Setting

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

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Thomas Cutts Headteacher Weston Village Primary School East Avenue Weston Crewe Cheshire CW2 5LZ

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Ofsted remote visit to Weston Village Primary School

Following my remote visit with Ahmed Marikar, Her Majesty’s Inspector (HMI), to your school on 12 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 Weston Village 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 Weston Village 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 Weston Village Primary School

During the visit, we spoke to you. 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. 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:

 Since the start of term, approximately one pupil in every 10 has spent some time working from home.  Pupils are studying their usual range of subjects from the primary national curriculum.  Teachers’ checks on pupils’ phonics and reading showed that most pupils are doing well in this subject. You are pleased that the majority of your pupils have not fallen behind in their learning.  Staff have identified that pupils need to deepen their understanding of a wider range of authors. This is because pupils did not have their usual access to reading books in the period between March and July 2020. To address this, you have invested in more books for each classroom, as access to the main school library is currently limited due to COVID-19 restrictions.  In mathematics, teachers are also checking pupils’ knowledge and understanding. They are using this information to adapt the curriculum and identify pupils who need more support. You have introduced a structured

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From this visit, inspectors noted that:

learning programme to help some pupils get their learning back on track.  In subjects other than English and mathematics, teachers are checking what pupils know and can remember. They have also identified important learning that pupils missed during the summer term. They are using this information to adapt curriculum plans and resources to help pupils catch up with any missed learning.  You have provided work for pupils who have had to work from home because they are self-isolating. You are using a range of online resources to ensure that these pupils continue their learning in all subjects. You told us that pupils engage well with remote education and that parents are highly supportive.

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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 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 board of trustees and the chief executive officer of Alsager Multi Academy Trust, the regional schools commissioner and the director of children’s services for Cheshire East. This letter will be published on the Ofsted website.

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