Frimley CofE School

Inspection of a good school: Frimley CofE Junior School Frimley Green Road, Frimley, Camberley, Surrey GU16 6ND

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Outcome

Frimley CofE Junior School continues to be a good school.

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Outcome

The headteacher of this school is Clare Wright. This school is part of The Prospect Trust, which means other people in the trust also have responsibility for running the school. The trust is run by the chief executive officer, Andy Yarrow, and overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by Andrew Needham.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils thrive at this school. Families appreciate the strong sense of community. Pupils enjoy helping out at local pre-schools and reading to people living in sheltered accommodation. Furthermore, a recent initiative to hide books in the locality for people to find and read proved popular with both school families and the wider population.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils love to learn. They have extremely positive attitudes to learning. Adults strive for pupils to achieve highly. Pupils respond well to adults’ high aspirations. In lessons pupils’ engagement in learning is impressive. They have a strong work ethic, maintain a clear focus and work hard. In all subjects, pupils learn well, and in some subjects, such as English and mathematics, pupils achieve highly.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Caring for each other is paramount here. At social times, pupils play well together enjoying the varied outdoor activities. Table tennis and the outdoor gym are particularly popular. Pupils feel safe. There is a strong sense of trust that adults in school, especially those wearing yellow heart-shaped badges, will provide help for any worries or concerns. Pupils learn about healthy relationships and how to be a good friend. They know that it is important to be themselves and not give in to peer pressure.

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

The school has designed a broad curriculum which identifies the important knowledge that pupils must remember in all subjects. In some subjects, for example mathematics and art and design, a clear sequence of learning builds over time. This means that pupils make connections between topics, remember their learning and achieve highly. 26 and 27 March 2024

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Teachers’ subject knowledge is strong. Within lessons, they present information clearly and set tasks that help pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities, to learn new information well. In individual lessons, teachers make sure that they build pupils’ understanding step by step. For example, in history, when learning about why the ancient Egyptians settled by the river Nile, pupils learn about the importance of the river one aspect at a time.

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However, in a few subjects, while pupils build understanding of concepts within lessons, the curriculum sequence does not develop pupils’ understanding in a coherent order that builds over time. Sometimes pupils learn isolated facts that do not clearly connect to what they have learned before or will learn next. This prevents pupils from making helpful connections that enable them to remember new learning. Furthermore, in a small number of subjects, key aspects of the curriculum are not covered in sufficient depth to ensure that pupils deepen their understanding.

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The school has an absolute passion for all pupils to love reading and read well. Staff encourage thoughtful discussions about texts. Pupils’ comments are often highly insightful, especially when discussing authors’ choice of language and how this makes them feel as readers. Targeted support for pupils who need extra help with reading is highly effective. This ensures that pupils who are still learning phonics gain necessary knowledge swiftly.

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Pupils behave well. They speak politely to one another and respond sensitively and intelligently in conversations. The school promotes high attendance, doing everything it reasonably can to ensure that all pupils attend school regularly. This is having an impact. The attendance of the small number of pupils who do not attend well enough is improving rapidly.

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The school’s work to support pupils’ wider development is a real strength. Pupils experience a wealth of carefully planned opportunities to enhance their learning. Through meeting with people such as pilots, doctors and engineers, pupils develop aspiration and ambition. Pupils’ talents and interests are developed through a wide range of extra- curricular clubs and sporting competitions. Furthermore, through many leadership roles, pupils help to improve their school. In particular, the digital leaders are proud of their role in helping both staff and fellow pupils to use technology safely, effectively and correctly.

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All adults involved with the school, including those responsible for governance, are determined to improve the school further. Ensuring that everyone is equipped well to do their very best for the pupils in the school is a real priority for all.

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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 few subjects, the curriculum content is not sequenced well enough so that pupils can make connections in their learning and deepen their understanding. This means that pupils do not consistently develop detailed knowledge and skills in all subjects. The school needs to refine the curriculum content and sequence where necessary so that pupils can achieve highly across the whole curriculum.

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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 first ungraded inspection since we judged the predecessor school, Frimley CofE Junior School, to be good in January 2015.

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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

Dates of previous inspection Not previously inspected

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Information about this school

 This is a larger-than-average primary school.  This is a Church of England academy with The Prospect Trust. Its most recent section 48 Statutory Inspection of Anglican and Methodist Schools took place in December 2023.  The school does not currently use any alternative provision.

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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 the school and has taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  During the inspection, the inspector met with the headteacher and senior leaders. The lead inspector also met with members of the board of trustees, including the chair of the trust and members of the local governing body, including the chair of governors. 26 and 27 March 2024

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The inspector also met with the CEO and the director of education from the multi- academy trust. They also spoke to a representative from the diocese.  The inspector carried out deep dives in: early reading, mathematics and history. 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.  The inspector also considered planning, documentation and pupils’ work from some other subjects.  To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding, the inspector: 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.  The views of parents and carers were considered through their responses to Ofsted

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Parent View. The views of pupils and staff were gathered through surveys, interviews and discussions conducted throughout the inspection.  The inspector reviewed a range of the school’s documents, including self-evaluation reports, minutes of governing body meetings and behaviour incident logs.

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Inspection team

Sue Keeling, 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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