Stenson Fields Primary Community School

Inspection of Stenson Fields Primary Community School Heather Close, Stenson Fields, Sinfin, Derby, Derbyshire DE24 3BW

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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 Outstanding Previous inspection grade Requires improvement 27 and 28 April 2022

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What is it like to attend this school?

Stenson Fields is a nurturing school. Pupils feel safe and happy. The school’s ‘CARES’ values are weaved through all that they do. Everyone is well looked after. Children get off to a great start in early years. Adults have developed strong relationships with pupils. One pupil summed up the views of many when she explained that she loved coming to school each day to be with her friends and teachers, ‘to work and play together’.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Adults have high expectations of pupils’ learning and behaviour. Pupils are focused on their learning, and classrooms are calm. Pupils who sometimes struggle are well supported by adults. They are taught about their feelings and ways to recognise and manage these independently. Pupils say that ‘friendship ambassadors’ are there to help if they are feeling sad, for example.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Bullying is not tolerated. When it does happen, adults deal with it to ensure that it stops. However, some pupils are not clear about what bullying is and confuse this with falling out.

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What is it like to attend this school?

There is a variety of clubs available both after school and during lunchtimes. The ‘jumping clay’ art club is a firm favourite. Pupils enjoy residential visits to places such as Pine Lake.

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better?

The school provides a good quality of education. Staff have worked hard to improve the curriculum they provide. Leaders have a clear vision for how they want to develop the curriculum further.

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better?

The curriculum has been designed to ensure pupils’ success in knowing and remembering more. Most subjects are well thought out and carefully planned. In these subjects, teachers make sure that pupils understand what they are learning and how this builds on what they already know. Teachers use their good subject knowledge to explain new ideas to pupils clearly. Pupils enjoy their lessons and can articulate their learning in detail.

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better?

A few subjects are at a less advanced stage of planning. These include art and design, computing, and design and technology. In these subjects, pupils do not recall important knowledge or use subject-specific vocabulary as confidently as they do in most other subjects. Leaders are well on the way to developing these subjects as part of the whole curriculum. The systems that teachers use to check pupils’ understanding in these subjects are at an early stage of implementation.

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better?

Leaders have implemented a new reading programme to help pupils to become accurate and fluent readers. Pupils are well supported in the early stages of learning 27 and 28 April 2022

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to read. Staff pay close attention to how well pupils learn sounds. They provide extra support for pupils when they need to. The teaching of early reading is particularly strong in early years. Adults have very high expectations of children’s learning. Children use the sounds they know to independently read unfamiliar words. The books used by pupils to help them learn to read are well matched to the sounds they know. Pupils enjoy reading and talk confidently about their favourite books.

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The early years environment is stimulating and purposeful. Leaders have clear, and high, curriculum expectations, and staff model new learning very well for children. Children are excited about their learning and carry this enthusiasm through into their play. They are well prepared for key stage 1. Children achieve well, particularly in writing. When they are writing, children form their letters correctly. They use their knowledge of the sounds that letters represent to spell many words correctly. Adults develop strong, nurturing relationships with children. Behaviour in early years is exemplary. Children listen to adults and to each other well. They display very good manners, and high levels of self-control and respect for others.

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Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are well supported to succeed in school. Most parents and carers of these children agree. Staff use training and resources effectively to quickly identify pupils’ needs and the most effective support to match. Pupils with SEND receive the extra help that they need, so that they can learn the same curriculum as their peers.

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Pupils demonstrate respect and tolerance of the views and opinions of others. However, some struggle to discuss confidently some of the things that may make people different from each other, such as religion, sexuality and gender. They understand the importance of these topics and say that they would like to learn more about them.

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Governors regularly visit the school and ensure that they are kept well informed. They hold leaders to account effectively. Staff are proud to work at the school. They say that senior leaders have everyone’s well-being at the heart of all they do.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Leaders, including the family support worker, know pupils and families well. Staff receive training and updates on how to keep pupils safe. Teachers know the warning signs that a child may be in danger and what to do if they are concerned. Senior leaders’ responses to concerns raised are appropriate. Leaders are tenacious in ensuring that pupils and families get the support they need.

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Safeguarding

Pupils typically describe their school as a safe place to be. One pupil said: ‘It is because the adults look after us.’ The vast majority of parents agree. Staff teach pupils how to stay safe both inside and outside school. 27 and 28 April 2022

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 The school’s curriculum is not yet sufficiently well planned in some subjects. In subjects such as art and design, computing, and design and technology, leaders have not identified the core knowledge that they want pupils to learn. As a result, teachers do not teach this knowledge explicitly and pupils do not develop the necessary depth of understanding of the concepts that they are learning. However, it is clear from leaders’ actions that they are in the process of bringing this about. For this reason, the transitional arrangements have been applied.  Pupils are tolerant of the views and opinions of others. However, pupils typically lack a deep understanding of the features that make people similar or different and how these differences are celebrated. Further work is needed to ensure that all pupils have a better understanding of British values and the protected characteristics. Leaders should develop their planning to ensure that pupils’

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

learning in these areas is incorporated into the school’s curriculum for personal development.

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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. 27 and 28 April 2022

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Website www.stensonfields.derbyshire.sch.uk

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School details

Date of previous inspection 11 and 12 July 2018

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Information about this school

 The school uses one registered alternative provider.

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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 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.  The lead inspector met with two representatives from the governing body.  The inspectors spoke with the headteacher, the leader with responsibility for pupils with SEND, other leaders and a representative from the local authority.  The inspectors carried out deep dives in early reading, mathematics, history, science, and art and design. For each deep dive, inspectors met with subject leaders to discuss the curriculum, visited a sample of lessons, spoke with teachers, spoke with some pupils about their learning and looked at a sample of 27 and 28 April 2022

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pupils’ work. Inspectors also reviewed leaders’ curriculum planning in computing, music, modern foreign languages, and design and technology.  Inspectors spoke with parents. Account was taken of the responses to the online survey, Ofsted Parent View. Inspectors also spoke with groups of staff and pupils.  The lead inspector met with the headteacher and the school’s family support worker to check the effectiveness of arrangements for safeguarding. Inspectors met with staff to discuss their understanding of the school’s procedures to keep pupils safe. They considered documentation relating to safeguarding, the school’s single central record and the system for undertaking checks on new staff.

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Inspection team

Heidi Malliff, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector

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Inspection team

Peter Johnston Ofsted Inspector 27 and 28 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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