Cutthorpe Primary School

Inspection of Cutthorpe Primary School School Hill, Cutthorpe, Chesterfield, Derbyshire S42 7AS

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Overall effectiveness Good

The quality of education Good Behaviour and attitudes Outstanding Personal development Good Leadership and management Good Early years provision Good Previous inspection grade Good 2 and 3 November 2022

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy attending this school. They talk with enthusiasm about their teachers and the help they provide. Pupils have a sense of ownership of the school. They create class charters with their teachers to ensure everyone understands how to behave. Children in the early years learn about emotions and how to manage them.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Leaders have high expectations. They help pupils to achieve well and to broaden their horizons. Pupils are enthusiastic about their learning. They take pride in their work. There is a calm and purposeful atmosphere in classrooms.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Staff and pupils have respectful relationships. Pupils talk about welcoming new starters to the school. Children in the early years are polite, confident and able to speak with visitors. Pupils are not worried about bullying. They share any concerns they have with teachers.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils’ learning and development is not limited to the classroom. Leaders organise visits which help pupils to learn more about what they are studying in their lessons as well as engage with the wider world. For example, trips to Boggle Hole to learn more about coastal erosion and visits to the theatre connected with pupils’ work on writing. Pupils take part in sporting and leadership opportunities.

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better?

Leaders have designed an ambitious curriculum. All pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), follow this curriculum. Leaders have logically organised the knowledge, skills and vocabulary they want pupils to learn. They have included topics to help pupils learn about the world beyond the community in which they live. In the early years, leaders have also planned what pupils will learn and when. This prepares pupils for their learning in key stage 1 and beyond. Pupils across the key stages develop their knowledge over time. However, teachers do not always help pupils to make connections between the different topics they have studied or deepen their understanding to think like a geographer, or a scientist, for example.

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better?

Teachers deliver lessons with clarity. They have secure subject knowledge. Teachers check pupils’ understanding using questions and other effective strategies. In the early years, teachers skilfully identify and correct pupils’ misconceptions. Leaders are yet to establish assessment systems in the foundation subjects.

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better?

Teachers quickly identify and support pupils with SEND. They adapt resources and model activities before pupils complete them. Teachers and teaching assistants have established positive relationships with pupils with SEND. This is apparent in all classes, including in the early years. Staff have a good understanding of how to help the pupils with SEND to learn the curriculum. 2 and 3 November 2022

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Leaders have recently adopted a new phonics programme. Staff have completed training. They deliver phonics sessions, which engage pupils and help them to improve the speed of their reading as well as their comprehension. Staff support pupils who need extra help effectively. Pupils read fluently from books, which match the sounds they have learned. However, the new phonics programme is not yet fully embedded in key stage 2.

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Leaders have adopted a well-sequenced personal development curriculum. Pupils learn about money, values and how to keep themselves safe. Pupils know the school values and fundamental British values. They are not always aware of how these values relate to their lives beyond school.

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Leaders have planned for pupils’ wider experiences. Many pupils join in with a range of sporting activities, including running, basketball and football. There are some opportunities for pupils to engage with music and the arts. Pupils benefit from taking part in forest school activities.

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Pupils take their learning seriously. Staff and pupils have high expectations of behaviour. On the rare occasions when pupils make the wrong choices they apologise. They learn how to make better choices in the future. Pupils support one another. A weekly celebration assembly motivates pupils to do their best. Teachers link rewards to school priorities, such as writing.

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Pupils take on leadership roles by delivering assemblies about their interests and achievements. Older pupils act as ‘mini-leaders’ and run activities for younger pupils at lunchtime. All pupils vote for the school parliament and for ‘bronze ambassadors’. Pupils learn about beliefs different to their own. This begins in the early years.

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Governors engage fully with school life. They participate in the monitoring of the curriculum and regularly visit school to discuss their link subjects. They fulfil their statutory duties. Staff are very positive about workload and well-being. They participate in well-being and team-building activities. Leaders have introduced new systems, which are helping to improve pupils’ experiences of school. They have not yet evaluated the impact of all their new policies.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Leaders have created a culture of safeguarding. Staff are well trained. They know how to report concerns. Leaders and governors follow safe recruitment practices. Governors complete safeguarding training alongside school staff. Leaders work with other agencies effectively, when necessary, to safeguard pupils.

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Safeguarding

Pupils learn about how to keep themselves safe. Older pupils talk confidently about how to stay safe online. Pupils learn about healthy relationships at an age- appropriate level. Pupils say that they feel safe and would share any concerns they have with staff. 2 and 3 November 2022

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Leaders have not yet ensured that there are routine checks of pupils’ knowledge in foundation subjects. This means leaders are not yet able to precisely identify gaps in pupils’ knowledge in the subjects which make up the wider curriculum. Leaders should ensure that there is a consistent approach to checking pupils’ knowledge in the wider curriculum subjects and that this approach does not place unnecessary burdens on staff or pupils.  Leaders have introduced a range of new strategies and policies. These strategies include a new phonics programme and new ways of checking pupils’ understanding in core subjects. There is not yet an evaluation of the impact of all new strategies. Leaders should ensure that they continue to embed new policies and evaluate them in order to better understand their impact.

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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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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. 2 and 3 November 2022

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School details

Inspection number 10227216 Type of school Primary

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Date of previous inspection 17 January 2017, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The headteacher took up his post in September 2021.

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Information about this school

 The school does not currently use any alternative provision.

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Information about this inspection

The inspectors carried out this graded 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.  Inspectors met with the headteacher, subject leaders, staff and members of the local governing body.  The inspectors carried out deep dives in: reading; mathematics; science and geography. As part of deep dive activities, the inspectors discussed the curriculum with subject leaders, looked at curriculum plans, visited a sample of lessons, 2 and 3 November 2022

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spoke to teachers, spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work.  The lead inspector listened to pupils from Years 1, 2 and 3 read to a known adult.  The lead inspector met with those responsible for early years provision and both inspectors visited early years provision.  The lead inspector also met with those responsible for behaviour, personal development and provision for pupils with SEND.  Inspectors met formally and informally with groups of pupils.  To evaluate the effectiveness of the school’s arrangements for safeguarding, inspectors read the school’s relevant policies, scrutinised the single central record, checked the school’s procedures for the safe recruitment of staff and met with the safeguarding team. Inspectors also spoke with staff and pupils.  Inspectors scrutinised a range of documents, including the school’s self-evaluation and a range of policies.

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 Inspectors considered responses received on Parent View, including free-text responses. They also considered responses to the Ofsted staff and pupil surveys.

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Inspection team

Matthew Fearns-Davies, lead inspector His Majesty's Inspector

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Inspection team

George Huthart Ofsted Inspector 2 and 3 November 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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