John Wilkinson Primary School and Nursery

Inspection of John Wilkinson Primary School and Nursery Coalport Road, Broseley, Shropshire TF12 5AN

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Overall effectiveness Requires improvement

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

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Overall effectiveness Requires improvement

This school was last inspected under section 5 of the Education Act 2005 12 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 Requires improvement

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. 5 and 6 March 2024

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What is it like to attend this school?

Since her appointment, the headteacher has raised expectations for all pupils and staff. Staff now have high expectations and high ambitions for every pupil, including disadvantaged pupils and those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND).

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What is it like to attend this school?

In the past, the school has not acted effectively enough to ensure that pupils achieve well. As a result, standards in the quality of education and pupils’ outcomes have declined. New leaders have introduced strategies to stem this decline. These are effective and are beginning to have a positive impact on pupils’ learning.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils at this school are a delight. They are welcoming, friendly and want to learn. They enjoy coming to school and do their best in lessons. Warm and respectful relationships between adults and pupils are commonplace. Pupils behave well and the school is calm and orderly. Pupils are confident that their teachers will deal with any issues quickly and effectively.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school’s provision to enhance pupils’ personal development is strong. Pupils benefit from a wide range of activities that develop their personalities and further their interests. The activities include trips, visits, external visitors, sporting competitions and assemblies. Pupils value and appreciate these many opportunities.

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better?

New leaders have brought about the required urgency and determination to halt the decline in standards. Leaders have, in a short space of time, made some marked changes that are beginning to improve the school. The new curriculum is suitably broad and balanced. It is ambitious for all pupils. In most subjects, the curriculum clearly identifies what pupils should learn and in what order. However, this work is at the early stages of development in some subjects and more needs to be done.

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better?

Pupils, especially older pupils, have many gaps in their learning because of previous weaknesses in the design of the curriculum. Leaders have identified this, and work is underway to address these gaps to help pupils catch up. However, inconsistencies remain. Teachers sometimes do not check well enough what gaps in pupils’ knowledge and skills persist, especially in mathematics. Consequently, teachers cannot adapt their teaching to address these gaps. As a result, for some pupils, these gaps are not filled quickly enough and pupils achieve less well.

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better?

Reading is prioritised. Teaching of the phonics scheme helps pupils to increase their reading fluency. This work is effective, and most pupils are reading at an age appropriate for them. The lowest-ability readers are well supported. Leaders swiftly identify pupils who are not keeping pace with the school’s reading programme and put effective interventions in place to help them keep up. Pupils enjoy their daily reading sessions and story time. 5 and 6 March 2024

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Support for pupils with SEND is organised well. Effective systems ensure that any pupil who may need extra help is identified and supported. Leaders share clear information with staff, especially about how pupils should best be supported in lessons. While this works well for most pupils, for some it is inconsistent. At times, staff intervene too quickly, thus not giving pupils sufficient thinking time, or pupils’ learning is moved on before they have fully understood their previous work. When this happens, it slows pupils’ learning.

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Children in the early years settle well. Staff work hard to get to know children and ensure that they become used to the daily routines. The curriculum in the early years is well structured to ensure that children get off to a strong start. Children begin learning about letters and numbers straight away. At times, children are not moved on to new learning when they are ready. This can slow their progress. Children enjoy learning and playtime in the outside spaces. They are safe and happy.

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The school promotes pupils’ wider development well. Pupils have many opportunities to extend their learning beyond the classroom. They benefit from many sporting clubs, go on trips and have leadership roles, which they value and enjoy. In lessons, pupils learn about values such as respect, responsibility and what it means to be a citizen in modern Britain. Pupils are well prepared for later life.

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Senior leaders have a precise understanding of the school’s strengths and its weaknesses. They work well together and have introduced new strategies to improve the school. It is too soon to see the full impact of these strategies. Staff are unanimous in their support for new leaders and say that leaders are mindful of their well-being and workload. Parents praise the school’s pastoral support for their children, and many would recommend the school to other parents.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 The curriculum in some subjects does not clearly identify the precise knowledge and essentials skills that pupils should know. As a result, pupils are not able to build up their learning over time. The school should ensure that the knowledge and skills pupils are expected to know are clear to all staff.  Some teachers do not use assessment consistently well. Therefore, they do not know what gaps in pupils’ knowledge persist and are not adapting their teaching to fill these gaps. When this is the case, pupils’ learning slows. The school should ensure that all staff use assessment consistently well to identify what pupils can and cannot do so that learning gaps are addressed effectively. 5 and 6 March 2024

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 Some teachers do not effectively adapt their teaching to support pupils that need extra help, or children that are ready to move on to new learning. This means that teachers sometimes move pupils on to new content before they are ready, or do not extend the learning of others. This can slow pupils’ learning. The school should ensure that all staff have the expertise to support pupils’ learning effectively.

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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). 5 and 6 March 2024

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Website www.johnwilkinson.shropshire.sch.uk

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School details

Date of previous inspection 22 November 2011

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Information about this school

 The school is a smaller than average-sized primary school in rural Shropshire.  The headteacher was appointed in July 2023 and the deputy headteacher in January 2024. There has been a period of turbulence in the staffing at the school, including at senior leadership level.  The school runs a daily wraparound provision for its pupils.  The school does not use any alternative providers for its 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.  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. 5 and 6 March 2024

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 Inspectors met with the headteacher, deputy headteacher and other senior leaders. The lead inspector held a meeting with the chair of governors. Meetings were held with curriculum leaders, early career teachers and the special educational needs coordinator.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: reading, mathematics, physical education and French. For each deep dive, inspectors discussed the curriculum with subject leaders, visited a sample of lessons, spoke to teachers, spoke to pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work. Inspectors visited the early years for each of the deep dives.  An inspector listened to pupils read to a familiar adult.  Inspectors observed pupils’ behaviour and interactions during lessons and at break and lunchtimes and spoke to many pupils during the inspection.  To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding, 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 spoke to parents at the school gate to gain their views about the school.  Inspectors took account of the parents’ free-text comments and the responses on Ofsted Parent View. Inspectors also considered the responses to the pupil and staff surveys.

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Inspection team

Bianka Zemke, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Allyson Brown Ofsted Inspector 5 and 6 March 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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