Southcoates Primary Academy

Inspection of a good school: Southcoates Primary Academy Southcoates Lane, Hull HU9 3TW

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Outcome

Southcoates Primary Academy continues to be a good school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are proud to attend Southcoates Primary Academy. Staff have high expectations of all pupils. The school works in partnership with parents and carers to benefit pupils in their development and learning. Leaders and staff are at the school gates to welcome the pupils every day. Parents are able to discuss any concerns they may have about their child with leaders. Parents value this approach.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils feel safe in school. Incidents of bullying are rare. Pupils learn about different types of bullying, including physical, verbal, social and cyber-bullying. They know what to do if they, or a friend, are being bullied. Staff address their concerns swiftly.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils behave well in lessons and around school. They are polite to visitors and conduct themselves with maturity. Classrooms are calm environments that enable pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), to concentrate and learn. From a young age, pupils are supported to be independent and responsible. This prepares them well for the next stage of their education.

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

Leaders have implemented an ambitious curriculum. All subjects are clearly sequenced, with key knowledge and skills carefully mapped out 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?

Teachers use assessment effectively. They are aware of gaps in knowledge that have arisen because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Teachers have addressed these gaps within the curriculum. For example, in geography, teachers identified that pupils’ skills in using maps to find locations were limited. This was rectified by teaching the skills that had been missed at the beginning of a new geography unit. Pupils were able to use and apply what they had learned to identify human and physical features in the local area well. 1 and 2 March 2023

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Outcomes from last year’s end-of-key-stage tests indicate that leaders were unable to fully address gaps in pupils’ learning. Leaders have taken appropriate action to address this. For example, they have implemented a consistent approach to the teaching of mathematics across the school. This work is beginning to have a positive impact on pupils’ learning.

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Children in the early years complete challenges that enable them to use their skills in counting and reasoning. As pupils progress through the school, they use their developing knowledge of mathematics to solve problems. Pupils recognise the importance of revising key knowledge and skills at the beginning of every lesson. This helps them to remember information they will need in future learning.

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Reading takes high priority in the school. All staff have been trained in the teaching of phonics. Phonics lessons are taught with consistency and fidelity to the school’s chosen phonics scheme. Pupils learn to read with increasing fluency and accuracy as they develop their phonic knowledge. The ‘Southcoates 70’, a selection of 10 books for pupils to read in each year group, fosters a love of reading from a young age. Through this, pupils enjoy exploring new authors and genres of texts.

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Children in Nursery enjoy participating in songs, rhymes and games. These help to develop children’s speech, language and communication skills. This prepares them well for beginning to learn to read when they move into Reception.

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Pupils with SEND are supported well. They participate in class discussions and complete work that is well matched to their individual needs. Intervention work and support is provided effectively by adults. Teachers make sure that pupils receive this support when they need it.

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Subject leaders carry out their role effectively. They regularly check that the curriculum is taught consistently across the school. They use their findings to identify areas of strength and development in their areas of responsibility. Teachers value the time they are given to carry out this work. Staff appreciate the actions taken by leaders to make sure their workload is manageable.

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Leaders have considered the development points required to improve the school further. However, senior leaders have not clearly defined what they expect the successful completion of this work to look like. Subject leaders are uncertain about their role in addressing the initiatives in the school’s improvement planning.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Leaders have created an ongoing culture of vigilance to keep pupils safe. Staff and volunteers complete a programme of induction so that they know what to do if they have a concern about a child. 1 and 2 March 2023

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Regular training and weekly updates enable staff to keep up to date with current guidance so that safeguarding remains a high priority in school. Leaders maintain clear records to support their work to keep pupils safe. Leaders work effectively with outside agencies, where appropriate.

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Pupils with responsibility as digital leaders promote online safety messages by leading termly assemblies. Pupils develop an age-appropriate understanding of how to keep themselves safe. They know what to do if they receive an online message from someone they do not know.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Leaders’ improvement plans do not set out the expected end points of their work consistently well. Subject leaders do not understand how their work connects with the school’s improvement priorities. Senior leaders should ensure that all staff know their role in the development of the school further.

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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 23 and 24 May 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. 1 and 2 March 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. 1 and 2 March 2023

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School details

Local authority Kingston Upon Hull City Council

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School details

Inspection number 10240223 Type of school Primary

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School details

Date of previous inspection 23 and 24 May 2017, under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 Southcoates Primary Academy is a larger-than-average primary school. It is part of the Enquire Learning Trust.  The proportion of pupils eligible for free school meals is well above the national average.  The principal began in post in September 2021.  The academy does not use 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 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 principal, vice-principal and inclusion leader to discuss their work in school. 1 and 2 March 2023

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 Deep dives were carried out in early reading, mathematics and geography to evaluate the school’s curriculum. Through this, the inspector met with subject leaders, visited lessons and reviewed samples of pupils’ work. Meetings were held with groups of pupils and staff separately.  The inspector met with a representative from the academy improvement committee. The inspector also spoke to the vice-chair of the board of trustees.  A meeting was held with the chief executive officer and a representative of the trust.  The inspector observed break and lunchtimes and spoke to parents at the beginning of the school day.  The responses to Ofsted’s parent survey, Parent View, were considered, along with responses to Ofsted’s staff and pupil surveys. The inspector also considered the results of recent surveys conducted by the academy.

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Inspection team

Matthew Harrington, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector 1 and 2 March 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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