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

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Julia Humphrey Headteacher Garboldisham Church Primary School Church Road Garboldisham Norfolk IP22 2SE

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Ofsted remote visit to Garboldisham Church Primary School

Following my remote visit with Tessa Holledge, Her Majesty’s Inspector (HMI), to your school on 5 November 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 remote visit to Garboldisham Church 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. Following changes to government guidance and the imposition of COVID-19 (coronavirus) lockdown restrictions, we made this visit remotely to reduce pressure on the school.

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Ofsted remote visit to Garboldisham Church 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 remote visit to Garboldisham Church Primary School

During the visit, we spoke to the senior leadership team. We did not speak to pupils.

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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 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:

 The school opened to all pupils on 7 September 2020. Children in the early years attended part time in the first week and started school full time on 14 September 2020.  Attendance is similar to what it would normally be at this time of year.  Leaders spent the beginning of the autumn term focusing on settling pupils back into the school’s routines, so they were ready to learn.  Teachers checked what pupils knew and had remembered when they returned to school in September. This term, leaders are giving more time for pupils to revisit important knowledge in reading, writing and mathematics.  Pupils are studying their usual range of subjects. Teachers have changed some of what they would normally teach in the autumn term. In physical education, no contact-sports are being taught until later in the year.  Leaders are providing teachers with additional phonics training. Teachers are using this support to plan teaching to help younger pupils learn sounds and

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From this visit, inspectors noted that:

use them accurately in their reading.  Teachers identify that pupils have not been reading and writing as much as they usually would. Support and extra time are being given to help older pupils gain a deeper understanding of what they read and practise their handwriting skills in their writing.  Teachers are revisiting place value and multiplication tables to support pupils to solve problems accurately.  Leaders plan to deliver remote learning that is the same as what pupils would learn if they were in school should this be needed. Pupils can do this online. Pupils who are not able to access online learning will be provided with paper copies so they learn the same as everyone else in their class.

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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 interim executive board, the regional schools commissioner and the director of children’s services for Norfolk. This letter will be published on the Ofsted website.

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