All Saints CofE VC Infants School

Inspection of All Saints C of E VC Infants School Fishers Mead, Dulverton, Somerset TA22 9EN

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Inspection dates: 21 and 22 November 2023

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Overall effectiveness Requires improvement

The quality of education Requires improvement Behaviour and attitudes Requires improvement Personal development Requires improvement Leadership and management Requires improvement Early years provision Requires improvement Previous inspection grade Good 21 and 22 November 2023

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What is it like to attend this school?

All Saints C of E VC Infant School is friendly and inclusive. Pupils enjoy attending and do so regularly. Relationships between adults and pupils are positive. Pupils know who to talk to about any concerns that they have and appreciate the care adults give them. As a result, pupils are happy and safe.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The curriculum is new. The school is unsure if the curriculum has had the intended impact. As a result, too many pupils are not ready for the next stage in their education. However, the school is becoming more settled following several changes in leadership. The school is committed to getting it right for pupils.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Sometimes, pupils disrupt the learning of others. Until recently, rules, routines and high expectations were not well established. Pupils say that bullying does happen sometimes, but most are confident that staff will deal with it.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils value learning in the forest school. It is an exciting and valued part of the school’s provision. Opportunities for pupils to take part in trips and visits are growing. However, both pupils and parents would like a broader range of regular clubs and activities.

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better?

The past instability of leadership at the school has affected the quality of education pupils receive. Governors have strengthened the school’s leadership by appointing new senior leaders who have a strong vision and high expectations. However, the vision is not yet realised.

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better?

The school has a broad and balanced curriculum. It is well sequenced and outlines what pupils need to know, including in the early years. However, sometimes activities do not align with the intended learning. This is because the school does not have a secure overview of each subject. The school has not developed the expertise to check how well the curriculum is being implemented. For example, assessment in some subjects is not in place. Misconceptions are not addressed quickly. This means that gaps in pupils’ learning are not identified. As a result, pupils do not learn as well as they could.

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better?

As soon as children start in Nursery, they are introduced to the joys of stories, rhymes and songs. The development of communication skills is a key thread of the curriculum. For example, non-verbal children in early years learn to sign with Makaton and use symbols confidently.

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better?

There is a well-sequenced reading programme in place for Reception children. However, it does not start early enough. Delays with staff training have a direct impact on children’s learning. Some pupils who need support read books that are not well matched to the sounds they know. Despite this, most pupils do learn to read and pupils’ outcomes in phonics are positive. 21 and 22 November 2023

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The personal, social and health education curriculum is well planned and sequenced. Pupils learn how to keep safe online, eat healthily and maintain healthy relationships. However, the broader and wider experiences in school beyond the classroom are limited for pupils of all ages. Pupils do not have a depth of knowledge about different cultures, religions or races. As a result, pupils do not learn enough about fundamental British values and are not fully prepared for life in modern Britain.

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The school has introduced clear rules and routines for behaviour. The behaviour policy is new. On occasions, pupils interrupt learning. Pupils do not always behave well, as expectations are not high enough. However, some pupils, who need help to regulate their emotions, benefit from the support of trained adults who understand and support their needs well.

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Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are identified early, so support can be put in place quickly. However, some adaptations for pupils with SEND do not help them to learn well.

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Governors have steered the school through a challenging time. They fulfil their statutory duties and are fully committed to the development of the school. However, until very recently they were not holding leaders to account and checking in sufficient depth what the school has told them about the quality of education. As a result, governors do not yet have a fully accurate view of the areas that the school must urgently prioritise.

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Staff value the support that the new leadership team provides. While workload has been high, staff are proud to work at the school and value its community ethos.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 The school does not implement the curriculum with enough precision. This means pupils, including pupils with SEND, do not learn and remember key content well. The school needs to ensure that it closely monitors the implementation of each subject and identifies and makes the improvements that will have the most impact on pupils’ education.  Assessment is not used well to check pupils’ learning. Errors and misconceptions are sometimes missed and, therefore, persist in pupils’ understanding. The school should ensure assessment is used consistently to identify and address any errors or misconceptions so that pupils learn well. 21 and 22 November 2023

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 Reading books do not consistently match pupils’ needs. This slows some pupils’ progress in learning to read quickly and efficiently. The school should take action to ensure that reading books are well matched to pupils’ reading ability.  Governors’ strategic oversight of some aspects of the school’s work is not sufficiently robust. As a result, governors do not have a strong enough understanding of important aspects of the school’s work, such as quality of education. Governors should ensure that they gather the information that they need to help them fulfil their duties more effectively.

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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). 21 and 22 November 2023

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Chair of governing body Bill Nash Kate Northern (co-chairs)

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School details

Headteacher Naomi Philp (executive headteacher) Carys Barnett (head of school)

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School details

Website www.allsaints.theexmoorfederation.co.uk

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School details

Date of previous inspection 28 September 2022, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The school is part of the Exmoor Federation. The Moorland Federation is providing support for the school through a service-level agreement.  The interim executive headteacher and head of school started in September 2023.  This is a school with a religious character. The school is designated as a Church of England infant school. The school’s last section 48 inspection took place in July 2019.  The school has provision for two- and three-year-olds.  The school does not make use of alternative provision. 21 and 22 November 2023

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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.  Inspectors discussed any continued impact of the pandemic with the school and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  Inspectors met with the executive headteacher, the head of school, the special educational needs coordinator, the designated safeguarding leads, members of staff, representatives from the local authority, and the chair and members of the governing body.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in early reading, mathematics and history. For each deep dive, inspectors discussed the curriculum with subject leaders, visited samples of lessons, spoke to teachers, spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work. Inspectors also discussed the curriculum in some other subjects.  To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding, the inspectors: reviewed the single

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Information about this inspection

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.  Inspectors considered the responses to Ofsted’s online survey, Ofsted Parent View, including the free-text comments, and the staff and pupil surveys.

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Inspection team

Gavin Summerfield, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Peter Overton Ofsted Inspector 21 and 22 November 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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