Nova Primary Academy

Inspection of Middleton Primary School Middleton, South Bretton, Peterborough, Cambridgeshire PE3 9XJ

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Overall effectiveness Requires improvement

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

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Overall effectiveness Requires improvement

Previous inspection grade Not previously inspected under section 5 of the Education Act 2005 12 and 13 July 2022

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy and benefit from the spirit of teamwork at Middleton Primary School. In lessons and on the playground, pupils cooperate and show respect for themselves and others. Children in Reception quickly learn to sit quietly, move around the classroom calmly and work with others sensibly.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils value each other’s differences and thrive within the school’s diverse community. Those supported by the specially resourced provision for pupils with hearing impairment are fully included within the school community.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils feel, and are, safe. Bullying is rare. Pupils know that staff are ready and able to help when pupils have concerns about bullying.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils share leaders’ high expectations of themselves and other pupils. With gusto, they cheer for their achievements in lessons. However, pupils are not supported well enough to learn or achieve as well as leaders expect.

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better?

Two years ago, leaders began to redesign the curriculum. Since then, the school has experienced an unsettled time, because of COVID-19 and staff turbulence. Leaders have not completed their work on the curriculum. As leaders’ plans are not well organised in some subjects, teachers are unsure how to teach some subjects well so that pupils remember the knowledge over time.

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better?

Teachers often catch what pupils misunderstand in lessons and provide effective support. However, teachers do not check well enough what pupils remember over time. Teachers also do not provide pupils with sufficient practice or opportunities to review what they have been taught. As a result, pupils forget key knowledge.

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better?

In the early years, leaders have not ensured that the teaching of phonics is good enough to prepare children for the Year 1 reading curriculum. In Years 1 and 2, teachers deliver structured lessons about phonics that help most pupils learn what they need to read fluently. Staff in Years 1 and 2 deliver effective extra support for pupils who have fallen behind in reading. This ensures that many of these pupils can read successfully and with enjoyment as they get older.

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better?

Staff deliver the provision for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) inconsistently. Leaders do not ensure that staff consistently use the most suitable strategies to enable pupils with SEND to make strong progress. However, the provision for deaf pupils and those with hearing impairments is well delivered. These pupils learn how to be successful in school and the wider world.

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better?

Staff have clear and consistent classroom routines and expectations of pupils’ behaviour. Pupils, and children in the Reception class, know that learning is important. They focus on learning in lessons and follow instructions diligently. 12 and 13 July 2022

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Leaders’ provision for personal development prepares pupils to live happily alongside those with different lifestyles and beliefs. Leaders also ensure that staff support pupils in building their own unique identities. During debates, pupils articulate themselves clearly. They listen sensitively to the views of others. Pupils appreciate learning new talents in the many clubs they attend and participating in the many educational visits leaders provide.

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Subject leadership at the school is underdeveloped. Subject leaders do not fully understand their roles and do not enable staff to teach their subjects well enough. The local governing body does not monitor leaders’ work with sufficient rigour. This limits the extent to which governors can hold leaders to account for the quality of provision at the school. Trust leaders have redesigned the governance structure and introduced new staff and training to improve the leadership of the school.

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Most staff speak positively about the school’s leadership. The majority of staff responded to Ofsted’s staff survey that they feel well supported working at the school.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

All staff, governors and trustees have the necessary training to safeguard the pupils. Staff are vigilant for the signs of potential harm. When concerns arise, they act quickly and in line with school policies and national guidance. Leaders keep meticulous records about vulnerable pupils and work well with external agencies. Leaders are relentless in ensuring that vulnerable pupils get the support they need.

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Safeguarding

Leaders make sure that background checks of adults are undertaken to determine if they are suitable to work with children.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Parts of leaders’ curriculum are not organised logically. Teachers do not teach the knowledge in some subjects in a way that helps pupils understand and remember what they have been taught. Leaders need to review and make suitable changes to the curriculum in some subjects so that staff teach the knowledge in an order that helps pupils understand and remember what they are trying to learn.  Teachers do not check what pupils remember over time in all areas of the curriculum. Teachers also do not provide pupils with sufficient opportunities to practise and review knowledge in the curriculum. This leads to pupils forgetting essential knowledge. Leaders need to provide teachers with the training and guidance needed to check what pupils remember and give pupils chances to practise and revisit what has been taught. 12 and 13 July 2022

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 Leaders and staff do not provide consistently well for pupils with SEND. These pupils, consequently, do not always overcome the challenges they face when trying to learn. Leaders need to make sure that staff have the knowledge to provide well for pupils with SEND. Leaders should then make sure that staff deliver the provision leaders expect.  Leaders have not ensured that staff teach well enough the fundamentals of reading to children in the early years. Pupils start Year 1 needing to catch up. Leaders should provide staff with suitable training so that they teach early reading well.

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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. 12 and 13 July 2022

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School details

Inspection number 10238315 Type of school Primary

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School details

Website www.middletonprimaryschool.co.uk

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School details

Date of previous inspection Not previously inspected

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Information about this school

 In April 2018, the school became an academy within the Peterborough Keys Academies Trust.  The executive headteacher and head of school started in September 2021.  The school serves as the Peterborough primary hub for pupils with hearing impairment. The hub aims to support other schools and currently supports four deaf pupils.

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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 that into account in their evaluation of the school.  Leaders held meetings with the head of school, the executive headteacher, the chief executive officer for the trust, members of the governing body, members of the board of trustees, members of the senior leadership team, the special 12 and 13 July 2022

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educational needs coordinator, subject leaders, teachers, support staff, pupils and parents.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: history, mathematics, reading 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. Inspectors also spoke to leaders, visited lessons, spoke to pupils and looked at samples of pupils’ work in some other subjects.  Inspectors scrutinised safeguarding policies, the school’s record of background checks of adults at the school and a sample of child protection files. Inspectors also spoke with governors, leaders, staff and pupils about safeguarding practices at the school.  Inspectors considered the responses of parents, staff and pupils to Ofsted’s surveys carried out during the inspection.

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Inspection team

Al Mistrano, lead inspector Her Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Jess Pearce Ofsted Inspector 12 and 13 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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