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

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Lynette Clapham Executive Headteacher Grove House Primary School Myers Lane Bradford West Yorkshire BD2 4ED

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Ofsted visit to Grove House Primary School

Following my visit with Tracey Ralph, Her Majesty’s Inspector (HMI), to your school on 8 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 Grove House 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 Grove House 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 Grove House Primary School

During the visit, we spoke to members of the senior leadership team, including the school’s designated leader 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. 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:

 The school opened to all pupils on 7 September 2020. Children in the Nursery and Reception classes had a phased start in their first week. All pupils were expected to attend full time from the 14 September 2020.  Pupils’ attendance is lower than usual for your school at this time of year. A small number of pupils have not returned to school. You told us that staff are in regular contact with families if pupils have not yet returned or if their attendance is a concern.  Pupils are studying the full range of subjects that make up the school’s usual curriculum.  Teachers have checked whether pupils have remembered their phonics knowledge. Because some pupils have gaps in their knowledge, you told us that you have increased the time that is devoted to phonics teaching in Years 1 and 2 to help pupils to catch up. Staff are providing additional sessions to pupils who need more help with their reading.  You have made some changes to the mathematics curriculum. You explained that

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From this visit, inspectors noted that:

teachers have checked for gaps in pupils’ subject knowledge, for example in place value. Staff have plans to provide extra teaching sessions to pupils who need help to catch up in mathematics.  Teachers have considered the content that was missed from the wider curriculum, for example in subjects such as history and geography, when the school was not open to all pupils. You told us that teachers will teach this missed subject content alongside the school’s existing curriculum this year. You hope that you are able to return to the school’s usual curriculum before the end of the academic year.  You explained that the small number of pupils who are currently self-isolating at home are revising content they have previously covered in school. You are putting plans in place to deliver a remote curriculum which is matched to the school’s usual curriculum, in case larger groups of pupils are required to self-

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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 Bradford. This letter will be published on the Ofsted website.

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