Doddiscombsleigh Primary School

Inspection of a good school: Doddiscombsleigh Primary School Doddiscombsleigh, Exeter, Devon EX6 7PR

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Outcome

Doddiscombsleigh Primary School continues to be a good school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are very happy coming to this small and friendly school. They are proud to be part of the ‘Doddi family’. Both school and federation leaders have high aspirations for all to achieve to the best of their ability. Pupils are keen to learn and show curiosity in lessons. One pupil said, ‘learning is like playing for the brain’.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Leaders reward success and positive behaviour. Pupils are eager to earn house points and badges for their behaviour. They wear their badges with pride. Pupils demonstrate the school’s core values of respect, resilience, aspiration and kindness at all times. Pupils demonstrate warmth towards one another through these values. No one is left out. Pupils have a good understanding of British values.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Leaders ensure that pupils have access to a wide range of opportunities which develop their character and interests. These include visits to coastal locations and places of worship. Leaders provide a range of extra-curricular clubs including mountain bike club, skipping and sports clubs.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Parents and carers are positive about the education their children receive. One view, shared by many, included, ‘The school offers a happy environment where children and parents all feel part of the Doddi Family.’

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

Leaders have high expectations for all pupils. They have designed a curriculum planned to meet the needs of all pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Teachers carefully ensure that the progression of knowledge and skills is appropriate to each year group and their stage of development, taking into account mixed-age classes. 26 April 2023

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The use of assessment information is developed in mathematics and English. Pupils build on their prior learning. They build up a secure and detailed knowledge over time. For example, in mathematics, children in Reception develop a strong understanding of numbers to at least 10. Pupils in Year 5 and 6 know their times tables to 12. They are proud to have taken part in a national mathematics event. Where information is used well, teachers identify gaps in pupils’ learning and where additional support is required. However, strategies for checking pupils’ knowledge in the wider curriculum are less well developed. This means that teachers and leaders are not always clear about what pupils need to learn next or where they have gaps in learning.

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Leaders have prioritised reading across the school. The phonics and early reading curriculum is taught by well-skilled, experienced staff. Children in Reception learn phonics as soon as they start school. Pupils build up their phonic knowledge quickly and effectively. Books are well matched to the sounds pupils are learning. Staff support pupils to apply their phonic knowledge to read text accurately and with increased fluency.

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Older pupils are becoming passionate readers. They read texts from a wide range of authors. Younger pupils also love to read. They are developing into self-assured and fluent readers. Pupils enjoy daily visits to the new school library. Children in early years were immersed in their class book, ‘Where the Wild Things Are’, enacting a ‘wild rumpus’ together.

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Staff adapt learning to enable learners to access the full curriculum. For example, in history, pupils in key stage 2 were presented with five different challenges, adapted according to learning needs. Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) receive effective support. Staff receive guidance from leaders to ensure they understand the needs of pupils with SEND so they make appropriate adaptations.

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Pupils behave well and enjoy school. Their broader development is well planned for. Leaders emphasise the importance of physical and mental health. Pupils use a daily 10- point check list to remind them of ways to stay mentally and physically healthy. Older pupils act as mental health ambassadors by leading assemblies. From Year 2 onwards, pupils have the opportunity to camp and go on residential visits.

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Staff are positive about working at Doddiscombsleigh and the benefits of being part of the federation. They appreciate the professional development opportunities working alongside leaders in other schools. The federation governors knows the school well. Governors recognise the challenges of a small school. They are supportive of staff and mindful of their workload.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Leaders know their families well. They ensure staff receive regular safeguarding training so they can identify risks to pupils. Staff are prompt to report their concerns. Leaders follow these up quickly. They refer to external agencies when needed to ensure that pupils are kept safe and families get the help they need. 26 April 2023

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Leaders have clear procedures to ensure the safer recruitment of new staff. They and governors check these procedures carefully.

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Pupils know about safe and unsafe behaviour. They know to talk to adults in school if they have any worries. Pupils understand about physical safety and how to keep safe online.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Staff regularly check what pupils know in the core subjects. However, leaders have not fully developed such strategies for the foundation subjects. Teachers do not regularly check how successfully pupils learn the full curriculum. Leaders need to make sure that strategies to check pupils’ knowledge in the wider curriculum are informative, correctly identify gaps in pupils’ learning and are manageable for staff.

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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 September 2013.

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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.

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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. 26 April 2023

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School details

Inspection number 10256765 Type of school Primary

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Headteacher Martin Harding (Executive Headteacher) Amanda Russell (Head of School) Website www.doddi.devon.sch.uk

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School details

Date of previous inspection 13 September 2017, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 This school is structured across two classes, both of which are mixed age.  The current headteacher took up her post in September 2022.  The school is part of the United Schools Federation.  The school does not use 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.  Inspectors met with the headteacher, subject leaders, and members of the governing body.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: early reading, mathematics, and history. For each deep dive, inspectors discussed the curriculum with subject leaders, 26 April 2023

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visited a sample of lessons, spoke to teachers, spoke to pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work.  The lead inspector listened to pupils in Years 1, 2 and 3 read to an adult.  The lead inspector had meetings with the headteacher, the special educational needs coordinator, the administrator, a representative from Devon County Council and members of the governing body.  The lead inspector met with the designated safeguarding leads, checked the single central record of adults working in the school and looked at safeguarding records.  Inspectors observed pupils’ behaviour in class and around school, including at breaktimes, and held discussions with leaders about pupils’ wider development.  Inspectors gathered parents’ views by considering responses to Ofsted’s online survey, Ofsted Parent View, and by talking to parents after school. An inspector considered the views of a range of pupils. They also took into account responses to the staff survey.

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Inspection team

Lizzy Meadows, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector

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Inspection team

Jyotsna Paranjape Ofsted Inspector 26 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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