Framlingham Sir Robert Hitcham's Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School

Inspection of Framlingham Sir Robert Hitcham’s Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School College Road, Framlingham, Framlingham, Woodbridge, Suffolk IP13 9EP

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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 Good Aided Primary School, 20 and 21 June 2023

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What is it like to attend this school?

This is a happy and friendly school. Pupils enjoy their learning and the time they spend together. They share equipment and play well. They show kindness and empathy towards others and make sure everyone feels included in their games. Pupils listen well to each other when sharing their opinions. They also listen well to adults during lessons.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are excited by their learning. They experience a broad and rich curriculum that motivates them to achieve well. They work hard during their lessons. All staff have high expectations for what pupils can achieve. Pupils aspire to reach these expectations across the curriculum. They appreciate the opportunities with which leaders provide them. The music curriculum develops pupils’ love of and appreciation for music. The curriculum also provides pupils with experiences they would not otherwise have. For example, Year 5 pupils have the chance to sing in the chapel of a local college, which they describe as ‘amazing and a great experience’.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils contribute positively to the life of the school. Pupils are proud to represent others as elected members of the school council, worship leaders and house captains. They take their responsibilities seriously. Through these roles, pupils learn to be active members of the community.

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better?

The curriculum that leaders have designed clearly sets out the important knowledge pupils will learn. Leaders have carefully organised this knowledge into a clear, logical order. This has been organised well to help pupils build on what they already know and to make connections in their learning. Leaders provide the training that teachers need to be confident in their subject knowledge. Typically, pupils learn and remember the important knowledge leaders want them to. Overall, pupils achieve well across the full range of subjects that they study.

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better?

Subject leaders have expert knowledge that enables them to support staff effectively. For example, the reading leader monitors and provides training in how to teach phonics to pupils. In some subjects, leaders do not always check carefully to see if the work teachers provide to pupils helps them to learn well. Sometimes, tasks are not well matched to help pupils practise and apply their learning. This means that pupils do not always secure the knowledge and understanding they need before they move on to new learning.

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better?

In the early years, adults support children well to use accurate and precise sounds when learning to read. They also guide children’s learning through thoughtful questions that help children extend their thinking and their play. This helps adults to quickly address misconceptions that children have. Leaders ensure that teachers use assessment to identify any pupil who finds reading difficult, so they receive the support they need. However, in some subjects, leaders have not closely matched the Aided Primary School, 20 and 21 June 2023

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assessment they ask teachers to complete to the important knowledge in the planned curriculum. In these subjects, there are times where teachers and leaders do not always have a secure understanding of how well pupils have learned the curriculum.

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Well-chosen books and stories expose children to rich language from a young age. A love of reading continues throughout the school. Older pupils enjoy reading a range of fiction and non-fiction books. Pupils at the early stages of reading have books that help them to blend sounds together to read new words. They do this well. Sometimes, pupils do not have the opportunities they need to practise their reading once they have blended sounds together. This means some pupils are overly reliant on sounding out words and do not read them as fluently as they might.

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Leaders have developed clear and consistent ways for staff to identify pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Staff use these systems well. Support plans contain precise targets and specific strategies for staff to use. This helps staff adapt their teaching to help pupils with SEND learn the full curriculum and achieve well.

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Pupils have positive attitudes towards their learning. They behave well throughout the school day. Where pupils have difficulties with managing their emotions, staff support them in a calm and consistent manner. Pupils develop an appreciation and understanding of people who are different to them. They particularly enjoy learning about different religions. The personal, social, health and economic (PSHE) curriculum teaches pupils how to live healthy lives. Older pupils are clear about the dangers of smoking and younger children speak with confidence about the importance of sun safety.

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Governors support and hold leaders to account effectively. They understand what the school does well and what leaders are trying to improve. Leaders support staff to manage their own workload and well-being. Staff are proud to work at the school.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Leaders ensure that staff receive regular safeguarding training. Staff know how to spot the signs that a pupil may be at risk of harm. They record concerns promptly. Leaders take appropriate action. The recently appointed family support worker provides support in school. Leaders work with other agencies to make sure that pupils and families get the help they need.

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Safeguarding

Governors’ oversight is effective. Leaders complete the required checks on adults new to the school and record them accurately. Pupils understand how to keep themselves safe. There are trusted adults they can speak with at school should they need to. Aided Primary School, 20 and 21 June 2023

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 In some subjects, leaders have not established clear processes for checking that the work teachers give to pupils enables them to secure their understanding of the important planned knowledge. Sometimes, teachers plan activities that do not help pupils secure important knowledge as well as they could. Leaders should ensure that the work and resources with which teachers provide pupils helps them to secure their understanding of the planned curriculum.  In some subjects, teachers and subject leaders do not have a clear understanding of what pupils know and can do. Leaders should establish a consistent approach to checking pupils’ learning so that teachers and subject leaders have an accurate understanding of what pupils know and can do. They must then use these checks to adapt the curriculum appropriately.  Leaders do not ensure that all pupils have sufficient opportunity to develop reading fluency once they have secured their phonics knowledge. This means that

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

some pupils are not becoming confident and fluent readers as quickly as they could. Leaders should ensure that all staff provide pupils with the opportunities they need to read with fluency once they have decoded and blended sounds together.

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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. Aided Primary School, 20 and 21 June 2023

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School details

Inspection number 10268714 Type of school Primary

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Date of previous inspection 9 January 2018, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The school’s most recent inspection of its religious character under section 48 of the Education Act was in January 2019, and it will receive its next inspection within eight years of that date.  There is a breakfast club for pupils on site run by an external provider.  The school does not currently use any 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 carried out deep dives in these subjects: early reading, mathematics, science, history and music. For each deep dive, inspectors discussed the curriculum with subject leaders, visited a sample of lessons, spoke with teachers, spoke with pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work. The Aided Primary School, 20 and 21 June 2023

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lead inspector also listened to pupils read with a familiar member of staff. Inspectors met with the subject leaders for art and design and PSHE and reviewed curriculum plans and pupils work in these subjects. Curriculum plans and examples of pupils’ work in geography were also reviewed.  To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding, inspectors scrutinised safeguarding policies, the school’s record of background checks of adults at the school, and a sample of child protection files. Inspectors also spoke with governors, the designated safeguarding lead and a deputy designated safeguarding lead, a representative from the local authority and staff about safeguarding practices at the school.  Inspectors held meetings with the headteacher, deputy headteacher, the early years leader, the special educational needs coordinator, subject leaders, staff, governors, pupils, and a representative from the local authority.

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 Inspectors reviewed a range of documents, including behaviour logs, bullying records, attendance records, pupil records, minutes of governing body meetings, local authority monitoring reports, school development plans and school policies.  There were 151 responses to the Ofsted online questionnaire for parents, Ofsted Parent View, which were considered. Inspectors also spoke with parents over the telephone, in the morning as they brought their child to school, and at the end of the school day as they collected their child.  There were no responses to Ofsted’s questionnaire for pupils. Inspectors spoke with pupils throughout the inspection to gather their views.  There were 37 responses to Ofsted’s questionnaire for school staff. Inspectors also met with staff throughout the inspection to gather their views.

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Inspection team

Michael Williams, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Bridget Harrison His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Nathan Lowe His Majesty’s Inspector Aided Primary School, 20 and 21 June 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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