Buckland Primary School

Inspection of Buckland Primary School Berryscroft Road, Laleham, Staines, Middlesex TW18 1NB

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Overall effectiveness Good

The quality of education Good Behaviour and attitudes Good Personal development Outstanding Leadership and management Good Early years provision Good Previous inspection grade Good 8 and 9 November 2022

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What is it like to attend this school?

Throughout the school, there is a feeling of inclusivity, warmth and determination to succeed. Leaders, staff and pupils work well together to create this atmosphere. Pupils are proud of their ‘BEST’ values: ‘believe, excel, strive, together’. These are the foundation stones which help pupils to become active members of this school community where they develop into well rounded and confident young citizens. This is enhanced by the wide range of rich experiences that leaders ensure that all pupils have. Pupils take genuine ownership of the school community and are highly motivated to make it the best it can be. They listen to each other and reflect on different views with thought and interest.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils behave well and show support and care for each other. Bullying is rare. Staff build strong and purposeful relationships with pupils and their families. Pupils recognise that staff want the absolute best for them. The mutual trust and respect this creates lead to pupils having very positive attitudes towards their learning.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are inspired by the high ambition their teachers have for them. All pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), have their needs met well.

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better?

Leaders are determined that every pupil will receive a high-quality education. They are ambitious in the way that they think about the subjects that pupils will learn. In doing so, they have made sure that pupils are not only able to make strong progress through the curriculum but that they also are prepared for the next steps in their education. Leaders have thought carefully about what they want pupils to know and when they need to learn it. Overall, they ensure that pupils build on their knowledge in a way that helps them remember it and use it to learn more. However, in a few subjects, this work is less well developed, and it is therefore not as effective.

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better?

Staff have strong subject knowledge due to high-quality training and support from leaders. They know pupils well and adapt learning to meet the needs of all pupils, including those with SEND. In doing so, staff give every pupil from the youngest children in Reception Year the support they need to achieve well. Within this earliest phase, staff show skill in how they teach routines that help children to learn well. Staff are creative in the way they introduce rich vocabulary into the learning environment. As such, children understand and use the words that help them to be ready to learn in Year 1.

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better?

Pupils benefit from a well-sequenced phonics programme. If pupils fall behind, teachers are quick to identify this and put in place activities and support to quickly close any gaps. This helps pupils to be confident in their reading. The impact of this is clear in key stage 2, where pupils are enthusiastic about the books they read. Through the school, pupils read high-quality texts, including books that help them to learn about difference and equality. 8 and 9 November 2022

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Pupils focus well on their learning. Throughout the school disruption is minimal and attitudes are positive. On the rare occasion that low-level disruption does occur, staff are quick and skilful in their response to it. Pupils are proud to be ‘playground buddies’ and ‘digital leaders’, where they can help to make a difference. They relish the opportunities to support their classmates and further improve the school. Pupils in these positions work well with their peers to encourage respect, kindness and equality.

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Leaders have planned a wide range of experiences that deliberately build character and confidence exceptionally well. In doing so, leaders help all pupils to learn skills which prepare them for the next stage in their education as well as their wider lives.

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Leaders celebrate the school’s cultural diversity. As a result, pupils’ understanding of equality and their respect for individual choice and identity is excellent. Leaders ensure that the personal, social, health and economic (PSHE) education and relationships and sex education (RSE) programmes teach pupils not just to understand equality, but to show it in all they do. The school’s approach to this is practice worth sharing.

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Staff are inspired by leaders and buy into the vision for the school. They feel supported and valued in their work. Governors work strategically with school leaders to ensure that vulnerable families have the support they need but the persistent absence of disadvantaged pupils remains too high. Governors challenge subject leaders to ensure that the best curriculum is in place for all pupils. However, governors lack rigour in ensuring that all of their statutory duties are consistently fulfilled.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Leaders recruit staff in line with safeguarding guidance. They ensure staff are well trained and know how to identify concerns early. Staff use this knowledge well and follow school processes consistently and quickly. This means safeguarding leaders can get the right help for pupils and their families as soon as they need it.

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Safeguarding

Leaders have a robust understanding of the risks to pupils’ safety and well-being. They make sure that the PSHE and RSE curriculums are both effective in teaching pupils how to manage risks and keep themselves safe.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 In a small number of subjects, leaders have not embedded all of their changes to the curriculum. This means that pupils are not consistently learning well across 8 and 9 November 2022

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the entire curriculum. Leaders should ensure that staff have the knowledge they need in all curriculum areas to ensure that pupils can build coherent knowledge effectively over time.  Some governors do not fully understand their statutory duties. This means that they do not provide consistently focused challenge to school leaders. Governors need to ensure that they are all fully trained and precise in their monitoring of the school’s work.  Persistent absence of the most vulnerable pupils remains too high. These pupils are not fully benefitting from all that school has to offer. Leaders should now carefully consider what additional strategies and support, both within and external to the school, the most vulnerable families need to further improve attendance.

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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. 8 and 9 November 2022

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Website www.bucklandprimary.surrey.sch.uk

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School details

Date of previous inspection 10 October 2017, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The school makes use of one registered alternative provision. Pupils currently attending the alternative provision do so full time.  Since the previous inspection, there has been a large turnover of staff within the school.  Governance has changed since the previous inspection report. While the chair of the governing body has been in post since 2016, other governors have taken up their roles at different points within the last three years.

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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, the deputy headteacher and other members of the leadership team, including the special educational needs coordinator and 8 and 9 November 2022

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the welfare officer. The lead inspector spoke to the head of the alternative provision used by the school and with a representative from the local authority. She also spoke with the chair of governors and met with four members of the governing body.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in the following subjects: early reading, mathematics, history and art. 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 discussed with leaders the curriculum planning for physical education, geography and science.  Inspectors observed pupils’ behaviour around the school and in lessons. Inspectors met with groups of pupils to discuss their learning, personal development and views on bullying and behaviour. They also spoke to pupils in lessons and during play and lunchtimes.

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 Inspectors considered a range of documents, including leaders’ evaluations of the school, their school improvement plan, external evaluations from the local authority and minutes from governors’ meetings.  Inspectors spoke to parents and carers and also took into account their responses to Ofsted’s Parent View.  Inspectors took account of the views of staff through conversations and the responses to the online staff survey.  Inspectors evaluated the effectiveness of the safeguarding arrangements in the school by speaking with leaders, staff and pupils. The lead inspector met with the designated and deputy designated safeguarding leads to discuss the arrangements for safeguarding. During these meetings, the lead inspector scrutinised records and sampled case files to explore how the school identifies and supports pupils at risk of harm. A team inspector examined the school’s work to recruit and check on the suitability of staff. Inspectors also checked the

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knowledge of staff about their responsibilities.

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Inspection team

Nina Marabese, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Kate Owbridge Ofsted Inspector 8 and 9 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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