Giffards Primary School

Inspection of a good school: Giffards Primary School Queen Elizabeth Drive, Corringham, Stanford-le-Hope, Essex SS17 7TG

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Outcome

Giffards Primary School continues to be a good school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The pupils at Giffards Primary School are walking, talking examples of the school’s values, particularly being caring and respectful. They build warm, supportive relationships with staff.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are keen to achieve well. They enjoy being quizzed about their learning. This is because leaders have designed an interesting curriculum that teachers deliver well.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils’ access to effective remote learning has helped many to keep up with their education. Parents report positively on this aspect of the school’s curriculum. The pupils needing to catch up enjoy their after-school tuition.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils talk excitedly about the broad offer of extra-curricular clubs. They particularly enjoy boarding the school’s minibus to participate in inter-school competitions.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils know about bullying. However, they have to think long and hard about a time when they saw it happening at their school. Pupils say that they can turn to any member of staff if they have a problem and the adult will help them.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Because of all this and more, pupils feel happy and safe in this school.

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

Leaders’ accurate evaluation informs incisive curriculum development. Leaders ensure that curriculum plans clearly map out pupils’ learning journey in all subject areas. Teachers use these plans to arrange appropriate activities for pupils. This includes in the early years, where the activities children complete complement the information shared by staff through storybooks and carpet time. These help pupils embed facts and vocabulary. For example, pupils in Year 3 were expert in all things prehistoric Britain, while pupils in Years 1 and 5 could not be caught out with their knowledge of number. 29 and 30 March 2022

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The phonics programme works well. Leaders organise helpful training for staff. Curriculum plans help teachers introduce the sounds letters make in a sensible order. The programme has hooks which pupils recognise in the books they receive. This assists pupils to read with increasing fluency. Those pupils needing extra tuition are quickly spotted and supported.

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Across the curriculum, leaders have considered assessment practices carefully. There are efficient ways to check what knowledge pupils know by the end of a sequence of lessons. Teachers use these to inform upcoming lessons. However, although staff have received training, they do not always use strategies for assessing pupils within lessons well. Sometimes, they do not quickly spot and respond to those pupils who have misunderstood.

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Provision for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) works well. Leaders oversee efficient systems for identifying and supporting pupils. Teachers know how to set targets that are achievable and measurable. This helps to evidence the progress being made by pupils with SEND. Staff also make reasonable adjustments to clubs and trips so all pupils can take part.

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Pupils behave well. Children in the early years want to have a go at tasks and are resilient when making mistakes. Pupils focus well and support each other in lessons and at breaktimes and lunchtimes. Many pupils spoke positively about their friendships and the enjoyable activities they can access in school to socialise with peers. Leaders support staff to organise thoughtful provision for any pupil needing extra help to follow the school rules.

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The school’s approach to pupils’ wider personal development is well considered. Along with extra-curricular clubs, of which there are many, there are frequent opportunities for pupils to engage in community events. For example, pupils have created crowns to feature in an upcoming celebration of the Queen’s platinum jubilee and the school council has been invited to open a local supermarket. These opportunities allow pupils to practise speaking or singing in public to build their confidence.

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Leaders, including governors, support each other and their staff well. Staff speak positively about the training and support they receive. They can give many examples of how leaders ensure they have a manageable workload. Governors rightly point out that this probably explains why staff turnover at the school is so low. Governors question the information they receive. They visit the school to assure themselves that what leaders are sharing is in place and working well. The parents who completed the Ofsted Parent View questionnaire also speak well about the hardworking staff. They know that their children benefit from being in a school run by a dedicated team of professionals.

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In discussion with the headteacher, the inspector agreed that how teachers make assessments in lessons and use these to inform teaching may usefully serve as a focus for the next inspection. 29 and 30 March 2022

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Leaders oversee the necessary pre-appointment checks on staff. They work very closely with children’s services to ensure vulnerable pupils and their families receive the support they need. Leaders train staff well to identify those pupils who may be at risk of harm. Staff speak confidently about their respective responsibilities in this regard. They know how to follow school procedure to report their concerns. Pupils are taught well about how to keep safe. They can give examples of how they stay safe online, such as reporting and blocking unkind users, and how they stay safe offline, including how to cross the road safely. Pupils also know how to share their worries with staff in school.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Not all staff respond efficiently to pupils’ difficulties in class. As a result, some pupils do not receive timely and suitable help to overcome misconceptions. Leaders must organise a programme of training and monitoring to strengthen staff’s knowledge of assessment.

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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 March 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. 29 and 30 March 2022

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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. 29 and 30 March 2022

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School details

Inspection number 10212481 Type of school Primary

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School details

Website www.giffardsprimary.thurrock.sch.uk

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School details

Date of previous inspection 26 November 2020, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The school became an academy in 2014. It is not part of a multi-academy trust. The school works collaboratively with a group of primary academy schools in Thurrock, which are also not part of any multi-academy trust.  The school is larger than the average primary school. It has an above average proportion of pupils with SEND.  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 his evaluation of the school.  The inspector held meetings with the headteacher, the deputy headteacher, the assistant headteachers, and the chair of trust and a trustee.  The inspector carried out deep dives in these subjects: early reading, mathematics and history. For each deep dive, the inspector discussed the curriculum with subject 29 and 30 March 2022

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leaders, visited a sample of lessons, spoke to teachers, spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work. The inspector also listened to a sample of pupils read to a familiar adult.  To inspect safeguarding, the inspector met with the designated safeguarding lead to review records. The inspector also met with the school business manager to scrutinise the single central record of recruitment and vetting checks. The inspector spoke with trustees, teachers and pupils as well.  The inspector reviewed a range of other school documents and policies, including the school improvement plan, the school self-evaluation form and records of meetings.  The inspector spent time observing and speaking to pupils. The inspector also considered the 81 responses to Ofsted’s pupil questionnaire.  The inspector gathered parents’ views by reviewing the 25 responses and 12 free-text responses submitted to the online survey, Ofsted Parent View. The inspector also

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viewed the responses to the school’s own parent survey.  The inspector spoke to several members of staff to gather their views. The inspector also took account of the 30 responses to Ofsted’s staff survey.

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Inspection team

Daniel Short, lead inspector Her Majesty's Inspector 29 and 30 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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