Bishop Henderson Church of England Primary School

Inspection of Bishop Henderson Church of England Primary School Farley Dell, Coleford, Radstock, Somerset BA3 5PN

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Inspection dates: 30 and 31 January 2024

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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 30 and 31 January 2024

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school is ambitious for pupils and wants them to achieve well. It is introducing changes to ensure that the curriculum provides pupils with the knowledge and skills they need. Nonetheless, the quality of education pupils receive is not good. Aspects of the curriculum, including in the early years, are underdeveloped.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils speak confidently about equalities and say that everyone is treated fairly. They believe the school is inclusive and that everyone deserves to be treated respectfully.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils understand the behaviours the school expects of them. They strive to meet these high expectations and behave well. Social times are enjoyable as pupils can engage in a wide range of activities. They play happily together. However, when learning, a minority of pupils who arrive late or lose focus can disrupt others. This can limit everyone’s learning.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy their time in school and feel safe. They know what to do to keep themselves safe, for example when using electronic devices.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are keen to be involved in the wider responsibilities the school offers, which include mental health champions, sports leaders and house captains. Such responsibilities help to develop pupils’ social and leadership skills.

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better?

The school has been through a turbulent time since the previous inspection. Recruitment has been undertaken to appoint new staff, especially in the nursery, to work with school leaders to drive forward the identified areas of improvement.

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better?

The school is working with determination to strengthen the quality of education. The curriculum is in place. Staff have thought carefully about the knowledge they want pupils to learn and remember across the subjects they study. However, in some subjects, the curriculum is not fully implemented. This means children and pupils do not gain the knowledge they need to achieve well. Therefore, pupils are not always as well prepared for the next stage of their education.

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better?

Typically, learning in the early years, both in the Nursery and Reception classes, provides children with a foundation on which to build. Children learn how to cooperate with each other and to work independently. They have the opportunity to develop their skills in reading, writing and mathematics. However, children, especially in the Nursery Year, do not always have well-chosen activities that build their knowledge and understanding. This hampers the progress they make.

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better?

The school has given priority to early reading. This is having a positive impact. The implementation of the school’s phonics programme is secure. Pupils’ reading books closely match the sounds they know. This is helping them to get off to a great start 30 and 31 January 2024

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with their reading. Pupils who find reading tricky get the right help to catch up quickly. Pupils enjoy story time with books that are chosen to help extend their vocabulary and enhance their understanding.

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The mantra at this school is that all teachers are teachers of pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). The school identifies pupils with SEND accurately. Suitable adaptations are made to enable pupils to follow the same curriculum as their peers. Nonetheless, the school knows that, as with other pupils, the quality of education needs to be better to enable these pupils to achieve success.

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Some pupils do not attend school regularly enough. A minority do not arrive on time. As a result, these pupils do not build their knowledge well over time and have gaps in their learning. The school is working determinedly with families to improve pupils’ attendance and punctuality, but this is not having the desired impact.

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Relationships within the school are strong. Pupils are confident that they can talk to a member of staff if they have any worries. They appreciate the focus on their mental health and the introduction of the mental health ambassadors. This encourages them to look after themselves, be healthy and support each other.

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Parents and carers have mixed views about the school. Some are unhappy with the communication between school and home. However, other parents have confidence in the school and feel their children are thriving.

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Governors understand their roles and responsibilities. They know the strengths and weaknesses of the school. They recognise work is needed to ensure that the school provides a high-quality education for its pupils.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

The school has designed a well-considered curriculum for personal, social and health education. Local and national risks are considered, such as drugs, alcohol and staying safe online. Concerns about pupils are followed up, including escalating to external agencies when necessary. However, some actions taken by the school are not routinely recorded in line with statutory guidance. This could make it difficult to monitor and track actions taken for vulnerable pupils and to determine whether concerns continue or have been resolved.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 In some subjects, the curriculum is not fully implemented, including in the Nursery. As a result, pupils do not gain the knowledge they need to achieve well. 30 and 31 January 2024

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The school need to complete the process of embedding the curriculum effectively in all subjects.  The school responds to safeguarding concerns swiftly. However, sometimes the information the school records about safeguarding incidents lacks sufficient detail. Therefore, the school could miss vital information. The school needs to make sure that records clearly and consistently demonstrate the action taken in response to any safeguarding concerns.  Some pupils are not punctual or do not attend school regularly enough. As a result, they do not build their knowledge well over time and have gaps in their learning. The school needs to ensure that the attendance strategy and work with parents are effective in ensuring that pupils are punctual and attend regularly to enable them to learn more successfully over time.

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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). 30 and 31 January 2024

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Dates of previous inspection 6 and 7 December 2022, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The school has an on-site nursery which caters for two-, three- and four-year-old children.  The school does not use any alternative provision.  The school is a voluntary controlled Church of England school in the Diocese of Bath and Wells. Its last section 48 inspection took place in March 2020, when this aspect of the school’s work was graded as excellent.

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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. 30 and 31 January 2024

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 Inspectors met with the headteacher, other senior leaders and staff.  The lead inspector met with members of the governing body.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: English, mathematics and history. 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 sampled work in science, geography and personal, social and health education.  The lead inspector listened to pupils in Year 1, 2 and 3 read to an adult. The lead inspector visited story time in Reception and Year 1. Pupils in Years 4, 5 and 6 were also heard read.  The lead inspector spoke with the service manager for education relationships and early years at Somerset local authority and the diocesan school adviser from Bath and Wells.  To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding, the inspectors: reviewed the single

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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 key documentation, including school development plans and governors’ minutes.  Inspectors observed pupils’ behaviour in lessons and around the school site. The inspectors met with school leaders to discuss and scrutinise how they respond to behaviour incidents and pupils’ attendance.  Inspectors considered the responses to the staff survey and Ofsted’s online survey, Parent View, including free-text replies. Inspectors spoke with parents at the beginning and end of the first day of the inspection.

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Inspection team

Jen Southall, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Paula Marsh Ofsted Inspector 30 and 31 January 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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