the head of school. You are the senior leader responsible for safeguarding. We did not speak to pupils because of the protective measures in place.

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Context

Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Education, Children’s Services and Skills is leading Ofsted’s work into how England’s education system is managing the return to full education for pupils, following an extended break in formal schooling due to the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic.

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OFFICIAL – SENSITIVE

In undertaking this focused work, HMI are visiting a broad range of schools. HMI will visit a sample of:  approximately 1,200 schools across all Ofsted grades (outstanding, good, requires improvement and inadequate)  maintained schools, academies and free schools, special schools and centres of alternative provision, including those in cities, and coastal, town or rural communities.

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OFFICIAL – SENSITIVE

The information from this visit will feed into Ofsted’s national reporting so that the insights can be shared with the government and the education sector. We did not find any significant concerns during the visit. In such a case, an inspection report would be published on our website and available to parents and carers.

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OFFICIAL – SENSITIVE

We did not consider your response to COVID-19 during the spring and summer terms 2020, when the school was not open to all pupils.

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From this visit, inspectors noted that:

 The school opened to all pupils on 2 September 2020. Almost all pupils have returned and are attending full time. A small number are currently working at home due to medical needs.  Pupils’ attendance is broadly in line with your school’s normal attendance for this time of year.  Pupils from Reception to Year 6 are studying their usual range of subjects. You have made some changes to teaching practical subjects, such as physical education and music, to take account of government guidance. You anticipate that activities such as swimming will be reintroduced by spring 2021.  At the time of this visit, you and your staff were in the process of assessing pupils’ current reading and writing ability. You intend to use this information to identify any gaps in pupils’ knowledge and plan the support needed to help pupils catch up quickly.  Teachers are checking younger pupils’ phonic knowledge to determine

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From this visit, inspectors noted that:

whether any have fallen behind during lockdown. Additional time is given to teaching phonics each day, as reading is a school priority.  In mathematics, teachers are checking what pupils know and remember in each topic. Following these assessments, teachers are prioritising fluency and recall of times tables, particularly for older pupils.  In other subjects, pupils are studying the topics they would normally. You have temporarily suspended school clubs and school trips but are continuing to invite visitors in to speak to pupils as part of the curriculum.

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OFFICIAL – SENSITIVE

 You plan to continue to use a combination of paper-based and online remote learning methods in the future, if needed, to deliver the curriculum. You have sought feedback from parents about the successes and barriers of remote learning.

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OFFICIAL – SENSITIVE

Thank you again for contributing to this important national work. The views and experiences you have shared will help to inform future policy.

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OFFICIAL – SENSITIVE

I am copying this letter to the chair of the governing body, the regional schools commissioner and the director of children’s services for Herefordshire. This letter will be published on the Ofsted website.

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