Bradwell Village School

Inspection of Bradwell Village School Walgrave Drive, Bradwell, Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire MK13 9AZ

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Inspection dates: 12 and 13 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 Good 12 and 13 September 2023

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What is it like to attend this school?

Bradwell Village is a caring and inclusive school where everyone is welcome. Pupils are happy and enjoy coming to school. They are polite and courteous. There is a supportive and positive environment. The school has high expectations for pupils’ attitudes towards learning and their behaviour. Pupils behave well and work hard. Those who need extra help to manage their feelings receive the support they need. The school puts pupils’ academic and emotional needs at the heart of everything they do. This helps pupils to achieve well.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are keen to learn. Teachers present learning in interesting ways which motivate pupils’ interest and encourages them to think. Pupils appreciate that teachers make their learning enjoyable and challenging. Staff take opportunities to broaden pupils’ experiences, for example through links to universities and sporting and enrichment events.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils’ achievements and successes are celebrated. At breaktimes, pupils play well together. They enjoy using the large play spaces and spending time with their classmates. Pupils also appreciate the indoor playtime games that staff organise for them. They are confident to speak with staff if they have any concerns. Parents are supportive of the school. They are rightly confident that their children are safe and looked after well.

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better?

Leaders prioritise reading across the school. There is a logical progression of knowledge and skills that pupils gain over time. Pupils have books that match their reading level so that they can become fluent readers. They engage in well-planned practical activities to help them remember how to blend sounds.

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better?

Pupils also develop their interest in reading by taking part in many well-planned events. These include World Book Day, Milton Keynes Reading Festival and having authors visit the school. Pupils say they love reading, especially in the outdoor reading area. If any pupils struggle, staff quickly ensure that they receive extra support to help them catch up. Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) receive well-considered and precise help. Leaders support parents well to help their children read at home.

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better?

The curriculum is highly ambitious for all, including pupils with SEND. Following a recent curriculum review, the school has made well-considered changes. The curriculum is now sequenced carefully, and learning is broken down into small steps. The detailed plans set out what skills and knowledge leaders want pupils to learn in all subjects, across the school. The curriculum changes are helping pupils to learn better than in the past. Currently, there is further work to do to check that the new curriculum is working as intended and that pupils are achieving as well as they could, across all of their subjects. 12 and 13 September 2023

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Within lessons, there are well-planned activities to support pupils’ understanding. These include opportunities for pupils to recall and discuss previous learning. Pupils talk confidently about their learning, demonstrating how their knowledge grows over time. Pupils take pride in their work. They behave well, enabling them to concentrate and work hard in a calm and purposeful manner.

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Pupils with SEND have their needs identified quickly. Staff provide them with well- planned support that enables them to access the full curriculum. Pupils with SEND are encouraged to work independently and not become over-reliant on the adults who help them. Expectations of their behaviour are as high as for other pupils.

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Leaders promote pupils’ personal development effectively. Pupils become active citizens through embracing the leadership opportunities available to them. These include the school council, eco-council and the healthy school council. Staff support pupils to become confident, resilient and independent learners. Pupils learn about budgeting and finance skills, such as prioritising spending and eating healthily on a low budget. They learn about reducing risk in situations such as those involving railways, water, being online, bike safety and personal safety. Pupils have an age- appropriate understanding of healthy and unhealthy relationships. They know about British values and the importance of tolerance and respect for all.

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Leaders and governors know the school well. They understand the school’s strengths and priorities for improvement. Their determined drive is having a positive impact on pupils’ education. There is a strong team spirit in the school, and staff feel supported.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 The impact of recent curriculum changes is not fully understood. As a result, the school is not sufficiently clear about which parts of the curriculum could be even better. The school should ensure that checks on the new curriculum enable it to identify, and act on, less well-established aspects of planning and teaching so that pupils learn consistently well across all of their 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. 12 and 13 September 2023

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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). 12 and 13 September 2023

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Headteacher Sashi Siva (Executive Headteacher)

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School details

Date of previous inspection 12 April 2018, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The executive headteacher joined the school in September 2021.  The school is part of the Inclusive Learning Federation, which also incorporates an infant and special school.  The school runs a breakfast club.  At the time of the on-site inspection, there were no pupils attending alternative provision as part of their education.

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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. 12 and 13 September 2023

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 Inspectors held a wide range of meetings and spoke with the executive headteacher, the head of school, the special educational needs and disabilities coordinator, curriculum leaders and teaching and support staff.  The lead inspector spoke with members of the governing body and a representative of the local authority.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: early reading, mathematics, art, computing and modern foreign languages. For each deep dive, the inspectors discussed the curriculum with subject leaders, visited a sample of lessons, spoke to teachers, spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work.  The inspectors also examined curriculum plans and spoke to leaders about some other subjects.  Inspectors met with a range of pupils to discuss their views about the school and talked to pupils during playtimes and in lessons.  Responses to Ofsted Parent View, Ofsted’s online survey for parents, and parents’

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free-text comments were considered. The inspector also considered the responses to Ofsted’s online survey for staff and the online pupil survey.  To evaluate the effectiveness of the safeguarding arrangements in the school, the inspectors spoke to members of staff and pupils. The lead inspector met with the designated safeguarding lead and the learning mentor to discuss the school’s policies and procedures. During these meetings, records were scrutinised, including those relating to the safer recruitment of staff.

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Inspection team

Darren Aisthorpe, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector

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Inspection team

Nina Marabese His Majesty’s Inspector 12 and 13 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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