Wearhead Primary School

Inspection of a school judged good for overall effectiveness before September 2024: Wearhead Primary School Wearhead, Bishop Auckland, County Durham DL13 1BN

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Outcome

Wearhead Primary School has taken effective action to maintain the standards identified at the previous inspection.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils at Wearhead thrive as part of a tightly knit and nurturing school community. In this very small school, positive relationships abound. Everyone in the school ‘family’ looks out for one another. Pupils welcome visitors with wide smiles. Staff know the pupils exceptionally well. Pupils are treated as unique individuals. They are happy and safe. Well-trained staff ensure that this is the case.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school has high expectations of pupils. Through effective pastoral and academic support, pupils achieve well both socially and academically. Pupils at Wearhead enjoy many opportunities to mix with pupils from other federation schools. These include regular lessons together as well as educational visits and residentials. Pupils are well prepared for the next stage of their education.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Behaviour across school is very positive. Pupils understand the school’s expectations. They strive to live up to these. Older pupils demonstrate exemplary attitudes towards the youngest children in school. Pupils enjoy coming to school. Parents and carers are overwhelmingly positive about the school. One parent’s comment summed up the feelings of others by saying, ‘I cannot speak highly enough of the staff and ethos.’

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

Pupils benefit from an ambitious and well-sequenced curriculum. Staff craft engaging lessons. Pupils also benefit from focused support from adults. This includes pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Bespoke one-to-one teaching opportunities ensure that pupils get the support they need to succeed. 8 October 2024

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Leaders have carefully considered how to teach children effectively in mixed-age classes. On ‘federation days’, pupils from Wearhead Primary travel to another neighbouring federation school. On these days, pupils benefit from being taught with their age group peers. They receive targeted teaching across the curriculum to enhance their learning. The curriculum is well sequenced to help pupils build knowledge over time. However, the ways in which teachers check pupils have understood their learning are under development. Staff are not always sure that pupils have secured each step in their learning.

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In the early years, children benefit from high levels of support from, and interactions with, adults in the classroom. As a result, they progress well from their starting points. There is a tangible love of stories, songs and rhyme. Children are keen to share favourite books with adults and retell stories they have heard. Adults shape tasks to promote communication and language. Adults model language well and ask probing questions. This enhances children’s understanding of their own learning and play.

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There is a rigorous approach to the teaching of phonics and early reading. Pupils at the earliest stages of reading develop secure phonics knowledge. This allows them to become confident and fluent readers. Reading is not a barrier to pupils accessing the wider curriculum. They gain an understanding of authors’ literary techniques and then use these in their own writing.

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Pupils talk about their learning across the curriculum with understanding. For example, pupils in Years 3 and 4 confidently use Roman numerals. They are able to explain how larger numbers are constructed. Older pupils understand their learning about the Bronze Age. They know how bronze is made and the impact of this discovery on the wider world.

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Lessons proceed without disruption. Caring relationships between adults and pupils lead to a positive learning environment. At breaktimes, pupils collaborate, play together and share resources. They have a wide range of activities to keep them engaged. Attendance is not an issue. Parents understand the importance of good attendance and punctuality.

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Pupils are very well prepared for life beyond the school. They know how to keep themselves safe. Pupils gain an understanding of the unique elements of the local area through involvement in an ‘Upland Birds’ project. The school organises a series of experiences, such as residentials and forest school sessions. These build pupils’ independence and resilience. Pupils have a keen sense of equality. They develop respect and tolerance for those from different backgrounds. Educational visits, for example a visit to a Buddhist monastery, help to strengthen these positive attitudes.

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The senior leadership team in the school has taken swift and effective action to address areas that needed further improvement. The team is supported by governors who understand their statutory obligations. Governors are developing their awareness of their roles. However, the systems for governor monitoring are not well developed. Governors do not offer robust challenge to leaders in order to hold them to account. Staff feel supported in terms of their workload and well-being. 8 October 2024

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 The school’s assessment procedures in some areas are under review and incomplete. This means that pupils’ misconceptions and gaps in learning are sometimes not identified and addressed quickly enough. The school should embed its assessment processes to ensure that checks on key knowledge and skills allow gaps to be identified and addressed in line with the school’s intentions.  Governors’ monitoring of school performance and the challenge they provide is not robust. This means that governors are not consistently holding leaders to account. Governors should ensure that they develop their ability to offer support and challenge to fulfil their roles more effectively.

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Background

Until September 2024, on a graded (section 5) inspection we gave schools an overall effectiveness grade, in addition to the key and provision judgements. Overall effectiveness grades given before September 2024 will continue to be visible on school inspection reports and on Ofsted’s website. From September 2024 graded inspections will not include an overall effectiveness grade. This school was, before September 2024, judged to be good for its overall effectiveness.

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Background

We have now inspected the school to determine whether it has taken effective action to maintain the standards identified at that previous inspection. This is called an ungraded inspection, and it is carried out under section 8 of the Education Act 2005. We do not give graded judgements on an ungraded inspection. However, if we find evidence that a school’s work has improved significantly or that it may not be as strong as it was at the last inspection, then the next inspection will be a graded inspection. A graded inspection is carried out under section 5 of the Act. Usually this is within one to two years of the date of the ungraded inspection. If we have serious concerns about safeguarding, behaviour or the quality of education, we will deem the ungraded inspection a graded inspection immediately.

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Background

This is the first ungraded inspection since we judged the school to be good for overall effectiveness in July 2019. 8 October 2024

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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). 8 October 2024

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Chair of governing body Mark den Hollander

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School details

Headteacher Sarah Hodgkinson (Executive Headteacher)

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School details

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

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Information about this school

 Wearhead Primary School is part of the Durham Dales Federation, comprising three primary schools.  The executive headteacher was appointed in January 2021. The deputy headteacher was appointed in April 2021.  From September 2024, the executive headteacher works three days per week. For two days per week, the deputy headteacher fulfils the executive headteacher role across the federation.  The school has provision for two-year-olds.  This school is much smaller than average. Pupils are taught in two mixed-age classes. Children in early years and key stage 1 are taught together. There is a key stage 2 class comprising pupils from Years 3 to 6.  Pupils and staff from Wearhead Primary School travel to St John’s Chapel Primary School on two days per week for ‘federation days’.  The school does not use any alternative provision. 8 October 2024

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 Wraparound childcare provision operates under the management of the governing body off-site at St John’s Chapel Primary School.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspections are a point-in-time evaluation 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 spoke with the executive headteacher, the federation’s deputy headteacher, other staff, the local authority leadership adviser and members of the governing body.  Inspectors visited a sample of lessons, spoke to some pupils about their work, spoke with subject leaders and looked at samples of pupils’ work.  An inspector met with some parents at the end of the school day.  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

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Information about this inspection

safeguarding that puts pupils’ interests first.  Inspectors analysed the responses to Ofsted’s staff survey and Ofsted’s pupil survey. They reviewed responses to the online survey, Ofsted Parent View, including free-text comments.

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Inspection team

Richard Beadnall, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Rowena Sykes Ofsted Inspector 8 October 2024

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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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