Churchdown Village Infant School

Inspection of Churchdown Village Infant School Station Road, Churchdown, Gloucester, Gloucestershire GL3 2NB

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Overall effectiveness Requires improvement

The quality of education Requires improvement Behaviour and attitudes Good Personal development Good Leadership and management Requires improvement Early years provision Requires improvement Previous inspection grade Outstanding

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Overall effectiveness Requires improvement

This school was last inspected 14 years ago and judged ‘Outstanding’ under a previous inspection framework. This reflected the school’s overall effectiveness judgement under the inspection framework in use at the time.

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Overall effectiveness Requires improvement

From then until November 2020, the school was exempted by law from routine inspection, so there has been a longer gap than usual between inspections. Judgements in this report are based on the current inspection framework and also reflect changes that may have happened at any point since the last inspection. 6 and 7 December 2022

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What is it like to attend this school?

Leaders, including governors, are ambitious for pupils and want them to achieve well. They are bringing about positive changes to improve the curriculum. However, the quality of education pupils receive is not yet good. Aspects of the curriculum, including in the early years, remain underdeveloped.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy coming to school. They appreciate the range of experiences beyond the classroom to nurture their interests. These include a range of clubs from sports and baking to board games and art.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are polite and show care towards each other. They behave well in lessons. At times, low-level disruption occurs when learning is not closely matched to pupil need. Pupils say that adults deal with this quickly. Pupils understand what bullying is. They say it does not happen but know that if it did, staff would sort it out quickly.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Most parents speak positively about the school. Many praise the school for the support for their children’s well-being. Some state how welcoming and caring the school is. They value the ‘noticeable improvement’ in the school since the new headteacher joined.

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better?

The new headteacher has high expectations of what staff and pupils can achieve. She has recognised the quality of education pupils receive needs to improve. She is quickly bringing about change and has well-founded plans to improve the school.

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better?

Leaders understand the importance of pupils learning to read. They have invested in books that all pupils read or share for pleasure. A new phonics scheme is still in its early stages of implementation. Pupils who struggle with learning to read do not receive the precise support they need to become confident and fluent readers. Not all staff have the knowledge to teach reading effectively. Books do not always match the sounds pupils are learning. As a result, not all pupils develop into confident and fluent readers.

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better?

Leaders have begun to address inconsistencies in the approach to the teaching of mathematics. For example, the subject leader is improving teachers’ subject knowledge. This is beginning to have an impact. Pupils say they enjoy mathematics. However, some pupils struggle to make connections with their mathematics learning overtime.

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better?

Some staff are new to their subject leader roles. The curriculum for the early years is not yet well planned. Equally, work to develop some subjects within the key stage 1 wider curriculum is in its infancy. Consequently, not all subjects nor all aspects of the early years curriculum identify the important knowledge pupils should learn. For example, in art, although teachers plan creative activities, the curriculum does not 6 and 7 December 2022

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develop pupils’ artistic skills and knowledge. Teachers do not systematically check what pupils already know and can do before planning their teaching. Nor do they always adapt learning precisely enough for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). As a result, pupils, including some with SEND, have gaps in their subject-specific knowledge.

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Leaders understand the individual needs of pupils with SEND. They identify these early. Leaders make positive links with external agencies. Pupils with more complex learning needs receive effective tailored help, particularly in English and mathematics.

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Overall, pupils have positive attitudes to their learning and behave well. They understand their teachers’ expectations. Those who sometimes struggle with their behaviour and emotions are well supported.

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Leaders ensure that pupils receive a relevant personal, social and health education curriculum. Pupils develop a positive understanding of respect. They know why it is important to be a good friend. Pupils can talk about why it is alright to be different. A typical comment was ‘we are all the same on the inside; we all have feelings and different opinions. It would be boring if we were all the same.’ Pupils have opportunities to take responsibility. For example, they enjoy being a member of the school council. However, pupils’ cultural understanding is less well developed.

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Governors have worked closely with leaders to evaluate the school’s priorities. They recognise that there is work needed to ensure the school provides a high-quality education. However, they do not have a clear understanding of what needs to improve in relation to the curriculum.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

The new headteacher has worked tirelessly to ensure effective systems and processes are in place to keep pupils safe. Staff understand their safeguarding responsibilities. They know how to identify a child who might be at risk of harm and what action to take. Leaders carry out the necessary employment checks on staff to ensure they are safe to work with children.

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Safeguarding

Pupils say they feel safe in school. They know who to go to if they have a concern. The curriculum supports pupils’ understanding of staying safe in various situations, including when online.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Pupils who struggle with reading do not receive the precise support they need. Books do not always match the sounds pupils are learning. As a result, pupils do not read as fluently as they should. Leaders need to ensure that all staff have the necessary knowledge to teach reading, so all pupils develop into confident and fluent readers.  The school’s curriculum, including in the early years, is not effectively sequenced or implemented. As a result, pupils, including those with SEND, do not build secure knowledge over time. Leaders need to ensure that teachers have the necessary subject knowledge and understanding of pedagogy and assessment, so that pupils learn well.  Subject leaders are in the early stages of developing their leadership roles. As a result, they do not have clear understanding of their subject area and the effectiveness of its curriculum. Leaders need to ensure that subject leadership is

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

strengthened.  Governors do not have a sufficient depth of understanding of the quality of education pupils receive. Over time, they have not challenged leaders sufficiently across subjects in the wider curriculum. Governors need to ensure they gain a clear oversight into the effectiveness of the curriculum and hold leaders stringently to account.

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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. 6 and 7 December 2022

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School details

Inspection number 10228833 Type of school Infant

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Date of previous inspection 14 February 2008

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Information about this school

 Churchdown Village Infant School is a smaller than average-sized infant school. The school has on-site pre-school provision managed by the governing body. The school became a standalone academy in 2011.

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Information about this school

 There is a breakfast and after-school club run for pupils at the school.

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Information about this school

 The current headteacher took up her post in September 2022. A new assistant headteacher is due to take up post in January 2023.

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Information about this school

 The school does not use any alternative provision.

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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 school leaders and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school. 6 and 7 December 2022

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 Inspectors met with the headteacher, assistant headteacher, the special educational needs coordinator, the assistant special educational needs coordinator, the designated safeguarding lead, groups of staff, a representative from the local authority, and members of the governing body.

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 Inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: early reading, mathematics and art. For each deep dive, inspectors discussed the curriculum with subject leaders, visited samples of lessons, spoke to teachers, spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work.

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 The lead inspector listened to pupils in Years Reception, 1 and 2 read to an adult.

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 Inspectors also discussed the curriculum in physical education and religious education with leaders.

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 Inspectors considered documentation around safeguarding, including safeguarding checks carried out on staff working at the school. They reviewed how well the designated leads act upon concerns about pupils’ welfare. Inspectors talked to staff, governors and pupils about how the school keeps everyone safe.

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 Inspectors considered the 65 responses to the Ofsted online survey, Parent View, including 44 free-text responses and 12 responses to the staff survey.

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Inspection team

Heather Barraclough, lead inspector His Majesty's Inspector

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Inspection team

Steve Wigley 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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