Haxby Road Primary Academy

Inspection of a good school: Haxby Road Primary Academy 154 Haxby Road, York, North Yorkshire YO31 8JN

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Outcome

Haxby Road Primary Academy continues to be a good school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are proud of their school. They talk about the school values: trust, kindness and self-belief. Pupils demonstrate these values through their behaviours, how they treat others and respect for themselves. This is what makes the school special.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are safe and happy. They appreciate the care, nurture and support that adults provide. If they have a worry, they know there is always someone to talk to. Pupils say that staff help to ‘de-stress’ them if they feel anxious.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils know what bullying is; teachers have taught them about it. They say it does not happen at school but are sure that adults would act quickly if it did.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are respectful of each other and staff. They are polite and considerate. Pupils display high levels of emotional intelligence. They are able to adapt their own behaviours to reflect the needs of others. This helps to create a friendly, welcoming environment where everyone is valued.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Staff expect the very best from pupils. Pupils try hard to meet these expectations and do so because they want to, not because they might get a sticker. Pupils know the difference between right and wrong. They know what behaviours are unacceptable and importantly what to do to make things better.

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

Leaders are ambitious and aspirational for pupils. They are determined to give them the best start in life. The high-quality curriculum is backed up with a creative extra-curricular offer. The Haxby Road 100 enrichment sessions and the relentless focus on personal development all contribute to the success of the pupils at school. However, some pupils do not attend school regularly. This means they are missing out on vital learning and not making the most of the opportunities available. 19 and 20 July 2022

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Leaders have made some changes to the curriculum. They identified that they were teaching pupils too much information. This was confusing for some pupils. The curriculum has been streamlined so that the important knowledge that pupils need to know is prioritised. Teachers then make sure that pupils practise, revisit and secure this knowledge. They also check on a daily basis to see if pupils understand what they are being taught. If pupils need some additional help, they receive small-group or one-to-one support that day. This helps pupils to keep up and not fall behind.

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For pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities, support is matched to their specific needs. Some pupils just require minor adjustments, such as where they sit, access to additional resources or some adult support. Those pupils with an education, health and care plan receive more specialised and individual provision. This is tightly linked to their ongoing personal targets.

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The enhanced resource provision (ERP) is a strength of the school. Here, the curriculum is ambitious and tailored to these pupils’ needs. For example, some of the pupils want to go shopping in the summer holiday. Mathematics lessons have been adapted and a classroom has become a shop where pupils learn to buy items and give change. Adults provide expert emotional and pastoral support. This help pupils to access the curriculum and achieve well.

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Speaking, listening and reading are priorities for leaders. They want pupils to be articulate and confident and have a love for books. From the moment the youngest children start school in Tiny Steps, they are immersed in songs, rhymes and text. When children start in Reception, they receive daily phonics lessons. The curriculum helps pupils to identify the sounds that letters make. When pupils get stuck on a word, they are able to break it into sounds, stick them back together and read the word. Pupils who find reading more of a challenge receive additional small-group support. Although the reading curriculum works well for most pupils, it does not meet the needs of all. Some pupils get phonics sessions that are too difficult for them. This means they are unable to keep up with the rest of class and are at risk of falling behind.

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Leaders understand that some pupils do not experience or take part in activities that many others do. The addition of the Haxby Road 100 to the curriculum means that pupils receive extensive creative, cultural and fun experiences during their time at school. Pupils get the opportunity to visit the local Greenfield community garden, take part in events at York St John university and visit streets in York that match the names of their classes. Pupils in Year 5 and 6 also take part in four enrichment afternoon sessions per week. These include computing, art, cooking, Spanish and sports sessions run by specialist and school staff. The personal development of pupils forms the backbone of the school’s curriculum. It is carefully organised and extensive.

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Well-defined layers of accountability between the trust and local governing body ensure that leaders are held to account. Governors play an active role in the life of the school. They visit the school regularly to talk to pupils and have discussions with staff. They get to see exactly what is happening and observe if leaders’ actions are successful. School leaders deal with many challenging, emotional situations. Leaders at trust level make sure 19 and 20 July 2022

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that the well-being of senior leaders is taken seriously. Trustees, governors and senior leaders all share the same vision for the school.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

The two designated safeguarding leads are supported by a highly effective pastoral team. Weekly meetings take place to discuss, track and support any pupils who may be at risk of harm. Leaders prioritise the safety and well-being of pupils. They have put in place systems, so that concerns are immediately identified, and action is taken. The layers of safeguarding checks by trust and school staff are rigorous. This ensures that no one slips through the net and that procedures are being followed. Leaders liaise with external agencies effectively and use the police community support officer to help with any local issues.

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Safeguarding

Pupils learn about how to stay safe. They know what to do if they are worried about something they see or hear online. They are also taught about healthy relationships and staying safe in the community.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Some pupils do not have the knowledge to access the phonics sessions they take part in. This means they sometimes do not develop the vital knowledge of sounds they need to become fluent, confident readers. Leaders should review the current structure for phonics to ensure that all pupils receive daily sessions matched to their need.  The current level of persistent absenteeism is too high. As a result, pupils are not accessing the curriculum and are therefore at risk of falling behind. Leaders, parents and carers need to work together to ensure that pupils attend school regularly.

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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 first section 8 inspection since we judged the school to be good in December 2016. 19 and 20 July 2022

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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. 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. 19 and 20 July 2022

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School details

Inspection number 10200473 Type of school Primary

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School details

Date of previous inspection 6 and 7 December 2016

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Information about this school

 The early years consists of part-time provision for two-year-olds and a nursery.  The school runs an enhanced resource provision for 26 pupils who have a primary need of either speech, language and communication or autism spectrum disorder.  The school does not 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 the school and has taken that into account in his evaluation of the school.  The inspector did deep dives in the following subjects: early reading, mathematics and computing. The inspector spoke to leaders about the curriculum and met with teachers from the lessons visited. The inspector looked at pupils’ work and spoke to pupils.  The inspector listened to a range of pupils read from different year groups.  The inspector met members of the governing body, a member of the board of trustees and the chief executive officer. 19 and 20 July 2022

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 The inspector looked at the single central record and spoke to leaders, teachers, governors and pupils about safeguarding.  The inspector considered the responses made by parents to Parent View, Ofsted’s online questionnaire, including any free-text responses. Inspectors also considered the responses to Ofsted’s online staff questionnaire and responses to Ofsted’s pupil survey.  The inspector also visited the ERP.

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Inspection team

David Milligan, lead inspector Her Majesty’s Inspector 19 and 20 July 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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