Setting

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

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Rebecca Birch Headteacher Bugbrooke Community Primary School High Street Bugbrooke Northampton NN7 3PA

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Ofsted remote visit to Bugbrooke Community Primary School

Following my remote visit with Roary Pownall, 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 Bugbrooke Community 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 Bugbrooke Community 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 Bugbrooke Community Primary School

During the visit, we spoke to you and the deputy headteacher. 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 (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:

 At the time of the visit, a ‘bubble’ made up of Year 5 and Year 6 pupils was isolating. Three other bubbles have had to isolate, for varying amounts of time, since the start of term. Some pupils in Years 5 and 6 have had to isolate up to three times.  Pupils are studying the school’s full range of subjects. Some parts of the curriculum, such as swimming and indoor physical education, have been moved to different times of the school year. Leaders intend to return to the usual curriculum by the summer term 2021.  Teachers have checked how pupils are getting on in reading. Assessments show that some younger pupils have fallen behind in phonics. Leaders have introduced more phonics lessons and increased the amount of support that these pupils get.  Checks show that some pupils have lost stamina and speed when reading. Some pupils are not using inference skills as well as they did previously. Teachers have put in place more reading lessons to help pupils catch up.

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From this visit, inspectors noted that:

 In mathematics, teachers dedicated a two-week period to help pupils revisit and practise their learning in number. Teachers are doing more checks in mathematics lessons to see where pupils need further help.  Leaders have prioritised the teaching of personal, social, health and economic education. This is to help pupils to understand their feelings and emotions. Leaders want pupils to be able to talk about how the pandemic has affected them.  When pupils have to isolate, teachers set work online. If pupils cannot access their work online, they are given paper versions. The work that teachers set reflects the school’s current curriculum.

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

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