Wembury Primary School

Inspection of a good school: Wembury Primary School Knighton Road, Wembury, Plymouth, Devon PL9 0EB

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Inspection dates: 11 and 12 January 2022

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Outcome

Wembury Primary School continues to be a good school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Wembury Primary School is an inclusive and welcoming school. Leaders have established a positive culture for learning. Pupils speak positively about the school and say that they are proud to be part of this community. Pupils say that they enjoy coming to school and consequently attend well. Parents are overwhelmingly positive about the school. They acknowledge the work of all staff to create a nurturing environment in which they say their children flourish.

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What is it like to attend this school?

There are well-established routines in and out of lessons. Pupils’ behaviour is exemplary. Teachers manage behaviour successfully. As a result, pupils say that they feel encouraged to behave well. Pupils say that incidents of bullying are rare, but when it does occur, staff deal with it quickly and effectively.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Leaders have high expectations for all pupils. Leaders and teachers know pupils well. They use this knowledge to offer bespoke support, intervention and challenge to ensure all pupils learn well. However, some parents say that they would like more timely information about their children’s progress throughout the year.

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

Leaders at all levels are committed and ambitious for the school. Governors and trust leaders meet with school leaders regularly. They know what the school does well and what it needs to improve. With the support of the trust, work is underway to continue to drive forward improvements.

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

Leaders have focused on curriculum redevelopment. Significant progress has been made in core subjects such as mathematics. In mathematics, a well-organised curriculum supports pupils to learn well. Teachers know what pupils should learn and in what order. As a result, pupils are well prepared for each stage of their learning. Teachers check what pupils know and can do and adapt their teaching appropriately. Leaders have plans in place to ensure pupils undertake more challenging problem-solving tasks. 11 and 12 January 2022

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Early reading is prioritised in the early years foundation stage (EYFS) and this strong practice is replicated in key stage 1. The programme is well structured, ensuring pupils build their phonic knowledge systematically over time. As a result, all children learn to read well. Teachers and leaders use assessment well to check pupils’ progress. Staff are timely in identifying gaps in children’s knowledge. When necessary, they provide extra support to pupils, so they catch up quickly. However, leaders do not undertake regular monitoring of the additional support offered. As a result, there are some inconsistencies in delivery. Teachers are highly committed. They spend extra time preparing resources for the early reading programme. This preparation increases their workload. Leaders are aware of this and are working with staff to address it.

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The wider curriculum planning is still in its infancy. Leaders have prioritised the history and geography curriculums this academic year. Subject leaders are working with the trust to develop planning further. Current curriculum planning identifies what all pupils will learn and in what order. However, this is in the early stages, and further refinement is needed.

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Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities are well supported in their learning. Leaders know these pupils well. They use this knowledge to ensure that each pupil’s provision is appropriate and ambitious. Leaders check the progress of pupils regularly. However, they do not have clear systems to check the effectiveness of the support provided. As a result, leaders cannot provide a robust evaluation of the current provision.

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Pupils say that they enjoy a range of extra-curricular activities, including sports and music. The COVID-19 pandemic has affected some of these activities. Pupils and parents say that they would like a broader range of opportunities. The school has plans to offer more where possible in the future.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Staff at all levels are aware of their duty to safeguard pupils. They know the importance of their role and are up to date with current guidance and legislation. Staff know the school’s policies and systems. When they have concerns, they report them in a timely manner. Leaders keep a clear record of these concerns. When necessary, leaders work with outside agencies and specialists to ensure pupils and families get the support they need.

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Safeguarding

Pupils say that they feel safe in school. They are aware of many of the risks they face. Pupils know who to talk to if they have any concerns.

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 In the wider curriculum, curriculum plans are not yet fully implemented. It is unclear what important knowledge, concepts or principles pupils will learn and in what order. Leaders need to continue to develop the subject knowledge and pedagogical knowledge of teachers to drive forward curriculum redevelopment.  Monitoring in some areas is not robust enough. This limits leaders’ ability to evaluate the impact of their actions and have clear strategic oversight of their progress. Leaders need to ensure that regular quality assurance processes draw on a range of information, to help them objectively evaluate their work and support ongoing school development.  There are inconsistencies in the support given to pupils. Some staff do not have the pedagogical knowledge to support pupils’ learning appropriately. Leaders need to support staff to ensure that they deliver a high standard of support to pupils.

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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, Wembury Primary School, to be good in February 2017.

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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. 11 and 12 January 2022

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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. 11 and 12 January 2022

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School details

Inspection number 10212155 Type of school Primary

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School details

Date of previous inspection 7 February 2017, under the Education Act

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Information about this school

 The school is part of Westcountry Schools Trust. It became an academy in 2017.  There is a breakfast and after-school club for pupils who attend the school.  The school does not use alternative provision.

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Information about this inspection

 This was the first routine inspection the school received since the COVID-19 pandemic begun. The inspector discussed the impact of the pandemic with leaders and has taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  The inspector met with the headteacher, subject leaders, groups of teaching and support staff, representatives from the governing body, including the chair, the chair of trustees and the director of education of the multi-academy trust.  The inspector conducted deep dives in early reading, mathematics and history. She discussed the curriculum with subject leaders, staff and pupils, visited lessons and looked at pupils’ work.  The inspector listened to pupils in the EYFS and key stages 1 and 2 read to an adult. 11 and 12 January 2022

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 The inspector evaluated the effectiveness of safeguarding. She looked at the school’s single central record, records of concern and at how staff work to keep pupils safe.  The inspector observed pupils’ behaviour in lessons and around the school site. In addition, she met with pupils informally and formally to hear their views.  The inspector considered 61 responses to the Ofsted online survey, Ofsted Parent View, including 47 free-text responses. She also looked at 100 responses to the pupil survey and 27 responses to the staff survey.

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Inspection team

Jen Gibbs, lead inspector Her Majesty’s Inspector 11 and 12 January 2022

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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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