Lansdowne Primary Academy

Inspection of Lansdowne Primary Academy Lansdowne Road, Tilbury, Essex, RM18 7QB

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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 Good 9 and 10 March 2022

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are attending an ever-improving school. They gain a lot from the curriculum on offer, particularly as their teachers have been trained well by the leaders in the trust. Those pupils needing more support receive it quickly, including extra tuition after school to help them keep up with their peers.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Many pupils relish opportunities to take on responsibility in school, be it through the school council or as an eco-warrior. They like the range of after-school clubs they can attend, such as arts and crafts, boxing and golf.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are supportive of one another. It does not take long to find a pupil offering mature assistance, such as helping a peer find an answer instead of simply telling it to them. Pupils play kindly with one another. They like the range of activities available at break and lunchtime - ones they selected through a democratic vote. Pupils know bullying can occur, but they can use the school’s anti-bullying flowchart to make it stop. In this way, pupils feel supported and listened to by staff. This makes them feel happy and safe.

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better?

Recently, leaders, including governors, made changes at the school. They deployed leaders within the trust to ensure rapid development. Staff, parents and pupils all give examples of how these recent improvements made the school better. Staff feel incredibly well supported by leaders. They appreciate the strong focus on their professional development and well-being. Parents appreciate the support they and their children receive from dedicated, kind staff.

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better?

The curriculum on offer is well considered. Leaders have identified and sequenced the knowledge teachers must teach to pupils. Teachers benefit greatly from the curriculum plans produced by leaders from the trust. Teachers use these to arrange appropriate activities for pupils to complete. These include a strong focus on pupils working digitally to prepare them for the modern world.

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better?

Pupils learn an effective early reading curriculum. Staff ensure pupils develop their knowledge of letters and the sounds they make in words. Children receive books that contain words they can read. This helps them to read fluently and confidently.

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better?

Assessment is mostly working well. Having received training, teachers know how to assess pupils’ learning within lessons. Most teachers respond to their observations quickly to meet the needs of pupils. This is also the case in subjects like mathematics, where teachers test pupils carefully. Teachers use the results to identify what knowledge pupils do not know to inform their teaching. This effective practice is not seen in all subjects. For some subjects, teachers assess pupils against broad statements. This does not help them identify what specific knowledge pupils 9 and 10 March 2022

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have learned. In these subjects, pupils are less able to recall words and concepts they should know.

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Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) receive suitable support. The pupils who access the specially resourced provision for pupils with SEND each have an ambitious support plan. Leaders overseeing support for pupils with SEND do so rigorously to ensure the support helps pupils achieve their best.

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Staff teach a well-sequenced curriculum to children in the early years. Children make sound progress because staff organise ambitious activities matched to their needs. Children are self-motivated and work keenly at the tasks adults provide and the ones they initiate themselves. Adults build positive relationships with children. Children learn how to express themselves confidently. As such, there is a happy, focused environment in each Nursery and Reception class. Not all teachers in key stages 1 and 2 know how the early years curriculum links to the curriculum they teach. This means some teachers miss opportunities to build on pupils’ prior learning.

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Pupils behave well. They know the rewards and sanctions that are in place. Staff use these consistently. The ‘learning zone’ helps staff to structure their expectations clearly and positively.

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Previously, pupils’ attendance was too low at the school. Leaders have adopted a more robust approach and this is working well. In the context of the pandemic, pupils’ attendance has improved.

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Pupils access a broad range of experiences to aid their personal development. Through the curriculum, they learn about the many ways people may be different. Pupils speak knowledgeably and kindly about this. Pupils have plenty of opportunities to exercise and learn how to be healthy. Moving forwards, leaders have plans to develop pupils’ aspirations by inviting visitors into school to teach pupils about different careers.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Governors ensure safer recruitment checks are completed. Staff overseeing the single central record of recruitment and vetting checks do so meticulously.

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Safeguarding

All staff receive training that ensures they are knowledgeable and vigilant to keep pupils safe from harm. Leaders are resolute in managing support for vulnerable pupils and their families.

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Safeguarding

Leaders run a programme of assemblies that teach pupils how to stay safe. The content of these assemblies is chosen carefully to meet the needs of the pupils, such as railway safety. If they have a worry, pupils know how to use their ‘network hand’ to call upon the support of a trusted adult. 9 and 10 March 2022

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 For some subjects, there is a discrepancy between the broad statements teachers assess pupils against and the precise knowledge pupils must learn. This makes it difficult for teachers to use assessment to inform their teaching. Some pupils lack a secure understanding because of this. Leaders must ensure the systems for assessment help teachers check what knowledge pupils have learned to inform their teaching.  Not all staff know what children in the early years learn and how this links to the curriculum in Year 1 and beyond. This means teachers in key stages 1 and 2 cannot help pupils strengthen their understanding by making links to knowledge learned in the early years. Leaders must ensure all teachers know how the curriculum is sequenced from Nursery to Year 6, so they may help pupils build knowledge well.

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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 March 2022

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School details

Inspection number 10212352 Type of school Primary

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School details

Date of previous inspection 20 – 21 July 2016, under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The school is part of the Gateway Learning Community - a multi-academy trust.  The headteacher is the executive headteacher of Lansdowne Primary Academy and the Gateway Primary Free School.  The school is much larger than the average primary school.  The school has a high proportion of disadvantaged pupils and pupils with SEND.  The school has a specially resourced provision for pupils with SEND.  The school does not make use of any alternative provision.

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Information about this inspection

The inspectors carried out this inspection under section 5 of the Education Act 2005.  This was the first routine inspection the school received since the pandemic began. Inspectors discussed the impact of the pandemic with leaders and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  Inspectors held meetings with leaders, including the chief executive officer, deputy chief executive officer, head of school, deputy heads of school, assistant 9 and 10 March 2022

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heads of school, inclusion manager, year group leads and curriculum leads working within the trust. The lead inspector also held meetings with trustees and a parent governor.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: early reading, mathematics, science, art, history and physical education.  For each deep dive, inspectors met with subject leads, looked at curriculum plans, visited a sample of lessons, spoke to teachers and teaching assistants, spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work. The lead inspector also listened to a sample of pupils read to a familiar adult.  Inspectors also spoke to leaders about the curriculum in some other subjects.  Inspectors reviewed a range of other school documentation and policies, including records of meetings.  To inspect safeguarding, the lead inspector spoke to the designated safeguarding lead and a deputy designated safeguarding lead. The lead inspector viewed

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records relating to safeguarding and reviewed the single central record of recruitment and vetting checks. Inspectors also spoke with teachers, support staff and pupils.  Inspectors spent time observing and speaking to pupils. Inspectors also considered the 241 responses to Ofsted’s pupil survey.  Inspectors gathered parents’ views by reviewing the 105 responses and 40 free- text responses submitted to the online survey, Ofsted Parent View.  Inspectors gathered staff members’ views by speaking to several of them. Inspectors also took account of the 50 responses to Ofsted’s staff survey.

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Inspection team

Daniel Short, lead inspector Her Majesty's Inspector

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Inspection team

Simon Harbrow Ofsted Inspector 9 and 10 March 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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