Wellow Primary School

Inspection of a good school: Wellow Primary School Romsey Road, West Wellow, Romsey, Hampshire SO51 6BG

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Inspection dates: 21 and 22 November 2023

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Outcome

Wellow Primary School continues to be a good school.

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Outcome

The headteacher of this school is Bethan Larcombe. This school is part of the University of Winchester Trust, which means other people in the trust also have responsibility for running the school. The trust is led by an executive leadership team and overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by Tommy Geddes.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy coming to school and are happy to be a part of this community. They are keen to talk about the range of opportunities they have, both in the classroom and beyond. They are polite and respectful and know that they are safe in the school. Pupils know whom to talk to if they have any worries and they will get the help they need straightaway.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school has high expectations of pupils’ behaviour. Pupils are taught what this means and how to meet these expectations. The vast majority of pupils meet these, and those pupils who need additional help to do so receive it quickly. As a result, the school is a calm and positive environment. Pupils learn well and are eager to learn more.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school has ensured that there is a variety of clubs and events for pupils to take part in. These range from sporting activities to book clubs and language learning. There are many opportunities for pupils to share their achievements and to take on different responsibilities. This includes roles as physical education (PE) ambassadors, librarians and house captains. Pupils are exceptionally proud to talk about these roles and what they have had to do to adopt them.

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

The school has developed a highly ambitious curriculum. Staff have considered the knowledge that pupils need thoughtfully and have carefully sequenced this over time. This begins in early years, including in the pre-school, which prepares children well for the learning to come. The school has thought about how to ensure that this knowledge is learned and remembered. This is particularly so in mathematics, where pupils have 21 and 22 November 2023

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frequent opportunities to practise what they have learned. The ambitions the school has for pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds and for those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are also high.

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The school has a clear focus on ensuring that all pupils can achieve well. This is especially the case with reading. Children start to learn about sounds and letters as soon as they arrive in Reception. Teachers are skilful and knowledgeable about the approach they use, and the teaching of reading is highly effective. Pupils who need additional help with reading are identified quickly and immediately receive precise support. This includes pupils with SEND. As a result, pupils learn to read with accuracy, fluency and confidence. Reading is prioritised throughout the school. Pupils enjoy visiting the school library and the frequent opportunities they are given to share what they have read.

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Pupils also learn the mathematical knowledge and vocabulary that they need. These are practised to fluency and used to problem-solve. This again begins in early years, where children are familiarised with the language they need in order to talk about mathematics. Older pupils can confidently discuss the range of different processes they use and how they reach their conclusions. This focus on problem-solving is a feature in other subject areas too. The curriculum is designed to encourage pupils to question and explore with the knowledge they are taught. However, some activities across subjects are not always as closely aligned with teaching the essential knowledge that pupils require.

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The majority of pupils achieve highly. The school has carefully planned support for pupils with SEND, which helps these pupils to achieve well too. These approaches are not always consistently used well, however. Some of the support for pupils with SEND is therefore not as effective as it could be.

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The school ensures that pupils receive a wide range of experiences that enrich the curriculum. There are frequent trips, visiting speakers and clubs that develop pupils’ understanding of the wider world. Pupils are taught about resilience, as well as how to stay healthy and safe. When and how pupils learn about these topics are carefully planned over time. Pupils also learn about different relationships and people from a variety of backgrounds. Pupils know how important tolerance is and demonstrate this through the respect they show to each other and staff. The wider development of pupils is a key priority in the school, and leaders are rightly proud of the work they have done around this.

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The workload and well-being of staff are clear priorities. Support from other schools across the trust is extensive. The school draws on the most effective practices and shares what it has been developing too. There is a strong commitment to making use of the best resources available and working efficiently. Governors and trustees ensure that staff are well supported and have many opportunities to work together.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective. 21 and 22 November 2023

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 The activities and adaptations for pupils are not always closely matched to the intended learning, including for some pupils with SEND. This means that some pupils do not make as much progress as they could. The school needs to ensure that teachers know how to make use of the right approaches and adaptions for pupils across all subjects to ensure that all pupils are learning well.

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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 first ungraded inspection since we judged the predecessor school, Wellow School, to be good in November 2016.

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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). 21 and 22 November 2023

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School details

Date of previous inspection Not previously inspected

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Information about this school

 This school opened in September 2020.  The school is part of the University of Winchester Academy Trust.  The school does not currently use any alternative provision.  The school runs an after-school club on the school site.  The school runs a pre-school on site that caters for two-, three- and four-year-old children.  The school does not make use of any alternative provision.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspections are a point-in-time judgement about the quality of a school’s education provision.  This was the first routine inspection the school had 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 her evaluation of the school. 21 and 22 November 2023

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 The inspector completed deep dives in the following subjects: early reading, mathematics and geography. To do this, she met with subject leaders, had discussions with staff and pupils, visited a range of lessons and looked at pupils’ work.  The inspector also met with a range of leaders from other subjects and looked at a range of pupils’ work.  The inspector also scrutinised a range of documents, including the school and trust’s evaluation of the school and their priorities for improvement.  The inspector met with a range of senior leaders, subject leaders, teachers and support staff.  The inspector also met with members of the interim executive leadership team, the chair of the board of trustees, the chair of governors, and a range of other governors and trustees.  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

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the extent to which the school has created an open and positive culture around safeguarding that puts pupils’ interests first.  The views of pupils, parents and carers and staff were considered through discussions and a review of Ofsted’s surveys.

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Inspection team

Zoe Enser, lead inspector His Majesty’s 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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