Cornwood Church of England Primary School

Inspection of Cornwood Church of England Primary School School Lane, Cornwood, Ivybridge, Devon PL21 9PZ

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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 Good Personal development Good 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?

The school is ambitious for all pupils to be successful. Since the previous inspection, the school has prioritised the development of the curriculum to promote high expectations for all pupils. These actions are beginning to make a difference. However, it is still early days. The curriculum does not yet support pupils to build their knowledge well enough across all subjects.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy coming to Cornwood Church of England Primary School. This is reflected in their regular attendance. Pupils are proud of their school motto, ‘A family where we flourish and learn to be the best version of ourselves’. They relate this to supporting one another as ‘one big family’. This ambition is realised by pupils, who are kind and supportive of each other.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Staff take time to build positive relationships with pupils. As a result, pupils learn in a nurturing and caring environment. Parents and carers value this. They praise the support for pupils’ well-being as well as the many wider opportunities on offer. These include clubs such as one for invasion games. Pupils benefit from residential trips with pupils from other schools in the federation. They say that these trips help them to make new friends and develop a range of skills.

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better?

The school has worked on the design of the curriculum. Subject experts from across the federation have helped the school to identify and sequence the knowledge it wants pupils to learn. Through monitoring, the school checks how well pupils are learning the curriculum. From this, weaknesses in the teaching of the curriculum are identified and supported, such as through staff training. However, in some subjects, the identified improvements are not acted on quickly enough. As a result, the curriculum does not yet support all pupils to learn well.

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better?

Assessment is used to check what pupils know and remember. For example, recap tasks are used at the beginning of units of work to check gaps in pupils’ prior knowledge. Subsequent end-of-unit assessments are used to check how well pupils learn the curriculum. However, assessment is not always used with enough precision. Some pupils make repeated errors in their work that are not routinely identified and supported. As a result, pupils embed misconceptions and make slower progress.

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better?

The school has prioritised the support it provides for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Staff identify the needs of pupils with SEND with accuracy. Teachers adapt learning to ensure that pupils receive the support they need to learn the curriculum.

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better?

Children are taught how to read from the very start of Reception. Staff receive the training they need to teach the phonics programme well. Pupils read books that match the sounds they know. This helps them to become confident and fluent 21 and 22 November 2023

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readers. The school encourages a love of reading. This is supported by regular library visits and daily class stories, where pupils enjoy voting for their favourite.

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Warm relationships with staff mean that children in early years settle well. They know the school routines, such as wearing an apron when they are painting. The school has identified the knowledge it wants the children to know and remember to prepare them for key stage 1. For example, children benefit from the phonics programme to help them to learn to read well. However, learning intentions across the broad curriculum are not clearly implemented. Children do not receive sufficient opportunities to develop their knowledge and language across all areas of learning in the early years curriculum. This is because learning opportunities are not always in place to encourage children to deepen their understanding. This stalls progress for some children.

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The school is calm and orderly. Pupils show positive attitudes towards their learning. They know how the school’s values help them to be successful. Pupils are nominated to receive the ‘values award’ through which they are recognised for their achievements.

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The school supports pupils to develop beyond the academic curriculum. The personal, social and health education curriculum helps pupils to widen their understanding of relationships, health, well-being and living in the wider world. Pupils are prepared well for life in modern Britain. They have a lived experience of democracy through standing in elections for the various school councils. Pupils know their voice matters and that they make a difference. For example, pupils take ownership for planning fundraising events to raise money for a variety of charities.

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Staff value the support they gain from federation colleagues. This includes shared training to develop their subject knowledge. Those responsible for governance know the school well. They understand the school’s priorities. Governors are ambitious for pupils at this school to do well.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Some identified weaknesses in the teaching of the curriculum are not addressed quickly enough. As a result, some pupils are not well prepared for their next stage of learning. The school needs to ensure that improvements are followed up with rigour to enable all pupils to learn the curriculum well.  Assessment is not used with enough precision to identify and support gaps in pupils’ knowledge. Some pupils embed misconceptions and so do not learn the 21 and 22 November 2023

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curriculum well. The school must ensure that assessment is precise and used effectively to support all pupils to learn the curriculum successfully.  Children in early years are not supported well enough to develop their knowledge and language across all areas of learning and development. Consequently, some children do not develop a breadth of knowledge across the early years curriculum. The school must ensure that learning intentions are clear and implemented effectively to support all children to learn a broad curriculum.

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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

Dates of previous inspection 6 October 2022, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 Cornwood Church of England Primary School is part of Moorsway Federation.  This school is smaller than the average-sized primary school. Pupils are organised into three mixed-age classes.  The school does not use alternative provision.  The school is designated as having a religious character. The school is in the Diocese of Exeter. At the most recent section 48 inspection of the school, carried out in April 2017, the school was judged to be good.

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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. 21 and 22 November 2023

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 Inspectors discussed any continued impact of the pandemic with the school and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  The inspectors spoke with school leaders, subject leaders, parents, pupils, governors and representatives from the local authority.  The inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: early reading, mathematics and geography. 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. Inspectors also spoke to leaders and pupils about the curriculum in some other subjects.  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

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culture around safeguarding that puts pupils’ interests first.  The lead inspector listened to pupils reading to a trusted adult.  The inspectors observed pupils’ behaviour in lessons and around the school site. Additionally, the inspectors spoke to pupils to discuss their views about the school.  The inspectors considered responses to Ofsted Parent View, Ofsted’s online survey for parents. The inspectors considered comments made by parents online during the inspection and met with some parents at the start of the first day. Inspectors also considered responses to Ofsted’s online surveys for pupils and for staff.

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Inspection team

Esther Best, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Sarah Tustain 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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