Barnham Primary School

Inspection of a good school: Barnham Primary School Elm Grove, Barnham, Bognor Regis, West Sussex PO22 0HW

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Outcome

Barnham Primary School continues to be a good school.

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Outcome

The headteacher is James Everett. This school is part of The Oak Academy Trust, which means other people in the trust also have responsibility for running the school. The trust is overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by Tony Occleshaw.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils flourish at this wholly inclusive school. Staff know pupils remarkably well. Warm and respectful relationships between staff and pupils are at the heart of the school. Pupils feel special and safe. The school’s work with families to ensure strong attendance is highly effective. Parents are effusive in their praise for the leaders and staff. One, summing up the views of many, stated that this ‘is the perfect environment for young learners’.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school’s high expectations of the pupils are well established. Pupils live up to these and behave impeccably around the school. They are keen to learn and demonstrate high levels of resilience and independence. In the early years, children maintain high levels of sustained concentration, completing increasingly complex tasks, and are well prepared for Year 1.

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What is it like to attend this school?

By identifying and removing any barriers to participation, the school ensures that all pupils can benefit from enriching experiences. Staff plan a range of opportunities such as visits to Marwell Zoo. These build on learning in the classroom. Leaders actively support local community clubs to ensure access for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). As a result, all pupils access a range of clubs, including specialist sports, and some write for the school’s newspaper.

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What does the school do well and what does it need to do better?

Pupils’ personal development is exceptional. This is enhanced by a well-thought-out programme of ‘Shine’ lessons and assemblies. Pupils learn a carefully-considered body of knowledge, including how to maintain positive relationships. Consequently, pupils are tolerant and accepting of people from other faiths and cultures. They understand and appreciate ‘hidden differences’ and are keen to include everyone in their learning and 26 and 27 March 2024

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play. Character development is impressive with a focus on building, 'successful learners, confident individuals and responsible citizens'. Pupils learn to believe in themselves because staff support and encourage them to succeed. Pupils are encouraged to be active citizens. Many take on leadership roles within the school such as ambassadors, librarians or participate in the eco club. Annually, pupils participate in the ‘Big Help’ and are proud to look after their environment.

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The school and trustees are highly determined that all pupils are given the very best start to their education. They are developing a high-quality curriculum designed to equip pupils with a deep and rich body of knowledge. Leaders track pupils’ progress carefully across the curriculum to make sure all pupils, including those in mixed age classes, build understanding over time. Where leaders have recently updated aspects of the curriculum, not all the knowledge pupils are to learn has yet been precisely identified and sequenced as well as in other stronger subjects. In these small number of subjects, pupils do not secure learning as swiftly as they could.

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Subject leadership teams have strong oversight of their curriculum areas. They have ensured teachers are well supported. Adults are provided with regular on-going training. As a result, teachers deliver most subjects skilfully. Pupils engage well with their learning because teachers use engaging overarching topics to enthuse them. Staff make effective use of a range of resources to enhance pupils’ understanding. For example, children in the early years learn important threading skills that helps prepare them to sew their first stitches. In most subjects, teachers plan in opportunities to revisit key knowledge to check what pupils have learned before, for example, using ‘Flashback 4s’ in mathematics. In these subjects, pupils achieve well.

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The specially resourced provision for pupils with SEND, ‘The Orchard’, is tailored well to meet their needs. Well-trained staff skilfully remove any barriers that may hinder pupils’ learning. Provision for these pupils is closely aligned to their SEND plans. Staff work closely with a number of external agencies to ensure pupils with medical needs are provided with appropriate assistance. Across the school, the identification of SEND is accurate. During learning, adults adapt the curriculum with precision so pupils can learn in line with their peers. Staff work closely with parents and pupils to co-produce the support pupils will receive. This highly effective provision ensures pupils with SEND achieve consistently well over time.

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Pupils develop a passion for reading. The reading curriculum is well considered. Pupils access a range of quality texts from the early years onwards. Consequently, pupils read a diverse range of books. They are keen to share their favourite authors and new books they have discovered. The recently adopted phonics programme is delivered well. This begins in the early years, where children demonstrate early reading and writing skills independently in their learning. Those pupils at risk of falling behind the programme are provided with the support they need to ensure they catch up. As a result, pupils read with confidence and fluency.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective. 26 and 27 March 2024

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 In a small number of foundation subjects, the curriculum is still being refined. This affects how well pupils acquire knowledge over time, because the key facts and concepts that pupils need to learn are not always clear to them and their teachers. The school needs to continue its work to ensure that the curriculum sets out precisely what they want pupils to know and be able to do.

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Background

When we have judged a school to be good, we will then normally go into the school about once every four years to confirm that the school remains good. This is called an ungraded inspection, and it is carried out under section 8 of the Education Act 2005. We do not give graded judgements on an ungraded inspection. However, if we find evidence that a school would now receive a higher or lower grade, then the next inspection will be a graded inspection, which is carried out under section 5 of the Act. Usually this is within one to two years of the date of the ungraded inspection. If we have serious concerns about safeguarding, behaviour or the quality of education, we will deem the ungraded inspection a graded inspection immediately.

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Background

This is the second ungraded inspection since we judged the predecessor school, Barnham Primary School, to be good in May 2013.

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How can I feed back my views?

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). 26 and 27 March 2024

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School details

Website http://www.barnhamprimaryschool.co.uk

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School details

Date of previous inspection 17 May 2018, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The Oak Academy Trust is a single academy trust with one school, Barnham Primary School.  The school does not use any alternative provision.  The school hosts specially resourced provision for pupils with SEND on behalf of the local authority. The unit, known locally as ‘The Orchard’, caters for 12 pupils with speech, language and communication needs and/or physical disabilities.

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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. The inspector discussed the impact of the pandemic with leaders and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  The inspector met with the headteacher and other senior leaders. She also met with members of the trust. 26 and 27 March 2024

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 The inspector carried out deep dives in these subjects: early reading, mathematics and design and technology.  For each deep dive, the inspector 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.  During the inspection, the inspector met with a range of pupils to discuss their views about the school and talked to them informally during social times.  To inspect safeguarding, the inspector scrutinised a wide range of information, including a selection of the school’s records. The inspector spoke to staff and pupils about safeguarding and looked at how pupils learn to keep themselves safe. The inspector spoke to the safeguarding leader about the recording and reporting of safeguarding incidents.  The inspector reviewed the responses to Ofsted’s online survey, Parent View. The

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inspector also took account of staff responses to Ofsted’s online questionnaire.

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Inspection team

Laura James, lead inspector His Majesty's Inspector 26 and 27 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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