City Road Primary School

Inspection of City Road Primary School City Road, Birmingham B16 0HL

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Inspection dates: 24 and 25 January 2023

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Overall effectiveness Good

Personal development Good Leadership and management Good

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Overall effectiveness Good

Early years provision Good Previous inspection grade Not previously inspected under section 5 of the Education Act 2005 24 and 25 January 2023

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy being part of the City Road community. They come to school each day excited about building friendships. Pupils and staff are very welcoming. Some pupils join City Road during the academic year. They quickly slot in, making friends and being keen to learn.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Staff talk about their school as being a family. Staff and pupils care for each other. Pupils want to study and enjoy the subjects they learn. When new pupils arrive, they quickly step up to high expectations set by staff.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Trustees, governors, leaders and staff want the best for all pupils. They encourage pupils to join a range of lunchtime clubs. Pupils attending a fitness club talk about how they now know about the importance of keeping physically fit. City Road serves a diverse community. Families come from a wide range of faiths and cultures. All are welcome.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils conduct themselves well around school. There is a calm atmosphere in classrooms, corridors and outside. Pupils learn and play cooperatively. Staff ensure that pupils are kept safe. Bullying incidents are very rare. Pupils trust staff to deal with any issues should they arise.

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better?

Leaders are ambitious for their school. Leaders and teaching staff work well together. This has led to many improvements over the past few years. Leaders know that they can improve the school further and are determined to do so. Working with trustees and governors, they have established high expectations about what pupils should be taught and when. However, when planning for further improvement, leaders do not always think carefully enough about how they will work towards what they want to achieve.

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better?

Working with leaders across the trust, staff learn about how best to teach different subjects. For example, staff know that pupils learn better in games if they practise specific skills first. Leaders plan for pupils to build knowledge and skills in a logical order. Teachers use this design to help them focus on what pupils need to remember. However, sometimes teachers do not check whether pupils are ready to move on to new learning.

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better?

Pupils benefit from sequences of lessons that help them to learn and remember more. Teachers adapt their teaching well for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Teachers quickly identify what will help each pupil. For example, teachers make sure that pupils who find managing their own behaviour difficult have strategies to help them keep calm. Pupils with SEND make good progress in their learning. 24 and 25 January 2023 Ensuring that all pupils can read confidently is a top priority. Staff ensure that pupils in the early stages of reading have daily phonics teaching. Pupils learn about, and practise how to sound out, letters and blends of letters. With such knowledge, they move on to read a range of books fluently. Pupils use their reading skills to learn well in different subjects. Pupils enjoy choosing and reading books displayed in the new library.

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better?

Some pupils need extra support to help them read fluently. In these cases, staff check pupils’ reading ability, and, if necessary, pupils then attend extra reading lessons. This helps them to make good progress.

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better?

Staff make sure that pupils have helpful resources when learning in classrooms and outdoor areas. In the early years, for example, children look at displays that help them build early language and number knowledge. This supports them well as they learn about different subjects in later year groups.

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better?

City Road leaders and staff have developed strong, trusting partnerships with parents and the local community. Leaders support parents to help their children attend as frequently as possible. One example is the setting up of a breakfast club, which is free for all pupils. This is very popular. Despite such work, some pupils do not attend school frequently enough.

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better?

Pupils understand and respect how different people live their lives. In the early years, children learn about the importance of being respectful of others. Staff teach about British values in lessons and through assemblies. Pupils understand, for example, what it is like to live in a democratic society. They learn about different cultures, faiths and relationships. Pupils have time to reflect on their learning, and this helps them to develop opinions.

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better?

Trustees and governors support the staff and leaders. When new staff first join City Road, colleagues help them to quickly get to grips with behaviour and teaching expectations. Staff are willing to take on leadership responsibilities and feel well supported in doing so. Leaders are mindful of staff workload.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Leaders and staff work well together to ensure that pupils are kept safe. Leaders check that staff understand their duties. Staff discuss with leaders any concerns as they arise. If necessary, leaders take follow-up actions in a timely manner. Leaders engage well with families and external agencies.

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Safeguarding

Leaders know that serious safeguarding incidents can occur in any school locality. They also understand the importance of healthy relationships. They have designed a curriculum that enables pupils to understand about safe, respectful behaviour. Pupils show respect and behave safely in their day-to-day work in school. 24 and 25 January 2023 Leaders complete the necessary recruitment checks on staff.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 When studying some subject topics, pupils do not always securely acquire important knowledge and skills. This means that they are not as well prepared for the next steps in their learning as they might be. Leaders should ensure that teachers check carefully what pupils can recall from previous learning. They should do this so that they know when to revisit learning and when to move on.  Some pupils’ attendance rates remain stubbornly low. This means that too many pupils miss out on important learning. Leaders should analyse attendance information more forensically and continue to work with parents to instil the importance of regular attendance.  Leaders do not always plan strategically for desired outcomes. Consequently, leaders are not always well placed to consider the impact of their actions. Leaders should carefully consider what they want to achieve and then plan accordingly.

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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

Inspection number 10256811 Type of school Primary

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School details

Date of previous inspection Not previously inspected

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Information about this school

 The school has a breakfast club on site. This provision is managed by the school.  The school has a part-time Nursery.  Currently, no pupils attend 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. The inspectors discussed the impact of the pandemic with leaders and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  The inspectors met with the executive headteacher, the head of school and senior leaders. They also met with members of the local governing board and trustees.  The inspectors carried out deep dives in reading, mathematics, history and physical education. For each deep dive, the inspectors met with subject leaders, visited lessons, spoke with teachers and pupils and looked at samples of pupils’ 24 and 25 January 2023 work. Pupils were observed reading to members of staff. Other subjects were considered as part of the inspection.  The inspectors checked the arrangements for keeping pupils safe. They reviewed a range of documentation and spoke with leaders, staff, pupils and parents about

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Information about this inspection

the school’s safeguarding arrangements.  The inspectors observed pupils’ behaviour in lessons and around the school. They spoke with pupils about their experiences in school, including how safe they feel.  The inspectors considered the views of parents through Ofsted Parent View, an online survey. The inspectors considered the views of staff and pupils through surveys and discussions.  The inspectors reviewed a range of documents shared by school leaders. This included external reviews, attendance and behaviour information.

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Inspection team

Jeremy Bird, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector

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Inspection team

Sarah Malam Ofsted Inspector Anne Potter Ofsted Inspector 24 and 25 January 2023 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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Inspection team

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Inspection team

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Inspection team

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Inspection team

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