St Oswald's CofE Academy

Inspection of St Oswald’s CofE Academy Addison Road, Rugby, Warwickshire CV22 7DJ

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Overall effectiveness Requires improvement

The quality of education Requires improvement Behaviour and attitudes Requires improvement Personal development Good Leadership and management Requires improvement Early years provision Good Previous inspection grade Requires improvement 21 and 22 June 2022

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What is it like to attend this school?

Most pupils enjoy school and are happy to attend. They make a positive start to the school day, quickly making their way to classrooms and settling down to work. Pupils are mostly kind to one another and look after each other. However, sometimes the negative behaviour of a small minority of pupils disrupts the learning of others.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils say they feel safe in school. They take part in lessons and workshops that promote their well-being. They learn how to maintain positive friendships. In the past, some pupils have seen bullying as an issue. Leaders know this and have worked hard to put things right. When bullying happens staff take it seriously. Most pupils have confidence that adults will sort their problems out.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils study a broad range of subjects and are interested in the topics they learn. However, leaders have not ensured that the curriculum is well planned in some subjects. This limits pupils from reaching their full potential.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy a range of opportunities that promote their independence and leadership skills. Pupils elect school councillors, who represent them in making decisions about the school. Older pupils ‘buddy up’ with younger ones. They are proud to have such important roles in school.

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better?

Those responsible for governance have taken recent action to strengthen school leadership. The newly appointed executive headteacher and head of school have a clear vision. They intend for pupils to ‘imagine, achieve and believe’. However, further improvement work is required to ensure that this vision is realised.

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better?

Leaders have worked with consultants to develop the quality of the curriculum. They have introduced commercial schemes of work in subjects such as mathematics and science. Curriculum leaders are designing the school’s own approach in other subjects, for instance geography and history. This work is still in the early stages. As a result, the knowledge that leaders expect pupils to learn is not yet clear in all subjects.

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better?

Teachers make regular checks on what pupils know. They use quizzes at the start of lessons to find out how well pupils remember key information. Staff use this information to identify pupils who need extra help and put appropriate support in place. Teachers also make adaptions to ensure that pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) can fully participate in all lessons. Despite this, there is variation in staff’s knowledge of how to teach some subjects. Sometimes the tasks that teachers plan are not well matched to learning objectives. This means pupils do not learn as well as leaders expect. 21 and 22 June 2022

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Leaders introduced a new approach to teaching phonics in September 2021. They have ensured that staff understand how to teach the subject well. Although some pupils do not yet read with the fluency that leaders expect, the new approach is starting to make a positive difference. Pupils are becoming better readers over time.

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Leaders have designed an ambitious early years curriculum that promotes children’s speech and language development. Children take part in lessons and activities that engage and excite them. Adults ensure that these activities are purposeful. Tasks have clear links to learning outcomes. Staff make the most of each opportunity to talk and interact with children. This helps children make a successful start to their life at the school.

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Staff have not been consistent in managing pupils’ behaviour in the past. This has resulted in some pupils displaying poor attitudes to learning and disrupting the learning of others. Leaders have begun to take the necessary steps to raise expectations. For example, they have revised the school’s behaviour policy and are working with staff to ensure that the policy is consistently applied. Leaders have also introduced a range of lunchtime clubs. Adults supervise these clubs well. Leaders’ actions are starting to make a difference but there is still much work to do. Some pupils do not yet display the positive attitudes that leaders expect.

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Leaders ensure that the curriculum promotes pupils’ understanding of values such as respect and tolerance. Pupils learn about celebrating diversity. They learn about different cultures and faiths. As one pupil said, ‘We are a Christian school, and everyone is welcome here.’

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Staff enjoy working at the school. Most feel that leaders are considerate of their well-being. Staff want to work with leaders to improve the school.

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Leaders’ engagement with parents has not been sufficiently effective in the past. Some parents do not feel their concerns have been listened to carefully enough. The current school leadership team intends to work more closely with parents but has not yet fully implemented their plans.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Leaders ensure that safeguarding is a priority. Staff know what to do if they have concerns about pupils. They report such concerns straight away. Leaders take the necessary action to support pupils who need help. This includes working with families and external agencies when needed.

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Safeguarding

Pupils learn about keeping themselves safe. The curriculum includes lessons that teach pupils strategies to keep safe when working on the internet. In addition, leaders arrange lessons to address pupils’ specific questions or concerns. For example, pupils in Year 6 have taken part in police workshops to raise their awareness of knife crime. 21 and 22 June 2022

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 The knowledge that leaders expect pupils to learn in some subjects is not yet clearly identified. Pupils do not build up their knowledge and skills as well as they might. Leaders should ensure that the curriculum is well planned and sequenced in all subjects.  There is variation in staff’s subject knowledge. Some teachers do not always choose activities that help pupils to learn well. Leaders should continue to develop staff understanding of how to teach the curriculum well.  There has been an inconsistent approach to the way that behaviour has been managed. This has led to some pupils displaying behaviours that distract others from their learning. Leaders should continue their work to ensure that the school’s behaviour policy is applied fairly and consistently.  Leaders’ engagement with parents has not been sufficiently effective. Some parents feel they do not receive enough information about how their concerns are

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

managed. Leaders should continue their work to improve communication and engagement with stakeholders.

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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. 21 and 22 June 2022

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School details

Inspection number 10227375 Type of school Primary

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School details

Date of previous inspection 11 and 12 July 2018, under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The trust made changes to the structure of the school’s leadership team from 1 June 2022. They decided that the school should be led by an executive headteacher and a head of school. The headteacher retired in March 2022. An executive headteacher joined the school on 1 June 2022. The deputy headteacher, who started in September 2020, is now the head of school.  The school does not use any alternative provision.  The school runs a breakfast club and an after-school club.  The school is within the Diocese of Coventry. Its most recent section 48 inspection took place in July 2015. Section 48 inspections were suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic. They restarted in September 2021. The next inspection will be within eight years of the last section 48 inspection.

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Information about this inspection

The inspectors carried out this inspection under section 5 of the Education Act 2005. 21 and 22 June 2022

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 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 met with the executive headteacher and senior leaders. The lead inspector also met with executive leaders of the trust, and representatives of the governors and trustees.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in the following subjects: early reading, mathematics, geography and science. For each deep dive, inspectors discussed the curriculum with subject leaders, visited a sample of lessons, spoke to teachers, spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work. The lead inspector also listened to pupils read.  Inspectors also spoke to leaders about the curriculum in some other subjects.  Inspectors observed pupils’ behaviour during lessons, around the school and at

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lunchtime. They spoke to pupils about their opinions of behaviour at the school.  The lead inspector held a meeting with the leaders responsible for safeguarding. Further discussions took place with pupils, staff and governors to check the school’s arrangements for safeguarding. Inspectors also reviewed safeguarding records and checked the school’s single central record.  Inspectors considered responses on Ofsted’s Parents View including parent free- text responses. They also took account of responses to staff and pupil surveys.

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Inspection team

Jonathan Leonard, lead inspector Her Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Corinne Biddell Her Majesty’s Inspector 21 and 22 June 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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