Landewednack Community Primary School

Store Street Manchester M1 2WD T 0300 123 1231 www.gov.uk/ofsted

p.1

Louise Jones Headteacher Landewednack Community Primary School Beacon Terrace The Lizard Helston Cornwall TR12 7PB

p.1

School

Following my visit to your school on 19 and 20 July 2022, I write on behalf of Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Education, Children’s Services and Skills to confirm the inspection findings. Thank you for the help you gave during the inspection and for the time you made available to discuss the actions that have been taken since the school’s most recent section 5 inspection.

p.1

School

The inspection was the first monitoring inspection since the school became subject to special measures following the inspection that took place in October 2021. It was carried out under section 8 of the Education Act 2005. The monitoring inspection report is attached.

p.1

School

This was the second routine inspection the school received since the COVID-19 pandemic began. I discussed the ongoing impact of the pandemic with you and have taken that into account in my evaluation.

p.1

School

Having considered the evidence, I am of the opinion that at this time:

p.1

governance are taking effective action towards the removal of special

The school’s improvement plans are fit for purpose.

p.1

Having considered the evidence, I strongly recommend that the school does

not seek to appoint early career teachers. I am copying this letter to the chair of the board of trustees and the chief executive officer of the Southerly Point Co-operative multi-academy trust, the regional schools commissioner and the director of children’s services for Cornwall. This letter will be published on the Ofsted reports website.

p.1

Context

This was the first monitoring visit since the school’s section 5 inspection in October 2021. Since the previous inspection, leaders have changed the staffing structure of the school. The headteacher has returned to the school full-time and there is a new leader who oversees the early years foundation stage. Reception children now learn in an early years unit.

p.3

Context

There has been some continued disruption due to COVID-19, but leaders have ensured that pupils continue to be educated in school.

p.3

The progress made towards the removal of special measures

Although at the beginning of their school improvement journey, leaders are taking effective actions to improve the quality of education and provision in the early years foundation stage. Their commitment to this is unwavering. They have taken a systematic approach and have ensured that support from another local multi-academy trust, as well as other curriculum experts, has impacted positively on school improvement.

p.3

The progress made towards the removal of special measures

Governors have an accurate understanding of what the school needs to improve. They are ambitious for the education pupils should receive and regularly check the effectiveness of leaders’ actions to achieve this. They understand their responsibility to ensure that safeguarding practice is robust.

p.3

The progress made towards the removal of special measures

Leaders have prioritised improvements in the teaching of phonics. They have used external support well, so the teaching of phonics is now more consistent. Leaders have acted swiftly to implement an appropriate and ambitious curriculum. Staff have had well- considered training and support. As a result, pupils now learn to read successfully. On the whole, they have positive attitudes towards reading and are building in confidence and fluency. Despite this, some inconsistencies remain. This means that some pupils do not engage in learning to read as well as they could. Staff do not always check what pupils know and can do well enough.

p.3

The progress made towards the removal of special measures

Within the wider reading curriculum, daily reading sessions have been timetabled carefully. Leaders have sought appropriate advice and are using this to develop a reading curriculum. They have created a reading spine of high-quality texts and have plans in place to replenish reading and library areas. However, this is very early in development and therefore pupils do not know what they could. For example, pupils often confuse fiction and non-fiction texts or sometimes choose books that are too easy for them.

p.3

The progress made towards the removal of special measures

Within the early years foundation stage, staff ensure that resources are purposefully selected to support the teaching of the curriculum. They have received support to help them to communicate and plan appropriate learning for children. Leaders are in the initial stages of planning a curriculum, which considers how learning is broken down into smaller steps. However, all these changes are very new and are not yet fully embedded. Leaders are working on strengthening routines to support children to learn better independently.

p.3

The progress made towards the removal of special measures

Pupils, for the most part, have positive attitudes to learning. Leaders have carefully planned professional development opportunities to support staff to manage behaviour effectively. However, expectations of pupils’ participation in learning are not always consistent. Some pupils say there is still off-task talking and distractions. They value the rewards they receive but these are not consistent between year groups. Leaders recognise this and have started to use pertinent research to review their behaviour policy.

p.4

The progress made towards the removal of special measures

Pupils value the nurture and support they receive from trusted adults. When needed, pupils use the rainbow room and worry boxes to help them sort out any concerns they have. Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) also receive a high level of care and nurture. Staff are rightly proud of this. However, pupils with SEND do not benefit from support that is tailored to their academic needs. Ambitions for what such pupils can achieve are not yet high enough and the targets set are too broad.

p.4

The progress made towards the removal of special measures

School leaders, such as the assistant headteacher and early years leader, have enrolled in appropriate national professional qualifications. They recognise these programmes can strengthen their leadership roles further. Beyond this, leaders have provided many opportunities for staff to visit other settings, attend face-to-face professional development and engage with curriculum experts. However, so far, this has had limited impact.

p.4

Additional support

The school has benefited from a range of external support. The trust has brokered successful support from a local multi-academy trust, as well as the regional English and mathematics hubs.

p.4

Evidence

The inspector focused on key areas of improvement from the inspection in October 2021. She explored early reading, the early years foundation stage and the monitoring and accountability of school leaders. Within this, the inspector also considered provision for pupils with SEND. She also considered the school’s approach to safeguarding. Throughout the inspection, the inspector also considered pupils’ attitudes to learning.

p.4

Evidence

The inspector observed the school’s work, scrutinised documents and met with the headteacher, other senior leaders, the interim chief executive officer, staff, pupils and governors. The inspector also considered responses to the online survey, Ofsted Parent View, including free-text responses and the staff survey.

p.4