Yaxham Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School

Inspection of Yaxham Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School Norwich Road, Yaxham, Dereham, Norfolk NR19 1RU

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Inspection dates: 10 and 11 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 Requires improvement 10 and 11 January 2023

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school is a welcoming place to be because of the positive relationships that pupils develop with staff and each other. Pupils are safe, and this helps them to be happy at school. Pupils respect each other for who they are and are considerate of others’ needs.

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What is it like to attend this school?

All pupils have a positive attitude towards their learning. They access a broad and ambitious curriculum and remember what they learn. They want to do well, not just for themselves, but also for their teachers. This is because pupils know that teachers expect them to do well.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils’ behaviour is calm in lessons and at social times. They understand the high expectations that leaders have of their behaviour. Bullying very rarely happens in the school. Pupils know that, when it does, staff will deal with it quickly.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils engage in a diverse range of clubs and activities. Pupils talk with excitement about the residential trips that they go on as part of the wider curriculum. This helps them to develop skills such as resilience, teamwork and independence.

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better?

Leaders have planned a curriculum that outlines the important knowledge and skills that pupils need to know and remember. Leaders have carefully sequenced the curriculum from Reception to Year 6. Leaders have trained staff to teach this curriculum well.

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better?

Since the previous inspection, leaders have successfully addressed the improvements needed in early reading. Pupils read often during the day. Staff ensure that pupils make connections between the books that they are reading and what they are learning across the curriculum. Pupils develop a love of reading in the school. They enjoy and engage deeply with their reading.

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better?

Staff are trained effectively in teaching phonics. They follow the well-planned phonics curriculum consistently. Teaching of phonics begins at the start of Reception. Children learn quickly and read well. Teachers regularly check how well pupils are learning to read and identify pupils who are finding it more difficult. Staff put effective support in place to help these pupils to improve. When pupils get stuck, they use strategies to sound and blend to help them read words with accuracy.

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better?

Leaders and teachers check on what pupils know and remember. However, teachers do this inconsistently. In subjects where this works well, teachers use the information they gather to inform their teaching. Leaders use the information to adapt the curriculum to help make improvements to support pupils’ learning. However, in a few subjects, where teachers are less secure in their subject knowledge, teachers do not spot when pupils make errors or have misconceptions. As a result, pupils’ knowledge in some areas is not as developed as it might be. 10 and 11 January 2023

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Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are well supported. Leaders provide helpful plans for pupils with SEND that outline how staff can adapt their delivery of the curriculum effectively. Staff are knowledgeable about pupils’ needs and they ensure that pupils experience success when learning alongside their peers.

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Leaders have carefully considered the curriculum for personal, social and health education (PSHE). The curriculum for PSHE is coherent and helps pupils to develop their character and an age-appropriate awareness of diversity and relationships. Pupils’ learning supports the positive behaviour of pupils in lessons and around the school. Children in Reception have learned the routines expected of them and integrate successfully into their mixed-age class.

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Leaders have improved communication with parents and carers through the use of an online system. Parents say that they know what their children will be learning and how well they are doing. Many parents would recommend the school.

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Staff appreciate the support that leaders provide. They say that leaders and governors carefully consider their workload. Governors provide effective challenge and support to leaders. They closely monitor the quality of provision for pupils.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

The curriculum helps pupils to develop a secure and age-appropriate understanding of how to stay safe. This includes when they are online.

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Safeguarding

Leaders ensure that staff and governors receive regular safeguarding training. Staff understand clearly their safeguarding responsibilities. They know the signs to look out for should a pupil be at risk. They make timely reports of any concerns they have. Leaders’ detailed record-keeping and effective liaison with external agencies help to keep pupils safe.

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Safeguarding

Governors review safeguarding during their visits to the school. They make sure that leaders act on the advice of external consultants, who audit safeguarding practice.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 In a few areas of the curriculum, teachers do not have the subject knowledge to check accurately what pupils know and understand as precisely as they need to. This results in pupils’ knowledge not being as secure as it could be. Leaders need to ensure that teachers are well trained to have the subject knowledge and feel confident to be able to identify gaps in pupils’ knowledge accurately. This will 10 and 11 January 2023

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support them to be able to adapt their curriculum plans and teaching effectively to support pupils’ learning.

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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. 10 and 11 January 2023

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Chair of governing body Michelle Parnell

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Date of previous inspection

18 May 2021, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 Yaxham Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School is smaller than the average primary school. The number on roll has declined from 99 pupils at the last graded inspection in May 2019.  The school is part of the Diocese of Norwich.  The school has a Christian religious character. The religious character of the school was last inspected under section 48 of the Education Act 2005 in November 2016. The school’s next section 48 inspection will be within eight school years.  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

 Inspectors discussed any continued impact of the pandemic with leaders and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school. 10 and 11 January 2023

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 Inspectors carried out deep dives in early reading, mathematics, science and history. For each deep dive, inspectors discussed the curriculum with subject leaders, visited a sample of lessons, spoke to teachers, spoke to pupils about their learning and looked at samples of work.  Inspectors held meetings with the headteacher, subject leaders, teachers and pupils. They also spoke to parents. The lead inspector met with members of the local governing body, including the chair of governors. The lead inspector had a telephone conversation with a representative of the Diocese of Norwich.  The lead inspector met with the local authority improvement adviser.  The lead inspector had a telephone call with the director of education from the Diocese of Norwich.  During the inspection, meetings were held with leaders who have responsibility for SEND, behaviour and attendance, PSHE and wider development, and early

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years provision.  Inspectors reviewed safeguarding through a meeting with the headteacher, who is the designated safeguarding lead. The single central record was scrutinised to ensure that checks on staff’s suitability to work with children had been undertaken. Records relating to safeguarding were reviewed.  The lead inspector considered the 20 responses and one free-text comment to Ofsted’s online survey, Ofsted Parent View. The lead inspector also reviewed the eight responses to Ofsted’s staff survey. There were no responses to Ofsted’s pupil survey.

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Inspection team

Wayne Jarvis, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Becky Quinn Ofsted Inspector 10 and 11 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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