Lakes Primary School

Inspection of a good school: Lakes Primary School West Dyke Road, Redcar, North Yorkshire TS10 4JH

p.1

Inspection dates: 29 and 30 November 2022

p.1

Outcome

Lakes Primary School continues to be a good school.

p.1

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy coming to Lakes Primary School. They are enthusiastic about their learning. Most would recommend the school to a friend. Pupils know that staff have high expectations of them. As one pupil said, ‘The school challenges you to do your best.’ When a pupil finds something difficult in a lesson, teachers spot this and give pupils extra help before the next lesson. Pupils like this. It helps them to keep up with other pupils in their class.

p.1

What is it like to attend this school?

The school and the Nursery are welcoming environments. Pupils are inquisitive about visitors. They are keen to say hello and talk about what they are doing. Pupils behave well in lessons and around school. At lunchtime, pupils tidy up after themselves enthusiastically. Pupils feel safe and trust adults to sort out any issues. Bullying incidents are infrequent. They are well managed when they do occur.

p.1

What is it like to attend this school?

Leaders provide pupils with rich experiences. Older pupils enjoy the chance to play wheelchair basketball. Visits to theatres and places of worship give pupils meaningful cultural experiences. Pupils in the choir are excited about an upcoming visit to a local care home to sing for residents. Young carers in school benefit from additional extra-curricular opportunities during the school day.

p.1

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

Leaders have developed an effective and ambitious curriculum for all pupils. This includes in the early years, where the curriculum gives children the knowledge and skills that they need when they start Year 1. Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are supported by teachers and teaching assistants to access the same curriculum as everyone else. The curriculum is well structured to support pupils’ knowledge lesson by lesson.

p.1

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

Teachers deliver the curriculum well. They explain new content clearly. Effective training has built teachers’ confidence in subjects that they have found trickier to teach in the 29 and 30 November 2022

p.1

2

past, such as music and languages. Teachers use assessment to identify pupils who are struggling to grasp new content. Staff take appropriate action to ensure that pupils have the required prior knowledge before moving on to something new. Pupils talk confidently about what they have learned recently, and what they have learned in the past.

p.2

2

Some subject leaders are new to the role. They feel well supported by senior leaders to take on their responsibilities. Reading and mathematics leaders have been given the time necessary to check on the effectiveness of the curriculum in their subjects. However, due to staff absences caused by COVID-19, leaders of other subjects, such as physical education (PE), have not had time to track their subjects in the same way. They are unsure about when they will get the opportunity to do similar checks on their subjects.

p.2

2

Reading is prioritised. Staff have accessed high-quality training in how to deliver phonics. Pupils are given the right books to help them practise their reading. The special educational needs coordinator (SENCo) takes effective action to address any additional barriers faced by pupils with SEND. Pupils who are behind in phonics get extra time to practise their reading. This helps pupils to catch up. However, some additional reading sessions do not focus precisely on building pupils’ knowledge in phonics. This means that a minority of pupils do not catch up as quickly as they could.

p.2

2

In the early years, staff share a common understanding of what children should be learning and how they develop. Staff are clear about which children need additional support and how to provide it. For example, staff are aware that some children need to further develop their gross and fine motor skills. Staff put in place extra activities that help these children to build the muscle strength needed to begin writing.

p.2

2

Staff manage behaviour consistently. Incidents of poor behaviour are rare. Routines in school, including in the early years, are well understood by pupils. As a result, the school is calm and orderly.

p.2

2

Leaders ensure that pupils get plenty of opportunities to develop as individuals. Pupils benefit from a range of visits to places of educational and cultural interest. For example, a recent visit to a Buddhist temple has supported pupils’ understanding of Buddhist beliefs and practices. This work helps pupils to understand the importance of mutual respect and tolerance of different faiths. Pupils are well prepared for life in modern Britain.

p.2

2

The school is well led. Staff enjoy working at the school as much as pupils enjoy attending. The vast majority of staff feel well supported by leaders and view them as approachable. Staff give various examples of the actions that leaders have taken to reduce unnecessary workload.

p.2

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

p.2

Safeguarding

Systems to safeguard pupils are robust. Staff receive effective training to enhance their safeguarding knowledge. Recent training on adverse childhood experiences has raised awareness of how pupils might be affected by challenging events in their lives. An 29 and 30 November 2022

p.2

3

efficient process is in place to enable staff to act on any safeguarding concerns swiftly. Where pupils need extra help, leaders seek external support appropriately. Leaders are unafraid to challenge external professionals if they feel that pupils are not getting the support that they need.

p.3

3

Pupils receive information that helps them to stay safe away from school. For example, pupils recall knowledge that they gained from a visit by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution to talk about water safety.

p.3

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Some additional reading sessions do not focus on developing pupils’ knowledge of phonics precisely enough. This means that a minority of pupils do not catch up as quickly as they could. Leaders should ensure that all reading interventions and additional reading sessions identify what each pupil needs so that they catch up with their peers quickly.  Leaders of the wider curriculum subjects, such as PE, do not have opportunities to check how well pupils are learning in these curriculum subjects. This means that leaders are not fully assured that the wider curriculum is being fully implemented or remembered. Leaders should ensure that all subject leaders are given time and support to evaluate the effectiveness of their curriculum subjects.

p.3

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.

p.3

Background

This is the second ungraded inspection since we judged the predecessor school, also called Lakes Primary School, to be good in October 2012.

p.3

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. 29 and 30 November 2022

p.3

4

The Department for Education has further guidance on how to complain about a school.

p.4

Further information

You can search for published performance information about the school.

p.4

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. 29 and 30 November 2022

p.4

School details

Date of previous inspection Not previously inspected

p.5

Information about this school

 Lakes Primary School converted to become an academy school in April 2018. When its predecessor school, also called Lakes Primary School, was last inspected by Ofsted, it was judged to be good overall.  The previous headteacher left their post in summer 2022. The executive headteacher was appointed into post in September 2022.  Since the previous inspection, the school has opened a provision for two-year-olds.  The school uses two registered alternative providers. It also uses one unregistered alternative provider. These are used for a very small number of pupils.

p.5

Information about this inspection

 This was the first routine inspection the school received since the COVID-19 pandemic began. The inspector discussed the impact of the pandemic with leaders and has taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  The inspector met with the executive headteacher, the assistant headteacher and the chief executive of the trust. The inspector also met with the SENCo, the early years leader and some subject leaders. 29 and 30 November 2022

p.5

6

 The inspector met with the chairperson and vice chairperson of the board of trustees. The inspector also met with two members of the local school board, including the chairperson.  The inspector carried out deep dives in reading, mathematics and PE. For each deep dive, the inspector spoke to subject leaders, visited a sample of lessons, spoke to teachers, spoke to pupils about their learning and looked at a sample of pupils’ work. The inspector also listened to pupils read to a familiar adult and visited reading support sessions.  To inspect safeguarding, the inspector met with the designated safeguarding lead and reviewed a sample of the school’s safeguarding logs, including referrals made by the school to external agencies. The inspector also checked the school’s single central register for compliance and spoke to staff and pupils about their safeguarding knowledge throughout the inspection.  The inspector spoke to pupils, both formally and informally. The inspector observed

p.6

6

lesson changeover times and lunchtime arrangements.  A range of school documents were reviewed by the inspector, including the school’s self-evaluation document, the school development plan and minutes from meetings of the local governing school board.  The views of parents, staff and pupils given through Ofsted’s questionnaires were considered by the inspector.

p.6

Inspection team

Graham Findlay, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector 29 and 30 November 2022

p.6

7

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.

p.7

7

If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk .

p.7

7

You may reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/ , write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk .

p.7

7

Interested in our work? You can subscribe to our monthly newsletter for more information and updates: http://eepurl.com/iTrDn .

p.7

7

T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/ofsted

p.7