Chidham Parochial Primary School

Inspection of Chidham Parochial Primary School Chidham Lane, Chidham, Chichester, West Sussex PO18 8TH

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Inspection dates: 31 January and 1 February 2024

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Overall effectiveness Good

The quality of education Good Behaviour and attitudes Good Personal development Good Leadership and management Good Early years provision Good Previous inspection grade Good 31 January and 1 February 2024

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What is it like to attend this school?

In the words of one parent, reflecting the views of the majority, ‘Chidham as a school has such a strong ethos around personal development and social responsibilities.’ As they rightly went on to say, it ‘also instils in the children a real understanding of the importance of kindness and accepting each other’s differences’. Pupils agree. They appreciate the programmes that help them build teamwork, resilience, cooperation and life skills. Pupils know that these will be important beyond their time at Chidham, as are the opportunities for older pupils to be leaders and look after their younger schoolmates. Pupils are very proud of the school as a safe place where everyone gets on and values one another.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Quite simply, the school wants all pupils to flourish and be the best they can. This starts in Reception where children are nurtured so that they feel like it is their ‘second home’. The same warm welcome is offered to pupils who join at other times. Across the school, morning routines set the tone for the day. Pupils settle quickly to purposeful activities which help them remember and practise their learning. They achieve well in national reading, writing and mathematics assessments and build knowledge and skills across the full curriculum during their time at the school.

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better?

Parents are justifiably effusive about the inclusive and caring ethos. Pupils learn to respect and value difference. They see a mix of different cultures, faiths and relationships as the norm. Well-planned transition into early years and open communication with parents mean that any early learning or social or emotional difficulties are picked up sooner rather than later. This watchful eye on pupils continues through the school. Staff are alert to signs of any additional needs and are becoming increasingly expert in meeting these in the classroom. Opportunities to take on leadership roles or be ambassadors for the school are open to all pupils. They learn to look out for others in the wider community for example, by making cards for people in hospital or raising money for local charities. The school extends the same level of care to staff, looking after their well-being and being mindful of workload.

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better?

The school is right to be proud that pupils, as leaders say, leave Chidham ‘as confident, knowledgeable, well-rounded individuals’. Early reading is taught well. Staff are well trained and deliver the phonics programme with precision and pace from the beginning of Reception. Pupils experience a feeling of success from early on by reading books that mirror the sounds they have learned. Extra help for anyone who needs it is carefully tailored.

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better?

The reading curriculum beyond the early stages is well designed. It continues to build pupils’ knowledge and skills systematically and broaden their exposure to different types of books and styles of writing. Pupils are encouraged to enjoy reading for reading’s sake. Reception children happily settled down to share a story with a teacher in the book corner. In Year 5 ‘cosy club’, there was a tangible sense of 31 January and 1 February 2024

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calm and enjoyment as pupils read individually. Meanwhile, others were being taught explicitly how to consider what they liked about a book and why they would recommend it to a classmate. Mathematics learning is carefully structured from Reception to Year 6 too. Pupils’ mathematical understanding is cultivated and checked so that they become confident in explaining their thinking and applying what they know in different situations.

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Pupils learn a lot in other subjects as well. The curriculum is designed to capture the interests of pupils and make the most of the local area. Visits and visitors bring learning to life. Staff draw on a published scheme to plan what they will teach and what pupils should know as a result. They take care to check that pupils understand what they are learning at the time. However, the school has not identified precisely enough what the essential learning is for pupils in subjects other than English and mathematics as they progress from Reception onwards. So, while pupils can often see how they have got better at something, sometimes what they remember is interesting but not key to what comes next. This means that there are some gaps in pupils’ knowledge.

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Leaders and governors have their fingers on the pulse and know what could be even better. Some pupils miss important learning because they do not attend school as often as they should. The school is working well with families and other agencies to tackle this. Work is in hand, alongside the necessary refinements to the curriculum, to keep a better check on how well pupils are learning.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Guidance on how pupils’ learning should build from Reception to Year 6 in science and the foundation subjects is not as clear as it is in English and mathematics. Hence, sometimes teaching does not focus on the most important knowledge and skills, and this impacts what pupils remember. The school should continue to refine the curriculum to agree exactly what pupils should know and remember at key points and ensure that teachers use that to check learning.

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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. 31 January and 1 February 2024

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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). 31 January and 1 February 2024

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Date of previous inspection 27 June 2018, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005.

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Information about this school

 The headteacher joined the school at Easter 2019, following a period of interim leadership arrangements.  The school’s religious character is inspected separately. The last section 48 inspection took place in 2019. The next one is due by 2027.  The school does not currently use any alternative 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.  This was the first routine inspection 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 of the school.  Meetings were held with the headteacher, the deputy headteacher and the special 31 January and 1 February 2024

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educational needs and disabilities coordinator. The inspectors also had discussions with the early years lead, members of the governing body and representatives from the local authority and diocese.  The inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: early reading, mathematics, art and design and physical education. For each deep dive, the inspector held discussions about the curriculum, visited lessons, spoke to teachers, talked to some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work. They also listened to some pupils read to a familiar adult. The team considered the school’s curriculum in some other subjects through discussions with leaders and pupils and looking at curriculum maps and samples of pupils’ work.  Staff, parent and pupil views were gathered using Ofsted’s surveys. Inspectors also talked to parents at the beginning of the school day, to pupils around school and outside at breaktime and with staff as they went about their work.

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 To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding, the team 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.

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Inspection team

Alison Bradley, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector

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Inspection team

Jon Hills Ofsted Inspector 31 January and 1 February 2024

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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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