Stoke-by-Nayland Church of England Primary School

Inspection of Stoke-by-Nayland Church of England Primary School School Street, Stoke by Nayland, Nr Colchester, Suffolk CO6 4QY

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Inspection dates: 26 and 27 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 Previous inspection grade Inadequate

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Overall effectiveness Good

The headteacher of this school is Kelly McGrath. This school is part of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich Diocesan Multi-Academy Trust , which means other people in the trust also have responsibility for running the school. The trust is run by the chief executive officer, Jane Sheat, and overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by Thomas Brooke. 26 and 27 September 2023

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils strive to be the best that they can be at this small village school. They want to learn and do well. They respond well to staff’s high expectations. Pupils like their teachers, who make their learning fun and interesting. The school has a calm and harmonious atmosphere. Every now and then you may hear the piano being played as pupils make the most of the resources and opportunities available to them.

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What is it like to attend this school?

There is a strong ‘family feel’ to the school. Older pupils look after the younger ones. Pupils are kind and compassionate. These school values are well understood. Pupils know the school’s routines and abide by the rules. Younger children follow the lead set by others, such as sitting quietly during collective worship.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils appreciate the wide range of extra-curricular opportunities on offer, such as eco club and choir. There are several well-attended trips to places of interest which enhance the curriculum. Many pupils eagerly share opinions via the school council and their ambassador roles. They also help out in the local community, expanding the local food bank to include items for school.

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better?

The trust has deployed resources and support intelligently so that they sustain improvement. It is a different school to that seen at the last inspection. Pupils are happy and engaged in their lessons. This is because they are learning an ambitious and well-planned curriculum.

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better?

The curriculum, including that for early years, builds pupils’ knowledge step by step and is age appropriate. Ongoing review by the trust is helping to steer helpful tweaks. As a result, the mixed-age classes are working well. Staff ensure that pupils have a set structure to their learning. This is so everybody knows which task they are doing that is relevant for them and their year. Support staff are well deployed so they can guide learning. They have good subject knowledge and help pupils make connections with their prior learning. Staff use short quizzes and end-of-unit tasks to check that pupils are recalling what they have learned. Staff are less proficient at moving pupils on quickly when they have mastered new knowledge or a skill during lessons. For example, this may result in a pupil working unnecessarily through a series of questions when they could skip to the more difficult ones.

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better?

Pupils make a good start with learning to read. They follow a systematic phonics programme which staff deliver consistently. Staff receive regular training and helpful inputs from the local English hub. They carefully match pupils’ reading books to the sounds they know. This helps pupils gain confidence as they learn. Pupils who need extra support get the targeted teaching they need to catch up. Fluent readers develop a love for reading. Many spoke enthusiastically of the story they are reading or their favourite authors. One pupil even described her reading habit as her ‘sleep potion’. 26 and 27 September 2023

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The school has appropriate systems in place for identifying and supporting pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Almost half of the pupils at the school have individual support plans. Staff use these plans effectively to enable pupils with SEND to access the curriculum alongside their peers. The trust makes sure that teachers receive ongoing training to cater for the diverse range of needs. They also check that there are suitable arrangements in place for pupils, such as the use of external services.

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Pupils behave well in lessons. They understand clearly what it means to be a good citizen. The school’s curriculum for wider development is comprehensive. There is emphasis upon social responsibility and understanding others. Pupils learn about faith and different cultures and the importance of equality for everyone. They know how to have healthy relationships as well as how to look after their bodies.

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The trust and local governors know the school well. They visit often and make sure that staff are looked after so they can carry out their work effectively. Staff enjoy working at the school.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

While the school’s record-keeping is not as detailed as it should be, school leaders keep vulnerable pupils safe. They liaise with external agencies to ensure vulnerable pupils have the support they need. Sometimes, key information from conversations and meetings with external agencies are not noted. However, school leaders act promptly on the information they are given. Staff are alert to the signs of abuse. They also know how to report a concern should they need to. Staff receive regular training and are up to date in their knowledge of the latest government guidance.

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Safeguarding

The trust ensures that the school employs staff after making the necessary pre- employment checks. They make regular checks on the school’s safeguarding systems and processes. However, in the trust’s last audit, they did not pick up on the minor improvements required.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 On occasion, a few pupils undertake questions and tasks that they know and can do already. Sometimes, they may finish work more quickly than anticipated. Where this occurs, pupils’ progression through the curriculum stalls. The trust and the school should review staff’s use of formative assessment and how they flex the curriculum, so they move pupils readily on.  School leaders’ record-keeping for safeguarding is not as detailed as it should be. This means that there is not a complete written picture for all vulnerable pupils. This is problematic when cases require reviewing or are handled by other 26 and 27 September 2023

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designated safeguarding leads. The trust should ensure there is consistency of approach with record-keeping.

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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). 26 and 27 September 2023

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School details

Website www.stokebynaylandprimaryschool.org.uk

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School details

Dates of previous inspection 11 May 2022, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 At the time of the last monitoring visit, the leadership structure included an executive headteacher with a head of school. This structure has changed to one headteacher. The current headteacher was previously the head of school.  The trust has delegated some responsibilities for oversight of the school to a local governing body.  The school has a Christian religious character. It was last inspected under section 48 of the Education Act 2005 in June 2017. The next section 48 inspection will be within eight school years.  Although the school is registered to have early years children, there are few on roll in this phase. Therefore, due to insufficient evidence, amnesty has been granted for the judgement of the early years provision.  The school does not currently use alternative provision. 26 and 27 September 2023

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Information about this inspection

This inspection began on 26 September 2023 as a monitoring inspection. Having found that the school performance appeared to be improving, we deemed the inspection a graded (section 5) inspection. As a graded inspection requires more inspector time to complete than a monitoring inspection, we returned on 27 September 2023 to complete the graded inspection.

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Information about this inspection

In accordance with section 13(5) of the Education Act 2005, His Majesty’s Chief Inspector is of the opinion that the school no longer requires significant improvement.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspections are a point-in-time judgement about the quality of a school’s education provision.  Inspectors discussed any continued impact of the pandemic with the school and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  Inspectors met with the chair of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich Diocesan Multi- Academy Trust, trustees, the chief executive officer of the trust, the head of school improvement for the trust, and representatives of the local governing body.  Inspectors met with the headteacher, subject leaders and staff.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: early reading, mathematics, history and modern foreign languages. For each deep dive, inspectors held discussions about the curriculum, visited a sample of lessons, spoke to teachers, spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work.  Inspectors also considered the curriculum in other subjects, including PSHE and

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Information about this inspection

RSE.  Inspectors observed pupils’ behaviour in lessons, around school and at social times. They considered pupils’ views about behaviour in school. They also spoke with staff about pupils’ behaviour, their workload and well-being.  To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding, the inspectors reviewed the single central record; took account of the views of 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 considered responses to Ofsted’s pupil survey and Ofsted’s staff survey. They considered responses to the parent survey, Ofsted Parent View, including free-text messages.

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Inspection team

Liz Smith, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Ania Vaughan Ofsted Inspector 26 and 27 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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