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

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James Tibbles Headteacher Bridge and Patrixbourne Church of England Primary School Conyngham Lane Bridge Canterbury Kent CT4 5JX

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Ofsted visit to Bridge and Patrixbourne Church of England Primary School

Following my visit with Alice Roberts, Her Majesty’s Inspector (HMI), to your school on 29 September 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 Bridge and Patrixbourne Church of England 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 Bridge and Patrixbourne Church of England 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 Bridge and Patrixbourne Church of England Primary School

During the visit, we spoke to you, your deputy headteacher and your inclusion and phase 1 leaders. 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. In undertaking this focused work, HMI are visiting a broad range of schools. HMI will visit a sample of:

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Context

 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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Context

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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Context

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:

 Your school reopened to all pupils on 2 September 2020. All pupils attend full time.  Pupils’ attendance is broadly similar to attendance at this time last year. Leaders are encouraging better attendance through reassurance and advice to families.  Pupils are studying the school’s usual curriculum across all phases of the school. This means that they are accessing the full range of subjects.  Since returning in September, teachers have carried out reading assessments for all pupils, including children in Reception. This has enabled teachers to assign pupils to phonics groups and to identify those who need additional help with reading. Structured, individualised support is provided for pupils who have fallen behind.  In mathematics, staff have assessed children in Reception and pupils in Year 1. Teachers are acting on what they have found to provide additional support where needed. For older pupils, staff are teaching the school’s usual

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From this visit, inspectors noted that:

mathematics curriculum. Formal assessments are scheduled to take place shortly.  Across the wider curriculum, subject leaders plan to identify gaps in pupils’ knowledge arising from learning missed during the summer term. Your intention is that these gaps are addressed in all subjects during the current academic year.  Leaders have developed a plan for the delivery of future remote learning in consultation with parents and staff. You want to be flexible and responsive to the individual circumstances of pupils and parents. Because of this, you intend to use a wide range of tools, including online and paper-based resources.

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From this visit, inspectors noted that:

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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From this visit, inspectors noted that:

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

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