Elmgrove Primary School & Nursery

Inspection of Elmgrove Primary School & Nursery Kenmore Avenue, Kenton, Harrow HA3 8LU

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Inspection dates: 19 and 20 September 2023

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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 19 and 20 September 2023

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school is a friendly, welcoming and inclusive community. Pupils value the warm and trusting relationships that they have with all staff. Leaders place a high importance on pupils’ pastoral support. This helps pupils to understand and manage their feelings. Adults have high expectations for all pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND).

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What is it like to attend this school?

Behaviour in lessons and around school is calm and purposeful. Routines for pupils’ future learning are established right away in the early years. Pupils’ attitudes to learning are consistently good. They respect teachers and concentrate well in lessons. Staff encourage pupils to follow the school values of kindness, respect, responsibility and commitment. Pupils respond and act on these values positively.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy the wide range of clubs, visits and events at school. They value sporting activities such as the opportunities provided by specialist coaches in football, dance and karate. Pupils also spoke with great enthusiasm about how the school fosters a love of music and art.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils feel safe and are kept safe in school. Parents and carers are happy to send their children to this school. They value the school’s nurturing and sense of ‘family feel’.

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better?

Leaders ensure that they provide pupils with a broad and balanced curriculum. The school’s ambitious curriculum offer starts in the early years. Staff make sure that children in the early years develop well across all areas of learning. They are ready for Year 1. In most subjects, leaders’ curricular thinking is well sequenced. It is well planned to include the needs of pupils with SEND. Teachers help pupils to build subject-specific knowledge and understanding well. For instance, in mathematics children in the early years learn to count accurately. Across the school pupils use mathematical vocabulary confidently when discussing their strategies. In some subjects, the curriculum does not build sequentially from early years to Year 6. In these subjects, the use of assessment to identify key knowledge and skills is not as well developed.

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better?

Teachers present subject content clearly. Typically, they check pupils’ understanding and address any gaps effectively. Staff support pupils with SEND, including through the use of resources, so that they learn successfully.

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better?

Leaders make the teaching of reading a key priority. The school has implemented a phonics programme for younger children and pupils. Typically, staff have strong phonic knowledge and deliver phonics lessons with fidelity. Leaders put effective support into place to help pupils who need support to build reading fluency and keep up with their phonics. For a minority of the weakest readers, staff do not ensure that they support these pupils to read with precision. This limits these pupils’ 19 and 20 September 2023

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ability to segment and blend sounds accurately. The school has considered the books and texts teachers read with all pupils carefully. This ensures that pupils experience a rich and diverse range of books and language. Older pupils love to go as often as they can to their new well-resourced library, where they get immersed in a world of imagination and literature.

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Leaders identify the needs of pupils with SEND swiftly. They work closely with external specialists so pupils receive the right support. Staff have effective systems in place to adapt and meet the needs of pupils who may benefit from any additional help. As a result, pupils with SEND are well supported to learn alongside their peers in all subjects in the classroom.

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Pupils are well behaved, polite and courteous. In early years, staff enable children to follow consistent routines.

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Leaders promote pupils’ wider development well. This builds from the rich curriculum in subjects such as art and design and music, where pupils have high- quality experiences. Pupils can take part in a range of clubs and visits. Staff encourage staff to be respectful of differences, including faiths and beliefs. This helps pupils to develop mature views around tolerance and equality.

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Staff said that leaders listen to their views and are considerate of their workload and well-being. They appreciate the opportunities they have to develop their practice. Staff feel proud to work at the school. Governors are well informed and assure themselves that the school fulfils its statutory duties well.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 For a minority of the weakest readers, staff do not ensure that they support these pupils to read with precision. This limits their ability to segment and blend sounds accurately. The school must make sure that all staff, including support staff and those who teach in key stage 2, provide all pupils with effective support to develop their reading fluency.  In some foundation subjects, the school’s curricular thinking is not well developed. It does not identify clearly the key knowledge and skills that pupils need to build from early years to Year 6. The school should ensure that subject leaders continue to develop their knowledge and subject expertise and bring about further improvements in how the curriculum is delivered and assessed. 19 and 20 September 2023

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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’ is used to mean pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND); pupils who meet the definition of children in need of help and protection ; pupils receiving statutory local authority support from a social worker; and pupils who otherwise meet the criteria used for deciding the school’s pupil premium funding (this includes pupils claiming free school meals at any point in the last six years, looked after children (children in local authority care) and/or children who left care through adoption or another formal route). 19 and 20 September 2023

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Date of previous inspection 21 November 2017, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 Elmgrove Primary School is a four-form entry school.  The headteacher was appointed in September 2017.  In November 2022, the school moved into a brand-new building with additionally resourced provision for children with physical disabilities.  The school uses one registered provider for 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

 Inspections are a point-in-time judgement about the quality of a school’s education provision.  This was the first routine inspection the school received since the COVID-19 pandemic began. Inspectors discussed the impact of the pandemic with the school and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school. 19 and 20 September 2023

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 Inspectors met with the headteacher and other school leaders. They held discussions with a representative from the local authority and spoke with representatives of the governing body, including the chair.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: reading, mathematics, geography, art and design and physical education. For each deep dive, the inspectors met with subject leaders, considered the curriculum, visited a sample of lessons, spoke to teachers and pupils, and looked at samples of pupils’ work.  Inspectors considered the curriculum in other subjects.  To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding, the inspectors: reviewed the single central record; took account of the views of school leaders, staff and pupils; and considered the extent to which the school has created an open and positive culture around safeguarding that puts pupils’ interests first.  Inspectors met with parents at the start of the school day and considered the

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views of parents, pupils and staff, including through responses to Ofsted’s surveys.

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Inspection team

Sean Flood, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector

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Inspection team

David Bryant Ofsted Inspector 19 and 20 September 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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