Coombe Bissett Church of England Primary School

Inspection of Coombe Bissett Church of England Primary School Shutts Lane, Coombe Bissett, Salisbury, Wiltshire SP5 4LU

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Overall effectiveness Requires improvement

The quality of education Requires improvement Behaviour and attitudes Good Personal development Good Leadership and management Requires improvement Early years provision Requires improvement Previous inspection grade Good 19 and 20 April 2023

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What is it like to attend this school?

The many changes in headship since the last inspection have had an impact on the rate of improvement. Despite this, leaders are ambitious for all pupils. Pupils, including pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), learn well in some areas of the curriculum. However, the quality of education that pupils receive is not good enough across the whole curriculum.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy attending this welcoming and friendly school, which lies at the heart of its local community. Parents are unwavering in their support for the school. They value the warm and caring relationships between adults and pupils. Pupils feel safe. They know that adults will help them if they have a worry or concern.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Leaders have high expectations of pupils’ behaviour. Pupils are eager to demonstrate these. However, some pupils do not attend school often enough. Leaders have put in place systems and processes to address this. The impact of this is too early to measure.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy a wide range of rich experiences and trips. These include a visit to Salisbury Cathedral and a trip to the Southampton Pro music concert. Pupils value the extra-curricular clubs that are on offer, including dodgeball and football.

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better?

The interim headteacher has an accurate understanding of the weaknesses in the quality of education pupils receive. While improvement work has commenced, it is too early to see real impact. There are weaknesses in some subjects in the curriculum. Leaders have not identified the important knowledge they want pupils to know and remember. As a result, pupils do not build their knowledge well and develop gaps in their learning. For example, pupils in key stage 1 know that Florence Nightingale was a nurse but do not understand the chronology of this period of time, or why she was a significant figure.

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better?

Leaders prioritise reading. Pupils read a range of texts and talk positively about the books they read. Children learn to read as soon as they start in Reception Year. There is a systematic approach to teaching phonics, which helps pupils to learn to read well. Pupils read books that match the sounds they are learning. Staff regularly check on how well the pupils learn new sounds. If a pupil falls behind, they receive the support they need to catch up.

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better?

In mathematics, the well-designed curriculum helps pupils to build knowledge well. This begins in Reception Year, where children learn to recognise numbers to 20. Older pupils use their knowledge of number to add fractions with different denominators. As a result, they progress well through the curriculum. 19 and 20 April 2023

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Work to develop subjects within the wider curriculum is in its infancy. Some subject leaders do not have the expertise to lead or design their subject effectively. They have not identified the key knowledge that pupils need to know and the order in which they need to learn it, including in early years. Pupils, including pupils with SEND, do not build their knowledge well over time. In music, pupils have taken part in musical experiences. However, there are considerable gaps in what they know and remember. For example, pupils do not understand musical notation or have the knowledge to appreciate music from different traditions. They have few opportunities to compose music.

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Leaders have provided training to support teachers’ use of assessment. However, some subject leaders have not been able to check how well teachers implement the curriculum or how effective assessment is. As a result, leaders do not have an accurate understanding of where the gaps in pupils’ knowledge are.

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Pupils show positive attitudes towards their learning. Where there is low-level disruption, adults deal with it swiftly. From Reception Year, routines are well established and understood. As a result, the school is calm and orderly. During social times, pupils play harmoniously together. Pupils are keen to welcome visitors to their school.

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Pupils’ personal development is a priority. They have opportunities to develop their interests and talents. Pupils enjoy the range of leadership roles they have, including house captains and worship leaders. They know that democracy is a fair process. The curriculum helps pupils to understand that everyone is different. Pupils talk positively about different relationships. They understand that everyone is equal, celebrate difference and are respectful of one another.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

The interim headteacher has introduced effective systems and processes to keep pupils safe. Staff understand their safeguarding responsibility. They know how to identify a pupil who may be at risk of harm and what action to take. Leaders carry out the necessary employment checks on adults to ensure they are suitable to work with pupils.

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Safeguarding

Pupils say that they feel safe. They know how to keep themselves safe, including when online.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Leaders have not identified the key knowledge that pupils should learn in every subject, including in the early years. As a result, pupils, including pupils with SEND, do not build their knowledge well over time. Leaders must identify the 19 and 20 April 2023

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essential knowledge that pupils need to learn in all subjects so that pupils know and remember more.  Assessment in foundation subjects is not effective in identifying what pupils know and can do. As a result, leaders do not have an accurate view of the gaps in pupils’ knowledge. Leaders need to put in place effective assessment systems to understand what pupils know and use this information to determine future learning.  In some areas of the curriculum, leaders are in the early stages of developing the subject they lead. They do not yet have a clear understanding of the effectiveness of the curriculum in their subject area. Leaders need to ensure that subject leadership is developed so that an effective curriculum is designed and implemented in all subjects.

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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. 19 and 20 April 2023

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Headteacher Sandra Miller, Interim Headteacher

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School details

Date of previous inspection 5 May 2022, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The school is currently being led by an interim headteacher in the absence of a substantive head. This is the second interim headteacher since the last inspection.  This is a smaller-than-average primary school. Pupils are organised into four mixed-aged classes.  The school is a voluntary-aided Church of England school in the Diocese of Salisbury. The last section 48 inspection, for schools of a religious character, took place in March 2016, when the school received a judgement of outstanding.  The school does not use alternative provision. 19 and 20 April 2023

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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 second routine inspection the school received since the COVID-19 pandemic began. Inspectors discussed any continued impact of the pandemic with leaders and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: early reading, mathematics and history. For each deep dive, 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.  Inspectors also spoke to leaders about the curriculum in computing and music.  Inspectors met with the interim headteacher, subject leaders and governors. The lead inspector spoke to a local authority representative.  The lead inspector met with the interim headteacher and the designated safeguarding lead to discuss the school’s procedures for keeping pupils safe. She checked the single central record of safeguarding checks carried out on adults

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Information about this inspection

working in the school and looked at safeguarding records.  Inspectors observed pupils’ behaviour in class, around school and at breaktimes. They held discussions with leaders about pupils’ wider development.  Inspectors gathered parents’ views by considering responses to Ofsted online survey, Ofsted Parent View, and by talking to parents on the playground. They also evaluated responses to Ofsted’s staff questionnaire.

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Inspection team

Wendy D’Arcy, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Kate Masters Ofsted Inspector 19 and 20 April 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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