Bacton Primary School

Inspection of Bacton Primary School Taylors Green, Bacton, Stowmarket, Suffolk IP14 4LL

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Overall effectiveness Good

The quality of education Good Behaviour and attitudes Good Personal development Good Leadership and management Good Early years provision Good Previous inspection grade Requires improvement 6 and 7 June 2023

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils say Bacton School is a great place to be. They enjoy being at school and feel safe and well cared for by staff.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Leaders have high expectations of behaviour. Pupils rise to meet these. They display the ‘Bacton behaviours’ in all aspects of school life. These behaviours include kindness, respect, cooperation and trying one’s best. Pupils say that bullying is rare as a result. Their positive behaviour and attitudes reflect leaders’ vision of ‘Working together, aiming high!’.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are enthusiastic learners. They demonstrate a high level of collaboration with their peers. They are keen to do their very best. As a result, most pupils achieve well.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils have access to a wide range of experiences that enhance their learning. These include close collaboration with the local church, visits to Suffolk farm fair and participation in reading and mathematics cafés.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils relish the chance to take on leadership roles. These roles include school councillors, reading ambassadors, play leaders and eco-rangers. Pupils talk excitedly about their achievements in these roles, for example increasing the number of lunchtime clubs and maintaining the school allotment . These experiences actively promote pupils’ character development and prepare them for their future role as citizens.

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better?

Leaders have ensured the curriculum is ambitious, broad and inclusive. The curriculum reflects leaders’ commitment to encourage pupils to ‘seek to extend themselves in mind, body and spirit’.

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better?

Leaders prioritise the teaching of reading. Pupils start learning to read from the moment they start school. Leaders ensure that teachers are well trained to teach reading. Lessons are well structured. They include fun and engaging activities that help pupils learn phonics. Teachers carefully check pupils’ progress. They quickly identify any pupils who fall behind and make sure they have support to catch up. Pupils’ books are closely matched to their reading ability. This enables pupils to practise their reading skills at home. Therefore, most pupils become fluent readers by the end of Year 1.

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better?

In early years, children gain solid foundations for future learning. They have a range of opportunities to play and learn about phonics, number and the wider world through games and interesting activities linked to their topic work. Children are kind to each other and respectful to the adults who skilfully support them to play and learn. 6 and 7 June 2023

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Teachers closely check pupils’ progress in all subjects. They use this information to plan lessons. For a few pupils, learning tasks do not always provide enough challenge to further deepen their knowledge. This means that these pupils do not achieve as highly as they could.

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Leaders expect pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) to achieve as well as their peers. Leaders act quickly to identify pupils’ needs. They ensure that staff are well trained to provide support to meet the needs of pupils with SEND. Leaders liaise with external agencies to secure the support pupils need. As a result, pupils with SEND access the full curriculum, and most achieve well.

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Pupils behave well in lessons and around the school. They follow routines and know what is expected of them. This helps lessons flow smoothly. Little learning time is lost. Pupils’ learning is rarely disturbed by others’ behaviour.

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Leaders’ programme for pupils’ personal development is strong. Pupil leader elections help pupils understand democracy. Rich and diverse texts help pupils to understand a range of different faiths and cultures. External visitors such as a Bollywood dancer and a local artist deepen this understanding. Pupils participate in a variety of purposeful trips. These include visits to the school’s forest school, a residential trip for Year 6 and a day at Redgrave and Lopham Fen. Extra-curricular activities such as music, sports, computing and library clubs are well attended by all groups of pupils.

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Staff appreciate leaders’ work to promote staff well-being. Staff value the opportunities for professional development that come from the trust. The local improvement board and trust leaders have a deep understanding of the work school leaders have done since the last inspection.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Leaders ensure that all staff are vigilant and highly trained in all aspects of safeguarding. Therefore, staff can identify any concerns and report them immediately. Leaders take fast action to ensure any pupil at risk of harm is kept safe. This includes appropriate liaison with external agencies. Leaders follow the latest guidance on safer recruitment and how to deal with concerns about adults.

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Safeguarding

Pupils can talk with confidence about staying safe, including when online. They are confident to report any concerns they may have to an adult in the school, with the knowledge that they will be listened to.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Some pupils are not always challenged to extend and deepen their knowledge. 6 and 7 June 2023

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This is particularly true in mathematics. When this happens, these pupils do not build sufficiently on their existing knowledge. Leaders should ensure that staff plan activities that help pupils build effectively on their prior knowledge and enable them to think more deeply about the things that they learn 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. 6 and 7 June 2023

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School details

Date of previous inspection 8 and 9 May 2019, under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 School leaders currently use one alternative provision.

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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 first routine inspection the school received since the COVID-19 pandemic began. 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 chief executive officer of the trust, the executive headteacher, the head of school, the special educational needs coordinator, members of the senior leadership team and subject leaders.  The lead inspector met with representatives from the trust, members of the local improvement board and the school improvement partner.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in early reading, mathematics and science. For each deep dive, the inspectors met with subject leaders, looked at curriculum 6 and 7 June 2023

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plans, spoke to teachers, spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work. The lead inspector also listened to a sample of pupils read to a familiar adult.  Inspectors reviewed the arrangements for safeguarding by scrutinising safeguarding records and policies, meeting separately with leaders and members of the local improvement board and holding separate discussions with staff and pupils.  Inspectors observed pupils’ behaviour in lessons and outside during social times.  Inspectors viewed a range of the school’s documentation provided at the start of the inspection, including the school improvement plan and minutes from meetings of the trust learning and performance committee and the local improvement board.  The lead inspector spoke to the alternative provider used by school leaders.  Inspectors considered 30 responses to Ofsted’s online survey for parents, Ofsted

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Parent View, including 31 free-text comments. Inspectors met with staff and considered responses to Ofsted’s online staff survey. They also considered responses to Ofsted’s online pupil survey.

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Inspection team

Rowena Simmons, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector

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Inspection team

Michael Thomas Ofsted Inspector 6 and 7 June 2023

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