Kibblesworth Academy

Inspection of a good school: Kibblesworth Academy West View, Kibblesworth, Gateshead, Tyne and Wear NE11 0XP

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Outcome

Kibblesworth Academy continues to be a good school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils feel valued and cared for, and they enjoy being at school. They attend regularly and often. They feel happy and safe.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Leaders and staff have high expectations for all pupils. These expectations apply to both pupils’ personal development and academic achievement. Teachers ensure that pupils achieve well in important areas, such as reading and mathematics. They also provide well-thought-through opportunities which successfully develop pupils’ learning in other subjects like art and dance. The school’s curriculum and leadership opportunities effectively develop pupils’ citizenship qualities.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils’ behaviour in lessons and on the playground is exemplary. There is a calm, orderly learning atmosphere around the school. Incidents of bullying are very rare. Leaders and staff deal with these promptly. They work well with pupils and parents to resolve any issues. Pupils are confident that their concerns will be dealt with by staff.

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What is it like to attend this school?

This village school is a central part of the community. Parents are overwhelmingly positive about the school. They often comment about how the school helps individual pupils to thrive. Parents find staff approachable and welcoming. They are enthusiastic about attending events in school. Parents enjoy the school performances and the coffee mornings where their children present their recent learning.

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

The school has a well-designed curriculum. This curriculum is ambitious for all pupils, including pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Leaders have clearly mapped out the progression of early reading and mathematics from Nursery to Year 6. In a small number of foundation subjects, the links between early years curriculum and Year 1 are not sufficiently explicit. Leaders are aware of this and are ensuring subject leaders and the early years leader work together to strengthen this aspect of provision. 6 and 7 December 2022

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Teachers implement the curriculum very effectively. For example, in mathematics, they make effective use of retrieval activities to ensure pupils retain key knowledge. Teachers provide suitable apparatus to help pupils gain secure mathematical understanding. Consequently, pupils achieve very well in mathematics. In history, teachers’ explanations of change over time help pupils to develop a strong understanding of chronology. Pupils retain secure historical knowledge of recently covered history work taught within topics. This helps them to apply their knowledge productively when they are learning about how historians work, for example when pupils consider the use of primary and secondary history sources. However, pupils’ retention of previously taught history topics is less secure. Leaders and staff are researching and trialling ways to address this.

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Staff use assessment astutely to check that pupils are remembering the content of the curriculum. Teachers use assessment in lessons, including online assessments, to meticulously check for gaps in pupils’ learning or for pupils’ misconceptions. The school uses summative testing appropriately to check pupils’ progress over time.

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Leaders and staff have a sharp focus on ensuring that pupils become confident, fluent readers. Staff receive effective training on the teaching of phonics and early reading. Consequently, there is a highly consistent approach to the teaching of reading. If leaders spot any lack of consistency, they are swift to provide guidance and support to staff to ensure the school’s expectations are reliably met. Staff introduce children to phonics and early reading from Nursery. By the end of Year 1 most pupils have secure phonic knowledge. Staff provide suitable additional support for pupils where this is not the case. The school’s innovative approach to encourage pupils to read a wide range of quality texts is reaping benefits. Pupils are passionate about reading. They can articulate their reasons for book selections with insight and expertise.

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The school has an ethos of mutual respect. Leaders and staff provide pupils with clear, simple guidance on expected behaviour. From starting Nursery, staff sensitively teach children the routines for being in school. Across early years, children listen attentively, turn take, and successfully join in activities. Pupils’ behaviour from Year 1 to Year 6 is exceptional in lessons. Pupils apply themselves well. Their books and work on display around school demonstrate the pride that they have in their work.

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Leaders and staff nurture of pupils’ personal development is a particular strength of the school. Pupils have access to a wide range of before- and after-school clubs. The extensive range of opportunities for pupils to take responsibility within school develops their leadership qualities. This enables pupils to understand how they can contribute to the school and local community. Links with outside local and national organisations, such as the Sage Gateshead and the Royal Opera House and English National Ballet, enrich pupils’ experiences and widen their horizons. Leaders have carefully mapped out the school’s spiritual, moral, social and cultural development, which ensures a high-quality coverage.

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The headteacher, well supported by the deputy headteacher, knows the strengths and priorities of the school well. Governors are well informed and provide a suitable balance of support and challenge to leaders. Staff believe that leaders take account of their workload and well-being. They are motivated and proud to work at the school. 6 and 7 December 2022

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Staff identify pupils who are vulnerable to safeguarding risks promptly. Leaders work effectively with agencies and families to secure the help that pupils need. The school has suitable procedures to manage safe recruitment and to address allegations or safeguarding concerns about staff. Governors use a range of approaches to assure themselves that the school has suitable safeguarding policies and procedures.

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Safeguarding

The school’s curriculum provides pupils with guidance on how to stay safe. Pupils know that there are ways, such as the worry box or the quick response (QR) code for reporting online abuse, to raise concerns regarding their safety.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Links between the school’s early years curriculum and what Year 1 pupils will learn in some foundation subjects are not fully established. This means that opportunities to build on Reception children’s learning in Year 1 are occasionally missed. Leaders should consider how the school’s early years curriculum links to Year 1 in some foundation subjects.  Leaders have not fully implemented some of their planned approaches to further improve retrieval practice. At times this can impact on what pupils remember from previous topics in some foundation subjects. Leaders need to continue to implement recently trialled strategies that help pupils remember key knowledge from earlier teaching.

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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 first ungraded inspection since we judged the school to be good in June 2017. 6 and 7 December 2022

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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. 6 and 7 December 2022

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School details

Inspection number 10240448 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 21 to 22 June 2017, under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The school is an academy converter in a single-academy trust.  The school uses no alternative provision.

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Information about this inspection

 This was the first routine inspection the school received since the COVID-19 pandemic began. The lead inspector discussed the impact of the pandemic with leaders and has taken that into account in his evaluation of the school.  The lead inspector met with the headteacher, deputy headteacher and the leader for pupils’ personal development. They met with six governors, including the chair of the governing body.  The lead inspector met with two improvement partners from the local authority.  The lead inspector carried out deep dives in these subjects: early reading, mathematics, and history. For each deep dive, they 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. 6 and 7 December 2022

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 The lead inspector discussed the school’s safeguarding procedures with a range of staff. They reviewed the school’s documentation regarding safeguarding. They discussed how safe pupils feel in school and how staff teach them to stay safe, including online.  The lead inspector analysed the responses to Ofsted’s pupil, staff, and parent surveys. This included any free-text responses.

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Inspection team

Michael Reeves, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector 6 and 7 December 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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