Hilperton Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School

Inspection of a good school: Hilperton Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School Newleaze, Hilperton, Trowbridge, Wiltshire BA14 7SB

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Outcome

Hilperton Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School continues to be a good school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Leaders want the very best for pupils at Hilperton. The school has a caring ethos through which adults teach pupils to be kind. Staff have high expectations of behaviour and learning, and pupils respond well to this. Pupils are polite, courteous and well mannered. There is a calm and orderly atmosphere in school and on the playground.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils say that bullying does sometimes happen. However, they are confident that adults in school will deal with it quickly. Pupils say that there is always an adult with whom they can share any worries. They value the pastoral support and advice offered through ‘time to talk’.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy taking on responsibilities. School councillors and sports leaders take their roles seriously. There is a wide variety of lunchtime and extra-curricular activities available. For example, pupils can play games organised by the sports coach or visit forest school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Despite significant staffing changes, pupils have broad learning experiences, and most pupils enjoy school. Leaders are putting a new curriculum in place. This is raising staff aspirations and pupils are learning more now. However, in previous years, the curriculum did not include everything that pupils needed to know and remember in each subject. Much work is being done to put this right.

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

Leaders have a clear vision for the school. They are outward looking and welcome the challenge they receive from governors. Leaders know the school’s strengths and weaknesses well. However, some parents and carers expressed concerns about the number of staffing changes. 5 and 6 April 2022

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Leaders have prioritised reading. They have identified high-quality texts to enhance the curriculum in each class. Adults read a range of stories to pupils and pupils enjoy listening to them. In early years, adults focus on developing children’s language and vocabulary. They model ambitious vocabulary and ask questions that support children’s language development. The teaching of phonics is systematic and rigorous. It starts when children join the school in early years. Books that pupils read match the phonics that they are learning. This helps them to develop fluency in reading. However, a small minority of pupils need to catch up. Leaders have robust plans in place to address this.

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Leaders’ work to revamp the curriculum is proving successful. Leaders have planned an effective mathematics curriculum from Reception to Year 6. Teaching builds on what pupils know and can do. This helps pupils to draw on their prior knowledge when learning new concepts. Pupils skilfully explain their reasoning when solving problems. Teachers use assessment well to identify where pupils have gaps in their learning. For example, they have prioritised developing pupils’ calculation skills so they can recall number facts quickly. This helps pupils to be able to work out more challenging problems.

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However, in some other subjects, the curriculum does not stipulate the precise knowledge pupils need to know and remember. For example, in history, the curriculum does not support pupils to learn and understand periods of time that they have studied. As a result, pupils do not build on their learning as well as they could.

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Leaders have brought about rapid improvements to the curriculum for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities. Individual plans for pupils have precise targets, and most staff use resources well to make adaptations to their teaching of the curriculum.

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Leaders have ensured that pupils attend school regularly. They have communicated a clear message to families that if pupils are not in school, they are not learning.

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Pupils are friendly and well mannered. The conduct themselves sensibly in the breakfast club, the lunch hall and around the school. Low-level disruption is rare, as pupils know what staff expect of them.

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Pupils recognise that the curriculum broadens their horizons and experiences. Year 6 pupils, in particular, spoke enthusiastically about their learning on a recent residential trip. Staff teach pupils how to lead a healthy lifestyle. Pupils know and understand what makes a healthy relationship. They understand how significant groups of people or events, such as the Bristol Bus Boycott, have influenced change. Pupils say that ‘everyone is welcome’ at their school. They enjoy their leadership positions as sports and school council representatives. Pupils in these positions of responsibility are democratically elected.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Leaders ensure that all staff receive the appropriate safeguarding training. As a result, staff are fully aware of, and follow, the referral process should they have a concern. They record child protection concerns diligently. Leaders follow up any concerns effectively. 5 and 6 April 2022

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Leaders work well with external agencies to make sure that pupils and families are safe. They also ensure that pupils who are in need of extra support are quickly identified. The school’s checks on adults who work with the school are effective.

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Pupils know how to keep themselves safe, including when online. They trust that adults will support them if they have any concerns.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 In some subjects, the knowledge that pupils need to remember is not as well identified as it is in others. This means that pupils have gaps in their knowledge. Leaders need to ensure that they set out clearly in all subjects what pupils need to know and in what order, to help them remember more over time.  Some parents expressed concerns about the number of staffing changes. Leaders need to build on the work that has already started to strengthen links with parents, so that any concerns raised are dealt with quickly.  The school’s curriculum is not yet sufficiently well planned and sequenced in some subjects. However, it is clear from leaders’ actions that they are in the process of bringing this about. Leaders need to complete the process of reviewing the curriculum in all subjects within their identified timescale. For this reason, the transitional arrangements have been applied.

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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 school to be good in July 2016.

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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. 5 and 6 April 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. 5 and 6 April 2022

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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Date of previous inspection

13 and 14 July 2016, under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The school has undergone significant changes in staffing since the previous inspection.  The school uses two unregistered alternative providers.  There are on-site breakfast and after-school clubs for pupils who attend the school.  Hilperton is a Church of England school. Its most recent Statutory Inspection of Anglican and Methodist Schools under section 48 of the Education Act 2005 was in June 2016.

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Information about this inspection

This was the first routine inspection the school had received since the COVID-19 pandemic began. Inspectors discussed the impact of the pandemic with leaders, and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.

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Information about this inspection

 The inspector met with the headteacher, members of the senior leadership team and governors. She also met with a range of teaching and support staff, and a representative from the local authority. 5 and 6 April 2022

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 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 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 also looked at curriculum plans and spoke to leaders about some other subjects.  The inspector evaluated the effectiveness of safeguarding. The school’s single central record was reviewed. The lead inspector met with the designated safeguarding lead and spoke to pupils and staff.  The inspector considered the responses to Ofsted’s online survey, Parent View. She also took into consideration the responses to the surveys for staff and pupils.

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Inspection team

Wendy D’Arcy, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector 5 and 6 April 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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