Newberries Primary School

Inspection of Newberries Primary School Newberries Avenue, Radlett, Hertfordshire WD7 7EL

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Inspection dates: 29 and 30 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 29 and 30 November 2022

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are happy at this warm, friendly and inclusive school. They value the positive relationships they have with staff and with each other. Pupils talk enthusiastically about how staff help them model values such as tolerance, honesty and respect.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils receive the help they need to be ready for learning. They know that leaders have high expectations and that staff care about them as individuals. Pupils who find school more difficult are supported sensitively. Pupils work hard, meet expectations set for them and enjoy their learning. This helps them to achieve well.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Most pupils behave sensibly in lessons and at breaktimes and lunchtimes. They use ‘zones of regulation’ to manage their behaviour successfully. Bullying does not happen often. If it does, staff help pupils to deal with it. Pupils feel safe in school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are pleased that visits and clubs are taking place again after the COVID restrictions. They enjoy supporting each other by taking on roles of responsibility. For example, anti-bullying ambassadors are proud to ‘be a friend if people are lonely’.

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better?

Leaders have designed a curriculum which clearly sets out the knowledge they want pupils to learn. Leaders know that a few aspects of the curriculum are at an earlier stage of development and do not yet have the impact they intend. For example, in some subjects, assessment is less well developed.

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better?

Teachers mostly deliver the curriculum well. Where this is the case, teachers carefully check pupils’ understanding. They use this to plan purposeful learning activities which build on pupils’ prior learning. As a result, pupils show positive attitudes to learning which help them achieve well. However, while leaders ensure that teachers, particularly those new to the school, are well trained, in a few subjects, some staff are still developing their subject knowledge. This means that, on occasion, pupils do not build up what they know as well as they could.

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better?

Leaders have strengthened the approach to teaching phonics. All adults receive the training they need to deliver the programme consistently. Children in Reception make a positive start. They quickly learn to blend sounds into words. Adults provide precise support for pupils who need to catch up. Leaders ensure the school’s reading books match the sounds pupils know. Older pupils receive strong support to develop their fluency and confidence to read more complex texts.

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better?

Early years provision is well led. Transition into and out of Reception is carefully considered. The early years curriculum is closely aligned to the rest of the school. Teaching is highly effective. Children enjoy a wide range of high-quality, purposeful activities. As a result, they become curious and confident learners. 29 and 30 November 2022

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Leaders provide effective support for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Teaching assistants offer skilful and personalised care. The needs of pupils with SEND are well identified. This helps pupils with SEND access the same learning as their peers. Teachers adapt their teaching well so that pupils with SEND receive the support they need in lessons. As a result, pupils with SEND learn well and enjoy school.

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Leaders understand the needs of their pupils and expect them to behave well. They help pupils develop positive and respectful relationships with each other and with adults. Pupils learn to understand the consequences of their actions and how to manage their own behaviour.

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Leaders work effectively with individual families to remove barriers to better attendance. However, they recognise they could apply these strategies more systematically across the school. A few pupils remain absent on too many occasions. This means they are not able to achieve as well as they could.

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Pupils’ personal development is well considered. The personal, social and health education curriculum helps pupils to accept others and recognise that everyone is different. Pupils talk about the values they learn and how they model them, for example respect and perseverance.

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Governors know the school well. They focus on the right priorities and challenge leaders effectively to ensure the best outcomes for pupils. Staffing changes and limitations in capacity mean that some intended improvements have not happened as quickly as leaders wanted.

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Leaders and governors have worked hard to engage with parents and carers. Parents appreciate the school’s happy and nurturing environment. The majority of parents who responded to the parent survey are positive about how the school has improved.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Leaders ensure that safeguarding is an important priority for everyone. Adults are regularly trained in safeguarding. They are alert to the risks pupils may face and know how to report any concerns. Leaders liaise promptly and effectively with external agencies to secure support for vulnerable pupils and families.

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Safeguarding

Pupils are taught how to stay safe. This includes when they are online. Pupils know who to talk to if they have any worries. They are confident that staff will help and support them. 29 and 30 November 2022

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Leaders have designed a curriculum which clearly sets out the knowledge they want pupils to learn over time. Some of these plans have been developed more recently. This means that, in a few subjects, aspects such as assessment are at a relatively early stage of implementation. Leaders need to monitor and evaluate the impact of the whole curriculum regularly to check how effectively their intentions are being delivered in practice.  In a few subjects, staff who are new to the school are still developing their subject knowledge. Leaders should ensure that all staff continue to receive the training and support they need to teach all aspects of the curriculum effectively so that pupils can achieve well in all subjects.  Leaders’ processes to improve attendance have made some difference but not as much as they would want. A few pupils are still absent on too many occasions. Leaders have put in place strategies to encourage good attendance.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

Leaders need to continue to apply these systematically across the school, to further reduce pupils’ absence over time.

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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. 29 and 30 November 2022

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Date of previous inspection 9 and 10 November 2021, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 Newberries Primary School is smaller than the average-sized primary school.  There is an on-site breakfast club run by an external provider, and an after-school club run by the school.  Leaders do 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 second routine inspection the school received since the COVID-19 pandemic began. Inspectors discussed any continued impact of the pandemic with leaders and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  Inspectors held discussions with the co-headteachers, the deputy headteacher, who is also the special educational needs coordinator, and the assistant headteacher, who is also the designated safeguarding lead. 29 and 30 November 2022

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 Inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: reading, mathematics, history and physical education. For each deep dive, inspectors 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. The lead inspector listened to a number of pupils read to a familiar adult. Inspectors also spoke to leaders about the curriculum in some other subjects, in particular science.  The lead inspector scrutinised safeguarding policies, the school’s record of background checks on adults at the school, and a sample of child protection records. Inspectors also spoke with governors, leaders and staff about safeguarding practices at the school.  The lead inspector met with a group of governors, including the chair of governors, and held a telephone conversation with the school improvement partner, who represented the local authority.

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 Inspectors reviewed a range of other documents, including behaviour and attendance records, school policies, evaluations and development plans, SEND records and local authority visit reports.  Inspectors considered the 68 responses to the Ofsted online questionnaire, Ofsted Parent View, alongside 48 free-text comments. An inspector also spoke directly with a number of parents to gather their views.  Inspectors took account of 21 responses to the staff survey. There were no responses to the pupil survey. Inspectors spoke to a range of pupils throughout the inspection to gather their views.

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Inspection team

John Constable, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector

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Inspection team

Emma Breckenridge Ofsted Inspector 29 and 30 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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