Bradleys Both Community Primary School

Inspection of a good school: Bradleys Both Community Primary School Skipton Road, Bradley, Keighley, West Yorkshire BD20 9EF

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Outcome

There has been no change to this school’s overall judgement of good as a result of this initial (section 8) inspection. However, the evidence gathered suggests that the inspection grade might not be as high if a full inspection were carried out now. The next inspection will therefore be a full (section 5) inspection.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils love their small, friendly village school. Leaders have created a caring environment where pupils’ mental health and well-being are key priorities. Parents inspectors spoke to were keen to praise the school. One commented, ‘This is a lovely community school, the children are well looked after and everybody knows everyone’s names.’ This was typical of the many positive comments left on Ofsted Parent View.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils behave well. They are polite, kind and helpful. They are not concerned about bullying but say that if it did happen, teachers would deal with it immediately. If they have any concerns or worries, there is a designated adult they can talk to.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Through the ‘University of Bradley’ the school offers a wide range of extra-curricular opportunities. These include baking bread, acting, clay modelling, mindfulness and gardening. A small number of pupils and parents said they would like to see more sports activities offered.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils who struggle the most are not consistently given the additional support they need to catch up. Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are not given precise enough support or activities to meet their needs. Moreover, the plans for some subjects do not make clear exactly what pupils should be taught and in what order. Therefore, they do not support teachers to deliver learning well.

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

Staff who teach phonics demonstrate a good subject knowledge. Pupils are encouraged to read, both at home and at school. However, greater support and more time needs to be given to help a small number of pupils who struggle with reading to catch up. Pupils have 4 November 2021

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not always had books to read that match the sounds that they know. Leaders have recognised this need and ordered phonics books that are part of the new programme they are implementing.

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Curriculum plans clearly set out the topics to be covered by each year group. These are broadly in line with the national curriculum. However, some plans do not set out clearly enough what pupils need to know and when they need to learn it. This means that there are times when teachers do not design learning that helps pupils to know and remember more. Some plans are still being adapted. For example, in science, planning now shows that pupils are provided with enough opportunities to revisit and consider fair tests, but pupils in Years 5 and 6 are not always able to explain a fair test or use the correct scientific vocabulary.

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In music, there is a strong focus on performance and enjoyment. There is a clear progression of expected knowledge for playing tuned and untuned instruments musically. Children in the early years are encouraged to experiment and create different sounds, for example by banging saucepans together on the outdoor music wall. However, the components that pupils are required to know are not always evident. Pupils with whom the inspector spoke could not recall a famous classical composer. The leader for music recognises that the plans do not address all aspects of the curriculum and is beginning to rectify this.

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Leaders provide opportunities to support pupils’ wider development. As COVID-19 restrictions begin to relax, pupils are once again able to enjoy school trips. During the week of our visit, pupils were going to JORVIK Viking Centre in York. Visits to places of worship broaden pupils’ understanding of different faiths and religions. Pupils were keen to tell inspectors about their visit to a local mosque. The school’s curriculum for pupils’ personal development prepares pupils well for life in modern Britain. Elected roles, such as school councillors and a head boy and head girl, help pupils understand the meaning of democracy.

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The support for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities is weak. Teachers are not always quick to identify those pupils who are falling behind, and this means that some pupils are not receiving the support they need to catch up. For those pupils who have been identified, their targets are not always specific or measurable, which means that it is difficult to track the progress that they are making. The leader for SEND does not monitor and evaluate what is being offered to these pupils on a regular basis. Little training has been provided for teachers to support pupils with SEND over the past two years.

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Governors possess a range of skills and place a high priority on supporting school leaders. They are aware that pastoral support is a strength, but they are less knowledgeable about the curriculum and how the school is providing for pupils with SEND.

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Nearly all staff feel proud and enjoy working within the school. They feel well supported by leaders. There is a clear strategy to support early career teachers. Some subject leaders feel that increasing subject leader time would benefit curriculum development, monitoring and evaluation. 4 November 2021

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In discussion with the headteacher, the inspectors agreed that improving early reading, the curriculum and provision for pupils with SEND may usefully serve as a focus for the next inspection.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Leaders have ensured that safeguarding is a high priority. Pre-employment checks for new staff are carried out thoroughly.

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Safeguarding

Communication is strong among all staff and any pupil thought to be at risk is identified to the designated safeguarding leads immediately. The assistant headteacher works closely with external agencies to support pupils most in need.

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Safeguarding

Pupils’ mental health has been a focus, and ‘return to school’ support has been effective, resulting in high attendance rates. Pupils have a strong awareness of how to stay safe online and are able to explain the dangers of cyber-bullying and social media.

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Safeguarding

Parents are highly complimentary about the care their children receive.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Some pupils who struggle with reading are not receiving the help that they need. The inability to decode quickly hampers some pupils’ learning in the wider curriculum. Leaders must ensure that the new phonics scheme allows for consistency of provision and guarantees that pupils who do not read well are well supported. Teachers must make certain that reading books are appropriate to the individual needs of each pupil.  Curriculum plans do not precisely set out what pupils need to know and remember over time. This means that teachers are unable to provide pupils with small steps in learning or make checks on what they know. As a result, pupils do not learn the subject well enough. Leaders have started to review and refine curriculum plans with a view to providing a broad and balanced curriculum. They need to ensure that learning is sequenced and clearly sets out what pupils need to know from Reception

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

to Year 6 in each subject.  There is inconsistency in how pupils with SEND are supported. Not all staff are well trained in how to identify and support pupils with additional needs. Frequently, plans and targets are not precisely matched to pupils’ needs. Leaders must ensure that these pupils are quickly identified and have their needs met through appropriate targets and effective teaching. Provision for pupils with SEND needs to be regularly monitored and evaluated by the leader for SEND to ensure that these pupils are gaining the knowledge they should. 4 November 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, 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 in March 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.

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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. 4 November 2021

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Website www.bradleysbothcpschool.org.uk Date of previous inspection 9 March 2016, under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The school is smaller than the average-size primary school. The number of pupils on roll has fallen since the last inspection. There are currently five mixed-age classes.  Since the previous inspection, there have been significant staffing changes. These include a new subject leader for English and an early career teacher. There have also been several appointments to the governing body, including a new chair of governors. The previous chair of governors is now the vice-chair.

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Information about this inspection

 This is the first routine inspection the school received since the COVID-19 pandemic began. Inspectors discussed the impact of the pandemic with schools leaders and have taken this into account in their evaluation.  Inspectors spoke with the headteacher and other members of staff. They also spoke with pupils about their work and their school. The lead inspector spoke to members of the governing body, while the team inspector sought the views of parents and a representative of the local authority. 4 November 2021

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 The lead inspector reviewed a range of documentation about safeguarding, including the employment checks undertaken when staff are appointed.  The lead inspector considered 50 responses to the online survey, Ofsted Parent View. The lead inspector also considered 16 responses to Ofsted’s online staff survey and 92 responses to Ofsted’s online pupil survey.  Subjects considered in depth as part of this inspection were reading, science and music. This involved discussions with subject leaders, teachers and pupils; visits to lessons; reviewing pupils’ work; and listening to pupils read.  Inspectors monitored pupils’ behaviour around school and during lessons. They also met with groups of pupils to hear their views about school life.

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Inspection team

Richard Knowles, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector

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Inspection team

Jane Nolan Ofsted Inspector 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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