Setting

Michelle Dawson Headteacher Alne Primary School Main Street Alne York North Yorkshire YO61 1RT

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Additional, remote monitoring inspection of Alne Primary School

Following my remote inspection with Alison Stephenson, Her Majesty’s Inspector (HMI), of your school on 16 March 2021, I write on behalf of Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Education, Children’s Services and Skills to confirm the findings. Thank you for the help you gave during the inspection and for the time you made available to discuss the actions that have been taken to provide education to all pupils during the current circumstances.

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Additional, remote monitoring inspection of Alne Primary School

This monitoring inspection was conducted under section 8 (2) of the Education Act 2005 (as amended) and in accordance with Ofsted’s published procedures for visiting schools while routine inspections remain temporarily suspended. It was additional to the usual monitoring process for schools that are judged to require special measures.

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Additional, remote monitoring inspection of Alne Primary School

This monitoring inspection was carried out remotely. As such, the range of evidence available to inspectors was narrower than would normally be the case during an on- site inspection. As a result, this letter provides a more limited level of assurance than our usual monitoring reports.

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Additional, remote monitoring inspection of Alne Primary School

The inspection took place because the school was judged to require special measures at its previous section 5 inspection. The school’s most recent section 5 inspection took place in July 2019.

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Additional, remote monitoring inspection of Alne Primary School

Having considered all the evidence and taking into account the impact of COVID-19 on the school, I am of the opinion that at this time:

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Leaders and those responsible for governance are taking effective action

to provide education in the current circumstances. Ofsted

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Leaders and those responsible for governance are taking effective action

Store Street Manchester M1 2WD T 0300 123 1231 www.gov.uk/ofsted Leaders and those responsible for governance should take further action to:

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Leaders and those responsible for governance are taking effective action

 ensure all staff are fully aware of pupils’ new starting points, including pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), as all pupils return to school after COVID-19 partial closures

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Leaders and those responsible for governance are taking effective action

 develop the expertise of subject leaders in all subjects across the curriculum, to enable them to review the quality of the curriculum and the extent to which pupils are remembering its content.

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Context

 There have been several changes to staffing since the previous inspection. You have appointed English and mathematics subject leaders to the senior leadership team. A teacher left the school and this position was not replaced. There have also been changes in governance, including new parent and community governors.

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Context

 Approximately half of all pupils attended school at the start of the spring term. This number gradually increased until around 60% of pupils were attending school on site.

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Context

 During this inspection all pupils were in school. Leaders have worked closely with their school community to support pupils in their return to school.

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Main findings

 You made it a priority to ensure that all pupils could access an education. During the spring term, pupils learning remotely were able to cover the same curriculum content as those learning in school. Now all pupils have returned to school, you have increased the opportunity for classes to learn outdoors. This is to support the social, emotional and mental health of pupils.

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Main findings

 The school’s curriculum has been under review following the previous inspection in 2019. In most subjects, leaders have adopted the curriculum from the trust they are hoping to join, to support the school’s transition to becoming an academy. Leaders recognise that this should happen more quickly and that curriculum leads need further development and support.

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Main findings

 You and your leadership team have prioritised reading. All staff have received phonics training, so they know how to teach early reading consistently. In reading and phonics, assessment is used to identify precise gaps in pupils’ learning so that additional support can be provided. Teachers ensure that pupils in the early stages of learning to read have decodable books, which match their phonics knowledge.

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Main findings

 Leaders know that some pupils have fallen behind the expectations set out in the school’s curriculum and some pupils are further ahead. However, apart from in reading, leaders have not checked what pupils have learned and remembered from the taught curriculum.

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Main findings

 Leaders work hard with all families. Vulnerable pupils were invited to attend school, alongside pupils with SEND and the children of key workers during the spring term. The special educational needs and/or disabilities coordinator (SENCo) worked closely with parents during this time, so that information was shared and pupils’ needs addressed. Additional help is available to support pupils who did not attend school during this time.

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Main findings

 Governors have accessed training with the local authority and the National Governance Association. Governors have an oversight of school priorities through their link governor roles. However, they do not use this knowledge well enough to challenge leaders and hold them to account.

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Main findings

 You are part of the local English hub and have accessed support and training through the multi-academy trust you intend to join. The local authority has also helped you to develop curriculum leadership and provide training for staff. You have used this external support to help make the necessary improvements to phonics and reading.

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Evidence

This inspection was conducted remotely. We spoke to you, other senior leaders, the chair and members of the governing body, the senior school improvement adviser, the chief executive principal primary for Outwood Grange Academies Trust, a sample of staff and a group of pupils to discuss leaders’ actions to provide education to all pupils during a national lockdown.

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Evidence

We also looked at recorded examples of lessons, curriculum planning, lesson resources provided for pupils and participation records. We looked at responses to Ofsted’s online questionnaire, Parent View, including 64 free-text responses, and 14 staff questionnaires.

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Evidence

I am copying this letter to the chair of the governing body, the regional schools commissioner and the director of children’s services for North Yorkshire. This letter will be published on the Ofsted website.

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