Allesley Primary School

Inspection of a good school: Allesley Primary School Antrim Close, Allesley, Coventry, West Midlands CV5 9FY

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Inspection dates: 19 and 20 September 2023

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Outcome

Allesley Primary School continues to be a good school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

This is a school that lives its values on a daily basis: honesty, respect, perseverance, positivity, independence and compassion. Staff aspire to ensure that ‘Every child that touches Allesley takes away a wonderful experience’. They achieve this aim in this warm, inclusive and welcoming school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are proud to be part of the school community and are very happy. Behaviour in the school reflects this. Staff’s expectations of behaviour are very high, and pupils meet these expectations both in lessons and at breaktime or lunchtime. All adults are clear on the leaders’ expectations and work extensively with pupils who might need support to meet the school’s values. Pupils play very happily and are nearly always fully attentive in lessons.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Parents are very positive about the school, as leaders make considerable efforts to engage with the community. The school works tirelessly to support vulnerable pupils and their parents or carers. This means that these pupils achieve well. The high expectations for pupils are reflected in a well-thought-out curriculum and pupils achieve very well.

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

Leaders have designed a curriculum that shows significant ambition for all pupils. In art, for example, leaders have renewed the curriculum to place more emphasis on different media, artists and techniques. Pupils can speak with confidence about the techniques they have chosen to adopt, and the influences they have studied. Similarly, in mathematics, the curriculum has a very clear focus on the core knowledge that pupils will learn, as well as key concepts that enable them to embark on more complex mathematical processes with success. Leaders have ensured that older pupils are able to speak with fluency about the mathematical calculations they have chosen to use.

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

Teachers are highly skilled in checking pupils’ understanding. This means that any misconceptions are rapidly identified and corrected. They provide pupils with work that is 19 and 20 September 2023

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ambitious and carefully matched to their understanding. Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) have their needs accurately identified. This means that teachers are well-informed about pupils’ needs and how they can best be supported. Teaching assistants are very effectively deployed in lessons and are actively involved in the planning for pupils with SEND. They are kept well informed about how best to support them. As a result, pupils with SEND achieve very well.

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The school ensures that the teaching of phonics and reading is fundamental to pupils’ progress. Leaders have recently reviewed the reading curriculum to ensure that it is of a consistently high quality. Over time, the vast majority of pupils make good progress in learning to read, including pupils with SEND. Pupils who are at risk of falling behind have extra practice to help them keep up with their peers. The majority of the phonics curriculum is delivered to a very high standard as leaders intend. However, where practice is less effective, some pupils are less secure on the sounds they are learning.

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Pupils are attentive in class and motived to do their best. Pupils’ behaviour at break-time reflects the school’s happy and inclusive culture. Despite their efforts, the school is aware that there are certain pupils who do not attend school often enough. This is often disadvantaged children.

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The school has an extensive curriculum in place to enhance pupils’ wider development. This includes work to broaden pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. This work is of a high quality. The school also offers a wide range of lunchtime and after- school clubs and trips. These opportunities include sports, music and engagement with local community groups. Pupils speak highly of opportunities available to them.

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Leaders have a very clear understanding of the school’s vision, its strengths and areas for development. They work harmoniously to ensure the best for every pupil. There is extensive liaison with parents and carers. All staff at Allesley Primary work together in a highly effective way to consider what is best for the children, while being appropriately mindful of workload.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 There is variability in how well phonics is delivered. As a result, some pupils do not learn to read as quickly as they should. Leaders should ensure that the phonics curriculum is delivered effectively across the school to enable all pupils to become fluent readers quickly.  Some pupils are absent from school too often, especially disadvantaged pupils. This means that they miss important learning. Leaders need to continue to review and develop the strategies they have adopted and the work with parents or carers to 19 and 20 September 2023

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improve attendance so that pupils attend school regularly and do not miss valuable learning opportunities.

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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 second ungraded inspection since we judged the school to be good in May 2014.

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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, 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

Date of previous inspection 22 May 2018, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The school has a nursery facility onsite for children aged three.  The school does not use any alternative providers.

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Information about this inspection

The inspectors carried out this ungraded inspection under section 8 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.

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Information about this inspection

 This was the first routine inspection the school received since the COVID-19 pandemic began. The inspector discussed the impact of the pandemic with the school and has taken that into account in his evaluation of the school.  To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding, the inspector 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. 19 and 20 September 2023

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 As a part of this inspection, the inspector met governors, senior leaders, subject leaders, teaching staff as well as other employees in the school. The inspector talked with a representative from the local authority by telephone.  The inspector carried out deep dives in early reading, mathematics and art. For each deep dive, the inspector 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 visited lessons in some other subjects.  The inspector reviewed the school’s extra-curricular activities and personal development programmes with leaders. He also reviewed behaviour and attendance records.  The inspector met with members of staff and spoke to pupils, both formally and informally, at various points in the inspection. The inspector took account of responses to a staff survey and Ofsted Parent View. He also met a number of parents and carers

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Inspection team

Andrew Madden, lead inspector His Majesty’s 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 looked after children, safeguarding and child protection.

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