Crow Orchard Primary School

Inspection of a good school: Crow Orchard Primary School School Lane, Skelmersdale, Lancashire WN8 8QG

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Outcome

Crow Orchard Primary School continues to be a good school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are very proud of the history of their school, which is the oldest in Skelmersdale. They said that this history makes their school special. Pupils feel happy because they trust their teachers to help them. Pupils value the Rainbow Room, where they can go to talk about any worries that they have.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils behave according to the school’s values, which include being honest and resilient. They treat each other with kindness. If bullying should happen, leaders deal with it quickly and effectively. This helps pupils to feel safe in school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy taking positions of leadership within the school. For example, some pupils are members of a pupil parliament while others act as reading buddies to children in the early years. These roles help pupils to develop a sense of responsibility towards each other. Parents and carers said that the school feels like a family.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Leaders have strengthened the curriculum to ensure that pupils achieve highly. Most pupils enjoy their learning and achieve well.

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

Leaders have developed a curriculum which is ambitious for all pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Leaders have ensured that knowledge builds logically through the curriculum from the early years to Year 6.

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

Leaders have prioritised training subject leaders to develop their curriculum thinking. As a result, most subject curriculums are carefully organised so that teachers know what pupils need to learn and when they should learn it. However, in a small number of subjects, leaders are still in the process of identifying the important knowledge that pupils should learn. This makes it difficult for teachers to ensure that pupils’ learning builds securely on what they already know. 21 February 2023

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Teachers and teaching assistants deliver the curriculum well. They have strong knowledge of the subjects that they teach. Teachers check pupils’ understanding during lessons. This enables them to ensure that any misconceptions are swiftly addressed. However, leaders have not ensured that there are opportunities for pupils to revisit their learning across the curriculum. This means that some pupils do not remember their learning over time and develop gaps in their knowledge. This hinders pupils’ learning.

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Leaders accurately identify the needs of pupils with SEND. Teachers know their pupils well and employ a range of strategies to support their learning. Leaders ensure that pupils with SEND are supported well, within and beyond the classroom.

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Leaders prioritise reading across the school. They have introduced initiatives to encourage pupils to read widely and often, such as the ‘Rainbow Reading Challenge’. Teachers read to pupils regularly. Children in the early years are exposed to a range of quality texts. They enjoy participating in activities that are based on those stories.

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Children begin learning phonics from the start of the Reception Year. Their daily phonics sessions help them to learn sounds and the corresponding letters. Pupils who struggle to keep up with their phonic knowledge are supported well by trained staff. Pupils read books which match closely to the sounds that they know. This helps them to become confident readers. Older pupils read with increasing fluency.

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Teachers deliver a wide-ranging programme of personal, social, health and economic education to prepare pupils for life in modern Britain. This covers different themes such as rights and responsibilities. Pupils begin learning this programme in the early years, revisiting each theme in an age-appropriate way in each subsequent year.

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Pupils behave well in lessons so that learning is rarely disrupted. Teachers use the behaviour system appropriately to deal with any incidents of low-level disruption. Pupils are polite and respectful. They work hard.

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Leaders have recently made several changes aimed at improving the quality of education that they offer. Parents spoke positively about the impact of these changes on their children. Leaders at all levels have a strong shared vision of how they intend to continue to improve the school. Governors support and challenge leaders appropriately in order to secure these improvements.

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Staff are very proud of their school. They feel well supported by leaders. Staff appreciate the actions taken to reduce their workload and support their well-being. They enjoy working at this school.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Leaders have strengthened the safeguarding arrangements within the school. For example, they have improved the physical security of the site and increased the capacity of the safeguarding team. Leaders have ensured that staff are trained well. As a result, 21 February 2023

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staff know how to identify pupils who may be at risk and how to report concerns. Leaders have developed strong relationships with pupils and their families. They are proactive about seeking external support for those who need it.

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Pupils learn about how to stay safe through the wider curriculum. Leaders also work with pupils to educate them about additional safeguarding issues as they arise.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 In a small number of subjects, leaders have not clearly identified the important knowledge that pupils need to learn. This means that pupils do not build on their prior knowledge as well as they could. Leaders should ensure that subject leaders finalise their curriculum design so that teachers know what to teach and when this should happen.  Leaders have not ensured that pupils revisit their learning in a timely and effective way. This means that some pupils do not remember what they have learned over time. Leaders should ensure that pupils have opportunities to recall and revisit prior learning so that they know and remember more.

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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 first ungraded inspection since we judged the school to be good in December 2017.

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How can I feed back my views?

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. 21 February 2023

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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. 21 February 2023

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Date of previous inspection 12 and 13 December 2017, under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 School leaders do not make use of any alternative provision.

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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 spoke with the headteacher, other leaders and staff.  The inspectors spoke with representatives of the governing body, a consultant who works with leaders on school improvement and a representative of the local authority.  The inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: early reading, mathematics and art and design. For each deep dive, the inspectors discussed the curriculum with subject leaders, visited a sample of lessons, spoke to teachers, spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work. An inspector listened to some pupils reading to a familiar adult.  The inspectors spoke to pupils about their experience of school. The inspectors also

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observed pupils’ behaviour during lessons and at breaktimes.  An inspector checked the school’s safeguarding policies and procedures, including the school’s single central record. The inspectors met with leaders, staff and pupils to check on the effectiveness of safeguarding in the school.  The inspectors reviewed a wide range of evidence, including documents relating to school improvement and records of governing body minutes.  The inspectors considered the responses shared through Ofsted Parent View, including the free-text comments. The inspectors also considered the responses to Ofsted’s online surveys for staff and pupils.

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Inspection team

Sally Rix, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Shameem Patel Ofsted Inspector 21 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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