Brackenbury Primary School

Inspection of Brackenbury Primary School Dalling Road, Hammersmith, London W6 0BA

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Inspection dates: 13 and 14 December 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 Outstanding

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Overall effectiveness Good

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

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Overall effectiveness Good

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. 13 and 14 December 2022

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What is it like to attend this school?

A positive, respectful and hard-working ethos underpins everything in this school community. Pupils enjoy coming to school. Parents and carers confirm this. Pupils respond positively to the high expectations staff have for the way they behave and learn. Parents value the commitment of leaders and staff in helping their children to succeed.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils trust that adults will help them. They are confident that staff have their best interests in mind. The school is a calm and purposeful place to learn. Everyone feels welcome. Pupils know what to do if they need help. They feel safe at school. Pupils behave well. Off-task behaviour is dealt with quickly and all pupils are supported to participate in lessons. Pupils enjoy a range of visits and events that widen their horizons, for example performing in a choir at the local town hall.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils agree that there is hardly ever any bullying. Pupils could explain clearly what bullying is. They said it is extremely rare and, if it were to happen, staff would sort it out immediately and it would stop.

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better?

Leaders have ensured that the curriculum is ambitious. They are knowledgeable about how to improve the school. They have developed the curriculum effectively and this is helping pupils to build their skills and knowledge over time. Leaders’ curriculum thinking is set out so that pupils’ knowledge builds in a logical order.

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better?

Teachers have secure subject knowledge. They recap the knowledge pupils have been taught previously. Pupils use what they know to support their learning of new content. However, in a few subjects, leaders’ curriculum thinking is not as well embedded as in others. In these subjects, implementation of the curriculum is not as consistent across the school, and pupils do not learn in as much depth as they could.

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better?

Leaders focus on supporting pupils to understand important vocabulary. This starts in Reception and builds in complexity as pupils go through the school. For example, in music, pupils in Year 5 use subject-specific words accurately to describe and explore a piece of jazz music.

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better?

Staff have implemented a revised reading and phonics curriculum. Pupils learn phonics from the start of the Reception Year. Staff choose books carefully so that pupils are able to decode text successfully. Reading is prioritised. As a result, pupils at the earliest stages of learning to read are developing their phonics skills and reading fluency. Pupils enjoy reading and talk about stories and novels with enthusiasm. For pupils not making as much progress in reading, leaders provide small-group and individual support. This helps pupils to catch up quickly. 13 and 14 December 2022

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Leaders and staff implement the behaviour policy effectively. Staff manage low-level incidents well and do not allow them to interrupt the flow of learning. Children in Reception follow routines and settle well. Pupils show a keen interest in sharing what they have learned, know and understand. They take pride in their work. Pupils trust and respect each other. This means that they work well together.

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Teachers are well trained and knowledgeable. Staff regularly check what pupils have learned. If they identify any gaps in learning, they provide effective support to fill these. Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are fully included in lessons. Support for pupils with SEND is well planned and delivered.

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Pupils are taught about healthy relationships as part of the school’s personal, social and health education programme. Pupils have many opportunities to talk about their feelings. Pupils spoke with pride about their future goals and ambitions. They aspire to pursue different professions, including law and teaching. Pupils know the school values. They learn about respecting people’s rights and responsibilities. They are taught about faiths and beliefs, such as Islam, Christianity, Sikhism and Judaism.

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The early years classes give pupils a positive start. Strong partnership between teachers and support staff enables children to enjoy and access a wide range of activities. Across the school, resources are well matched to pupils’ interests. Staff use a wide variety of everyday objects, for example cooking ingredients, to develop pupils’ vocabulary. This helps pupils to communicate confidently.

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Leaders and staff prioritise pupils’ personal development. Their work to improve pupils’ resilience and develop their character, confidence and self-esteem is embedded. Parents are full of praise for how the school has helped their children to thrive both academically and personally. Pupils have a wide range of opportunities to become active citizens in the school community, including becoming school council members.

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There have been some significant changes to the school’s leadership and staffing since the last inspection. Members of the governing body have a secure understanding of the school’s strengths and weaknesses. They use this information to inform a well-planned programme of development for leaders.

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Staff are positive about the school. They receive a wide range of professional development opportunities and are appreciative of this. They feel they have the support of the school leaders and that the school is managed well. Staff are confident that leaders listen to their feedback and they consider the workload to be manageable.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Leaders have ensured that the school has a well-developed culture of safeguarding. They have accurate records of safeguarding issues. Staff receive regular training so 13 and 14 December 2022

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that they are skilled in identifying potential risks that pupils may face. Leaders take swift action in seeking advice and support from external agencies to manage the needs of pupils and families.

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Pupils are taught to stay safe in school and online. They know that they can speak to any adult if they feel uncomfortable about anything. This starts in Reception, where adults teach children about the importance of ‘trusted adults’.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Curriculum thinking in a few subjects is not as embedded as in others. This results in inconsistencies in how these subjects are implemented by teachers. In these subjects, pupils do not learn in as much depth as they could. Leaders should ensure that curriculum thinking in all subjects is secure and that teachers are confident to deliver it effectively.

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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. 13 and 14 December 2022

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Chair of governing body Jamie Carter and Alice Careless (co- chairs) Headteacher David Collins

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School details

Date of previous inspection 27 January 2009, under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 There have been significant changes to the senior leadership team since the last inspection.  The school does not use 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 leaders and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  Inspectors met with members of the governing body, the executive headteacher, senior leaders, a range of staff and a local authority representative.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: reading, mathematics, computing, science and physical education. For each deep dive, inspectors met with subject leaders, visited a sample of lessons, spoke to teachers, spoke to 13 and 14 December 2022

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some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work.  Inspectors considered the curriculum in other subjects.  Inspectors scrutinised information about safeguarding arrangements. This included a scrutiny of safeguarding records and the single central record. Inspectors reviewed safeguarding procedures and processes by talking to leaders and staff, and through discussions with pupils.  Inspectors considered the views of parents, pupils and staff through Ofsted’s online surveys.  Inspectors met with pupils, staff and leaders to discuss enrichment opportunities, personal development, behaviour and attitudes.

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Inspection team

Jayne Jardine, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector

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Inspection team

Jude Wilson His Majesty’s Inspector 13 and 14 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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