Beckwithshaw Community Primary School

Inspection of Beckwithshaw Community Primary School Church Row, Beckwithshaw, Harrogate, North Yorkshire, HG3 1QW

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Inspection dates: 9 and 10 December 2021

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Overall effectiveness Inadequate

The quality of education Inadequate Behaviour and attitudes Good Personal development Requires improvement Leadership and management Inadequate Early years provision Requires improvement Previous inspection grade Good 9 and 10 December 2021

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What is it like to attend this school?

Leaders have not established an ambitious curriculum. The poorly planned curriculum means that pupils do not achieve well in a range of subjects. Pupils, including those in early years and some pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), are not supported to gain the knowledge and skills that they need to prepare them for the next stage of their learning. The quality of education pupils receive is inadequate.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy coming to school. At break they happily play together, using equipment sensibly and safely. Pupils behave well in lessons. They apply the ‘three steps’ if they risk falling out with others. This prevents the situation from escalating further. They know to speak to a trusted adult if they are worried or upset and how to stay safe online.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils understand the importance of tolerance and respect. They know that teachers expect them always to do their best. Pupils try to live by the ‘six spirits of the Olympics’, which include qualities such as determination, self-respect, honesty and teamwork. Pupils have the chance to develop leadership skills through being a digital leader, sports leader, or part of the school council. However, the curriculum for pupils’ personal development is not planned well so that pupils’ knowledge builds in an age-appropriate way over time.

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better?

Weaknesses in leadership over time have resulted in a poorly planned curriculum. Although the governing body has recently secured new interim senior leaders, it is too early to see whether these temporary leaders are making a positive difference.

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better?

Overall, the curriculum is not fit for purpose. Leaders have not identified the essential knowledge and skills that pupils need to learn in many subjects. Teachers are left on their own to devise content and to find suitable resources to deliver it. Pupils are not supported to connect new learning to what they already know and can do. As a result, pupils are unable to build up their subject knowledge and skills over time. Assessment systems are superficial. They do not enable teachers to plan sequences of lessons based on what pupils know and can do. In mixed-age classes, some pupils are taught content that is either far too difficult or far too easy. In a range of subjects, pupils do not achieve as well as they should.

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better?

In the Reception class, teachers are unclear about what children must know or be able to do by the end of Reception Year. Children are not well prepared for Year 1. Despite this, children in Reception class work and play happily together. Teachers and teaching assistants provide them with engaging play activities which develop their confidence. Children have positive attitudes and behave well. 9 and 10 December 2021

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Recently appointed subject leaders are aware of the deep-rooted problems with the school’s curriculum. However, they lack the training they need and the time to fulfil their role and to make the necessary changes to improve the quality of education.

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The quality of the school’s support for pupils with SEND is variable. Teaching approaches are not appropriately adapted so that they assist pupils in learning new knowledge and skills. However, those pupils with an education, health and care plan are supported more effectively because they receive individual one-to-one assistance.

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Unlike other aspects of the curriculum, the phonics programme is planned well. It enables staff to support pupils to develop their phonic knowledge and skills effectively. Pupils learn how to match letters to sounds and blend them in words. The books given to pupils to practise their reading are well matched to their phonics knowledge. They read them with confidence and understanding.

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The content of the personal, social, health, and economic education programme is not sequenced well for some pupils in mixed-age classes. For these pupils, new content does not link or build on what they know. Some content is not age appropriate. Additional activities for pupils, including activities designed to promote their spiritual, moral, social, and cultural development (SMSC) are random and disjointed.

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Staff have high expectations of pupils’ behaviour and conduct. In lessons pupils show good levels of concentration and listen to instructions. Adults quickly address any low-level disruption. Pupils and staff do not tolerate bullying. At lunchtimes, pupils’ behaviour is sociable and orderly, despite the limited space available.

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Governors, until recently, have failed to secure sufficient leadership at the school. The leadership vacuum has had a negative impact on the quality of education provided. It has also meant that staff have excessive workloads. Staff morale is low.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Interim leaders have very recently made sure that all safeguarding checks on new staff are in place. Staff have increasing confidence in using the detailed online record-keeping system. Safeguarding training is thorough and up to date. Staff know how to spot concerns about pupils. Systems to report and record these concerns are secure. Leaders work well with outside agencies to support pupils. The link safeguarding governor makes regular checks on safeguarding arrangements. Safeguarding is regularly included in newsletters to parents. 9 and 10 December 2021

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Leaders have not set out clearly the subject knowledge they want pupils to learn. Teachers are unsure what they are expected to teach in some subjects. The curriculum is not well taught and pupils cannot remember what they have learned in any depth, nor connect it to previous learning. Leaders should make sure that the most important knowledge is identified, planned and sequenced in each subject. Teachers should be supported to deliver the curriculum in a way that helps pupils to know and remember more in the subjects they study.  Subject leaders are not fulfilling their role in leading and overseeing curriculum development. They lack the knowledge, and skills, as well as the time, to make improvements. This means that class teachers receive little or no support and guidance on how to deliver the curriculum. Leaders should ensure that subject leaders are supported to fulfil their roles so that they take a lead in developing

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

the quality of education in their subject areas.  The curriculum in the early years is not well planned. There is not enough clarity about what subject-specific knowledge and skills children in Reception need to secure in order to be ready for Year 1. Leaders must identify what children need to know and do by the time they leave Reception, so that children can develop the foundations they need in a range of areas of learning in readiness for key stage 1.  Leaders have not ensured that suitable assessment systems are in place so that teachers can identify and then address gaps in pupils’ learning. Teachers lack the information they require to adapt teaching approaches to meet pupils’ needs, especially for pupils with SEND. Leaders must devise assessment methods that enable teachers to identify any gaps that pupils have in their knowledge, as well as what adjustments are needed. Assessment should also enable teachers to

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

check the impact of any catch-up support they provide to pupils.  There are weaknesses in the organisation and planning of the personal development curriculum. Opportunities to promote pupils’ SMSC understanding are not systematically planned. The curriculum has not been well sequenced to take account of mixed-age classes. Leaders need to ensure that pupils access a well-planned, well-sequenced curriculum for personal development so that they build appropriate knowledge over time.  Turbulence in leadership over time has led to high staff workloads and low staff morale. Governors should ensure that urgent action is taken to strengthen the leadership throughout the school and to ensure that staff are provided with the support they need to fulfil their roles effectively.  Leaders and those responsible for governance may not appoint early career teachers. 9 and 10 December 2021

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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. 9 and 10 December 2021

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School details

Inspection number 10200414 Type of school Primary

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Chair of the governing body Helen Smith and Helen White

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School details

Headteacher Lisa Jackson-Ward (Executive Headteacher) Website http://www.beckwithshawprimary.org.uk

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School details

Date of previous inspection 29 November 2016, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The school is part of a federation with Kettlesing Felliscliffe Primary School and Ripley Endowed CE Primary School.  Of the four classes in school, three of their teachers took up their posts in September 2021.

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Information about this inspection

The inspectors carried out this inspection under section 8 of the Education Act 2005. We deemed the inspection a section 5 inspection under the same Act.

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Information about this inspection

In accordance with section 44(1) of the Education Act 2005, Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector is of the opinion that this school requires special measures because it is failing to give its pupils an acceptable standard of education and the persons responsible for leading, managing or governing the school are not demonstrating the capacity to secure the necessary improvement in the school. 9 and 10 December 2021

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 This was the first routine inspection the school received since the COVID-19 pandemic began. The inspectors discussed the impact of the pandemic with school leaders and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  The executive headteacher was absent during the inspection.  The interim executive headteacher and interim head of school took up their posts in October 2021.  Meetings were held with the interim executive headteacher, the interim head of school, teachers, and teaching assistants. Inspectors also met four members of the local governing body. A meeting was held with the deputy director of education for North Yorkshire and a senior educational adviser.  Deep dives were carried out in reading, mathematics, science and geography. For each deep dive, inspectors met with subject leaders, looked at curriculum plans, visited a sample of lessons, spoke to teachers and teaching assistants, spoke to some

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pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work. An inspector also listened to some pupils read.  The inspectors observed pupils’ behaviour during lesson visits and at break and lunchtime. They spoke to pupils about their views on behaviour and a group of pupils gave an inspector a guided tour of the school.  Safeguarding records, including the single central record, were reviewed. The inspectors talked to pupils, governors and staff about their views of safeguarding.  The views of 20 parents who responded to Ofsted’s questionnaire, Ofsted Parent View, were considered.  The inspectors met with staff to discuss their well-being and workload. Inspectors considered the three responses to Ofsted’s staff survey.

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Inspection team

Phil Scott, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector

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Inspection team

Matthew Vellensworth Her Majesty’s Inspector 9 and 10 December 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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