Stoke Fleming Community Primary School

Inspection of Stoke Fleming Community Primary School Stoke Fleming, Dartmouth, Devon TQ6 0QA

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Overall effectiveness Good

The quality of education Good Behaviour and attitudes Good Personal development Outstanding Leadership and management Good Early years provision Good

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Overall effectiveness Good

Previous inspection grade Not previously inspected under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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Overall effectiveness Good

Ofsted has not previously inspected Stoke Fleming Primary School as an academy school under section 5 of the Education Act 2005 as, until November 2020, the school was exempted by law from routine inspection, so there has been a longer gap than usual between inspections.

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Overall effectiveness Good

Judgements in this report are based on the current inspection framework and also reflect changes that may have happened at any point since the last inspection of the predecessor school. 5 and 6 April 2022

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are proud to be part of Stoke Fleming Community Primary School. They have an impressive range of opportunities to grow as individuals. Leaders call this the ‘character curriculum’. Pupils develop a deep appreciation for what life is like beyond Stoke Fleming. For example, they support an Indian street school and learn about others who are less fortunate. Pupils thrive on the leadership opportunities that they have to make a difference to school life. They have a strong understanding of local and global issues. Staff are determined to ensure that pupils are exceptionally well prepared for life in modern Britain, and they are.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are adamant that bullying does not happen. They know the difference between bullying and falling out. Pupils say that if it did happen, staff would not tolerate it. Pupils feel safe in school. This view is also shared by all parents who responded to the survey, Ofsted Parent View.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Leaders and teachers have high expectations of pupils. Pupils’ behaviour and attitudes to learning are typically positive.

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better?

Determined staff and strong leadership have steered Stoke Fleming through the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic. There is a strong sense of togetherness among the staff. Staff feel valued and share leaders’ ambitions to make the school the best it can be.

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better?

The curriculum is ambitious for all pupils. Leaders have created a curriculum that sets out what pupils must learn in each year group and when. As a result, by the time pupils leave Year 6, they have gained the knowledge and skills they need to be well prepared for secondary school. Carefully thought-out links between subjects strengthen pupils’ knowledge. Leaders’ approach to the sequencing of the curriculum ensures that pupils have many opportunities to revisit key concepts. Teachers have good subject knowledge. They appreciate the high-quality training that they receive from the trust.

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better?

Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are supported well. Through precise and regular checks, leaders make sure that these pupils reach their full potential. Staff use detailed plans to ensure that pupils with SEND learn the curriculum well. These plans are carefully thought out in partnership with parents and external agencies.

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better?

Recently, leaders have made changes to some areas of the curriculum. This is because they were not entirely satisfied that the curriculum met their expectations well enough. Nevertheless, leaders are not fully aware of the impact that these changes have had on pupils’ learning. Changes to the early years curriculum have been in place longer. There are strong signs that these changes are starting to have a positive impact on children’s learning and preparing them well for Year 1. 5 and 6 April 2022

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As soon as children join the Nursery, staff foster a love of reading. Children quickly establish the initial sounds that they need to know to be able to learn how to read. Up-to-date and ongoing training ensures that staff are proficient in teaching phonics. The books pupils read match the sounds that they know. This is helping pupils to read well and with growing confidence. Pupils who find learning to read challenging, have expert additional support. This is helping these pupils to catch up quickly. Once pupils understand the phonics code, teachers continue to develop pupils’ knowledge of reading through a wide range of texts. These texts form the backbone of the English curriculum. However, leaders have not identified precisely enough the step- by-step reading knowledge and skills that pupils need to learn by the end of Year 6.

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A central feature of the school’s success is pupils’ personal development. This work truly stands out. Pupils display a mature understanding of equalities. They hold strong and accurate views of right and wrong. Pupils take on several roles in the school. For example, older pupils take responsibility for organising sporting fixtures with other local schools. Pupils universally agree that it is ‘okay’ to be different. The personal, social and health education curriculum has ensured that pupils know what constitutes a healthy relationship.

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Parents are very positive about the school. One commented, in words that capture the opinions of many parents, ‘Stoke Fleming is a wonderful school…it is the beating heart of the local community.’

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

All staff receive appropriate and up-to-date training. Staff know how to spot signs that a pupil may be at risk of harm. They are well versed in the actions that they need to take. Leaders work well with different agencies to ensure that they get the right support for their pupils and their families. Checks on adults to ensure that they are safe to work with pupils are robust.

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Safeguarding

Pupils feel safe and know what actions to take if they are concerned. Through the computing curriculum, pupils learn how to use technology safely.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Pupils learn the fundamental aspects of reading well. However, once pupils understand the phonics code, the reading curriculum content is not as well sequenced as it needs to be. The curriculum is not clear about what pupils need to learn and when. Leaders need to ensure that curriculum for reading in key stage 2 is well sequenced. 5 and 6 April 2022

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 Leaders have made recent changes to the curriculum, including in the early years. However, some subject leaders have not yet been able to check upon the impact of this work. Leaders need to assure themselves that these changes are improving pupils’ learning.

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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. 5 and 6 April 2022

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School details

Date of previous inspection Not previously inspected

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Information about this school

 The school is part of Education South West, a multi-academy trust.  The school does not use any alternative provision.  Stoke Fleming Primary School converted to become an academy school in September 2014. When its predecessor school, Stoke Fleming Primary School, was last inspected by Ofsted, it was judged to be outstanding overall.  The school provides Nursery provision for two- and three-year-olds.

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Information about this inspection

The inspectors carried out this inspection under section 5 of the Education Act 2005.

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Information about this inspection

 This was the first routine inspection the school received since the COVID-19 pandemic began. Inspectors discussed the impact of the pandemic with leaders and have taken this into account in their evaluation of the school.  Inspectors held meetings with the headteacher, the director of school improvement, curriculum leaders, the chief executive officer of the multi-academy 5 and 6 April 2022

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trust and teaching staff. One inspector met with some parents at the start of the school day.  The lead inspector met with the chair and one other governor from the local hub governing body.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: English, reading, mathematics and computing. For each deep dive, inspectors met with subject leaders, looked at curriculum plans, visited a sample of lessons, spoke to teachers, spoke to pupils about their learning, looked at samples of pupils’ work and listened to pupils read.  Inspectors examined a range of documentation provided by the school, including leaders’ self-evaluation and improvement plans.  Inspectors scrutinised safeguarding records, checked staff’s safeguarding knowledge, spoke with pupils and met with the designated safeguarding lead.  Inspectors considered the responses to the online survey, Ofsted Parent View. They also took into consideration the responses to the staff and pupil surveys.

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Inspection team

Matt Middlemore, lead inspector Her Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Richard Vaughan 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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