Goldenhill Primary Academy

Inspection of Goldenhill Primary Academy Broadfield Road, Goldenhill, Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire ST6 4QE

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Inspection dates: 24 and 25 October 2023

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Overall effectiveness Good

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

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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 Steve Martin. This school is part of The Societas 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 Lovatt, and overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by Carol Dudson.

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Overall effectiveness Good

Ofsted has not previously inspected Goldenhill Primary Academy as an academy under section 5 of the Education Act 2005 as, until November 2020, the school was exempted by law from routine inspection, so there has been a longer gap than usual between inspections. Judgements in this report are based on the current inspection framework and also reflect changes that may have happened at any point since the last graded inspection of the predecessor school. 24 and 25 October 2023

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils thrive at Goldenhill. They are proud to belong to such a kind and respectful school community. They know that staff care for them and want them to lead successful lives. They feel safe and know whom they can turn to if they have any concerns.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils understand why good behaviour is important and find the traffic-light system helpful in achieving this. They like earning rewards and class treats. Pupils work hard in lessons because they are keen to learn. They enjoy reading and achieve well.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Many pupils are keen to take on responsibilities that support other pupils, including as reading ambassadors or play leaders. They value having a voice through the academy council they voted for. Pupils support many charities through fundraising activities, including cake sales.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils appreciate how the curriculum is enhanced through trips and visitors. This includes performing Shakespeare at the theatre and visiting places of worship. They learn about the different types of jobs they could aim for in the future. Children in early years have loved visits from the emergency services and the local Teddy Bear Hospital. Older pupils explored the skills needed to become architects and actors, for example.

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better?

The curriculum is broad and ambitious in its scope. Reading, writing and mathematics are prioritised to ensure that pupils develop strong skills to underpin their learning across the curriculum. Pupils achieve well in these areas. Other subjects are sequenced in a way to help pupils build their learning over time. There is excellent work in early years to ensure that those first stages of learning are secured and provide strong foundations for pupils when they move into key stage 1 and beyond.

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better?

There have been some recent changes in the teaching approaches used in some subjects because the school had rightly identified areas in which pupils’ learning could be strengthened. Staff are still in the early stages of implementing these changes and have not yet fully refined their practice of these approaches.

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better?

The curriculum resources used sometimes place a heavy emphasis on the recall of factual knowledge without enough opportunity for pupils to apply their learning in depth. Some written tasks are not structured in a way that enables pupils to explain their learning in sufficient depth.

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better?

In a few lessons, learning activities are not adapted well enough to ensure that all pupils secure the key learning. Some pupils do not complete the important steps needed. Some pupils are not enabled to move on when they are ready to progress. 24 and 25 October 2023

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There is appropriate support for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Their needs are identified carefully, and clear plans are put in place. The school supports pupils with SEND well as they move to the next stage of their education.

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Reading is important at Goldenhill and is an area of strength. Learning to read and to enjoy reading is part of daily life from Nursery onwards. Children benefit from expert phonics teaching. There are prompt interventions for anyone who starts to fall behind. The ‘reading squads’ approach in key stage 1 helps pupils to develop strong reading skills, as do the whole-class sessions in key stage 2. Pupils of all ages talk positively about reading, including the rewards for their independent reading.

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Behaviour is very good. Pupils conduct themselves well in and out of lessons. The most serious consequences for poor behaviour are used infrequently. This is because the school intervenes to support pupils as soon as they appear to be finding it hard to manage their own behaviour. There is genuine care behind the work of key staff to identify the reasons for poor behaviours and to stop them escalating. Attendance is improving steadily. The school works well with parents and carers to encourage good attendance and punctuality.

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The school’s work to support pupils’ personal development is a real strength. There is an absolute commitment to ensuring that every pupil is fully prepared for life. The way pupils talk confidently about diversity and social responsibility is a reflection of the thoughtfully mapped programme of learning they experience. The way pupils learn about different careers from an early age is exceptional. The school has invested heavily in resources to support pupils’ mental health. This includes ways for pupils to monitor how they are feeling and gives them strategies to help them be mentally healthy.

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Leaders have accurately identified the ways in which the school’s provision can be strengthened. Trustees and local governors work closely together to ensure that the school meets its responsibilities. The trust provides a range of professional development opportunities for staff. Staff value these and how leaders are mindful of their workload.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Learning activities and resources are not consistently adapted appropriately to meet pupils’ learning needs. This means that some pupils do not secure the key knowledge required to move forward successfully with their learning. Some pupils are not supported to apply their learning as independently as they are capable of 24 and 25 October 2023

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doing. The school should ensure that all teachers adapt learning for all pupils effectively.  Learning tasks are sometimes designed in a way that focuses on factual recall over the application of knowledge in some subjects. Some resources inhibit the amount of writing pupils can produce or organise independently. Consequently, some pupils are not enabled to apply their knowledge in enough depth, particularly in their written work. The curriculum should be consistently implemented in a way that enables deeper application of subject knowledge.

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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). 24 and 25 October 2023

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School details

Date of previous inspection Not previously inspected

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Information about this school

 The school converted to become an academy in June 2017. The school is part of The Societas Trust, a multi-academy trust that comprises seven academies.  The school is not currently using alternative provision.  The school provides before- and after-school care on site.  The school has a nursery currently offering full-time 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. 24 and 25 October 2023

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 This was the first routine inspection the school had received since the COVID-19 pandemic began. The 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, other school leaders, trust leaders, trustees and local governors.  The inspectors carried out deep dives in early reading, mathematics, English and history. For each deep dive, the inspectors discussed the curriculum with subject leaders, visited a sample of lessons, spoke to teachers, spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work. The inspectors listened to pupils reading to a familiar adult and visited other lessons, including those in early years.  To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding, the inspectors: reviewed the single central record; took account of the views of leaders, staff and pupils; and

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considered the extent to which the school has created an open and positive culture around safeguarding that puts pupils’ interests first.  The inspectors considered the responses to Ofsted’s staff survey. They considered the responses to Ofsted Parent View, including comments submitted via the free- text facility. The inspector also spoke to some parents in person.

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Inspection team

Nicola Beech, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Susan Ray Ofsted Inspector 24 and 25 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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