Oak Tree Primary School

Inspection of a good school: Oak Tree Primary School Queens Road, Cheadle Hulme, Cheadle, Stockport, Cheshire SK8 5HH

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Outcome

Oak Tree Primary School continues to be a good school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils at this school feel proud to be part of the Oak Tree family. They have a strong sense of belonging. There are no outsiders in this school. Newcomers are welcome. Pupils said that they feel well cared for and safe.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school has high aspirations for all pupils to succeed academically. Pupils, including those in early years, relish the challenge to achieve their very best. Pupils work hard in their lessons and enjoy learning.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Sanctions are rarely needed because pupils conduct themselves well in and out of class. They treat each other with kindness and respect. Pupils know right from wrong. This helps them regulate their behaviour and to support one another. Pupils value the rewards that they receive, such as pink slips and hot chocolate with the headteacher, for their good behaviour.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school helps all pupils to extend their knowledge, talents and interests. The popular outdoor education club helps pupils to appreciate nature and learn survival skills. This builds their confidence. Pupils are offered a wide range of trips and visits. Pupils in Year 4 and Year 6 enjoy the residential visits.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils develop positive attitudes towards their community and those less fortunate than themselves. Pupils read to the residents in the local elderly home and raise funds for a range of charities.

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

The school acted quickly to address the areas for improvement from the last inspection. The curriculum in every subject has been fully reviewed and redesigned.

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

The school has ensured that the content of the curriculum is carefully chosen to build pupils’ knowledge securely from the early years to Year 6. This prepares them well for 26 and 27 March 2024

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each stage of their education. There is also a strong moral dimension to the school’s curriculum content choices. As a result, pupils learn about a wide range of countries, communities, people and perspectives, so that they appreciate the rich and diverse nature of our society.

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Teachers’ subject knowledge is strong. They present new information in interesting and engaging ways. Teachers ensure that pupils have the opportunity to revisit their learning often. This helps them to build on what they know over time.

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Teachers carry out a range of checks on pupils’ learning. In most subjects, this information is used to address gaps in pupils’ knowledge. However, in a small number of subjects, assessment practices are still developing. Assessment information is sometimes not used effectively to improve pupils’ learning in these subjects.

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Pupils, including those with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), achieve well in most subjects by the end of each key stage. Pupils with additional needs are identified and supported very well. The school has ensured that teachers understand pupils’ learning and development needs and that they enlist the right specialist support, where necessary. Teachers adapt learning tasks effectively to ensure everyone can learn successfully.

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Pupils become increasingly fluent readers as they get older. The school makes sure that reading is a prime focus within the curriculum. Children in the Nursery classes develop a love for stories, songs and rhymes. In the Reception classes, children learn the basic phonics sounds well. Pupils new to the country and those who have gaps in their phonics knowledge catch up quickly. Teachers promote a passion for reading in all year groups. They choose interesting and exciting fiction and non-fiction texts to read in class. Pupils relish the reading challenge and they make good use of the well-stocked library.

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The school’s positive approach to managing pupils’ behaviour is highly effective. Teachers rarely issue red and yellow sanction cards. Pupils respect the school rules. Pupils understand the impact of their actions and words on others. Children in early years learn to play and share with one another. Teachers catch pupils when they are kind and caring and they reward them for such behaviours.

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The school has developed a strong and effective approach to improving pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural understanding. Pupils have a strong appreciation of the different religions and communities that make up modern Britain.

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Pupils develop their sense of responsibility through a variety of elected roles, such as playground squad, inclusion ambassador, school council representative and librarian. The chicken team help to tend to the chickens in the school’s coup.

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The governance of the school is strong and effective. Governors have kept good oversight of the school since the last inspection. Staff agree that there is a supportive and open culture in the school. The new well-being team has carried out the suggestions offered by staff to relieve workload pressures. All of the staff welcome the collective activities to improve their well-being such as whole staff lunches and the running club. 26 and 27 March 2024

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 In a small number of subjects, the school has not ensured that assessment information is used effectively to improve teaching and to secure pupils’ understanding. This affects how well some pupils learn and progress through the curriculum. The school should ensure that it continues to strengthen its assessment procedures in those subjects so that pupils learn all that they should.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

This is the first ungraded inspection since we graded the school to be good in February 2019.

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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

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Dates of previous inspection 13 and 14 February 2019, under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The school does not 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. Inspectors discussed the impact of the pandemic with the school and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding, the 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.  Inspectors met with the headteacher and other leaders.  The lead inspector spoke with members of the governing body and a representative of the local authority. 26 and 27 March 2024

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 The inspectors reviewed a range of documentation related to leadership strategy, behaviour, attendance, personal development, safeguarding, SEND and the curriculum.  The inspectors carried out deep dives into these subjects: early reading, mathematics, history and art and design. For each deep dive, the inspectors spoke with subject leaders about their curriculums, visited lessons, reviewed pupils’ work and met with staff and pupils to discuss learning. Inspectors also reviewed other areas of the curriculum.  The lead inspector heard pupils read to a familiar adult.  The inspectors considered the responses to Ofsted’s online surveys for staff and pupils. They also considered the responses to Ofsted’s Parent View, including the free-text comments.

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Inspection team

Zarina Connolly, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector

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Inspection team

David Deane Ofsted 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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