Roby Park Primary School

Inspection of a school judged good for overall effectiveness before September 2024: Roby Park Primary School Easton Road, Huyton, Knowsley, Merseyside L36 4NY

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Inspection dates: 15 and 16 October 2024

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Outcome

Roby Park 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, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), are happy at the school. They enjoy the rich learning opportunities that the school provides. They rise to the school’s high expectations for their education and achieve well across a range of subjects.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils benefit from the many well-considered opportunities that the school provides to build their understanding of different people. For example, pupils learn about, and celebrate, the achievements of people with SEND, including those with autism. Pupils develop a deep understanding of equality. Pupils develop empathy and are keen to help others. For instance, by raising funds for charities that support others, such as those who are diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease. In these ways, pupils are well prepared to be positive members of British society.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils’ behaviour indicates that they listen well to staff and are self-disciplined. They learn to behave like the school’s fictional characters, including ‘Creative Carlos’, ‘Inquisitive Idris’ and ‘Motivated Molly’. They stay focused on their learning.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are proud of their school. They keenly contribute to improving the school’s work through many different roles, such as being a member of the school council or eco- committee. Pupils who are ‘play detectives’ check on the well-being of other pupils at break times. Through these opportunities and many more, pupils learn to do their best and to be kind and thoughtful. 15 and 16 October 2024

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

At the centre of the school’s ongoing success is a firm commitment to equality. The school thinks carefully about the needs and best interests of each pupil, including those with SEND. It expertly identifies pupils’ needs and the obstacles that pupils may face in their learning. The school supports pupils and provides them with the help that they need. Most children in the early years, and pupils across the rest of the school, flourish in their academic, social and emotional development.

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

Since the previous inspection, the school has acted thoughtfully to improve the ways in which it checks on pupils’ knowledge of its curriculum subjects. It has a well-informed understanding of how successfully pupils know and remember crucial knowledge. The school acts to deepen pupils’ knowledge where required, for instance by revisiting key concepts with them. This enables pupils to build their knowledge securely. Pupils recall key information in different subjects, including in mathematics, with speed and accuracy.

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

The school makes sure that staff understand how to teach its chosen phonics programme. This has resulted in pupils learning to read successfully. The school provides pupils who struggle to read with lots of extra practise. For instance, staff model accurately to pupils the letter sounds that they need to learn. Pupils, including those with SEND, become confident, competent early readers.

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

The school inspires pupils to read through its use of high-quality fiction and non-fiction books. This work begins successfully in the early years. Pupils develop their knowledge of important words as well as the plots and characters in stories.

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

The school guides pupils on their behaviour and conduct clearly. Pupils learn, for example, about responsible and irresponsible choices and the consequences of their actions. The school has taken many thoughtful steps to improve pupils’ opportunities for play at breaktimes and lunchtimes. Pupils behave well in classrooms and when they are elsewhere around the school.

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

The school has established a much clearer focus on supporting families with pupils’ attendance. It understands the reasons why individual pupils are absent from the school. The school is implementing clear actions to improve pupils’ attendance. However, it is too soon to see the full impact of these changes. Governors do not have enough knowledge of pupils’ attendance, including the work of the school to bring about improvement. This affects how well the governing body challenges and supports the school’s work. Pupils’ attendance is improving but several pupils still miss too many days of school.

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

The school provides impressive extra learning opportunities for pupils in all year groups. For example, each pupil is taking part in a special award scheme to complete a range of challenges, such as first aid, drama and cookery. The school is ambitious for its pupils to succeed. To this end, it helps them to learn about studying at university, different careers and the importance of paying taxes. Pupils gain the confidence, knowledge and skills that they need to be exceptionally well prepared for their future lives. 15 and 16 October 2024

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The school leads staff’s work well. It reduces staff’s workload successfully. The school provides staff with effective training and guidance to deliver its curriculum. However, on occasion, there is not a clear enough understanding of how the curriculum in key stages 1 and 2 builds on children’s learning in the Nursery Year. The school has identified this issue and is acting to improve this aspect of its work.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 The governing body does not have enough understanding of pupils’ attendance and the school’s actions on this issue. This holds back the effectiveness of some of the work of the governing body. The school should ensure that governors have the knowledge and expertise that they need to offer informed challenge about pupils’ absence. This is to enable governors to play their part in ensuring that pupils’ attendance continues to improve.  Some of the school’s understanding of how its curriculums in key stages 1 and 2 build on that in the Nursery Year is unclear. This means that, sometimes, in some subjects it is not fully confident in how pupils’ learning links with their previous learning. The school should ensure that it understands how its curriculums build on the foundational knowledge that children gain in the early years.

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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. 15 and 16 October 2024

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This is the first ungraded inspection since we judged the school to be good for overall effectiveness in May 2019.

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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). 15 and 16 October 2024

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School details

Local authority Knowsley Metropolitan Borough Council

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Dates of previous inspection 22 and 23 May 2019, under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The school does not use alternative provision for its pupils.  Most staff are new to the school since the previous inspection.

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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. The inspector discussed the impact of the pandemic with the school and has taken that into account in his evaluation of the school.  The inspector met with the headteacher and deputy headteacher to discuss the school’s work, including on attendance, behaviour, SEND and safeguarding. He also met with some curriculum subject leaders and leaders of play, personal development and early years.  The inspector met with a representative of the local authority and spoke by telephone with the school’s improvement partner. 15 and 16 October 2024

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 The inspector visited a sample of lessons, spoke with some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work.  The inspector considered the responses to Ofsted Parent View, as well as the responses to Ofsted’s staff survey. There were no responses to Ofsted’s pupil survey to consider.  To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding, the inspector: 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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Inspection team

Tim Vaughan, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector 15 and 16 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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