Hindsford CofE Primary School

Inspection of Hindsford CofE Primary School Lodge Road, Atherton, Manchester M46 9BL

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Inspection dates: 29 and 30 October 2024

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

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Until November 2020, the school was exempt from routine inspection because it was judged as outstanding for overall effectiveness at its previous inspection under section 5 of the Education Act 2005. The school has not been inspected under section 5 of the Act since March 2014. Since September 2024, schools have not been awarded an overall effectiveness grade. 29 and 30 October 2024

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are valued at this caring school. They try their best to live out the school’s motto: ‘our best, always, everywhere’ in all that they do. Pupils are extremely proud of their school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), meet the high expectations that are set for their learning. Their efforts, together with the excellent quality of education they receive, ensure that they achieve highly across the curriculum.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Relationships between staff, pupils, and parents and carers are very strong. Pupils, including children in the early years, are extremely happy. Staff care about pupils and know them individually. Pupils behave exceptionally well. They have excellent attitudes to learning.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils’ wider experiences at school are of a very high quality. The school carefully considers each activity so that it best supports pupils’ education and personal development. Pupils attend many extra-curricular clubs, such as chess and needle felting. For many pupils, these are new life experiences.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils make a tangible contribution to strengthening the school community through taking on leadership roles. For example, pupils have been trained as house captains. They lead assemblies and a wide range of events across the school year.

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

The school’s commitment to excellence permeates throughout the whole community. Pupils benefit from an ambitious and aspirational curriculum, which has been carefully reviewed and improved over time. In each subject, the essential knowledge that pupils should learn, and the order in which they should learn it, is clearly identified. Wider opportunities, such as educational visits, are carefully selected to support the ambitious learning intentions of the curriculum. These opportunities also provide memorable experiences for pupils. All of this helps pupils to achieve highly across the curriculum.

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

Staff have strong subject knowledge. New learning is clearly introduced and builds on what pupils already know. Teachers regularly check on how well pupils learn. This means that any errors or misconceptions are addressed quickly and effectively.

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

Children in the early years engage very well with their activities. They know the school routines well. Staff support individual pupils who find it difficult to meet the behaviour expectations incredibly well. This ensures that disruptions to learning rarely occur.

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

Reading is at the core of the school’s curriculum. Books and texts across the school have been chosen thoughtfully to ensure that they are diverse and varied. This helps to make sure that pupils read regularly and widely. For example, older pupils spoke knowledgeably about different types of texts and their favourite authors. Pupils enjoy reading and sharing their reviews with their friends. They have extremely positive attitudes to reading. Pupils 29 and 30 October 2024

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are proud when they are chosen to be the ‘reader of the month’. In many aspects of school life, pupils try their best to gain the highly popular book tokens, which enable them to select a book from the school’s vending machine.

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Expert staff ensure that children benefit from high-quality phonics sessions as soon as they start in the Reception class. In key stage 1, pupils read confidently from books that are precisely matched to the sounds that they have learned. Any pupils who find reading difficult are provided with swift support so that they keep up with the pace of the phonics programme. As a result, pupils learn to read confidently and fluently.

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Skilled staff quickly identify pupils’ needs and help to remove barriers to learning. This includes pupils with SEND and those who are disadvantaged. The school works with external agencies and specialists to ensure that pupils receive the support that they need to achieve exceptionally well.

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The school’s approach to promoting pupils’ personal development is exceptional. Pupils take full advantage of the excellent opportunities that prepare them well for life in modern Britain. They learn about important concepts such as democracy and respect through a range of activities. Pupils are keen to apply for the many leadership roles and vote carefully for their peers in the school’s voting booths. The school ensures that pupils learn about different careers and the world of work. All this raises pupils’ aspirations for their futures.

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Pupils are taught how to look after their own mental and physical health. Pupils, including those with SEND, enjoy attending activities such as meditation and the ‘early risers’ club before the start of the school day.

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The governing body works extremely well with the school. It uses its substantial expertise to provide insightful challenge and support. This helps to make sure that the school provides pupils with the highest quality of education.

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Staff are proud to work at the school. They benefit from external training and development opportunities. Pupils benefit from the high levels of expertise that staff have.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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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. 29 and 30 October 2024

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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). 29 and 30 October 2024

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Dates of previous inspection 5 and 6 March 2014, under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 Since the previous inspection, a new headteacher and chair of governors have been appointed.  The school does not currently use any alternative provision.  This Church of England school is in the Diocese of Manchester. The school’s last statutory inspection, under section 48 of the Education Act 2005, was in November 2023. The next section 48 inspection is due to take place before November 2028.

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Information about this inspection

The inspectors carried out this graded inspection under section 5 of the Education Act 2005. During a graded inspection, we grade the school for each of our key judgements (quality of education; behaviour and attitudes; personal development; and leadership and management) and for any relevant provision judgement (early years and/or sixth form provision). Schools receiving a graded inspection from September 2024 will not be given an overall effectiveness grade. 29 and 30 October 2024

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 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 completed deep dives in the following subjects: early reading, mathematics and history. As part of the deep dives, the inspectors met with subject leaders to discuss the curriculum, visited some lessons, met with teachers and looked at pupils’ work. The inspectors also looked at the curriculum and pupils’ work in some other subjects.  The lead inspector observed some pupils from Year 1 to Year 3 reading to a familiar adult.  During the inspection, inspectors met with the headteacher, other senior leaders and staff. They also met with members of the local governing body.

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 The lead inspector spoke with representatives of the local authority and the Diocese of Manchester.  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.  Inspectors spoke with staff about their workload and well-being. They also considered the views of staff shared through Ofsted’s online staff survey.  Inspectors spoke with groups of pupils about their experiences at school and their views of behaviour and bullying. They also considered the responses to Ofsted’s online survey for pupils.  Inspectors spoke with some parents and carers. They considered the responses to Ofsted Parent View. This included the free-text comments.

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Inspection team

Julie Barlow, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector

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Inspection team

David Woodhouse Ofsted Inspector 29 and 30 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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