Northfold Community Primary School

Inspection of Northfold Community Primary School Ringway, Thornton-Cleveleys, Lancashire FY5 2NL

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Inspection dates: 30 April and 1 May 2024

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Overall effectiveness Good

The quality of education Good Behaviour and attitudes Good Personal development Good Leadership and management Good Early years provision Good Previous inspection grade Good 30 April and 1 May 2024

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are happy at school. They follow the school’s rules in everything that they do by being respectful, responsible and ready to learn. The school expects pupils to achieve their best. Pupils respond positively to these high expectations. They engage confidently in learning and achieve well in a range of different subjects.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are well cared for. They form strong and trusting bonds with each other and with staff. Pupils behave well. Their positive conduct helps to make the school a calm and purposeful place to learn.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Staff help pupils to become well-rounded, active and responsible individuals. For instance, pupils participate in a local carnival and sell their school-grown flowers and vegetables in the community. All pupils, including children in the early years, engage in an annual beach cleaning campaign. Pupils carry out their leadership duties as eco-team members, playleaders and mentors diligently.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils have many opportunities to discover and develop new interests. They look forward to the school’s end-of-year talent show, where they showcase their musical, acting and magician skills. Pupils enjoy different sports, including football and basketball.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils value educational visits to many destinations, including museums, theatres and a farm. Children in the early years look forward to their regular ‘welly walks’ in the school grounds and woodland areas.

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better?

Since the school was last inspected, it has worked at pace to create a strong, ambitious and exciting curriculum that engages pupils and enables them to achieve well. The logically ordered curriculum is structured carefully. It identifies the essential knowledge that pupils should learn and remember. Children in the early years make a positive start to school. They develop their language and communication skills especially well.

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better?

Teachers have strong subject knowledge across a range of curriculum areas. In most subjects, they have a clear picture of how well pupils are learning. Teachers use different methods to find out what pupils have committed to memory as well as where pupils’ learning is less secure. However, in a small number of subjects, pupils’ knowledge is not as strong as they should be. This is because, in these subjects, some teachers do not use assessment strategies consistently well to address pupils’ misconceptions quickly.

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better?

The school has strengthened its reading culture. For example, it has reviewed and replenished the novels and reading materials available to pupils to include books written by a diverse range of authors. Pupils are responding positively to these new 30 April and 1 May 2024

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books. They enjoy reading poems and novels by an increasing number of different writers.

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Staff have now been well-trained to deliver the school’s well-established phonics and early reading curriculums confidently. Pupils in key stage 1, and children in the early years, build their knowledge of sounds and letters well. Pupils who find learning to read more difficult, and require extra support, have their needs met well. They develop their reading confidence and fluency well over time.

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The school has well-established processes in place to identify pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) quickly and accurately. Staff work with different external specialists, and parents and carers, to ensure that pupils with SEND have their needs met well. For example, the school makes sure that, when necessary, curriculum materials are adapted to enable pupils to successfully access the same learning as their peers.

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Pupils attend school regularly. They are polite and welcoming. Typically, pupils behave conscientiously. For example, children in the early years listen carefully and follow instructions closely during lessons. Pupils’ positive attitudes to school mean that learning is rarely hindered by disruptive behaviour.

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Pupils take advantage of the wide range of after-school clubs available to them. These include judo, fencing, archery, multi-skills and coding clubs. Pupils are especially keen on dancing. They enjoy playing different musical instruments, including the flute, clarinet, guitar and drums. Pupils know that it is important to eat healthily. They are supported to maintain their physical and mental well-being. For example, pupils experience yoga. They also access canine therapy, which is part of the school’s pets as therapy programme.

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Pupils know how to maintain safe and appropriate personal relationships. They are made aware of fundamental British values, including those of democracy and the rule of law. However, pupils have a limited understanding of cultural and religious diversity. This means that they are not as well prepared for life in multicultural Britain as they could be.

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Governors know which areas of provision are strong. They support and challenge the school to continually improve. Staff feel that the school is considerate of their workload and well-being. They appreciate the training that they are given to design and deliver the curriculum.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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 In a small number of subjects, some teachers do not use assessment strategies to address pupils’ misconceptions quickly enough. This means that some pupils develop gaps in their learning. The school should ensure that teachers are fully equipped to check how well pupils are learning the curriculum in these areas.  Pupils have a limited appreciation of cultural and religious diversity. This means that they are not sufficiently well prepared for life in modern Britain. The school should strengthen its programme to support pupils’ learning about the modern world so that they can explore and celebrate the many differences and similarities that exist between people.

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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 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 April and 1 May 2024

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Dates of previous inspection 22 and 23 February 2023, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The school does not make use of alternative provision.  The school provides before- and after-school care for 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.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors discussed any continued impact of the pandemic with the school and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  Inspectors held meetings with the headteacher and the deputy headteacher. They also held meetings with other staff, including those responsible for attendance and pupils’ behaviour, welfare and personal development. 30 April and 1 May 2024

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 The inspectors held meetings with the leaders responsible for SEND and the provision for children in the early years.  The lead inspector met with members of the governing body, including the chair of governors. He also held a telephone conversation with a representative of the local authority.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: early reading, mathematics and geography. For each deep dive, inspectors discussed the curriculum with subject leaders, visited a sample of lessons, spoke with teachers, spoke with some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work. The lead inspector listened to pupils from Years 1 to 3 read to a familiar adult.  Inspectors met with pupils to discuss their learning in some other subjects.  Inspectors spoke with staff about their workload and well-being.  The lead inspector met with parents and reviewed the responses to Ofsted Parent

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View, including the free-text comments. He took account of responses to Ofsted’s staff and pupil surveys.  To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding, inspectors: 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.

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Inspection team

Lenford White, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector

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Inspection team

Michelle Joyce Ofsted Inspector 30 April and 1 May 2024

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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 looked after children, safeguarding and child protection.

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