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

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Jay Hart Executive Headteacher Kingfisher School Clifton Close Matchborough Redditch Worcestershire B98 0HF

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Ofsted remote visit to Kingfisher School

Following my remote visit with Martin Pye, Her Majesty’s Inspector (HMI), to your school on 19 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 Kingfisher 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 Kingfisher 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 Kingfisher School

During the visit, we spoke to you, the head of school and other members of the senior leadership team, including the senior leader responsible for safeguarding. 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:

 About 2% of pupils are currently having to work from home. These are the only pupils who have had to do so since the start of this term.  Pupils in each class are already following their usual range of subjects, although older pupils are not able to attend their regular college placements. As a result, the careers programme is being taught fully by the school. Some pupils cannot access a course that uses a local college’s specialist facilities. It is uncertain when these facilities will be available.  The curriculum offered in school is being taught as normal, although extra- curricular activities have been curtailed. For example, the school is not currently offering its Duke of Edinburgh’s Award scheme. Pupils are not currently going swimming as part of physical education.  You have carried out your assessments this term as you would do normally. You stated that pupils did not have additional gaps in their learning in English.

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From this visit, inspectors noted that:

Leaders said that reading at home increased during lockdown. According to leaders, there was no regression in pupils’ learning in mathematics.  The school’s subject specialists planned informal assessments in order to identify learning gaps in the wider curriculum in primary and secondary classes. These assessments were carried out formally by class teachers, who passed on the outcomes to subject specialists to analyse.  In the secondary classes, leaders said that where topics have been missed, for example famous people and events in geography, these are being covered in the curriculum this year.  Pupils isolating have one-to-one learning sessions with their teachers which are delivered remotely. In addition, pupils use a work pack that is sent to their home. The school has created these to follow their curriculum as closely as possible. There are some barriers, according to leaders. In physical education,

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From this visit, inspectors noted that:

for example, the school sets physical exercise tasks focused on keeping pupils fit rather than increasing their knowledge and skills .

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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 board of trustees and the chief executive officer of the multi-academy trust, the regional schools commissioner and the director of children’s services for Worcestershire. This letter will be published on the Ofsted website.

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