Manor Primary School

Inspection of Manor Primary School Lydalls Close, Didcot, Oxfordshire OX11 7LB

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Inspection dates: 11 and 12 October 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

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Overall effectiveness Good

Previous inspection grade Not previously inspected under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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Overall effectiveness Good

The headteacher of this school is Jessica Robinson. This school is part of the GLF Schools 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, Jon Chaloner, and overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by Lynne O’Reilly. 11 and 12 October 2023

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school motto, ‘aspire and contribute’, is woven through the curriculum and school life. Pupils try their best in lessons and are active citizens. They are currently organising an event to raise awareness for a diabetes charity. Pupils are friendly and accepting of one another. They enjoy learning and their behaviour is good.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school has made lots of changes to improve learning recently. These changes have made the expectations of what pupils can achieve even higher. Pupils are striving to meet these expectations well.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils aim to show the school values, such as ambition, tenacity and respect, in daily school life. They proudly wear the badges pinned to their school ties that show these values. Pupils enjoy the leadership roles they have in the school, such as pupil parliament and house captains. However, they would like to have a bigger impact on school improvement through these roles.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school encourages pupils’ talents and interests well. All Year 3 pupils learn to play the violin. Pupils are enthusiastic about representing the school in football and netball. They enjoy playing in the school orchestra. A recent visit from a professional tennis player has enthused pupils to learn to play the sport.

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better?

There is a carefully designed broad and balanced curriculum in place. The approach to teaching the core subjects of mathematics and reading is well established. Staff teach phonics well. They provide effective extra instruction for any pupil who needs to catch up. Teachers read high-quality and diverse texts to their classes to promote a love of reading. Pupils enjoy this. In mathematics, children in Reception build a sound understanding of number. This prepares older pupils well to calculate and solve problems. An increased focus on fluency is helping pupils recall their times tables better.

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better?

The school has just launched a trust-wide curriculum for science and many foundation subjects. Experts from the trust are on hand. They guide teachers to understand curriculum developments well. The school has a well-considered professional development programme in place. The trust has a clear and accurate understanding of the school’s strengths and areas for further development. Those responsible for governance understand and carry out their roles well.

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better?

The new curriculum is exact in what teachers have to teach and well sequenced over time. Lessons are structured carefully and, on the whole, delivered well. Teachers say the precision in the new curriculum helps them with their workload. They also appreciate the joint planning sessions with teachers from their trust cluster schools. Staff think the school is well led and the recent changes benefit their pupils. They are proud to work at this school. 11 and 12 October 2023

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However, pupils are not learning and remembering knowledge as well as they could in some subjects. This is due, in part, to pupils having gaps in their knowledge from weaker curriculum thinking in the past. The new curriculum ensures that teachers revisit prior learning to check pupils’ understanding regularly. Teachers spot any gaps and they address them well. However, the school understands the need to continue to check carefully how well pupils are learning in all subjects.

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Teachers make sure that pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) have support and adapted resources so that they can learn the same curriculum alongside their peers. However, pupils with SEND do not always learn as well as they could. This is because, for some pupils with SEND, targets are too vague or not focused on what will make the most difference.

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Staff have high expectations of pupils’ behaviour. The school has introduced some new approaches to managing behaviour recently. Pupils are beginning to understand these changes. From early years onwards, children learn to identify emotions, share, take turns and listen to each other. Older pupils behave well, concentrating on their learning.

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Pupils benefit from the school’s personal development programme. There is a strong approach to supporting pupils’ mental health and well-being. Pupils understand the importance of a healthy brain and body. Pupils love their extra-curricular clubs, but wish there were more. The school chooses visitors and visits carefully to add value to learning. For example, a local youth charity educates pupils about risks and dangers, such as county lines.

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Parents’ and carers’ views of the school are polarised. Some parents are very complimentary about the care and attention their children receive. The school knows, however, that there are parents who continue to have anxieties about changes and provision. The school is rightly committed to building partnerships further and sharing the thinking behind the many changes that are happening.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Pupils have gaps in their subject knowledge in some foundation subjects. They do not achieve as well as they could in these subjects. The school should continue to implement the new curriculum, including the deliberate opportunities to revisit and use prior learning, and monitor the impact over time on pupils’ learning and remembering more.  Sometimes, the targets set for pupils with SEND are not precise enough for current needs. This means this group of pupils are not learning as well as they 11 and 12 October 2023

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could. The school should ensure that staff are supported to swiftly identify pupils’ most pressing needs and provide effective support to enable them to achieve consistently well.  Some parents do not understand the school’s work. This means they do not fully understand how best to support their children. The school should continue to extend the partnership with parents so they are better informed and confident that their views are thoughtfully considered.

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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). 11 and 12 October 2023

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School details

Date of previous inspection Not previously inspected

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Information about this school

 Manor Primary School converted to become an academy in June 2013. When its predecessor school, Manor School, was last inspected by Ofsted, it was judged to be requires improvement overall.  The school joined the GLF Schools Multi-Academy Trust in May 2019.  The school currently uses two alternative provisions, one registered and one unregistered.

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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. 11 and 12 October 2023

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 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.  Inspectors held meetings with school senior leaders, staff and pupils.  The lead inspector met with the chair of trustees and three members of the local governing board, including the chair. She also met with the chief executive officer of the GLF Schools Multi-Academy Trust, the primary director and the regional primary director.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: early reading, mathematics, geography, and design and technology. 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. An inspector heard pupils read to adults from the school.

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 Inspectors also discussed the curriculum in other subjects, looked at samples of work and spoke to pupils.  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.  The lead inspector reviewed a wide range of documentation, including leaders’ self-evaluation of the school and the school improvement plan.  Inspectors observed pupils’ behaviour throughout the day. They spoke to pupils about their views on behaviour in school. Inspectors considered how the school is supporting pupils’ personal development.  The inspectors considered the responses to the confidential staff and pupil surveys. They took account of the responses to the online survey, Ofsted Parent View, including the free-text comments. An inspector also spoke with a number of

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parents at the beginning of the school day.

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Inspection team

Lea Hannam, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector

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Inspection team

Alison Robb-Webb Ofsted Inspector 11 and 12 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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