Fringford Church of England Primary School

Inspection of a good school: Fringford Church of England Primary School The Green, Fringford, Bicester, Oxfordshire OX27 8DY

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Outcome

Fringford Church of England Primary School continues to be a good school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are happy coming to school. They get on well with each other and have strong relationships with the staff. This helps them to feel safe.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Staff are aspirational for all pupils, both academically and personally. Pupils rise to these expectations by working hard. They act on guidance about how to be responsible and play a full part in the life of the school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Leaders have set high expectations for pupils’ behaviour. Consequently, no learning time is lost due to poor behaviour. Pupils know whom to go to if things go wrong and say that they get help to put things right, including bullying. If an incident does happen, leaders and the wider staff team deal with it effectively.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Parents and carers value the school’s efforts to develop pupils as individuals as well as responsible and active members of the school and local community. Pupils have many opportunities to take part in a variety of sporting activities. They are well supported by staff to be mindful of their emotional as well as their physical well-being. The curriculum for personal, social and health education develops pupils’ understanding of themselves and healthy relationships.

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What does the school do well and what does it need to do better?

Leaders have structured the curriculum carefully, specifying what pupils should learn and when. This starts from early years and ensures that new knowledge builds on what pupils already know. Leaders organise the right support and resources for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). This helps pupils with SEND to access and be successful across the full breadth of the curriculum. Staff have a good understanding of how to deliver the curriculum. They plan time during lessons to go over previous learning thoroughly. This helps pupils to remember what they have already learned. As a result, pupils mostly achieve well. However, there are times when teachers do not deepen 3 November 2022

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pupils’ learning sufficiently well. This is because the work set for pupils is not ambitious or demanding enough.

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Leaders have made teaching pupils to read a top priority. The youngest children get off to a good start in their reading because phonics is taught well. They start learning phonics as soon as they begin school, quickly learning the sounds that letters represent. Pupils use this knowledge to help them read words that they do not know. Teachers ensure that pupils read books that match the sounds they are learning. This means that pupils become confident and fluent readers. Teachers check pupils’ reading skills regularly. Staff identify any pupil who is falling behind and provide extra support to help them catch up.

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Leaders ensure that the needs of pupils with SEND are identified early on and accurately. They make sure that specialists and wider partners support teachers to plan and implement the most appropriate strategies to help pupils with SEND to be successful. Teaching assistants also offer effective support in class when needed. As a result, pupils with SEND achieve well.

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Pupils behave well. In all classes, they work hard and have positive attitudes to their learning in different subjects. In Reception, children play and learn together happily. Children help each other to complete the activities that are provided for them. Older pupils show a good understanding of the importance of being resilient in their learning. Across the school, pupils reflect on their learning and work during lessons.

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Teachers supplement learning in classrooms with school trips. For example, teachers enhance pupils’ knowledge of different religions by visiting a mosque, a church and a gurdwara in Bedford. Staff develop pupils’ wider skills and talents. Pupils enjoy the extra times in the school day to hone their drama, dance and sports skills. Pupils develop a keen sense of responsibility. They can join the school council and the eco-council. This develops their leadership skills because they take on important roles such as those of chair, treasurer and secretary. One pupil, summing up the thoughts of the group, rightly sees these contributions as ‘special’. Pupils sharpen their organisational skills. For example, they plan events such as assemblies to promote the importance of looking after the environment.

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Staff enjoy working at the school. They feel well supported by leaders, including governors, because of the actions that they take to support their well-being and workload.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Leaders ensure that safeguarding is a high priority in the school. They have developed a staff team whose members are vigilant. Leaders provide training that helps all staff to take the right actions when required to keep pupils safe. Staff report any concerns quickly and appropriately. Leaders act decisively and work very well with external agencies and families to support pupils who need help. 3 November 2022

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Leaders, including governors, understand their safeguarding responsibilities. They check that any new staff are safe to work with pupils before they start in their role at the school. Pupils learn how to keep themselves safe, including when online.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Teachers sometimes set work that is not ambitious enough. This means that pupils do not always learn as well as they could. Leaders need to make sure that teachers have stronger subject knowledge to deliver the planned curriculum to a consistently high standard.

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Background

When we have judged a school to be good, we will then normally go into the school about once every four years to confirm that the school remains good. This is called an ungraded inspection, and it is carried out under section 8 of the Education Act 2005. We do not give graded judgements on an ungraded inspection. However, if we find evidence that a school would now receive a higher or lower grade, then the next inspection will be a graded inspection, which is carried out under section 5 of the Act. Usually this is within one to two years of the date of the ungraded inspection. If we have serious concerns about safeguarding, behaviour or the quality of education, we will deem the ungraded inspection a graded inspection immediately.

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Background

This is the second ungraded inspection since we judged the school to be good in September 2012.

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How can I feed back my views?

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. 3 November 2022

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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Date of previous inspection

27 June 2017, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The school does not currently use any alternative provision.  This is a Church of England primary school. The school’s next section 48 Statutory Inspection of Anglican and Methodist Schools is due in the next two years. The most recent inspection of this type took place in June 2018.

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Information about this inspection

 This was the first routine inspection the school had 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 and two governors, including the chair of governors.  The lead inspector held two online meetings with representatives from the Diocese of Oxford and the local authority.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in reading, mathematics and history. For each deep dive, inspectors discussed the curriculum with subject leaders, visited a sample of 3 November 2022

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lessons, spoke to teachers, talked with some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work.  Inspectors scrutinised records and safeguarding documentation, including the single central record.  Inspectors took account of the 26 responses to Ofsted Parent View, including the free- text comments. Inspectors also reviewed the 31 responses to the pupil survey and the 12 responses to the staff survey.

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Inspection team

Richard Blackmore, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector

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Inspection team

Mineza Maher Ofsted Inspector 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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