Bedford Drive Primary School

Inspection of Bedford Drive Primary School Bedford Drive, Rock Ferry, Birkenhead, Merseyside CH42 6RT

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Inspection dates: 15 and 16 November 2022

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Overall effectiveness Good

The quality of education Good Behaviour and attitudes Good Personal development Good Leadership and management Good Early years provision Good Previous inspection grade Good 15 and 16 November 2022

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are proud to attend Bedford Drive Primary School. Staff greet parents, carers and pupils in the school yard as they arrive at school each morning. Pupils are eager to get into school and start learning. They feel safe and well cared for by staff.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils know that if they have a worry, there is someone who will support them. Pupils consider the best thing about the school to be their teachers. They said that this is because staff are always there to help them when needed.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Leaders and staff set high expectations of pupils. Pupils, including children in the early years, behave well in lessons, when moving around the school and at breaktimes. Pupils are polite and respectful. They look after each other and say that bullying is rare. However, if it should happen, staff deal with it quickly.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Staff are ambitious for pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). They have designed a curriculum that motivates pupils to want to learn more. Pupils enjoy their lessons and they work hard.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils have opportunities to develop their leadership skills through roles as school councillors, play leaders and ‘well-being warriors’. They help to improve playtimes for their peers and support each other to understand how to stay healthy.

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better?

Staff and leaders at Bedford Drive Primary School play an important role in supporting the community. Leaders know and understand the needs of pupils and their families well. Leaders have built positive relationships with parents and strong links with local organisations. This enables leaders to guide parents to support when it is needed.

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better?

Leaders have developed a curriculum which provides pupils with the knowledge and skills that they need to achieve well academically and socially. However, work to ensure that teachers are clear about the knowledge that pupils should learn is still being finalised in a small number of subjects. In these subjects, teachers are not as clear about the knowledge that pupils should learn. As a result, some pupils have small gaps in their knowledge when learning something new. In the early years, leaders have designed a curriculum that ensures that children are well prepared for key stage 1. Adults help children in the early years to become confident and independent learners.

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better?

Leaders have made reading a priority. Staff are trained well and they deliver the reading curriculum effectively. They know what knowledge pupils need to develop as confident readers. Leaders ensure that any pupil who falls behind, including pupils with SEND, receive appropriate support so that they catch up. Pupils, and children in the early years, enjoy the stories and books that their teachers share with them. 15 and 16 November 2022

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Pupils have a love for reading. For example, older pupils make recommendations about what to read to others.

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Staff are equipped well to identify the needs of pupils with SEND precisely. Support from staff for those pupils with the greatest need is highly effective. Pupils with SEND follow the same curriculum as their peers. However, in some subjects, teachers are still getting to grips with how to best adapt how they deliver curriculums. At times, this hinders these pupils in their learning.

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All staff have high expectations of pupils’ behaviour. Leaders have established routines which mean that the school runs smoothly. Pupils move around the school calmly. Playtimes are well supervised. Pupils understand the school’s rules and follow them diligently. Children in the early years play and learn cooperatively. Pupils work hard and take pride in their work. They understand that some pupils need help to behave well. When required, well-trained adults ensure that learning is not disrupted for other pupils.

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Most pupils attend school regularly. Leaders’ actions to reduce absence are comprehensive and have been successful for many pupils. However, a small number of pupils are absent too often. These pupils miss important aspects of their learning.

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Pupils enjoy the responsibilities that they hold and they feel that they make a positive difference. For example, school councillors have organised fundraising activities, such as a danceathon, to buy more games equipment for breaktimes.

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Pupils have a variety of opportunities to develop their interests. These include sporting activities and playing musical instruments. Pupils enjoy opportunities to learn coding and take part in cross-country running. They know how to keep themselves healthy physically and mentally. Those pupils who act as ‘well-being warriors’ reinforce key knowledge for their classmates.

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Pupils understand ideas such as equality, tolerance and democracy. Pupils said that everyone is welcome in their school regardless of their background.

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Staff, including those new to teaching, said that leaders are considerate of their well-being and workload. They feel that leaders support them well to be successful in their roles.

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Governors are knowledgeable about the school and its community. They provide appropriate challenge to leaders and help to check leaders’ progress against the school’s priorities. Governors make appropriate use of external partners to support their work.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective. 15 and 16 November 2022

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Leaders and governors ensure that staff receive regular and appropriate training so that they can recognise the signs that a child may be at risk from harm. Staff know how to report any safeguarding concerns that they might have.

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Staff know pupils and their families well. They understand the types of difficulties that pupils and their families may face. Leaders provide vulnerable children and their families with effective early support.

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Through the curriculum, pupils learn how to keep themselves safe, including when using social media. They understand about healthy relationships. For instance, they know what to do if anyone asked them to do something that they are not comfortable with.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 In some subjects, leaders are still finalising what they want pupils to learn and when some curriculum content should be learned. This means that, in these subjects, teachers are not as clear about how to design learning and this leads to some pupils having gaps in their knowledge. Leaders should finalise their curriculum thinking in these subjects so that teachers are clear about what pupils should be learning and when this content should be taught.  In a small number of subjects, teachers are still developing how best to adapt the delivery of the curriculum to meet the needs of some pupils with SEND. This means that, from time to time, some pupils with SEND are hindered in their learning of the intended curriculum. Leaders should ensure that staff are supported well to adapt how they deliver the curriculum for pupils with SEND so that this group of pupils can learn the same ambitious curriculum as well as their

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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. 15 and 16 November 2022

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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. 15 and 16 November 2022

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School details

Inspection number 10226254 Type of school Primary

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Dates of previous inspection 11 and 12 January 2017, under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 Since the previous inspection, a new chair of governors and deputy headteacher have been appointed.  Leaders do not use any alternative provision for pupils.

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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 considered a range of documents shared by leaders, including the school development plan, minutes of governing body meetings and the school’s self-evaluation document.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in the following subjects: early reading, mathematics, science, geography and physical education. They discussed the 15 and 16 November 2022

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curriculum with leaders and visited lessons. Inspectors reviewed pupils’ work in these subjects, as well as speaking with teachers and pupils.  Inspectors spoke with the vice-chair of governors and other members of the governing body. They spoke with the headteacher, other senior leaders and curriculum leaders, teachers and support staff. Meetings were held with a representative of the local authority.  To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding, inspectors reviewed a range of documents, including safeguarding records, behaviour records, attendance records and reports from governors.  Inspectors considered the responses to Ofsted Parent View, including the free- text responses. Inspectors spoke with a number of parents to gather their views. Inspectors considered the responses to the staff and pupil surveys.  Inspectors spoke with pupils informally during breaktimes and observed pupils playing. They collected the views of different groups of pupils and talked about

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Inspection team

Keith Pullen, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector

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Inspection team

Collette Mather Ofsted Inspector 15 and 16 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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