Kidmore End Church of England Primary School

Inspection of Kidmore End Church of England Primary School Chalkhouse Green Road, Kidmore End, Oxfordshire RG4 9AU

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Inspection dates: 10 and 11 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 executive headteacher of this school is Martina Parsons, who is responsible for this school and one other. This school is part of The Oxford Diocesan Schools Trust, which means other people in the trust also have responsibility for running the school. The trust is run by the chief executive officer, Anne Dellar, and overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by Kathryn Winrow. 10 and 11 October 2023

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils have a strong sense of belonging. They value the support and guidance they receive from adults and the whole school community. Pupils feel safe and happy. One pupil summed up the views of many, saying, ‘Adults support us here, they help us to get back up if we ever fall down.’ Pupils know the school’s values of kindness, respect, curiosity and resilience. They understand these well. They can explain how they learn about them and what they mean. Pupils appreciate trips and residential stays. They make good use of school clubs such as choir, sewing, drama and chess clubs. Pupils develop their confidence well through presenting to others and leading activities. For example, pupils take part in school council elections and perform in school drama productions.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are polite and respectful. They understand the school’s rules and routines. Pupils respond well to adults’ high expectations in the classrooms and around the school. Pupils’ conduct towards each other is thoughtful and courteous. This helps pupils to support each other’s well-being. Pupils are highly motivated in their lessons. There is a very positive and nurturing school culture that helps them to have positive attitudes to their learning.

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better?

The school has an ambitious curriculum. This is carefully planned to meet the needs of all pupils, including pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). The school prioritises some subject areas, such as mathematics, phonics and early reading. In these, teachers are clear about what needs to be taught. They check to see if pupils have understood what they have been learning carefully. Across the wider curriculum, subjects are at different stages of development. In subjects where staff have had more time to focus on acquiring the right subject knowledge through training, there has been a positive impact on pupils’ learning. There are some subjects, though, where staff expertise is not fully developed so that pupils achieve as well as they could.

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better?

The school is led effectively. There is consideration of staff workload and effective actions that help to manage staff pressures and challenges in positive ways. The school’s strengths and areas for development are known and understood. The school supports staff effectively in ways that have led to sustained improvements, for example in developing phonics and reading. Parents appreciate how the school engages with them. Reflecting the positive views of many parents, one commented: ‘It is a wonderfully nurturing and supportive school. I feel confident that my children’s needs are being met and that the staff care about the success of all children.’

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better?

Pupils with SEND achieve well across the curriculum because of effective provision. Staff work closely with specialists, such as speech and language therapists, to offer strong support to children where needed. Staff adapt the curriculum well and, with the same high expectations, ensure provision matches the targets identified for each 10 and 11 October 2023

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pupil closely. The school has rightly identified that some pupils’ specific needs are not always supported as quickly as possible when they join the school to ensure that they achieve highly.

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Pupils learn to read well. Phonics teaching begins when children first start in Reception. Reading books mirror the sounds that pupils are learning. Staff use effective systems to monitor and check how well pupils are learning phonics. If any pupils start to fall behind, staff make sure that there is support in place to help them catch up, such as extra tuition or small-group interventions. Pupils love reading. They value when teachers share stories and appreciate weekly sessions where they share book recommendations with each other.

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Pupils’ wider development and pastoral support is at the heart of the school. Pupils talk excitedly about their roles such as team captains and school councillors. Older pupils enjoy a sense of responsibility gained from their roles as ‘buddies’ that help younger pupils during playtimes. After-school activities are well attended and offer opportunities for all pupils. Pupils learn about democracy and how this has changed over time. Pupils know how to keep themselves safe online. Pupils say that it is important to be kind when online and check with adults if anything makes them feel uncomfortable. The consistent and dedicated care, kindness and support for all pupils is tangible throughout the whole staff team. This has helped to develop pupils’ resilience at the school because pupils develop a love of learning and a deep appreciation of the world around them.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 In some subjects, staff do not yet have all of the subject knowledge that they need to deliver the curriculum fully effectively. This means that pupils do not always achieve as well as they could. The school should provide appropriate training so that staff have the right expertise to teach all subjects equally effectively.  The school does not identify the specific needs of some pupils with SEND as quickly as possible. These pupils do not always achieve as highly as they could, therefore. The school should continue with its plans to improve this so that pupils with SEND receive the additional support that they need more rapidly. 10 and 11 October 2023

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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). 10 and 11 October 2023

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School details

Headteacher Martina Parsons (Executive Headteacher)

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School details

Date of previous inspection Not previously inspected

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Information about this school

 This is a smaller-than-average-sized primary school.  The school is a Church of England school and is part of the Oxford Diocesan Schools Trust. The Oxford Diocesan Schools Trust is a multi-academy trust which comprises 43 academies. The school joined the trust in April 2017.  Kidmore End Church of England Primary School converted to become an academy school on 1 April 2017. When its predecessor school of the same name was last inspected by Ofsted, it was judged to be outstanding overall.  The school uses one registered alternative provider.

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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. 10 and 11 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 met with senior leaders, staff, pupils and representatives of the board of trustees, including the chair. The lead inspector also spoke with the chief executive officer and a representative of the diocese.  The inspection team carried out deep dives in these subjects: early reading, mathematics, music and history. They discussed the curriculum with subject leaders, teachers and pupils, visited lessons and looked at samples of pupils’ work.  Inspectors considered responses to the Ofsted Parent View questionnaire. They also took account of the responses to the confidential staff questionnaire, as well as the views of pupils that were gathered throughout the inspection and through

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the pupil questionnaire.  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

Carl McCarthy, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Jo Petch His Majesty’s Inspector 10 and 11 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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