Leeds and Broomfield Church of England Primary School

Inspection of a good school: Leeds and Broomfield Church of England Primary School Lower Street, Leeds, Maidstone, Kent, ME17 1RL

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Outcome

Leeds and Broomfield Church of England Primary School continues to be a good school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils in this small village school are happy and confident learners. They are enthusiastic about the broad range of subjects they study. Engaging lessons help pupils to learn well and enjoy school. Staff provide help to pupils when they need it and expect the best of them. Pupils repay the commitment from staff by working hard and achieving well.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils behave very well in lessons and around school. They know and understand the school values, especially the importance of being respectful to each other. Bullying is extremely rare. Leaders have created a nurturing environment that helps all children flourish. Pupils spoken to say that they feel safe and secure at school. They know who to talk to if they have a worry or concern and trust adults to help them.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Parents are very proud of the school. There are positive relationships between parents and school staff. Parents value the work of staff to care for their children. They are confident that any concerns they raise are dealt with quickly. Strong links with the local church and wider area place the school at the heart of the community.

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

Since the last inspection, the school has undergone significant leadership changes and has joined a new federation. Parents see these as positive changes. They praise the strong leadership and clear direction of the school. Staff are proud of working at the school. They know that leaders care about their well-being and help them to be the best they can be.

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

The curriculum that pupils learn is carefully planned. Leaders have used expertise from across the federation to provide guidance to teachers. Teachers value the support they have received and know what pupils need to learn and in what order. Teachers know their 19 October 2021

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subjects well and know how to help pupils remember what they learn. For example, in history pupils were learning about the Mayan civilisation. They were encouraged to make comparisons to what they had learned before in the Egyptians topic. This helped pupils to deepen their historical understanding by building on what they already know. Pupils enjoy interesting learning experiences in many subjects. The well-planned and well-taught curriculum leads to pupils remembering what they have learned.

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Reading is a high priority in the school. Phonics is taught well because teachers are well trained. Pupils read lots and teachers read lots of books to them. The majority of pupils learn to read well. Leaders identify the few pupils who struggle with reading and they receive extra help. However, this does not always happen quickly enough and some staff need extra training to ensure that the support they provide helps pupils to read more fluently.

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The teaching of mathematics is a strength. In the early years, children explore mathematics in practical ways. This helps them to develop strong foundations in mathematical understanding. Teachers use assessment in mathematics well throughout the school. They regularly check what pupils have remembered and adapt planning so that key information is revisited if needed. This helps pupils to build their mathematical knowledge from the early years to Year 6.

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Leaders and staff make sure that pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) receive the support they need. There are strong partnerships with parents of pupils with SEND, school staff and other professionals. Training helps staff to provide the right support to pupils with SEND. Staff give careful thought to the needs of pupils with SEND and how to help them learn. As a result, they learn and achieve well alongside their peers.

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Leaders are passionate about nurturing pupils to be the best they can be. Pupils are encouraged to contribute to their community and have forged links with those who have been isolated during the pandemic. All pupils are encouraged to learn about themselves and have had the opportunity to take part in activities to relieve any stress or anxiety they may feel. This strong culture of nurture helps pupils to behave well and care for each other.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Staff are vigilant to the signs of abuse. They have had appropriate training and know how to report concerns. Leaders take effective action when concerns arise and work quickly to provide support when it is needed. Systems for recording and reporting concerns are established. However, leaders’ records of concerns and actions taken are not well organised or in a clear chronological order.

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Safeguarding

The curriculum includes opportunities for pupils to learn how to stay safe and manage risks as they grow up. 19 October 2021

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Leader’s records relating to safeguarding are not well organised enough. This means they are not easily accessible to professionals. All aspects of record keeping relating to safeguarding should be reviewed so that information is always stored in line with policies.  The few pupils who fall behind in reading are identified but they do not always receive as much additional support as they need. As a result, they do not always catch up quickly enough. Leaders should build on the strong reading provision that is already in place by making sure that the weakest readers receive even more support, so they can become confident and fluent readers. Leaders need to ensure that staff teaching the weakest readers are sufficiently well trained.

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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, because it is carried out under section 8 of the Education Act 2005. We do not give graded judgements on a section 8 inspection. However, if we find evidence that a school would now receive a higher or lower grade, 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 deem the section 8 inspection as 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 19–20 October 2016.

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How can I feed back my views?

find out what other parents and carers think. We use information from Ofsted Parent View 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. 19 October 2021

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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. 19 October 2021

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School details

Inspection number 10200269 Type of school Primary

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Headteacher Fiona Steer (Head of School) Emma Hickling (Executive Headteacher) Website www.leedsandbroomfieldkentsch.co.uk

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School details

Date of previous inspection 19 – 20 October 2016, under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The school joined the Aspire federation in September 2019.  Since the previous inspection the school has reduced in size from four to three classes.  The head of school joined in January 2020 following two terms without substantive leadership in place.  The school does not currently use any alternative provision.  The governing body works across all four schools in the federation.  The school is a voluntary controlled Church of England school. The last section 48 in- spection was carried out in July 2015. The next inspection is due in 2021.

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Information about this inspection

 This was the first routine inspection the school received since the COVID-19 pandemic began. Inspectors discussed the impact of the pandemic with school leaders and have taken that into account in their evaluation. 19 October 2021

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 Inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: reading, maths and history.  Inspectors visited lessons, spoke with pupils and scrutinised pupils’ workbooks.  Records relating to safeguarding were scrutinised, meetings were held with the desig- nated safeguarding lead and staff were spoken to about the work the school does to keep pupils safe.  Meetings were held with senior leaders, leaders from across the federation, the special educational needs and disabilities coordinator and other school staff.  The lead inspector spoke with the chair of governors on the telephone and a repre- sentative from the local authority.  Inspectors considered 10 responses to Ofsted’s online questionnaire, Parent view and 11 free-text responses. In addition to this, a number of parents were spoken to at the start of the school day.

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Inspection team

James Freeston, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector

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Inspection team

Anne Allen Ofsted Inspector 19 October 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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