Setting

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

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Laura Ovenden Headteacher Tower Hill Primary School Fowler Road Farnborough Hampshire GU14 0BW

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Ofsted remote visit to Tower Hill Primary School

Following my remote visit with Aimee Floyd, Her Majesty’s Inspector (HMI), to your school on 1 December 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 Tower Hill 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 remote visit to Tower Hill 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 Tower Hill Primary School

During the visit, we spoke to you, the deputy headteacher, the senior leader responsible for safeguarding and to some subject leaders. 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:

 All pupils in Year 3 were required to learn from home for four days in October 2020 because of Covid-19. Over the course of the term, approximately one third of pupils have had to learn from home for a limited time.  French was reintroduced for Years 3 to 6 at the beginning of December 2020, so pupils are now learning their usual range of subjects. Some extra-curricular activities and clubs have been paused this term. Leaders hope to return to the school’s full curriculum by the summer term 2021.  Teachers have tested what pupils can remember in English and mathematics. In other subjects, they check pupils’ knowledge prior to introducing new concepts. Teachers have changed the order in which some of the content is being taught in subjects such as art, science, physical education and computing.  You are prioritising reading and writing across the school. Teachers have introduced additional phonics lessons for younger pupils. Checks have been

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From this visit, inspectors noted that:

made on pupils’ reading, writing and comprehension skills, and additional support is being provided for those who need it.  In mathematics, leaders have identified the content that pupils were not taught during the summer term. Teachers are incorporating this missed learning into this term’s lessons. Staff are concentrating on pupils’ use of mathematical vocabulary and reasoning skills in all year groups.  When individual pupils have been required to learn from home, teachers have provided tasks that match the topics that they are studying that half term. In addition, online videos and electronic reading books are available to support pupils’ learning in phonics.  When the Year 3 ‘bubble’ needed to self-isolate, staff put their remote learning plans swiftly into action to provide online lessons and learning activities that aligned with the pupils’ normal timetable.

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

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