Hackness Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School

Inspection of a good school: Hackness Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School

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Hackness, Scarborough, North Yorkshire, YO13 0JN

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Outcome

Hackness Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School continues to be a good school. However, inspectors have some concerns that one or more areas may be declining, as set out below.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Leaders have high expectations for all pupils. They are determined to make sure that this school remains good. Leaders have improved the curriculum for reading and mathematics in key stages 1 and 2. They know that they need to improve their curriculum plans in other subjects, such as history and geography, now. Leaders understand that some areas of the early years curriculum require further development too.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The headteacher rightly prioritised improving pupils’ behaviour when she joined the school in 2019. There used to be lots of bullying, but incidents of bullying are now very rare. Parents and carers are much happier with the new behaviour policy. One parent said, ‘My son is the happiest he's ever been. He loves all the staff and looks forward to school every day.’

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What is it like to attend this school?

Leaders work with other partners to enrich the wider curriculum. Sports leaders from a local sports centre visit twice a week to offer after-school fitness clubs. Leaders have also been working with staff from a local college to extend pupils’ interest in sixth-form studies.

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What does the school do well and what does it need to do better?

There have been many staff changes since the last inspection. Pupils and parents found this unsettling. Parents told inspectors that this affected pupils’ learning and behaviour negatively. Some parents of children in lower key stage 2 said that their children had had 10 different teachers since they started at the school. Parents and pupils are pleased that the staff team is now settled. 15 June 2021

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Now that bullying is rare, it does not affect how the curriculum is taught. Teachers use the new behaviour policy consistently, so poor behaviour rarely disrupts lessons.

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The headteacher leads the staff at both primary schools in the federation. The reading leaders from both schools work together. Through their joint efforts, they have improved the curriculum for early reading and phonics. Staff from the English hub have provided expert advice to reading leaders. Consequently, reading leaders have grown in confidence. They check that all staff are following their phonics training consistently. This is helping pupils to make good progress in phonics.

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Leaders made sure that pupils kept up with the school’s preferred phonics programme when pupils were learning to read remotely. Teachers also adapted the curriculum successfully for those pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) who were learning at home. Teachers contacted pupils with SEND individually to check that they were keeping up with the phonics programme. Leaders used additional funding to provide speech and language therapy for children in Reception Year who needed this extra help.

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Leaders have checked pupils’ phonics knowledge since all pupils returned to school. Teachers have reminded pupils of the sounds they had forgotten. Leaders have provided more staff to give additional phonics lessons to a few pupils who need these. Reading leaders check that this strategy is working.

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The curriculum for mathematics is well planned in Years 1 to 6. It is less successful in the early years because it is not sequenced well. In addition, some early years staff ask children superficial questions that do not deepen children’s understanding. For example, following a lesson on measurement, children were playing with toy syringes in the water area and the adults missed opportunities to develop children’s understanding of measurement.

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In Years 1 to 6, leaders have identified the most important mathematical knowledge that pupils should learn and in what order. Teachers build on pupils’ knowledge in each mixed- age class to make sure that pupils are keeping up with national curriculum expectations for each year group. However, this is not the case in other subjects. Leaders’ plans for subject leaders across the federation to work closely together have been limited by COVID-19 (coronavirus) restrictions. Most subject leaders have not identified the most important knowledge that pupils need to learn and remember.

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The new staggered lunchtimes in this small school mean that all staff have additional playground duties and fewer breaks. Leaders have checked on teachers’ welfare more frequently to check that they are coping with the higher workload linked to increased supervision duties at lunchtime.

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Some wider curriculum opportunities were limited when after-school clubs were suspended in January 2021. Leaders found other ways to enrich pupils’ learning. Pupils learn about different faiths in religious education. When pupils could not visit places of worship in real time, leaders arranged a virtual visit to a synagogue. Teachers also 15 June 2021

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introduced the history topic on castles with a virtual tour of Windsor Castle. Pupils were excited when the curator answered the questions they had submitted in advance individually. Pupils are pleased that after-school clubs have begun to open again. The gardening club is oversubscribed.

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In discussion with the headteacher, we agreed that history and geography may usefully serve as a focus for the next inspection, including how well children are learning in the early years.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

There is a strong culture of safeguarding. All staff are fully trained. The local authority audits safeguarding arrangements and governors also check that pupils are safe. Leaders work closely with other professionals as necessary. They regularly take advice from the local authority’s early help team.

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Safeguarding

Some parents are extremely concerned about the lack of speed restrictions outside the school. Governors are working with politicians and the Highways Agency to seek solutions to parents’ concerns.

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Safeguarding

Pupils are taught about road safety and cycling proficiency. They understand the potential safeguarding risks when they are working online.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Adults are not moving children’s learning forward quickly enough in Reception Year. As a result, children are not making enough progress in the early years. Leaders should ensure that all adults in Reception Year raise their expectations in line with the ‘Statutory framework for the early years foundation stage’ (2021). This will help children to know and remember more. It will prepare them well to access the Year 1 curriculum.  The content of some subjects is not well chosen and sequenced. This is particularly so in history and geography. The plans for these subjects do not support teachers to build pupils’ knowledge sequentially. As a result, pupils do not learn these subjects well enough. Leaders need to ensure that the content of all subject plans is well chosen, carefully sequenced and delivered as intended. 15 June 2021

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Background

When we have judged a school to be good, we will then normally go into the school about once every four years to confirm that the school remains good. This is called a section 8 inspection of a good or outstanding school. We do not give graded judgements on a section 8 inspection. However, if we find some evidence that a good school could now be better than good, or that standards may be declining, then the next inspection will be a section 5 inspection. Usually this is within one to two years of the date of the section 8 inspection. If we have serious concerns about safeguarding, behaviour or the quality of education, we will convert the section 8 inspection to a section 5 inspection immediately.

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Background

This is the first section 8 inspection since we judged the school to be good on 22 April 2015.

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How can I feed back my views?

find out what other parents and carers think. We use Ofsted Parent View information when deciding which schools to inspect, when to inspect them and as part of their inspection.

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How can I feed back my views?

The Department for Education has further guidance on how to complain about a school.

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How can I feed back my views?

If you are the school and you are not happy with the inspection or the report, you can complain to Ofsted .

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Further information

You can search for published performance information about the school here .

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Further information

In the report, 'disadvantaged pupils' refers to those pupils who attract government pupil premium funding: pupils claiming free school meals at any point in the last six years and pupils in care or who left care through adoption or another formal route. 15 June 2021

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School details

Inspection number 10183961 Type of school Primary

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Website www.hacknesswykehamcefederation.co.uk

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School details

Date of previous inspection 22-23 April 2015 under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The school is smaller than the average-sized primary school.  In October 2016, the school became a hard federation with Wykeham Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School. The federation shares the same headteacher.  This voluntary controlled Church of England school is within the Diocese of York.  The headteacher took up post in May 2019.

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Information about this inspection

 This was the first routine inspection the school received since the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic began. Inspectors discussed the impact of the pandemic with the school, and have taken that into account in their evaluation.  Inspectors met the headteacher and other senior and middle leaders.  Inspectors spoke to representatives from the local authority and the diocese.  Inspectors met a group of three governors, including the chair of the governing body and a parent governor. This meeting was held remotely. 15 June 2021

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 Minutes of meetings of the governing body and other documents were evaluated, including the school’s improvement plans and the local authority’s records of visits.  Inspectors met with senior safeguarding leaders and evaluated written safeguarding records.  Inspectors met with subject leaders for reading and phonics, mathematics and geography to discuss their curriculum plans. Other activities included speaking to teachers and pupils, visiting lessons and reviewing pupils’ work.  Inspectors reviewed the 21 Parent View responses and 10 staff responses to our surveys. Inspectors also spoke to parents during the inspection. There were no responses to our survey of pupils’ views.

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Inspection team

Tracey Ralph, lead inspector Her Majesty's Inspector

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Inspection team

Jennifer Thomas Her Majesty's Inspector 15 June 2021

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regulates and inspects to achieve excellence in the care of children and young people, and in education and skills for learners of all ages. It regulates and inspects childcare and children's social care, and inspects the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (Cafcass), schools, colleges, initial teacher training, further education and skills, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It assesses council children's services, and inspects services for children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

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