Radstock Primary School

Inspection of Radstock Primary School Radstock Lane, Earley, Reading, Berkshire RG6 5UZ

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Inspection dates: 12 and 13 January 2022

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Overall effectiveness Good

The quality of education Good Behaviour and attitudes Good Personal development Good Leadership and management Good Early years provision Good Previous inspection grade Requires improvement 12 and 13 January 2022

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils, staff and parents describe their school as a happy, nurturing and welcoming community. Pupils are polite and respectful towards each other. Teachers have high expectations of pupils’ behaviour. Pupils say that incidents of bullying or harassment are few and far between. They are confident that if they have a problem, staff will sort things out straight away.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Leaders, staff and governors share a strong vision that pupils should learn how to make a positive difference to society. Older pupils talk knowledgeably about individual liberty and democracy. One pupil said, ‘No one has a right to judge or tell others how to live their life. We are all equally important.’ Diversity and inclusion are celebrated. Pupils are well prepared for life in modern Britain.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils, including the youngest children, learn about healthy relationships and how to look after their mental health. Pupils proudly take on responsibilities such as junior librarians, sports and play buddies, house captains and members of the proactive school council. Leaders provide pupils with a broad range of opportunities to develop their interests, such as after-school sports clubs, learning to play musical instruments and showcasing their talents at national and international competitions.

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better?

Leaders and governors have a clear vision about the education that they want to provide. The curriculum is broad and balanced and meets the needs of all pupils, including children in early years. Staff are adept at identifying pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities and providing them with the help and resources they need to enable them to learn well.

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better?

Overall, the curriculum is interesting and well designed. Leaders have carefully planned the essential knowledge they want pupils to learn and the order in which they want them to learn it. They successfully link what children learn in the early years with the subjects taught in other year groups. In subjects such as computing and physical education (PE), teachers make sure that pupils, and children in early years, build their knowledge well and use their ideas to help them do more. However, details of the content and order of the curriculum in history and geography are not planned as clearly and precisely. Leaders are taking action to address this.

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better?

In English and mathematics, teachers make sure that pupils regularly revisit what they have learned in previous lessons. For example, in mathematics, pupils readily use their prior knowledge of number and calculation to help them solve complex and challenging problems. In early years, children use their knowledge of numbers to help them confidently explore patterns and count from a given number. Consequently, all pupils learn well in mathematics.

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better?

Pupils are confident and fluent readers. Children in Reception Year are introduced to phonics from the word go. Staff use their expert training to deliver the school’s 12 and 13 January 2022

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phonics programme effectively. The books pupils read match the sounds they learn in lessons. When pupils fall behind, they receive efficient help to catch up. Pupils enjoy listening to the stories their teachers read in class. There is a strong love of reading among staff and pupils.

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The provision for pupils’ personal development is shaped by the school’s values. These values, including ownership, determination, kindness and self-belief, are woven through lessons and assemblies. Pupils aim to put these values into practice. For example, they behave well and try hard in lessons. They are also keen to help others by organising fundraising events for charities. Pupils also learn about their rights and responsibilities, both in school and beyond. For instance, they discuss the impact of litter on climate change, or bring joy to the community by singing in the local church.

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Governors are reflective and measured in their work. They show an unfaltering commitment to pupils and staff. Governors know the school well and assure themselves that leaders’ actions to develop a coherent and well-sequenced curriculum in all subjects are robust. Teachers have great confidence in leaders. They recognise that leaders are mindful of their workload and well-being. Staff appreciate this.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Safeguarding is a high priority. There are robust systems in place to keep pupils safe, and prompt action is taken when concerns are raised. All staff are well trained and are alert to the possible risks. They understand and swiftly follow the process for reporting concerns. Governors regularly check and review the systems used to ensure appropriate adults work in school. The curriculum provides opportunities for pupils to gain the knowledge and understanding to keep themselves safe when online.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Leaders have not made sure that the curriculum in history and geography is sufficiently well sequenced. As a result, pupils do not learn as well as they could. However, it is clear that leaders have already taken action to address this. Leaders are also considering what further training is required to help teachers become more expert at delivering the curriculum in history and geography. For this reason, the transitional arrangements have been applied. 12 and 13 January 2022

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How can I feed back my views?

or to 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. 12 and 13 January 2022

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Chair of governing body Professor Andrew Charlton-Perez

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School details

Dates of previous inspection 9 and 10 May 2018, under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The school is currently using one alternative provider.

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Information about this inspection

The inspectors carried out this inspection under section 5 of the Education Act 2005.

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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.  The lead inspector met with four governors, including the chair of the governing body. She also met virtually with a representative from the local authority.  To inspect safeguarding, inspectors checked the single central record of recruitment checks and talked to leaders responsible for safeguarding. Inspectors also talked to a range of staff and pupils.  Inspectors considered responses to the confidential staff survey and spoke to a range of staff about their views of the school. 12 and 13 January 2022

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 Inspectors took account of responses to Ofsted’s Parent View questionnaire, including additional, free-text responses.  Inspectors considered responses to the pupil survey. They met with a range of pupils to discuss their views about the school and talked to pupils informally during social times and in lessons.  Inspectors reviewed a range of documentation, including the school’s self- evaluation and school development plan, pupil premium and catch-up funding plans.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: early reading, mathematics, PE and geography. For each deep dive, inspectors met with subject leaders, looked at curriculum plans, visited a sample of lessons, spoke to teachers, spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at a sample of pupils’ work. The lead inspector also heard a selection of pupils read.

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Inspection team

Shazia Akram, lead inspector Her Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Dan Lambert Her Majesty’s Inspector 12 and 13 January 2022

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