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

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Tanya Watson Headteacher William Tyndale Primary School Upper Street Islington London N1 2GG

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Ofsted visit to William Tyndale Primary School

Following my visit with Phil Garnham, Her Majesty’s Inspector, 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 William Tyndale 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 William Tyndale 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 William Tyndale Primary School

During the visit, we spoke to you and the deputy headteacher. We also spoke to other senior leaders, including the designated safeguarding lead. 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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Context

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:

 This term, the school reopened to all pupils on 3 September 2020. All pupils are attending on a full-time basis.  Pupils’ attendance since the start of the term has been high. Attendance figures are similar to the normal attendance levels for this time of year. Leaders have maintained regular communication with parents to encourage as many pupils to attend as possible.  Pupils are studying the full range of subjects. Leaders have modified what is taught in each subject to enable pupils to catch up on missed learning from the spring and summer terms. You aim to return to the usual curriculum by the spring term 2021. Leaders have made changes to the way in which art, physical education and music are taught, in line with the latest government guidance.  Teachers have checked pupils’ new starting points in all subjects. In reading, teachers are using daily sessions to identify and support pupils’ needs.

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From this visit, inspectors noted that:

Teachers are testing children’s phonics skills in the early years and Years 1 and 2. Teachers are checking that pupils have access to books that match the sounds they know.  Teachers and leaders have met to discuss each pupil’s learning across the curriculum. As a result of these meetings, specific interventions are planned as necessary. In mathematics, teachers have checked pupils’ knowledge and skills. They are using this information to plan learning to meet pupils’ needs.  Leaders have chosen some new texts for each year group to support pupils’ learning in English as well as other subjects, such as history and science. Leaders have chosen these texts to support coverage of some of the content that pupils missed in the last academic year.  Leaders have established a remote learning policy. Teachers use a range of online resources to support pupils’ learning. Leaders are in the process of aligning the school’s digital learning platform with what pupils learn in school,

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From this visit, inspectors noted that:

so that pupils who are self-isolating, for example, can study the same things as their classmates who are in school.

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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 regional schools commissioner and the director of children’s services for Islington. This letter will be published on the Ofsted website.

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