Outwoods Primary School

Inspection of a good school: Outwoods Primary School Harehedge Lane, Horninglow, Burton-on-Trent, Staffordshire DE13 0AS

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Outcome

Outwoods Primary School continues to be a good school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Outwoods is a caring school. Adults go the extra mile to make sure that pupils are well looked after. Parents and carers value this support. This comment from a parent that, ‘my children look forward to school every day’, expresses a view that is shared by many others.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school is calm and orderly. Relationships between adults and pupils are respectful. On the odd times that behaviour interrupts learning, pupils say that there is a fair system in place to deal with it. Bullying is rare. If it does happen, adults deal with it effectively. If pupils are upset, they say that there is someone in school who will help them. As a result, pupils are happy.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Leaders are ambitious for what pupils can achieve. Adults encourage pupils to think about their future. This starts in Nursery, when children learn about people who help us. A careers fair for pupils in Years 5 and 6 helps pupils to learn about different professions. For example, they meet female engineers and male nurses.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy the clubs the school offers. This includes clubs for drama, hockey and football. Adults teach pupils how to become good citizens. Pupils support their community by bringing in food for the local food bank. They can take on roles and responsibilities such as those of sports leader or being a member of the eco-council.

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

All pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), study a wide range of subjects. Leaders think carefully about the curriculum. As a result, some subject leaders have recently introduced new schemes of work. The new schemes are well designed and well sequenced. It is too early to see the difference this has made to pupils’ progress. In addition, some foundation subject areas have subject leaders who are new to this role. These new leaders have not yet had the opportunity to fully develop their knowledge and skills so that they can lead their subjects well. 8 and 9 February 2022

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Reading is a priority for the school. All staff have regular training. Adults effectively promote a love of reading. This starts in Nursery, where weekly activities link to the book that children are currently reading. An effective reading programme is in place, beginning in early years. Leaders regularly check how well pupils are learning to read. When pupils are falling behind, they act quickly to give pupils extra help. As a result, pupils are becoming confident, fluent readers.

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Pupils with SEND achieve well. Leaders quickly identify pupils who need extra help. For example, in Nursery, many children have extra support to develop their speech and language. Some pupils in key stages 1 and 2 have specialist teaching in the ‘Owls’ unit. This includes activities in the kitchen to develop their life skills. As a result, pupils’ confidence and social interaction skills are improving.

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Children in early years get off to a good start. Adults plan learning activities that will help to develop children’s literacy and numeracy effectively. In Nursery, for example, adults ask children questions about how many toy elephants they are playing with and ask them to compare their sizes. In Reception, phonics lessons have the same structure as those in key stage 1. Adults teach children effective ways to read and write words. This prepares them well for the next stage.

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Pupils are well prepared for life in modern Britain. For example, visits to the local church and celebrations of the Muslim festival of Eid help pupils to develop an understanding of different faiths and religions. Displays around the school and worksheets used in lessons reflect the school’s multicultural community.

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The school supports pupils to develop strength of character well. For example, in mathematics lessons, adults and pupils actively encourage each other to learn from each other’s mistakes. This develops pupils’ resilience.

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Leaders take care of their staff. Staff feel supported by leaders with both professional and personal issues. Leaders have also provided staff with a self-care booklet to help with their well-being. As a result, all staff say that they enjoy working at the school and are proud to be members of staff.

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Trustees and governors are committed to the school and its pupils. For example, trustees make sure that the school has sufficient funding so that all pupils have devices for remote learning. Minutes of meetings show how governors hold leaders to account for their work. For example, they insisted that leaders provided them with further information before they recommended the school’s proposed budget to the members’ board.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

There is a strong safeguarding culture in the school. Adults take pupils’ welfare seriously. Staff receive regular training. Leaders routinely follow up concerns and seek additional advice and support from external agencies. This means that families get the support they need when they need it. Parents value this support. 8 and 9 February 2022

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The school completes the appropriate checks on all adults who work at, or visit, the school. Staff files are detailed and orderly.

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Pupils are taught how to keep themselves safe through the curriculum. This includes taking part in e-safety day. As a result, pupils say that they feel safe.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 New schemes of work have not been fully implemented in the foundation subjects. Consequently, pupils learn more effectively in some subjects than in others. Leaders need to ensure that all schemes of work are embedded across the curriculum.  Some subject leaders have not had enough time to develop some of the appropriate skills and knowledge they need to fulfil their new role. Consequently, they are not able to fully monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of their subject area successfully. Senior leaders should continue to support subject leaders to develop the appropriate skills and knowledge to be able to monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of their subject areas successfully.

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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 predecessor school, Outwoods Primary School, to be good in May 2013.

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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 . 8 and 9 February 2022

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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. 8 and 9 February 2022

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School details

Date of previous inspection Not previously inspected

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Information about this school

 Outwoods Primary School converted to become an academy school in November 2017. When its predecessor school of the same name was last inspected by Ofsted, it was judged to be good overall.  Outwoods Primary School is part of the Central Co-operative Learning Trust. The trust consists of eight schools.  The school does not use alternative provision.

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Information about this inspection

This was the first routine inspection the school had received since COVID-19 pandemic began. The inspector discussed the impact of the pandemic with leaders, and has taken this into account in her evaluation.

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Information about this inspection

 The inspector met with the headteacher, other senior leaders, staff, members of the governing body (including the chair), and trustees, including the chair and the chief executive officer of the trust.  The inspector carried out deep dives in reading, mathematics and physical education. For each deep dive, the inspector discussed the curriculum with subject leaders, visited 8 and 9 February 2022

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a sample of lessons, spoke to teachers, spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work.  The inspector talked to pupils at unstructured times during the day.  The inspector evaluated a range of school documents and looked at information on the school’s website.  The inspector checked the single central record and the procedures for the recruitment of staff. She also met with the school’s designated safeguarding lead.  The inspector reviewed the responses to Ofsted’s staff survey and considered the responses to the online questionnaire, Ofsted Parent View, including free-text responses.

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Inspection team

Lesley Yates, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector 8 and 9 February 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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