Old Moat Primary School

Inspection of Old Moat Primary School Old Moat Lane, Withington, Manchester M20 3FN

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Overall effectiveness Outstanding

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

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Overall effectiveness Outstanding

The headteacher of this school is Oliver Kerr. This school is part of Changing Lives in Collaboration Trust, which means other people in the trust also have responsibility for running the school. The trust is run by the chief executive officer (CEO), Joanne Ashcroft, and overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by Oliver George. 16 and 17 July 2024

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils flourish at this school. They leave at the end of Year 6 as well-rounded and thoughtful individuals. Pupils relish the many opportunities that they have to bring about the changes that they want to see. For example, pupils who act as ‘green heroes’ raise money to buy saplings and seeds to grow fruit and vegetables. They play a pivotal role in educating others about healthy eating and active lifestyles.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Children in the early years settle seamlessly into the school’s highly effective routines for learning. Pupils who find it more challenging to manage their own behaviour are supported with sensitivity and understanding. A calm and purposeful atmosphere pervades the school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Some pupils join the school at different times in the year. They receive a warm welcome and quickly feel part of this vibrant school community. Pupils celebrate diversity. Their respectful attitudes help to make the school a happy and exciting place to learn.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school is unswervingly ambitious for pupils’ academic achievement. It removes pupils’ barriers to learning carefully and skilfully. Pupils achieve exceptionally well, despite their differing starting points. This is particularly true for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), who blossom as a result of the expert support that they receive from staff who know them exceptionally well.

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better?

The school has worked hand in hand with leaders from the trust to design a rich and engaging curriculum from the early years to Year 6. It has meticulously identified the key knowledge that it wants pupils to know in each subject. Pupils develop a rich body of subject knowledge as a result.

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better?

The trust’s motto, ‘together we make the difference’, sits at the heart of all that the school does. Staff’s professional development is a top priority. Subject leaders engage with up-to-date educational research and display considerable subject expertise. They use their knowledge to provide staff with curriculum materials of an exceptional quality. Staff value joining forces with colleagues from other schools in the trust to hone their practice. They are overwhelmingly proud to work at the school.

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better?

Staff are experts in delivering the curriculum. They design activities with great care to ensure that pupils’ learning builds firmly on what they already know. Staff regularly check that pupils remember what they have learned. They quickly and accurately pinpoint any misconceptions that pupils may have. Staff make sure that these are addressed before pupils begin to learn something new. Pupils experience success in their learning and are motivated to want to find out more. 16 and 17 July 2024

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Staff know how to identify the signs that pupils might need additional help, including those with SEND. Staff adapt their delivery of the curriculum for these pupils skilfully. This includes the small number of children in the early years and pupils in key stage one with SEND who benefit from more intensive support in the ‘Beehive’. It also includes some older pupils who spend part of their day in the ‘Hive’ so that they are ready and eager to learn alongside their classmates.

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The school’s reading curriculum is highly effective. It places a strong focus on developing children’s vocabulary as soon as they enter the Nursery Year. Children in the early years benefit from purposeful interactions with staff. Older pupils access high-quality texts that enrich their understanding of language and provide strong models for their written work. This means that current pupils attain better in writing than last year’s published data would suggest.

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Staff deliver the school’s phonics programme exceptionally well. Any pupils who struggle to keep up with the pace of this programme are quickly identified. These pupils receive effective support to help them to catch up. Some older pupils who speak English as an additional language also benefit from extra phonics support. This helps them to build their phonics knowledge securely. These pupils, like others in the school, become confident and fluent readers.

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The school’s approach to supporting pupils’ personal development is exceptional. Pupils benefit from carefully selected cultural trips and visits that enhance and deepen their learning. Visitors from the world of work help to broaden their horizons. Staff encourage even the youngest children to be brave and adventurous. This contributes well to pupils becoming resilient learners and stands them in good stead for later life.

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Pupils relish all the opportunities that each day brings. They demonstrate extremely positive attitudes to learning and to school. They are rarely absent and arrive on time knowing that a healthy bagel awaits them.

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The school benefits from strong and highly effective leadership. Trustees and members of the local governing committee know the school remarkably well. They deploy their wide-ranging expertise with great determination to ensure that pupils at this school make a strong and successful start to their education.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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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. 16 and 17 July 2024

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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

Date of previous inspection 24 April 2019, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The school is part of Changing Lives in Collaboration Trust.  A new headteacher has been appointed since the school was last inspected.  The school does not make use of alternative provision for pupils.  Many pupils have lived in other countries before they began at this school. Many speak English as an additional language. There are currently 29 different home languages spoken by these pupils.  The school provides a breakfast club 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. 16 and 17 July 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.  The inspectors spoke with the headteacher and other leaders in the school, including the CEO and the director of education for the trust.  The lead inspector spoke with members of the trust and the local governing committee, including the chairs of both of these groups.  The lead inspector spoke to a representative of the local authority.  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 observed pupils from Years 1 to 3 reading to a familiar adult.

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 The inspectors carried out deep dives in English, including early reading, mathematics, science, geography and art and design. Inspectors spoke with the leaders of these areas of the curriculum. They also visited lessons, looked at examples of pupils’ work, held discussions with teachers and talked with pupils.  The inspectors also considered the curriculum in some other subjects. They spoke with leaders and looked at a sample of pupils’ work in these subjects.  The inspectors observed pupils’ behaviour at breaktimes and lunchtimes and as they moved around the school.  The lead inspector scrutinised leaders’ records of pupils’ behaviour and attendance.  An inspector visited the school’s breakfast club.  The inspectors spoke with groups of pupils about their experiences at school.  The inspectors spoke with parents and carers as they brought their children to school.  The inspectors considered the responses to Ofsted Parent View, including the

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free-text responses. They also considered responses to Ofsted’s online surveys for staff and for pupils.

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Inspection team

Jackie Stillings, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Graham Hamilton Ofsted 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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