Shireland Technology Primary

Inspection of Shireland Technology Primary School Waterloo Road, Smethwick B66 4ND

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Inspection dates: 17 and 18 October 2023

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Overall effectiveness Outstanding

The quality of education Outstanding Behaviour and attitudes Outstanding Personal development Outstanding Leadership and management Outstanding Early years provision Outstanding

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Overall effectiveness Outstanding

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

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Overall effectiveness Outstanding

The principal of this school is Lady Kirsty Grundy. This school is part of Shireland Collegiate 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, Sir Mark Grundy, and overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by Andrew Dennis. 17 and 18 October 2023

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are rightly proud to attend Shireland Technology Primary. It provides an exceptional education for all pupils. This is because leaders have successfully based the curriculum on the school’s vision: ‘bright futures for creative minds’. As a result, pupils are happy, feel safe and achieve very well.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Staff fill lessons with captivating experiences. They use exciting resources that fire pupils’ imaginations and promote excellence. These include videos which help pupils recall their lessons. Pupils record their learning on digital devices, as well as in books. The immersive room provides unique opportunities for pupils to ‘visit’ places around the world and from history. For example, pupils explored inside a pyramid and visited London without leaving their school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils’ behaviour is impeccable. They are polite and look after one another. Pupils from different backgrounds work and play happily together.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school’s aspirations for what pupils can achieve are extremely high. Pupils successfully meet these expectations. They make the most of the school’s excellent curriculum and the impressively wide range of experiences the school provides. This includes drama and opera workshops with professional performers. Pupils also love the enrichment programme. This offers exceptional opportunities in technology, sports, art and music.

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better?

The school’s curriculum is of an exceptional quality. Leaders have deliberately planned the curriculum in great detail. They have based it on the ‘three E’s’: excite, explore, excel. It excites pupils so they learn a rich body of knowledge and gain a wide vocabulary. Leaders have carefully planned the order in which pupils explore each subject. As a result, teachers know exactly what to teach and when. Pupils excel because they gain knowledge, develop skills and deepen their understanding.

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better?

Pupils make strong connections between new and earlier learning. This helps pupils to develop their insight. For example, when considering the impact of people on the planet, pupils looked at how altitude affects the human body. They know that this might cause explorers to leave equipment behind, for example when climbing Mount Everest.

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better?

Lessons are adapted very well to make sure that pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) and those who speak English as an additional language learn the same ambitious curriculum as their peers. The school makes sure that pupils receive support that is carefully matched to their individual needs.

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better?

The school uses technology exceptionally well to support pupils’ learning. For example, children in a Reception class used a digital tablet to review their journey to school before drawing their own maps. 17 and 18 October 2023

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Reading is a high priority. Children begin to learn to read as soon as they start school. Highly-skilled staff teach phonics every day, so pupils build their phonics skills and knowledge well. Daily ‘learning surgeries’ mean that any pupil who needs extra help receives it straight away. When children begin to read, the school carefully matches children’s books to the letter sounds they know. Pupils love reading. There are exciting and engaging books in every room. Pupils enjoy a wide range of fiction, poetry and information books. They look forward to the daily ‘story escape’ when adults read to them.

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The school goes beyond the expected to develop pupils’ character. The curriculum enables pupils to reflect on moral and social issues, for example in geography and history. They consider their own and other people’s values and beliefs. They learn to cooperate, share and help others. Pupils’ well-being is exceptionally well promoted in the calm atmosphere of the creative room. These experiences help to develop the qualities pupils need to flourish in society.

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The ‘my cultural journey’ initiative promotes pupils’ personal development exceptionally well. It gives pupils the chance to learn new skills, such as stargazing and first aid. It helps to broaden pupils’ horizons, for example by going to a ballet performance and trying kayaking. These experiences help to foster pupils’ talents and interests for future life.

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Staff are proud to work at Shireland Technology Primary. They feel valued and very well supported. They appreciate the steps leaders take to help them manage their workload and the high-quality training they receive.

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Trustees, governors and school leaders have worked tirelessly to create an outstanding education for all Shireland pupils. They have achieved this. Trustees and governors check the impact of actions leaders take and hold them to account well. They visit the school regularly to check that the school’s systems are effective. They, together with school leaders and staff, are not complacent and continue to look for ways to make the school even better.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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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. 17 and 18 October 2023

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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). 17 and 18 October 2023

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School details

Website www.shirelandtechnologyprimary.net

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School details

Dates of previous inspection 6 June 2019, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The school is part of Shireland Collegiate Academy Trust.  It opened in September 2019 with pupils in Reception and Year 1. Since then, it has admitted an additional year group each September. Currently, the oldest pupils are in Year 5.  The school has nursery provision for three-year-olds.  The school provides before- and after-school childcare.  The school does not make use of any alternative provision.

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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. 17 and 18 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 the principal, vice-principals, a trustee, governors and the CEO of the trust.  Inspectors held discussions with subject leaders, the designated safeguarding leader and the leaders with responsibility for pupils with SEND, the early years and pupils’ personal development.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: reading, mathematics, geography, history and music. 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.  Inspectors discussed the curriculum in other subjects such as art and design and technology. They looked at a range of pupils’ books. They also visited lessons in

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English and computing.  The lead inspector listened to a sample of pupils read with a familiar adult.  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 documents, including the school’s raising attainment plan and information on the school’s website.  Inspectors considered the responses to Ofsted’s online questionnaire for parents, Ofsted Parent View, including free-text comments. Inspectors also spoke to parents at the beginning of the school day and took into account a letter from a parent.  Inspectors considered the responses to the Ofsted staff survey and spoke with staff about the school’s support for their workload and well-being.

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 Inspectors spoke to groups of pupils about school life.

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Inspection team

Helen Morrison, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector

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Inspection team

Gill Turner Ofsted Inspector 17 and 18 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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