Foley Park Primary Academy

Inspection of Foley Park Primary Academy Northumberland Avenue, Kidderminster, Worcestershire DY11 7AW

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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

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Overall effectiveness Good

Previous inspection grade Not previously inspected under section 5 of the Education Act 2005 3 and 4 July 2024

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are proud of their school and enjoy taking advantage of the range of opportunities that are on offer. Pupils make a positive impact through a variety of leadership roles, such as value champions, young leaders and school councillors. These roles ensure pupils make a real difference to the school. For example, school councillors tasted the school dinners to design the school menu for next year.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school has ensured all staff share high expectations of pupils’ achievement. Recent changes have ensured that pupils study an ambitious curriculum. Pupils talk enthusiastically about their learning and achievements.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are polite, kind and have excellent manners. They understand and follow the school rules of ‘be ready, be respectful and be safe.’ Pupils feel valued because staff provide high-quality pastoral care. This helps pupils feel safe and happy.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) and who are disadvantaged, engage in a wide range of additional opportunities designed to develop their talents and interests. For example, pupils learn to play the cornet and get individual chess tutoring. These pupils are then supported to use these talents outside the school, for example in chess tournaments.

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better?

Over recent years, outcomes across the school have been variable. New leaders quickly identified areas that needed to be improved and worked to address these issues. All staff now share higher expectations of what pupils can achieve and this is having a positive impact on pupils’ progress. For example, staff have raised their expectations of pupils’ writing. Pupils have increased their stamina for writing, and handwriting and presentation have improved. This has ensured that the standards of writing are improving quickly. In other subjects, such as mathematics, subject- specific training has helped staff to teach in a way that helps pupils recall important knowledge. As a result, pupils’ achievement across the school is significantly better.

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better?

Since the previous inspection, the school has put in place an ambitious curriculum. Learning in the foundation subjects has been well planned and sequenced. It is clear what the pupils need to know and how this builds over time. Subject leaders know their subjects well and carry out regular monitoring. Leaders are aware that some pupils continue to have some gaps in learning, stemming from when the curriculum was not as well planned. Teachers are continuing to use assessment well to identify and address these gaps in learning.

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better?

Reading is central to the school’s curriculum. Leaders have ensured there is a variety of high-quality texts that enhance the wider curriculum. Pupils value the stories and texts that staff read to them. Teachers are skilled in teaching phonics. They ensure that the books that the pupils read are well matched to the sounds they are 3 and 4 July 2024

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learning. Children in early years develop the skills to be confident readers and are ready for Year 1.

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Pupils with SEND have their needs accurately and promptly identified. They are supported to achieve as well as they can. Staff ensure that curriculum adaptations are put in place to allow pupils to access learning alongside their peers.

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Pupils’ behaviour has improved significantly. The school has ensured that routines and expectations are known by the pupils and staff. Staff have worked with pupils to help them to understand what good behaviour looks like. In class, however, while the majority of pupils work hard and are on task, there are some pupils who are not as focused as they could be. While they do not disrupt learning, they do not consistently display positive learning behaviours. At times, this has a negative impact on their own learning and progress.

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Leaders are relentless in their approach to managing attendance. They have worked with pupils and parents to ensure they understand the importance of regular attendance. Pastoral support is provided to families if persistent absence is a concern. As a result, attendance has risen sharply and the number of pupils who are regularly absent has declined considerably.

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The trust’s values of, ‘unity, integrity, courage, curiosity and excellence’ are at the heart of the school. Pupils are fully inclusive and empathetic. They talk confidently about how it is good to be different. They talked eloquently about how pupils may have SEND, for example physical disabilities or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, and how activities and support are adapted for individual pupils.

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The school is very well led. Leaders, including those with responsibility for governance, know the school well. They understand issues that impact on pupils’ learning, for example attendance. They have systems in place to hold leaders to account for the progress in the school. Leaders are mindful of staff’s workload and well-being. Leaders ensure that staff benefit from high-quality training.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 At times, pupils do not always remember their prior learning as well as they should. This is a legacy from when the curriculum was not as well planned as it is now and consequently pupils have some gaps in their knowledge. Leaders should continue to identify and address important gaps in pupils’ learning so that pupils learn as well as they should. 3 and 4 July 2024

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 While behaviour around the school has improved, there are some instances when behaviour in lessons is not as strong as it could be. This means that at times some pupils are disengaged or off task. The school should ensure that all staff share consistently high expectations of all pupils in lessons to ensure that learning behaviours are strong.

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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). 3 and 4 July 2024

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School details

Dates of previous inspection 13 and 14 July 2022, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The headteacher was appointed in September 2023.  The school has both a breakfast and after-school club that is managed by the school.  The school does not use any alternative provision.  The school has a nursery that admits three-year-olds.  The school joined the Victoria Academies Trust in February 2018.

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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.  Inspectors discussed any continued impact of the pandemic with the school and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school. 3 and 4 July 2024

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 Inspectors met with the headteacher, deputy headteacher and other leaders.  The lead inspector met with the chief executive officer and directors of schools from the multi-academy trust.  The lead inspector met with the chair of the board of trustees, and representatives from the academy council.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: reading, mathematics, science and art. 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 considered the curriculum in other subjects.  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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 Inspectors spoke to pupils during lesson visits. They observed pupils’ behaviour in lessons and at breaktimes and lunchtimes. The inspectors spoke to staff about behaviour and about their workload in the school.  The inspectors considered responses to Ofsted’s online surveys for parents, pupils and staff.

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Inspection team

Eve Morris, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Helen Quinn Ofsted Inspector 3 and 4 July 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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