Great Oldbury Primary Academy

Inspection of Great Oldbury Primary Academy Veterans Way, Great Oldbury, Stonehouse, Gloucestershire GL10 3WH

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Inspection dates: 27 and 28 February 2024

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Overall effectiveness Good

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

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Overall effectiveness Good

Previous inspection grade Not previously inspected under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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Overall effectiveness Good

The headteacher of this school is Hayley Hall. The school is part of Gloucestershire Learning Alliance, which means other people in the trust also have responsibility for running the school. The trust is run by the chief executive officer, Claire Savory, and overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by Helen Morris. There is also a director of education, Lisa Harford, who is responsible for this school and eight others. 27 and 28 February 2024

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What is it like to attend this school?

Great Oldbury Primary Academy is welcoming and friendly. There is a positive and vibrant ethos that permeates through the school. The school’s vision, ‘dream, believe, achieve’, clearly encapsulates its ambition to achieve the best outcomes for all pupils.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils love learning. As a result, attendance is high. Pupils want to be in school. They are keen to learn new things and talk enthusiastically about what they have learned.

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What is it like to attend this school?

There are high expectations for pupils’ behaviour. Pupils know and understand these well. They value the rewards they receive for their positive behaviour, for example the coveted headteacher award, ‘the pink step’. The school is a calm and purposeful environment. Pupils are well behaved.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are adamant that there is no bullying in the school. They are confident that adults will sort out any worries they might have.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils, including those in the nursery, benefit from a carefully planned curriculum to support their learning beyond the academic. They learn about equality and respect. Pupils learn the importance of being kind to one another. They recognise that everyone is different and special. Staff are superb role models. They help pupils to understand how to show consideration to one another within the school community and beyond.

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better?

The school prioritises reading. Pupils’ high outcomes in phonics at the end of Year 1 reflect this. Reading starts in Nursery where children begin to hear and identify sounds. All staff have the training they need to deliver the phonics curriculum well. Staff skilfully help pupils to learn the phonics code so that they become fluent readers. Pupils who fall behind quickly receive the help they need to catch up. Most pupils read books that match the sounds that they know and have learned. This helps them to gain confidence.

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better?

Pupils develop a love of reading. They enjoy listening to stories in class. The newly developed school library ensures pupils experience a broad range of high-quality books, including stories from different cultures.

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better?

The school has designed a well-sequenced curriculum that defines the essential content it wants pupils to know and remember. Teachers use a range of strategies to help pupils to learn, such as effective questioning to probe pupils’ understanding. This means pupils are ably supported with learning new concepts. In core subjects, teachers check that pupils know and remember what they have learned. They identify where there are misconceptions or gaps in pupils’ learning. Subsequent 27 and 28 February 2024

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teaching takes account of this. This helps pupils to develop a secure understanding of what they have learned so that they know more and remember more.

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In a few foundation subjects, the school has recently updated the curriculum. These changes are in their early stages and are not yet fully embedded. Assessment in the wider curriculum is being further developed. It is not yet used with precision to check what pupils know and remember in the long term. As a result, pupils’ recall and understanding of prior learning in the wider curriculum are less secure. This means they do not build on what they already know.

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This is a highly inclusive school. Staff strive to ensure that all pupils, including pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), have the support they need. Pupils with SEND are well cared for. Staff adapt learning appropriately to support individual pupils. This helps pupils to achieve well. The school’s high-quality pastoral provision means pupils receive the support they need to be happy, safe and ready to learn.

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Children in the early years get off to a flying start. The early years curriculum helps children to build their knowledge and confidence year on year. It secures successful foundations to support children’s future learning. Staff working in the early years are passionate and knowledgeable about how young children learn. Relationships are warm and staff know children well. Children in the early years demonstrate high levels of concentration and perseverance. They are well prepared for their next stage of learning.

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Leaders prioritise the wider development of pupils. Carefully chosen experiences help pupils to build their character and to understand their place in modern Britain. For example, pupils develop a strong understanding of the fundamental British values. They talk confidently about why we have laws and how democracy helps everyone to have their say.

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The trust knows the school well. It provides robust support and challenge to the school.

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Staff, including those in the early stages of their careers, are overwhelmingly positive about the support that they receive from the trust and school leaders for their workload and well-being. They appreciate the strong focus on their professional development.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective. 27 and 28 February 2024

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Assessment is being further developed in the wider curriculum. Teaching in these areas does not check that pupils can remember and recall knowledge in the long term. This means pupils’ knowledge is less secure in some subjects in the wider curriculum, as they do not build their understanding over time. The trust must ensure that assessment is used effectively, to check what pupils know, understand and can do, to inform future 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.

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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). 27 and 28 February 2024

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School details

Date of previous inspection Not previously inspected

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Information about this school

 The school is a free school. It first opened in September 2021.  The school is part of Gloucestershire Learning Alliance, which contains nine schools.  The headteacher took up post in September 2021. The assistant headteacher took up post in September 2023.  The school does not use alternative provision.  The school has a nursery and pre-school on site for children aged two to four.

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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. 27 and 28 February 2024

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 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.  Inspectors spoke with the headteacher and senior school and trust leaders. They held meetings with the special educational needs coordinator, curriculum leaders, staff and trustees, including the chair of trustees.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: early reading, mathematics and geography. For each deep dive, inspectors held discussions about the curriculum, visited a sample of lessons, spoke to teachers, spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work. An inspector also discussed the curriculum in some other subjects, including art and history.  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 the responses to the Ofsted Parent View online survey. They also spoke with parents at the start and end of the school day. Inspectors considered the responses to the staff survey.  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.

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Inspection team

Nicky McMahon, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Sean McKeown Ofsted Inspector 27 and 28 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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