Park Street CofE Primary School

Inspection of Park Street CofE Primary School Lower Park Street, Cambridge, Cambridgeshire CB5 8AR

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Inspection dates: 24 and 25 January 2023

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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 24 and 25 January 2023

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What is it like to attend this school?

All pupils feel welcome at Park Street CofE Primary School. A typical pupils’ view is that ‘everyone here respects you’. Pupils value being part of such a diverse school. They appreciate how it broadens their perspective on the world. Pupils relish being part of a small school as they like that all staff know who they are. Pupils say this makes them feel safe.

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What is it like to attend this school?

All pupils understand the school rules of ‘ready, respectful and safe’. Pupils show this by behaving well, being polite and listening to each other’s views. They accept each other for who they are and as a result, say bullying is rare. If it did happen, pupils know they have trusted adults who will deal with it.

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What is it like to attend this school?

They talk positively about being able to study interesting topics and about accessing music, sports, coding and Latin clubs. They relish reading in the well-resourced classroom library areas and being able to use the adjacent parkland for outdoor play. Pupils know their views are listened to by staff through the school council and class discussions. They enjoy singing in assemblies and the weekly visit by the reverend. They are proud to get ‘star of the week’ certificates and house points.

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better?

Leaders have carefully crafted an ambitious curriculum to ensure pupils build knowledge over time and can also make connections across subjects. Teachers are now better informed by leaders as to what knowledge pupils need to cover and when. A few foundation subjects have recently been updated. Subject leaders have focused staff training to date on subject content. Subject leaders have not yet had enough opportunity to check their plans are working. Also, in these newly updated subjects, staff are still getting to grips with how to best adapt activities so that all pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), embed the knowledge they need. However, where subjects have been in place longer, all pupils are able to recall their knowledge. Teachers regularly check pupils have made links with their prior learning and take time to help pupils to address misconceptions. As a result, pupils achieve well.

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better?

Pupils become confident, fluent and successful readers at this school because leaders ensure reading is a priority. From the early years onwards, teachers ensure pupils follow a clear approach to phonics and reading. Pupils read books matched to the sounds they know. Pupils access high-quality texts and reading activities daily and so have good comprehension skills and a wide vocabulary. Staff react swiftly and effectively if a child is struggling with reading, so they soon catch up.

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better?

Children in the early years also benefit from a well-thought-out curriculum. In addition to reading, children also understand key mathematical concepts and can independently recall knowledge across a range of subjects and apply it in their play. This prepares them well for Year 1. However, there are times when adults do not 24 and 25 January 2023

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extend these play activities further meaning children do not deepen their understanding.

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Behaviour is good at this school. Older pupils act as positive role models. Pupils follow the school routines and staff’s high expectations. Younger pupils can be lively yet do listen and engage well in lessons. As a result, pupils can learn without interruptions.

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All pupils have regular access to lessons and experiences that support their personal development. They understand how to stay healthy, sustain friendships and show empathy. Elections to the school council and to be house captains have helped pupils to understand democracy. Through assemblies, they learn about values to help them respect each other. Pupils learn about other world religions and understand the importance of this. They have the chance for quiet reflection or prayer in daily worship and older pupils can explain what spirituality means to them. Pupils are mature in their understanding of discrimination and the importance of equality. This means they are well prepared for life in modern Britain. Staff, governors and parents use their links with the local area to support opportunities for all pupils to visit museums, meet a poet, use university resources and share larger secondary school facilities.

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Leaders, including governors, have worked hard to develop leadership capacity at all levels within the school to deliver the school vision. Governors hold leaders to account and engage with the local authority adviser for support with this. Governors fulfil their statutory duties well.

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Leaders are very mindful of staff workload. Staff report that leaders care about staff well-being. Leaders engage well with parents and parents are overwhelmingly positive about the school.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Leaders have robust systems in place to ensure they can swiftly respond to and follow up on any safeguarding concerns. Any adult that works in school has regular safeguarding training, and leaders ensure that all necessary recruitment checks are completed. Staff use their training well to identify concerns, and all staff know how and to who to report concerns. Pupils are aware of how to manage risk online, when out in public areas and when crossing the road. They understand consent in an age- appropriate way.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 In some foundation subjects, subject leaders have not yet had enough opportunity to assess the impact of their curriculum design to see what pupils 24 and 25 January 2023

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know and remember. This means that subject leaders are not yet secure in knowing how well staff are supporting pupils to learn the curriculum. Subject leaders need to ensure they use assessment to identify how they can provide support to teachers and support staff so that these foundation subjects are implemented as intended and pupils do secure detailed knowledge in their long- term memory.  In some newly updated foundation subjects, a minority of pupils with SEND do not yet have activities adequately adapted to help them develop their knowledge fluently or independently. Subject leaders need to support all staff working with pupils with SEND to ensure they are confident in making these adaptations in these specific subjects. Subject leaders then need to check pupils with SEND can confidently apply their understanding.

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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. 24 and 25 January 2023

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Date of previous inspection 29 November 2017, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 Park Street CofE Primary School had a section 48 inspection on 4 July 2019.  The school runs a morning club.  Leaders do not currently 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 held meetings with the headteacher, the assistant headteacher, the special educational needs coordinator, subject leaders, teachers and support staff.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in the following subjects: early reading, mathematics, history and art. For each deep dive, inspectors spoke to subject leaders, visited lessons, spoke with pupils, looked at pupils’ workbooks and spoke 24 and 25 January 2023

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with teachers and support staff.  The lead inspector met representatives from the governing body. The lead inspector also met the local authority school improvement adviser.  Inspectors scrutinised a range of documentation, including minutes of meetings of the governing body, local authority adviser visit reports and the school development plan.  Inspectors looked at the arrangements for safeguarding, including the single central record of recruitment checks. Inspectors spoke with leaders about the systems and processes to support safeguarding and the safeguarding ethos in the school.  The inspection team spoke to parents at school pick up.  Inspectors considered the responses to Ofsted’s online survey, Ofsted Parent View, including the 69 free-text comments. Inspectors also considered the 10 staff survey responses. There were no responses to the pupil survey.

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Inspection team

Sara Boyce, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Sharon Waldron His Majesty’s Inspector 24 and 25 January 2023

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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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