Hartley Brook Primary School

Inspection of Hartley Brook Primary School Hartley Brook Road, Shiregreen, Sheffield, South Yorkshire S5 0JF

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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

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Overall effectiveness Good

The principal of this school is Claire Costello. This school is part of Astrea Academy Trust, which means other people in the trust also have responsibility for running the school. The trust is run by the chief executive officer, Rowena Hackwood, and overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by Benjamin Brown. 11 and 12 June 2024

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What is it like to attend this school?

Most pupils enjoy attending school. They are polite, welcoming and inclusive of others. Pupils have confidence that adults will support them with any concerns they may have. This helps pupils to feel safe in school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The majority of pupils, including children in the early years, behave well. They enjoy playing with their friends at social times. In lessons, most pupils focus on their learning. Pupils who struggle to meet leaders’ high expectations for conduct receive additional support from the school to improve their behaviour. This effective work has significantly reduced the number of pupils who receive sanctions for poor behaviour. Pupils understand how behaving well benefits all members of the school community.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Many pupils achieve well academically. The school provides pupils with a range of wider opportunities to support their academic achievements. Pupils benefit from these. Some pupils hold leadership responsibilities in the school. In these, pupils make significant contributions to the school community. The school’s ‘eco- ambassadors’ raised funds to purchase solar panels for the school when working to reduce energy use. Other groups have led on changes to school food to provide more healthy options for peers. Most pupils participate in the school’s diverse range of clubs or represent the school in competitions. The school uses visits, including residential visits, to develop pupils’ cultural awareness well.

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better?

Historic weaknesses in the school’s curriculum have resulted in some pupils achieving less well than they should have. Some pupils have not always been as well prepared as they might have been for secondary school. Leaders have addressed these issues. They have strengthened the quality of the curriculum that pupils study. This is now established. Pupils, including disadvantaged pupils, develop more secure understanding of a range of subjects than former pupils. They are increasingly well- prepared for their next steps in education.

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better?

Teachers use a set of common routines to teach the school’s curriculum. These are informed by research. The school trains staff in how to use this approach. In most lessons, staff use these routines consistently to support pupils to learn the curriculum. Teaching strategies, such as modelling new knowledge or regularly reviewing what pupils know, help pupils to commit information to memory. Teachers provide effective support for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). This enables these pupils to learn the school’s ambitious curriculum. In some lessons, how staff check what pupils know is not as effective as it could be. Some pupils’ misconceptions go uncorrected. Information from these checks is not well used by teachers to adapt their teaching.

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better?

The school has significantly improved provision for children in the early years. This is now a strength of the school. Children play together, take turns and share well. 11 and 12 June 2024

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Leaders have carefully designed the curriculum to meet children’s needs. The development of language is central to the school’s effective work. Staff carefully design learning activities that capture children’s imagination and develop their love of learning. Adults skilfully adjust the curriculum to provide extra support when children need this to catch up. Children are well-prepared for key stage 1.

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Pupils enjoy reading. Many read often for pleasure. They enjoy reading books from a variety of genres and authors. Pupils value the diverse range of texts that they can read from the school library. Most pupils learn to read accurately and fluently. Some pupils struggle and require additional help with their reading. Support from trained staff enables many of these pupils to catch up. In some phonics sessions, adults do not identify or correct pupils when they do not pronounce sounds within words accurately. This limits these pupils’ reading accuracy.

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The school’s tireless approach to improving pupils’ attendance is leading to fewer pupils being regularly absent from school. The school works well with pupils and their families to secure improved attendance. Despite this, too many pupils continue to miss school regularly. These pupils miss important learning and fall behind their peers.

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Pupils have a strong understanding of many topics from the school’s personal, social and health education (PSHE) curriculum. They know how to eat healthily and maintain physical fitness. Pupils’ knowledge of faiths and beliefs that are different from their own is strong. Some pupils make appropriate links between their learning in PSHE lessons and other subjects. For example, one pupil described how individual liberty related to their learning about Rosa Parks in history.

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Leaders and those with responsibility for governance have a realistic view of the school. They understand its strengths as well as recognising where further improvements are needed. Many of these improvements are being realised. Some of the school’s checks on how the curriculum is implemented do not identify precisely the features that need refining. This slows how quickly some improvements are made.

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Leaders consider how decisions that they make impact on staff’s workload before making changes. Staff feel well supported by leaders at the school.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Some checks that the school makes do not precisely identify the parts of the school’s curriculum that are not working as leaders intend. Some improvements in how the curriculum is taught take longer to be made than necessary. The school 11 and 12 June 2024

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should refine its systems to ensure that checks on the curriculum consistently identify any necessary improvements so these can be promptly implemented.  In some lessons, assessment is not well used to check on pupils’ learning or to identify misconceptions. Information from these checks does not inform future teaching consistently well. Some pupils’ misconceptions are not addressed. The school should ensure that staff routinely use assessment information to address pupils’ misconceptions and any gaps in learning.  Too many pupils are regularly absent from school. These pupils miss important learning and achieve less well than they could. The school should build on its attendance strategy to secure further improvements in pupils’ attendance.

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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). 11 and 12 June 2024

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School details

Date of previous inspection 24 and 25 April 2019

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Information about this school

 The school is part of the Astrea Academy Trust.  The principal has changed since the previous inspection. Prior to this role, the current principal was deputy principal at the school.  The proportion of pupils with SEND is above the national average.  The proportion of pupils eligible for support through pupil premium funding is above the national average.  The school does not use any alternative provisions.

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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. 11 and 12 June 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.  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.  The lead inspector met with members of the trust board, the local governing board and the trust’s chief executive officer.  During the inspection, inspectors met with the principal. They also met with other senior and middle leaders, including those responsible for safeguarding, behaviour, attendance, early years provision and personal development.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: reading, mathematics, art

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and design and history. 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.  Inspectors also visited lessons, looked at samples of pupils’ work and spoke with some pupils about their learning in geography and science.  Inspectors looked at a range of documentation regarding the support pupils with SEND receive. They looked at the quality of the provision for pupils with SEND in lessons.  Inspectors scrutinised a range of documentation, including minutes from governing board meetings as well as the school’s self-evaluation and improvement plans.  Inspectors looked at a range of information regarding behaviour. They observed the behaviour of pupils in classrooms and at social times.  The views of pupils and staff who responded to Ofsted’s surveys were considered.

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 Inspectors considered the views of parents through the responses to Ofsted’s online questionnaire for parents, Ofsted Parent View.

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Inspection team

Thomas Wraith, lead inspector His Majesty's Inspector

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Inspection team

Simon Swift Ofsted Inspector 11 and 12 June 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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