Cherry Tree School

Inspection of Cherry Tree School Hardy Road, Lymm, Warrington, Cheshire WA13 0NX

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Overall effectiveness Good

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

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Overall effectiveness Good

This school was last inspected under section 5 of the Education Act 2005 14 years ago and judged ‘Outstanding’ under a previous inspection framework. This reflected the school’s overall effectiveness under the inspection framework in use at the time.

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Overall effectiveness Good

From then until November 2020, the school was exempted by law from routine inspection, so there has been a longer gap than usual between graded inspections under section 5 of the Act. 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. 5 and 6 December 2023

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are excited to come to school each day. Cherry Tree is a school where pupils model the school’s motto to ‘bring out the best in each other’. This means that pupils, including children in the early years, blossom and grow.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy the calm and nurturing atmosphere. Staff care well for them. Pupils feel safe to express their own opinions and views. This helps them to feel happy. Pupils treat others with kindness. Their conduct is exemplary.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school has high expectations of pupils’ achievements that they typically rise to accomplish. Pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), benefit from a well-thought-out curriculum and, as a result, succeed.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The exceptional wider development offer for pupils is such that they leave school as confident, articulate and considerate young people. Pupils throughout school thrive through the many leadership responsibilities that they have.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils appreciate many opportunities to grow their own fruit and vegetables in the school’s allotment. They harvest this produce to make and sell a variety of jams and chutneys. This enables pupils to understand the importance of enterprise.

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better?

The school has designed a well-ordered and balanced curriculum It has ensured that staff are knowledgeable and confident to teach a broad range of subjects. Overall, pupils learn and achieve increasingly well across the curriculum.

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better?

The school has identified the important knowledge and vocabulary that pupils should acquire. On the whole, staff skilfully use assessment strategies to check how well pupils learn. However, in a small number of subjects, assessment information is used less effectively. As a result, misconceptions in pupils’ vocabulary knowledge are not always identified or addressed quickly enough.

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better?

The early years, including the provision for two-year-old children, provides an engaging start to children’s learning. Children benefit from the relationships that they build with older pupils. They settle quickly into school routines. However, the school has not decided on the vocabulary that children should learn in readiness for key stage 1. This means that, on occasions, there are missed learning opportunities, which means some children’s learning can be less secure than it could be. Nevertheless, typically, pupils across school are well prepared for what comes next.

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better?

The school has cultivated a love of reading. Pupils told inspectors that they enjoy reading because authors challenge their perceptions of life. They relish being school librarians and enjoy recommending books to their friends. Pupils said that staff include them in deciding on the books to read and listen to. 5 and 6 December 2023

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Pupils begin to learn phonics as soon as they start in the Reception class. Staff are suitably trained to deliver the phonics programme well. This helps most pupils learn to read accurately. Pupils practise their reading skills using books that match the sounds that they have already learned. Skilled staff identify pupils who fall behind with the phonics programme and provide effective support to help them to catch up quickly. As a result, most pupils learn to read fluently by the end of Year 2.

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The school identifies any additional needs of pupils with SEND effectively. Staff support pupils with SEND to thrive. Parents and carers appreciate the pastoral support that they receive from school to help them to navigate diagnosis pathways. Staff work collaboratively with parents and external agencies to secure appropriate support for pupils.

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The school’s high expectations and established routines ensure pupils’ excellent behaviour. Staff model the nurturing and caring behaviours that they want the pupils to demonstrate. As a result, behaviour in this school is impeccable.

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Pupils have an excellent knowledge of faiths and religions. They respect each other’s opinions and value differences between themselves and others. The school offers a wide range of enrichment activities that are carefully tailored to meet pupils’ needs. For example, pupils joined the school’s running club and from there joined the local community group. The school works exceedingly well with local groups so that pupils benefit from an incredibly broad range of sports. These strong links also help pupils to further their talents and interests outside of school.

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Governors work effectively alongside the school. They provide effective challenge and support to ensure that there is a strong focus on improving the quality of education and personal development that pupils receive. Staff appreciate the time that they are given to fulfil their roles. They say that this helps them to feel valued and supported.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 In a small number of subjects, staff do not check pupils’ understanding of vocabulary knowledge well enough. This means that, on occasion, some pupils’ learning is less secure than others. The school should ensure that staff check on pupils’ understanding of important terminology. This would enable pupils to make connections in their learning.  The school has not identified the important vocabulary that children in the early years should learn. On occasion, this hampers staff from designing learning that 5 and 6 December 2023

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builds children’s knowledge over time. The school should ensure that it refines its curriculum thinking to determine the vocabulary that children should learn.

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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 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). 5 and 6 December 2023

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Chair of governing body Christine Mitchell-Brown

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School details

Dates of previous inspection 21 and 22 April 2010, under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 A new headteacher and a new chair of governors have been appointed since the previous inspection.  The school does not make use of alternative provision.  A new chair of governors has been appointed since the previous inspection.  The school provides early education for two-year-old children.  The school runs a before- and after-school club for pupils.

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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. 5 and 6 December 2023

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 This was the first routine inspection that 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.  Inspectors conducted deep dives in early reading, mathematics and music. They met with subject leaders and teachers. Inspectors visited lessons, looked at examples of pupils’ work and talked with groups of pupils about their learning. The lead inspector observed pupils from Years 1 to 3 read to a familiar adult.  Inspectors considered the curriculum in other subjects. They met with leaders, spoke with pupils and reviewed some pupils’ work in these subjects.  The lead inspector spoke with members of the governing body, including the chair of governors.  Inspectors talked with staff about their workload and well-being.  Inspectors met with leaders who are responsible for attendance, behaviour and

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pupils’ personal development.  Inspectors looked at a range of policies and documents relating to pupils’ welfare and education. They observed pupils’ behaviour during lessons and around the school.  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.  Inspectors took account of the responses to Ofsted’s online survey for staff. There were no responses to consider from Ofsted’s online survey for pupils.  Inspectors met with parents at the start of the school day. They took account of the responses to Ofsted Parent View, including the free-text responses.

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Inspection team

Helen Friend, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Ian Shackleton Ofsted Inspector 5 and 6 December 2023

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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 looked after children, safeguarding and child protection.

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