Mytham Primary School

Inspection of a good school: Mytham Primary School Mytham Road, Little Lever, Bolton, Lancashire BL3 1JG

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Outcome

Mytham Primary School continues to be a good school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils feel valued at Mytham Primary School. Leaders have created a safe place for pupils to learn. Pupils arrive happy and they are keen to get their day underway. Staff and pupils benefit from positive relationships which are built on mutual respect and trust. Pupils know that staff will listen to their concerns. Leaders deal with incidents of bullying effectively.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Leaders have high expectations for pupils’ achievement. This includes pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Overall, pupils, including those with SEND, achieve well across the curriculum. Children in the early years are well prepared for Year 1.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils said that staff deal with behaviour in a fair and consistent way. Pupils live up to the high expectations set out by leaders for their behaviour. They concentrate hard on their learning in lessons. Lessons are not interrupted. This allows pupils to learn without distraction. Pupils are polite and courteous to every member of the school community.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils appreciate the rich variety of experiences that are offered by staff. These include visits to different museums and the chance to fundraise for the local community. Pupils enjoy the opportunity to learn a musical instrument, represent the school at sporting events and take part in residential visits. Pupils relished the chance to re-enact a court scene in a real-life courtroom. They said that this brought their learning to life.

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

From the early years to Year 6, leaders have set out an ambitious curriculum. They have identified the important knowledge that they wish pupils to learn. Leaders ensure that pupils learn new information in a well-ordered way.

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

In lessons, teachers select appropriate activities to support pupils’ understanding of new topics and concepts. Pupils successfully build up their knowledge of many subjects over 2 and 3 February 2023

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time. Pupils make secure connections between different subjects. They deepen their understanding of the subjects they study and they learn effectively.

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Leaders set out clearly how teachers should use assessment strategies in different subjects. This helps most teachers to identify what pupils recall from the curriculum. However, from time to time, teachers do not use the assessment information that they have as effectively as they could to address pupils’ misconceptions and adapt the delivery of the curriculum to recap important information. Nevertheless, many pupils achieve well. Overall, pupils, including children in the early years, are well prepared for the next stage in their education.

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Reading is a core part of the school’s curriculum. Leaders ensure that opportunities for pupils to read are integrated into all subject curriculums. Pupils are exposed to different texts, including books which support pupils’ wider cultural understanding. From the earliest opportunity, children in early years begin to learn sounds, well-known nursery rhymes and songs.

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Staff are well trained to deliver the reading curriculum. They successfully help children in the early years and in key stage 1 to get off to a good start with their reading. Staff check on how well pupils are learning the sounds that they should know. Pupils who are at risk of falling behind with their reading knowledge receive timely support to catch up. The books that pupils read are closely matched to their phonic knowledge. This helps them to build their confidence in reading. However, on occasions, staff do not make sure that a few pupils use their reading skills often enough to become fluent readers.

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Leaders waste no time in identifying the needs of pupils with SEND. They ensure that staff receive appropriate training to help them support pupils with SEND to access the curriculum. Pupils with SEND participate in all activities, such as taking part in competitions. Pupils with SEND are supported to learn well.

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The school is a calm and orderly environment for pupils. Children in the early years settle into school, share equipment with each other and become confident learners. Pupils behave well at social times. When needed, pupils can use the chill-out zone.

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Leaders set out a well-ordered curriculum to support pupils’ personal development. Pupils learn a great deal about different religions and beliefs. Pupils have a secure understanding of fundamental British values, for example democracy and individual liberty. They understand how they are relevant to their life in and out of school. Pupils take diversity seriously. The pupils who spoke with the inspector said that everyone deserves to be treated equally. Pupils carry out their leadership roles diligently.

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Staff value the support that leaders provide for their well-being. They appreciate the opportunity to discuss any concerns that they may have with leaders. Staff receive opportunities to learn and improve how they deliver the curriculum. Governors keep a close eye on how well pupils are learning. They hold leaders to account for any dips in pupils’ achievement. They take effective action to make necessary improvements. 2 and 3 February 2023

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Leaders ensure that safeguarding is everyone’s responsibility at Mytham Primary School. Leaders know their families and pupils well. They successfully work with different external agencies to make sure that pupils and their families receive the support they require. Leaders ensure that staff receive relevant and detailed safeguarding training. This helps them to understand how to spot any signs that a pupil may be at risk of harm. Staff report their concerns promptly to leaders who take effective, decisive action.

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Safeguarding

Pupils learn how to keep themselves safe in a variety of situations. This includes when they are online and what dangers may be present when they are near open water.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 In a minority of subjects, leaders do not ensure that teachers use assessment information as effectively as they could. This means that on occasions, some teachers do not address pupils’ misconceptions, and they do not ensure that pupils have retained all of the information that they should. Leaders should ensure that teachers are using assessment strategies consistently to allow them to address misunderstandings and to identify how much of the curriculum pupils retain over time.  A few pupils are not using their reading skills in their reading often enough. This means that some pupils do not read as fluently as they should. Leaders should ensure that they provide further training for staff and parents so that these pupils use their reading skills more regularly to improve their fluency and accuracy.

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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 February 2012.

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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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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. 2 and 3 February 2023

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Chair of governing body Louise Halliwell

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School details

Date of previous inspection 18 July 2017, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 Leaders do not make use of any alternative provision.  A new deputy headteacher has been appointed since the previous inspection.  A new chair of governing body has been appointed since the previous inspection.

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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 and other senior leaders. He met with a range of leaders who are responsible for the school’s pastoral system and personal development programmes.  The inspector carried out deep dives in these subjects: early reading, mathematics and history. For each deep dive, the inspector met with subject leaders, visited lessons, talked to pupils and looked at pupils’ work. 2 and 3 February 2023

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 The inspector met with a group of governors, including the chair of governors. He also met a representative of the local authority.  The inspector observed some pupils in Years 1 to 3 reading to familiar adults.  The inspector reviewed leaders’ policies and procedures to keep pupils safe. The inspector discussed safeguarding arrangements with leaders and staff.  The inspector took account of the responses to Ofsted’s online surveys for staff and pupils.  The inspector met with parents at the start of the school day. He took account of the responses to Ofsted Parent View, including the free-text responses.

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Inspection team

Stuart Perkins, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector 2 and 3 February 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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