Hullavington CofE Primary and Nursery School

Inspection of a good school: Hullavington CofE Primary and Nursery School Hullavington, Chippenham, Wiltshire SN14 6EF

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Outcome

Hullavington CofE Primary and Nursery School continues to be a good school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Hullavington CofE Primary and Nursery School sits at the heart of its community. Pupils enjoy attending this friendly, caring school. They welcome visitors and treat each other with kindness and respect. Pupils are proud of the way they support each other. They ‘buddy up’ to help new pupils settle into the school. Leaders encourage pupils to be resilient and tolerant. Pupils live up to these expectations.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are keen to learn. They are eager to achieve ‘owl awards’ for making good choices about their work or behaviour. Pupils behave well in class, and disruption to learning is rare. Pupils enjoy the opportunities to be active during break and lunchtime. They engage in games that develop their teamwork skills.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils feel safe and cared for. They say bullying is rare, but if it happens, staff are quick to deal with it. Leaders have created a culture where everyone looks out for each other. Many parents speak highly of how staff support them when difficulties arise.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils learn about other cultures. Leaders want pupils to understand people of different faiths and backgrounds. Visits and visitors enhance pupils’ learning. For example, pupils talk with enthusiasm about the Nepalese festival of Dashain. Dumplings and dancing were highlights!

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

The school’s curriculum is ambitious and designed well. This starts in Nursery and continues through to Year 6. Pupils are taught a broad range of subjects. Leaders have thought carefully about the order in which pupils will learn essential knowledge. In physical education (PE), for example, pupils build on their knowledge and skills from year to year well. They become proficient in sports such as dance and netball. Leaders made curriculum changes in some subjects due to the impact of the pandemic. For example, teachers are developing pupils’ knowledge of number facts and times tables well. This means pupils successfully gain the knowledge they need for more complex learning. 7 and 8 December 2022

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Pupils see themselves as readers. They love visiting the school library. Leaders provide a range of high-quality and varied texts for pupils to read for learning and pleasure. Children learn phonics as soon as they start school. Phonics teaching is successful because it is taught with accuracy. Leaders are embedding a new scheme and checking that teaching is consistent and effective across school. Pupils practise their reading regularly with skilled adults. This helps pupils develop their fluency. Teachers swiftly identify pupils who have fallen behind. They provide the support pupils need to catch up quickly.

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Older pupils read regularly. Book choices, such as ‘Windrush Child’, enthuse the few reluctant readers to pick up a book and read. However, sometimes pupils do not know what they are learning because teachers have not made it clear. For example, in guided reading, some pupils are not able to understand what the characters in the story think and feel. Leaders do not consistently check how well the teaching approaches are working. This hinders some pupils from gaining the knowledge they need.

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Leaders have devised a coherent, well-sequenced mathematics curriculum. Teachers have secure subject knowledge. They recap and repeat important knowledge to help learning stick. For example, pupils use negative numbers in co-ordinates, graphs and when reading temperature scales confidently. In the early years, practical problem-solving tasks prepare children well for key stage 1.

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Teachers’ checks on how well pupils remember the curriculum vary in different subjects. In some subjects, assessments do not provide staff with the information they need. Teachers cannot identify if pupils have secure subject knowledge. Therefore, teachers do not know if pupils are ready to learn new knowledge. Leaders are aware of this.

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Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities get the help they require. Staff know pupils’ precise needs. For example, pupils learn a range of spelling strategies, which they practise often. Staff provide effective support which enables pupils to learn the same curriculum as their peers.

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Staff are fair and consistent in the way they manage behaviour. Pupils have positive attitudes to learning. They take great pride in their work. Pupils persevere when they find something difficult.

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The personal, social and health education (PSHE) curriculum prepares pupils well for life in modern Britain. The school’s diverse community is celebrated, and pupils are respectful and accepting of differences. Pupils relish taking on leadership roles, such as being school councillors or ‘Jigsaw’ ambassadors. Leaders encourage them to suggest ways to improve the school. Pupils have a secure understanding of important topics, such as how to keep healthy and what makes a good friend. They participate in various clubs, such as boxing fitness training, street dancing and choir. This helps pupils to follow their interests.

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Staff are proud to work at Hullavington. They appreciate the consideration leaders give to manage their workload and well-being. Governors share leaders’ determination for all to succeed. 7 and 8 December 2022

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Staff, including governors, receive regular safeguarding training. Staff know and follow the procedures for reporting concerns. They are confident that leaders will take the required action. Leaders work with external agencies to ensure pupils and their families get the support they need. Systems for checking that staff are suitable to work with children are effective.

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Safeguarding

Pupils know how to keep themselves safe, including online. They learn about healthy relationships and understand important concepts, like consent. Pupils know there are many adults in the school they could go to if they have an issue or a concern.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 In some subjects, the pedagogical approaches chosen by teachers mean that some pupils do not learn effectively. Pupils are unsure what they are learning. This stops some pupils from securing new knowledge as well as leaders intend. Leaders need to select the most effective teaching approaches to ensure pupils are gaining the knowledge they need to be successful.  The effectiveness of assessment procedures varies in each subject. This means that teachers do not have a consistent approach to how they identify and rectify gaps in pupils’ knowledge. This impacts on pupils’ learning. Leaders should ensure that staff have a consistent and accurate approach to assessment, so gaps in pupils’ knowledge are rapidly identified and addressed.

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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 November 2012. 7 and 8 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. 7 and 8 December 2022

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Chair of governing body Michael Robertson

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School details

Date of previous inspection 27 April 2017, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 Hullavington CofE Primary and Nursery School is a rural primary school with six classes, which includes nursery provision for two- to four-year-olds.  The school runs a breakfast club and an after-school club.  The school is designated as having a religious character and received its section 48 inspection in March 2016, when this aspect of the school’s work was graded outstanding. The timescales for reinspection have been extended because of COVID- 19.  The school does not use any 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 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 headteacher, other leaders and members of staff, and spoke with a representative from the local authority. The inspector held discussions with representatives from the governing body, including the chair and vice-chair. 7 and 8 December 2022

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 The inspector carried out deep dives in these subjects: reading, mathematics and PE. For each deep dive, the inspector 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 inspector spoke to staff and pupils about PSHE and personal development.  A range of documents was scrutinised, including leaders’ self-evaluation of the school, improvement and curriculum plans and the school website. Minutes of governors’ meetings were also checked.  To inspect safeguarding, the inspector met with the school’s safeguarding leads and carefully reviewed safeguarding systems, processes and records. The inspector spoke to pupils, staff and governors about safeguarding.  The inspector spoke to parents at the end of the day. Responses to the Ofsted Parent View online questionnaire, and free-text comments, were reviewed. The inspector also

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took account of staff and pupil surveys.

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Inspection team

Faye Heming, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector 7 and 8 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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