Longfields Primary and Nursery School

Inspection of a good school: Longfields Primary and Nursery School Longfields, Bicester, Oxfordshire OX26 6QL

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Inspection dates: 16 and 17 February 2022

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Outcome

Longfields Primary and Nursery School continues to be a good school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Longfields is a happy school where everyone is welcomed and feels included. Pupils enjoy learning and playing together and everyone understands the school’s values of ‘respect, honesty and perseverance’. Older pupils thoroughly enjoy looking after younger pupils at breaktimes.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Leaders are aspirational for all pupils, including disadvantaged pupils and those pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Pupils appreciate the experiences that enrich their learning, such as the strong links the school has with national and local theatre companies. Pupils are proud of the leadership roles they hold, such as play leaders and school councillors. They enjoy taking part in fundraising activities.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils behave well. They are polite and well-mannered. Pupils play and learn in a calm and orderly environment. There is an atmosphere of mutual respect and fairness. Pupils feel safe because staff care for them and look after them well. Bullying seldom happens and pupils know that it is unacceptable. However, if bullying does happen, pupils are confident that teachers will sort it out quickly.

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

Leaders have designed an ambitious curriculum that supports pupils, including those with SEND, to achieve highly. They have organised learning so that pupils, including children in the early years, build on what they already know. For example, well-planned displays in the Reception Year help children to learn about the passing of time. Pupils in key stage 1 build on their understanding of the past using historical timelines.

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

Teachers have secure knowledge of subject content, which they use to deliver most learning effectively. They are clear about what pupils should be learning and when this should happen. In most subjects, teachers revisit previous learning as a matter of routine. They carefully check how much pupils know and remember. This helps pupils to 16 and 17 February 2022

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remember earlier learning and deepen their knowledge and understanding over time. For example, in mathematics, pupils practise recalling multiplication facts regularly. They learn the correct mathematical vocabulary so that they can explain their reasoning precisely. As a result, pupils in Year 6 can explain how their fluency with multiplication tables and inverse operations helps them to tackle algebraic problems. However, in a small number of subjects in key stage 2, teachers do not always check how much pupils know and remember precisely enough. They do not always adapt the curriculum sufficiently to help all pupils learn as well as they could.

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Learning to read is a top priority. Leaders have thought carefully about how they have structured the reading curriculum, starting in the Nursery. They have adapted the reading curriculum to reflect the interests, languages and cultures of all pupils at Longfields. As soon as children join the school in the early years, they start to develop their phonic knowledge. Pupils practise their reading frequently. They are supported by highly skilled staff. The books pupils read are matched closely to the sounds that they know. Pupils who fall behind with their reading are identified quickly by staff. These pupils receive effective support to help them to catch up.

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Opportunities for pupils’ wider development are well established. Pupils take part in local sporting events, for instance, through their support for the national women’s football team at Wembley Stadium. All pupils are taught strategies for keeping mentally and physically healthy. For example, all pupils in the school have completed first-aid training. Pupils have opportunities to meet local professionals to talk about their career aspirations. As a result, they are well prepared for the next stage of their life journey.

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Staff have high expectations for pupils’ behaviour. Pupils work hard in class. They listen carefully to their teachers. This sensible behaviour helps everyone to get on with their learning.

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Leaders ensure that pupils with SEND are identified early and are supported effectively. Staff are knowledgeable and they understand how to meet the needs of these pupils. Leaders work closely with a range of external agencies, and parents and carers, to ensure that pupils with SEND benefit from the help that they need.

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Governors know about all the aspects of the school’s work. They ask leaders for a range of important information, for example about the curriculum and about safeguarding. This information helps governors to know what the school does well and where things need to improve. Leaders carefully balance their desire for further improvements with consideration of staff’s well-being. Staff appreciate this.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Staff receive regular training in a range of safeguarding matters. They know how to recognise signs of abuse or neglect in pupils. Leaders make sure that all staff know how to report any concerns they have about a pupil’s welfare. Leaders and staff have good relationships with parents and with a range of external agencies. This enables them to get 16 and 17 February 2022

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extra help for families who need it. The curriculum helps pupils to learn how to keep themselves safe. For example, they know how to use the internet safely, and know about the dangers of sharing personal information.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 In a few of the foundation subjects in key stage 2, teachers do not check precisely how much pupils already know and remember. They do not adapt the curriculum sufficiently well. This means that some pupils, at times, are not building their knowledge and skills quite as well as they could be. Leaders should ensure that, across all foundation subjects in key stage 2, assessment is used effectively to check how well pupils are learning. Leaders should ensure that the necessary adaptations to the curriculum are made so that the curriculum is implemented equally well across all subjects.

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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 second section 8 inspection since we judged the school to be good in November 2012.

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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 . 16 and 17 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. 16 and 17 February 2022

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Chair of governing body Tracey Richardson

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School details

Date of previous inspection 22 February 2017, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The school does not currently use any alternative provision.

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Information about this inspection

 This was the first routine inspection the school received since the COVID-19 pandemic began. The inspector discussed the impact of the pandemic with leaders and has taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  The inspector carried out deep dives in these subjects: early reading, mathematics and history. For each deep dive, the inspector met subject leaders, looked at curriculum plans, visited a sample of lessons, spoke to teachers, spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work.  The inspector observed some pupils reading to a familiar adult.  The inspector also looked at curriculum planning and spoke to leaders about some other subjects. 16 and 17 February 2022

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 The inspector talked to pupils about school life. She also talked to a few parents at the school gate. The inspector took into account the responses to Ofsted Parent View and to the staff and pupil questionnaires.  The inspector met with the headteacher, the deputy headteacher, the special educational needs and disabilities coordinator, curriculum and subject leaders and governors. The inspector also met with a representative from the local authority.  The inspector looked at a range of documentation and spoke with leaders, staff and pupils in order to evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding.

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Inspection team

Clare Morgan, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector 16 and 17 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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