Ilketshall St Lawrence School

Inspection of a good school: Ilketshall St Lawrence School Hogg Lane, Ilketshall St Lawrence, Beccles, Suffolk, NR34 8ND

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Outcome

Ilketshall St Lawrence School continues to be a good school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

This is a happy, lively village school. Many pupils’ comments supported the view of one that ‘it is a privilege to attend this school’. Pupils grow in confidence the longer they are at school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Adults encourage pupils to be inquisitive in their learning. Pupils respond well and learn with gusto in many lessons. Pupils are very keen to talk about their work. They also told inspectors how much they enjoy reading.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils, including children in early years, learn to manage their behaviour and feelings well. They develop a strong understanding of what makes for appropriate relationships. They show respect for their school friends and staff. Pupils also know that bullying is unkind. They said that it rarely happens. Pupils said that if they were concerned they would tell an adult in school. They trust that adults will resolve the issue. Pupils feel safe and are safe.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils’ sense of security is evident in the how well they get along together. They behave well. Pupils have fun at breaktimes, making use of the wide range of equipment and games available to them.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils like the extra activities that adults put on for them, such as the gardening and sports clubs.

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

Leaders give careful thought to each part of the curriculum, including that in early years. They check the curriculum helps pupils to achieve well. Leaders adjust plans where they judge aspects could be better. Leaders’ plans state the knowledge and vocabulary pupils should learn. Plans pinpoint suitable resources to support pupils’ learning. The curriculum enables pupils to build their knowledge over time in many subjects, including mathematics and reading. The early years curriculum prepares children well for learning in Year 1. 2 November 2021

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Teachers know exactly what they should teach in most subjects. They understand how pupils learn best. Teachers break down learning into manageable chunks. They check that pupils grasp important knowledge before they move on to different or more complex learning. Pupils remember important information in most subjects that helps them to learn more.

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Last year, leaders judged that pupils were not learning as well as they could in some subjects. Leaders updated curriculum plans to make them more precise for teachers. Discussions with pupils and scrutiny of their work show that leaders’ actions have been largely successful. There remains some unevenness in how well the curriculum is set out and delivered in a few subjects. Where this is the case, pupils’ knowledge and understanding are not as well developed.

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Reading has a high priority among pupils and staff. Pupils learn to read fluently. Stories are an important part of each school day. Adults take steps to make story-telling memorable. For example, children in the early years enjoyed their ‘night-time’ story in the library – complete with starlit sky. Teachers deliver the reading curriculum well. Younger pupils have many opportunities to put their phonics knowledge into practice. Teachers in key stage 2 sustain pupils’ enthusiasm for reading. Teachers choose books that interest pupils and boost their understanding of reading in other subjects. For example, pupils spoke knowledgably about historical books and poems they read.

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Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) get the right support to access the full curriculum. Where needed, adults adapt learning so that pupils with SEND revisit key knowledge and can move on in their learning. Inspectors saw this working well in mathematics. Parents were glowing in their praise of this kind of help that their children receive.

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The trust and local governing body provide school leaders with expert scrutiny and support. They share a common vision and high expectations. Leaders’ work to support pupils’ personal development is an example of the effectiveness of this joined-up approach. Leaders judge that happy, confident pupils will achieve academic success. Leaders use the trust’s ‘complete human strategy’ to help pupils develop an impressive understanding and management of their emotions and behaviour. Pupils said that adults check in on pupils and are good at picking up on how they are feeling. Adults support pupils who need reassurance. Pupils are mindful and respectful of each other’s differences. They said this meant that they ‘[have] very little to worry about at school’. This makes for a positive learning environment.

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Parents’ high regard for staff’s work, including during lockdowns, is evident in parents’ comments to inspectors and in their responses to Ofsted Parent View. All parents would recommend the school to another parent. Staff were also full of praise for leaders’ work. All staff enjoy and are proud to work at the school.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective. 2 November 2021

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There is a strong safeguarding culture. This underpins leaders’ intentions that pupils should be secure and confident in their learning and play. Pupils are taught about risk and how to keep themselves safe. Staff receive appropriate training and updates. They know the potential risks that pupils face and the signs that suggest a pupil may be subject to abuse. Where it is needed, leaders make sure pupils receive the right help.

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The trust and governors check that the school is meeting its safeguarding obligations, including those relating to the recruitment of staff.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Leaders accurately identified that curriculum plans and their delivery in some subjects needed to be adjusted so that pupils retained more of the most important knowledge, including vocabulary, over time. Leaders have taken the right steps to rectify this in some subjects. Leaders now need to make certain that plans in all subjects pinpoint what knowledge pupils need to learn. Leaders then need to make sure that teachers are given the training and support to deliver these subjects effectively.

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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 predecessor school, Ilketshall St Lawrence School, to be good in June 2013.

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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 . 2 November 2021

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Further information

You can search for published performance information about the school.

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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. 2 November 2021

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School details

Inspection number 10200446 Type of school Primary

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School details

Headteacher Sarah Winter (Executive Headteacher)

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School details

Website www.ilketshallstlawrenceprimary.co.uk

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School details

Date of previous inspection 13 October 2020, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 This is a smaller-than-average sized primary school.  Ilketshall St Lawrence School converted to become an academy school in May 2017. When its predecessor school, also named, Ilketshall St Lawrence School, was last inspected by Ofsted, it was judged to be good overall.

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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.  As part of this inspection, inspectors met with the executive headteacher and with the head of school, who is also the designated safeguarding lead and the special educational needs coordinator. Inspectors also held meetings with teachers and support staff.  The lead inspector held a telephone conversation with the chair of the local governing body.  The lead inspector also met with the chief executive officer of ASSET Education. 2 November 2021

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 Inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: reading, mathematics and history.  For each deep dive, inspectors met with subject leaders, looked at curriculum plans, visited a sample of lessons, spoke with teachers, spoke with some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work. Inspectors also listened to pupils read with adults from the school.  Inspectors also spoke with several pupils at break and lunchtimes.  Inspectors considered information relating to safeguarding, including the school’s single central register of checks on adults working at the school.  Inspectors took account of 13 responses to Ofsted Parent View; the views of parents spoken with at the start of the school day; 15 responses to the staff survey and from the school’s own evidence of parent and pupil opinions.

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Inspection team

John Lucas, lead inspector Her Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Lynsey Holzer Ofsted Inspector 2 November 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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