Grangehurst Primary School

Inspection of a good school: Grangehurst Primary School Anderton Road, Longford, Coventry, West Midlands CV6 6JN

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Outcome

Grangehurst Primary School continues to be a good school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils at Grangehurst behave very well. They are proud of their school. They embody the school’s values of ‘growth, pride, safety’. Bullying is rare, but if it happens, staff sort it out quickly. Pupils say that they are taught to treat others as they would like to be treated themselves. Unkind words are rare. If a pupil does or says something unkind, staff help them to see why this is wrong. Pupils who join the school mid-year quickly settle into school routines. Everyone is welcome here.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils learn how to keep themselves safe, including online. They help others when they need it. Pupils and parents and carers give generously to charity fundraising campaigns. The school is at the heart of the community.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils have positive attitudes to learning. Teachers help them to remember what they have learned, including through mini-tests on ‘Prove It’ days. Leaders have recently refreshed aspects of the curriculum. Pupils are enjoying these new learning experiences.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The Grangehurst ‘passport’ encourages pupils to take part in activities such as planning and cooking a meal for their family, reading 50 books a year or starting a new hobby. Pupils say that they come into school with a smile on their face every day.

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

The headteacher and senior leaders provide strong leadership across the school. They are committed to the principle that all pupils are welcome. Staff provide effective support for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Comprehensive curriculum resources help teachers to tailor lessons to pupils’ needs effectively.

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

Pupils are polite and respectful of others. They voice their opinions with confidence. Pupils feel that staff listen to them. They understand how democracy works because they vote for their class representative on the school council. Some pupils act as ambassadors for health and safety. Leaders look for every opportunity for pupils to develop independence. 3 and 4 November 2021

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Pupils experience at least one overnight trip before they move on to secondary school. These activities help to prepare pupils well for life in modern Britain.

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The proportion of pupils who leave or join the school mid-year is higher than average. This is often due to families moving into and out of the local area. Staff provide effective support to pupils who are new to the school. They help them to understand what is expected in terms of behaviour and learning. As a result, pupils who join the school midway through the year settle quickly.

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Reading has a high priority. Children in early years learn phonics from the start. Teachers use well-established routines to help children learn new sounds, using repetition, rhymes and movement. Where possible, teachers aim for all pupils to keep up with learning, rather than catch up. Pupils who need extra help with their reading are well supported to catch up as quickly as they can.

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Pupils learn through exciting topics. Curriculum plans are closely linked to the national curriculum. However, the new plans have only recently been introduced. It will take time for teachers and leaders to be sure that the curriculum plans deliver what they want pupils to know and remember in each subject in sufficient depth.

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Teachers use consistent and effective teaching strategies. Leaders encourage teachers to talk about what good learning looks like. They share ideas of what works well. Teachers make learning memorable. They assess pupils’ learning before moving on to the next stage of a topic. As a result, pupils can explain what they have learned and how teachers help them to remember.

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Staff feel very well supported. They say that leaders consider their workload when making any changes. Senior leaders who have been trained as mental health first-aiders are readily available to support staff if they need it.

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Governors are committed and passionate about their roles. They support leaders effectively and challenge them when necessary. They carry out visits to the school when they can. Leaders invite governors to see for themselves what is happening in school.

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Parents say that the staff are ‘amazing’. Throughout the pandemic, parents valued the support provided for remote learning. One parent’s comment echoed those of many others, when they said, ‘Staff worked tirelessly for the children who attended school and when home-schooled.’ The online learning system is still in daily use, as a way for teachers and parents to communicate. Pupils access and upload homework online and share their classwork with parents.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Leaders complete the necessary pre-employment checks on new staff. They make sure that all staff receive regular training and updates. Staff are vigilant and report any concerns about pupils’ safety, no matter how small. Leaders check records of concerns, 3 and 4 November 2021

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attendance and behaviour each day to spot any emerging patterns, and put support in place quickly.

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Staff provide comprehensive support for pupils and parents so that pupils come to school each day, on time and ready to learn. Leaders work closely with external agencies to make sure that pupils and families receive the right support at the right time.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Curriculum plans in some subjects, including history and geography, have recently been revised and improved. Leaders have not had chance to evaluate the impact of these new plans. Leaders should assure themselves that new curriculum plans, once fully embedded, provide the knowledge and skills they intend pupils to learn in sufficient depth.

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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 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 in January 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. 3 and 4 November 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. 3 and 4 November 2021

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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Date of previous inspection

27 and 28 January 2016, under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The school has a before- and after-school club.  The school does not use any alternative provision.

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Information about this inspection

This was the first routine inspection the school had received since the COVID-19 pandemic began. The inspector discussed the impact of the pandemic with school leaders, and has taken that into account in her evaluation.  Prior to the inspection, the lead inspector reviewed documents on the school’s website, as well as published information about the school’s performance and previous inspection reports.  The inspector carried out deep dives in these subjects: early reading, mathematics and history. For each deep dive, the inspector met with subject leaders, visited lessons, spoke to teachers, spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work. The inspector listened to pupils reading to an adult. 3 and 4 November 2021

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 The inspector looked at curriculum plans and discussed the wider curriculum with staff and pupils.  The inspector met with the headteacher, who is also the designated safeguarding lead (DSL), and an assistant headteacher who is the senior deputy DSL. Case files were reviewed. The single central record was checked.  Meetings were held with the headteacher, deputy headteacher, special educational needs coordinator (SENCo) and governors. The lead inspector spoke to a representative of Coventry local authority on the telephone.  The inspector met with teachers, including early career teachers, to discuss their workload and the support they receive to carry out their roles.  The inspector spoke to pupils at lunchtime about whether they feel safe in school and how they are taught to keep themselves safe.  The inspector visited the early years classes.  The inspector considered the responses to the online survey, Ofsted Parent View.

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 Responses to the staff and pupil surveys were also considered.

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Inspection team

Jane Spilsbury, lead inspector Her Majesty’s Inspector 3 and 4 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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