Kennington Primary School

Inspection of Kennington Primary School Kennington Road, Fulwood, Preston, Lancashire PR2 8ER

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Overall effectiveness Good

The quality of education Good Behaviour and attitudes Outstanding Personal development Outstanding Leadership and management Good Early years provision Outstanding Previous inspection grade Good 16 and 17 July 2024

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils at this school are happy. They flourish under the calm and reassuring guidance of staff, who care for them exceptionally well. Children in the early years make a remarkably strong start to their education. They develop warm and trusting relationships with staff. At this early stage, children learn to manage their emotions and to consider the feelings of others with care.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), thrive. They rise to the high expectations that staff have for them. Pupils achieve well and their behaviour is exceptional. They are well prepared for each stage of their education.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school provides pupils with many opportunities to develop their talents and interests. This includes a variety of clubs and sporting activities. A range of trips and visits help pupils to understand the subjects that they study and the history of their community. These experiences also help to build pupils’ resilience and to widen their horizons.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are proud to take part in the many opportunities that they have to contribute to the life of the school. For example, they relish representing the school in sporting competitions. Pupils also enjoy taking part in fundraising activities for a variety of local and national charities.

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better?

The school has designed an ambitious curriculum. It has thought carefully about the information that pupils should learn and when they should learn it. This includes children in the early years. Pupils’ knowledge builds securely over time and across a broad range of subjects. In the early years, children are exceptionally well prepared for the demands of key stage 1.

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better?

Staff value the time and the training that they are given to carry out their roles with expertise. Typically, staff use their subject knowledge to design activities that help pupils to learn the curriculum successfully. However, on occasion, staff do not match learning activities accurately to the knowledge that the school has identified for pupils to learn. When this is the case, some pupils do not learn some key curriculum content as well as they could.

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better?

Staff regularly check on what pupils know and remember. They address any gaps and misconceptions before pupils move on to new learning.

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better?

The school is ambitious for every pupil to develop a love of reading. Children begin to learn to read from the start of the Reception Year through daily phonics sessions. Staff deliver these sessions with a high level of expertise. They quickly identify pupils who struggle with the pace of the phonics programme. These pupils then get extra 16 and 17 July 2024

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support. Most pupils gain the knowledge and skills that they need to read well. This helps pupils to read with expression and fluency.

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The school ensures that pupils read a wide range of books from different genres. Books are carefully chosen to reflect the school’s diverse community and the wider world. Pupils enjoy reading. They spoke confidently about the books that they have read. Pupils also enjoy the opportunity to ‘win’ a book as a reward for their hard work and positive behaviour.

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The school accurately identifies the additional needs of pupils with SEND. It ensures that staff receive clear information about pupils’ needs. Staff use this information to support pupils with SEND effectively. Typically, pupils with SEND access the curriculum alongside their peers, and they achieve well.

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Children in the early years benefit from an exceptionally well-designed and expertly delivered curriculum. Staff care deeply about the children’s welfare. Children understand and follow the clear routines that the school has in place. They play cooperatively together and are very well prepared for learning in key stage 1.

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Pupils show high levels of engagement in their learning, including in the early years. They are exceptionally polite and respectful to adults and to each other. Most pupils attend school regularly. The school provides highly effective support for the small number of pupils who need to improve their attendance.

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Pupils benefit from an extensive range of opportunities that support their wider development. They learn about healthy relationships and how to care for their physical and mental health. Pupils develop secure knowledge of how to keep themselves safe online. They display an unwavering and clear understanding of fundamental British values, including how these values weave through the life of the school. Pupils learn to celebrate difference and to treat everyone with respect. This prepares them well for life in a diverse world.

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Governors receive detailed information about the school. This helps them to carry out their duties effectively. Governors provide appropriate support and challenge to leaders at all levels.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 On occasion, teachers do not match learning activities sufficiently well to the knowledge that the school has identified for pupils to learn. This means that at times, some pupils do not learn key curriculum content as well as they could. The 16 and 17 July 2024

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school should ensure that teachers receive the training that they need to design learning activities that help pupils learn the curriculum in sufficient depth.

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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). 16 and 17 July 2024

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Dates of previous inspection 10 and 11 December 2019, under section 5 of the Education Act 2005.

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Information about this school

 The school does not make use of any alternative provision for pupils.  The school provides a breakfast club.

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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.  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.  The inspectors carried out deep dives in the following subjects: early reading, mathematics and geography. For each deep dive, the inspectors held discussions about the curriculum, visited a sample of lessons, spoke with teachers, spoke with some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work. 16 and 17 July 2024

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 The inspectors looked at a sample of pupils’ work from some other subjects.  The inspectors met with the headteacher and other school leaders.  The inspectors held meetings with members of the governing body, including the chair of governors. They also spoke with a representative of the local authority and the school’s improvement partner.  The inspectors met with leaders to discuss SEND, pupils’ behaviour and attitudes and the provision for pupils’ wider development.  The inspectors observed some pupils from Years 1 to 3 read to a familiar adult.  The inspectors considered responses to Ofsted Parent View, including the free- text comments. They also considered responses to the online surveys for staff and for pupils. The inspectors gathered the views of staff and pupils throughout the inspection.  To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding, the inspectors reviewed the single central record and took account of the views of leaders, staff and pupils. They

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considered the extent to which the school has created an open and positive culture around safeguarding that puts pupils’ interests first.  The inspectors observed pupils’ behaviour during lessons and at social times.

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Inspection team

Cleo Cunningham, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector

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Inspection team

Tim Vaughan His Majesty’s Inspector 16 and 17 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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