Setting

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

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Sue Dymond Headteacher Winwick C of E Primary School Myddleton Lane Winwick Warrington Cheshire WA2 8LQ

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Ofsted visit to Winwick C of E Primary School

Following my visit with Elizabeth Stevens, Her Majesty’s Inspector (HMI), to your school on 9 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 visit to Winwick C of E 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 visit to Winwick C of E 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 visit to Winwick C of E Primary School

During the visit, we spoke to you, your deputy headteacher and your assistant headteacher. 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.

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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 half of the pupils at the school have had to learn from home for a short period since September 2020. At the time of the visit, the Year 2 and Year 5 ‘bubbles’ were self-isolating.  You told us that pupils are not studying some of their usual subjects. This is to allow pupils extra time to catch up with lost learning in English and mathematics. Subjects such as art and history will resume in the spring term 2021, and you aim to return pupils to their usual curriculum content by the beginning of the summer term 2021.  Teachers are identifying where pupils have gaps in their knowledge. You have a range of strategies in place to help pupils to catch up. For example, teachers are giving children in the Reception Year more opportunities to explore and play.  In phonics, you said that pupils in Years 1 and 2 have forgotten some of the letters and sounds that they learned before March 2020. They are particularly

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From this visit, inspectors noted that:

struggling to blend sounds. Extra support is in place for these pupils.  Teachers have assessed pupils’ mathematical knowledge. Some pupils cannot remember some of what they have learned from March 2020. You explained that you have put catch-up sessions in place for these pupils.  Across the wider curriculum, teachers are adapting their curriculum plans in subjects such as design and technology to address gaps in pupils’ learning. You have also used religious education and physical education, along with additional activities in personal, social and emotional education, to support pupils’ well-being.  You offer remote education online, but paper-based packs are also available for pupils who need them. You provide bubbles and individual pupils who are self-isolating with activities that mirror their usual timetable. You include reading, writing, mathematics and elements from the wider 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 director of education for the Diocese of Liverpool and the director of children’s services for Warrington. This letter will be published on the Ofsted website.

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