Graveney Primary School

Inspection of a good school: Graveney Primary School Seasalter Road, Graveney, Faversham, Kent ME13 9DU

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Outcome

Graveney Primary School continues to be a good school.

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Outcome

The headteacher of this school is Alison Blackwell. This school is part of Graveney Primary School Academy Trust, which means other people in the trust also have responsibility for running the school. The trust is overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by Mary Elizabeth Hewitt.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils thrive at this school. They benefit from an inclusive school community. This enables all pupils to feel like they belong. As one pupil commented, ‘Everyone is welcome here.’

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils behave well across the school. Pupils of all ages play together kindly. They actively seek to include pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Leaders clearly demonstrate what behaviour they expect. They have high expectations of how pupils and adults should treat each other. As a result, pupils are polite and considerate with peers and adults. On the rare occasion when behaviour is less positive, including bullying, staff address this swiftly and effectively.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are motivated to learn and love reading. They benefit from a well-defined and ambitious curriculum. Pupils take the school’s commitment to ‘being a successful learner’ seriously. They appreciate the valuable support they get from staff to help them do their best. As a result, they usually achieve well.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils appreciate the opportunities that support their learning. These include a range of clubs to develop pupils’ interests. The whole-school community trips to the theatre and regular practical lessons in the woodlands around the school enrich and enthuse pupils’ love of learning.

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

The school has developed an ambitious curriculum from Reception onwards. In most, but not all, subjects, it is well sequenced and contains the precise knowledge and skills that pupils will learn and remember. For example, in Reception, children are supported to learn 4 October 2023

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to count to 20 using objects. This is built on in Year 2 when pupils are taught to accurately recall pairs of numbers that add up to 20. The school identifies and supports pupils with SEND well. Staff skilfully adapt their teaching to enable pupils to fully access the curriculum. For example, teachers carefully scaffold learning and use specialist resources. This helps pupils with SEND to achieve consistently well.

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In reading and mathematics, the curriculum is delivered effectively. Leaders have ensured that staff have expert subject knowledge to teach well across the curriculum. From Reception onwards, staff follow the planning closely to support pupils to build learning gradually over time. They routinely revisit important concepts to ensure pupils can recall key knowledge confidently and accurately. Staff check pupils’ understanding carefully. When staff identify that pupils have gaps in their learning, they provide swift support to address these. This ensures that pupils, including those who are disadvantaged, usually achieve well.

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In other subjects, staff often follow the plans closely and emphasise the most important content. This helps pupils to usually achieve well. For example, in art and design lessons, pupils are supported to learn about different techniques that artists use. However, this is not consistent across the whole curriculum. This means that sometimes pupils do not learn and remember the key knowledge over time.

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The teaching of reading is effective. Staff follow the well-sequenced phonics scheme, and weaker readers are given helpful extra support to enable them to keep up. Pupils are given books to read that closely match the sounds they have learned. This enables pupils from Reception onwards to gain the knowledge and skills to be confident and fluent readers. Staff prioritise routinely reading aloud to pupils. This includes high-quality texts that pupils might not otherwise read themselves. This broadens pupils’ understanding of different cultures and religions.

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Pupils’ attitudes to learning are positive. They are enthusiastic and engaged from Reception onwards. This is evident in the settled and calm atmosphere where pupils clearly understand what is expected of them. Staff teach pupils explicitly how to behave, and pupils rise to these expectations.

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Pupils are taught to be truly inclusive. They are well-informed about different traditions, cultures and faiths. They know the importance of mutual respect and understand that discrimination of any form is unacceptable. Pupils speak passionately about whole-school trips to the local theatre and Dover Castle. The school prioritises teaching pupils about looking after their physical and mental health. For example, pupils learn about healthy diets and understand how to recognise their emotions and manage them appropriately. Consequently, pupils develop a deep understanding of themselves and how they can contribute positively to the school and the local community.

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All leaders know the school’s strengths and provide sufficient challenge to support the school to continue to improve. They have prioritised staff training to support staff to focus on their teaching responsibilities. As a result, staff are proud and enthusiastic to work at the school. The school works effectively with parents, including offering workshops to promote pupils’ learning. 4 October 2023

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 In a small number of subjects, pupils’ learning is variable. As a result, they sometimes have gaps in their learning and are not able to connect new learning to what they have learned before. The school should ensure that staff emphasise the most important content and then check that pupils have learned and remembered it over time.

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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 school to be good in March 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.

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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, 4 October 2023

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looked after children (children in local authority care) and/or children who left care through adoption or another formal route). 4 October 2023

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School details

Dates of previous inspection 13 and 14 March 2018, under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The school is a single academy within a multi-academy trust.  The school does not currently use alternative provision for any pupils.

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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.  The inspectors met with the headteacher and other leadership team members. The lead inspector also met with a group of trustees, including the chair of trustees.  The inspectors carried out deep dives in the following subjects: early reading, mathematics, and art and design. For each deep dive, the 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. 4 October 2023

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 The inspectors observed pupils’ behaviour around the school and in lessons. They also spoke to pupils in lessons and during playtime and lunchtime.  The inspectors considered a range of documents, including leaders’ evaluations of the school, their school improvement plan, and minutes from governors’ meetings.  The inspectors spoke to parents and considered their responses to Ofsted Parent View.  The inspectors took account of the views of staff through conversations and the responses to the online staff survey.  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.

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Inspection team

Toby Martlew, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Cathy Reid Ofsted Inspector 4 October 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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