Cherry Tree Primary School

Inspection of a good school: Cherry Tree Primary School Church Road, Basildon, Essex SS16 4AG

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Outcome

There has been no change to this school’s overall judgement of good as a result of this ungraded (section 8) inspection. However, the evidence gathered suggests that the inspection grade might not be as high if a graded (section 5) inspection were carried out now. Inspectors are recommending the next inspection to be a graded inspection.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils have positive relationships with staff. They trust that staff will help them if they have any concerns or worries. This makes pupils feel safe and happy in school. Pupils enjoy making friends.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are polite and friendly to each other and to visitors. They are well behaved in lessons and during social times.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils learn to keep safe through the school’s personal, social and health education curriculum and from specialist visitors. Pupils enjoy the school-based additional experiences available to them. These bring the curriculum to life. Pupils take on extra responsibilities, such as being head boy or girl or acting as an eco-warrior. They develop their sense of responsibility through regularly raising money for charities.

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What is it like to attend this school?

In some subjects, pupils have high aspirations for their own learning and enjoy their lessons. This is because staff have high expectations of what pupils can achieve in these subjects. However, because of weaknesses in the reading curriculum, pupils do not learn to read as well as they should.

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

In many subjects, leaders have an ambitious curriculum in place from Nursery through to Year 6. However, this is not the case for reading. Although leaders have a planned curriculum for reading, it is not precise enough. Children begin to learn sounds in the Nursery class. They enjoy joining in with stories and songs. While children gain their reading knowledge, this is not always built on as pupils move through the school. In lessons, teachers revisit some prior learning and explain pupils’ misunderstandings. Some support is put into place to help readers who have gaps in learning. However, pupils’ 27 and 28 June 2023

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reading books are not precisely matched to their phonic knowledge. Some pupils struggle to read fluently. This is because the reading curriculum is unclear. As a result, pupils are not learning to read as well as they could. Although leaders have plans to address this, they are very recent.

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Where the curriculum is better planned, pupils make progress in their learning. Leaders review the curriculum to ensure it meets the needs of pupils. They have made links to help pupils remember what they are taught. Teachers benefit from training. This enables them to deliver the curriculum with precision. They break learning down into smaller chunks, which supports all pupils to follow the curriculum. Teachers revisit prior learning in a variety of ways, helping to make it stick in pupils’ memories. Teachers address pupils’ misunderstandings and track their progress through the curriculum. Where pupils have gaps in their knowledge, leaders put precise support in place to enable pupils to get back on track.

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Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) have access to the same curriculum as their peers. Where the curriculum is effective, leaders ensure that all staff know how to make adaptations for all learners. As a result, pupils with SEND achieve in line with their peers. However, this is not the case in reading.

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Staff have consistent expectations of pupils’ behaviour. This begins in the early years, where staff develop warm relationships with children. Children learn about school routines quickly. Older pupils are keen to learn. Low-level disruption is rare. A small number of pupils need extra support to regulate their behaviour. Leaders have put this support into place. During social times, pupils play together sensibly.

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Leaders have planned an enrichment curriculum which helps pupils to learn about the wider world. In history, pupils learn how significant figures, such as Amelia Earhart, challenged stereotypes. Pupils learn how these figures have changed society and the impact of these changes on their own lives. Leaders provide a range of school-based activities to support pupils’ personal development. They arrange workshops or visiting speakers to enrich pupils’ understanding of the curriculum. Pupils learn about fundamental British values through becoming members of the school council or an eco- warrior. After-school clubs change termly, ensuring that pupils can take part in a range of activities.

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Staff feel well supported by leaders. Leaders are considerate of their workload. Staff like the little ‘extras’ leaders do to support their well-being. They value the training they receive through school leaders or via the trust.

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Governors are proud to support their local community. Leaders keep governors informed of developments in school.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective. 27 and 28 June 2023

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Leaders have effective systems in place for reporting safeguarding concerns. They follow these up in a timely manner. Leaders work well with other agencies to ensure that pupils get the support they need. They complete all necessary recruitment checks prior to the appointment of staff.

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Staff and governors receive regular safeguarding training. As a result, they understand their role in keeping pupils safe.

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Pupils feel safe in school. They know that adults will listen to their worries. The curriculum provides opportunities for pupils to learn how to keep safe. This includes Year 6 pupils taking part in ‘Crucial Crew’ and workshops on internet safety.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 The early reading curriculum and its delivery are not working as well as they should. Pupils are not learning to read quickly and well. Leaders must implement their plan to introduce a new phonics programme, ensuring that staff receive high-quality training so they can deliver the new scheme with fidelity and precision. This will enable pupils to enjoy and experience success with their reading.

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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 predecessor school, Cherry Tree Primary School, to be good in July 2018.

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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. 27 and 28 June 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. 27 and 28 June 2023

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School details

Inspection number 10269217 Type of school Primary

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provision

Date of previous inspection Not previously inspected

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Information about this school

 Cherry Tree Primary School converted to become an academy school in April 2019. When its predecessor school, Cherry Tree Primary School, was last inspected by Ofsted, it was judged to be good overall.  The school offers before-school childcare provision for its pupils.  The school does not make use of alternative provision.

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Information about this inspection

The inspector carried out this ungraded inspection under section 8 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. The inspector discussed the impact of the pandemic with leaders and has taken that into account in their evaluation of the school. 27 and 28 June 2023

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 The inspector held meetings with leaders, staff, pupils, two representatives from the board of trustees and one governor about the school’s provision.  The inspector carried out deep dives in reading, mathematics and history. For each deep dive, the inspector met with subject leaders, looked at curriculum plans, visited a sample of lessons, spoke to teachers, spoke to pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work. The inspector also listened to a sample of pupils read.  The inspector scrutinised a range of other documents, including school improvement plans, leaders’ self-evaluation documents and information on the school’s website.  The inspector reviewed a range of documents to evaluate safeguarding and spoke with the designated safeguarding lead and deputy safeguarding leads. The inspector also spoke to staff to explore their understanding of their safeguarding responsibilities. The

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inspector met with the school business manager to scrutinise the single central record.  The inspector gathered the views of pupils when talking to them in groups. There were nine responses to the pupil survey.  The inspector gathered parents’ views by reviewing the 36 responses and 31 free-text responses submitted to the online survey, Ofsted Parent View. One parent spoke directly to the inspector.  To gather the views of staff, the inspector spoke to several of them and reviewed the 32 responses to Ofsted’s staff questionnaire.

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Inspection team

Lisa Massey, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector 27 and 28 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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