Sir Alexander Fleming Primary School

Inspection of Sir Alexander Fleming Primary School 109 Southgate, Sutton Hill, Telford, Shropshire TF7 4HG

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The quality of education Good Behaviour and attitudes Outstanding Personal development Good Leadership and management Good Early years provision Good Previous inspection grade Good 5 and 6 November 2024

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What is it like to attend this school?

Sir Alexander Fleming Primary School is a warm and welcoming school. The school’s motto of ‘Belong, Being, Becoming’ shines through. Staff want the best for pupils and pupils want to do their best to please staff. Pupils show they enjoy learning through their excellent attitudes in lessons. Their behaviour in and out of lessons is exemplary.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The youngest children in the school’s Nursery get off to a flying start. They make rapid progress in their communication and social skills. Many children join the school after their early years. Whenever they start, all pupils go on to learn, remember and do more over time. Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) flourish.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school has sensibly thought hard about what experiences it wants all pupils to have. This includes learning about life in modern Britain and teaching them how to keep themselves safe online. Pupils enjoy visiting local places of interest. These visits bring pupils’ learning to life. Many can recall with a sense of pride new things they have experienced for the first time. Reading is a priority in this school. Visits from local poets have become a highlight of the school year.

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

Parents rightly have confidence in the school. Relationships are built quickly from the time a child joins the school. The vast majority of children attend regularly. The school works effectively with parents who need support. As a result, these pupils quickly improve their attendance.

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

The school quickly identifies any SEND that pupils may have. Following this early identification, the school puts appropriate and personalised help in place. Pupils with SEND achieve well from their individual starting points.

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

Pupils show high levels of engagement in their learning, including in the early years. Children in the early years follow established routines. This helps them to learn about the expectations of behaviour in the classroom. Books, stories and nursery rhymes have been chosen carefully. These are helping children to develop their understanding of the wider world. This includes about diverse places and people.

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

The school has established a broad and ambitious curriculum from the early years to the end of Year 6. Leaders have recently changed their mathematics curriculum. There is also a new personal, social, health and economic education (PSHE) scheme of work. Leaders have trained teachers to be able to teach these new curriculums effectively.

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

Staff have been trained to teach early reading effectively. They have the subject knowledge needed to deliver the reading curriculum well. A love for reading is promoted successfully through regular opportunities to read for pleasure. As a result, pupils become proficient readers, although this is not consistently reflected in published results. 5 and 6 November 2024

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The school has sensibly changed its approach to the teaching of writing in the last year. The implementation of the writing curriculum, however, is inconsistent. Pupils’ work is often presented poorly. For example, their letter formation is not of a consistently high standard across the school. This hinders many pupils’ fluency and stamina in writing. At times, teachers do not identify when pupils make common writing errors, which are not addressed quickly enough. This means that the errors persist over time. Similarly, pupils’ number formation and the presentation of numerical information is inconsistent. This means that some pupils cannot write their calculations fluently and so their learning is slowed.

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The school’s PSHE programme ensures teachers cover a wide range of important topics effectively. This includes physical and emotional health, technology safety and forming strong, healthy relationships. Pupils get to explore their talents and interests through a growing number of clubs.

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The school has taken action to address historical concerns about behaviour. The school is now calm and orderly. Pupils know the school’s expectations of behaviour and they follow them. They are respectful of staff and each other and prefer to focus on their learning. As a result, pupils’ behaviour is excellent.

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Governors are committed to working with the school to continue to improve the quality of education that it provides. Governors use external partners to support them with their evaluation of the school. This is helping them to support and challenge leaders robustly. Pupils achieve well in their time at the school, reflected in their ability to read, write and do mathematics in lessons. However, this is not always evident in published outcomes.

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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 expectations of pupils’ presentational skills are not as high as when teaching them to read or learn mathematics. This means that pupils do not acquire the handwriting, letter and number formation or accuracy when recording calculations with the fluency needed to be ready for the next stage of their education. The school should raise its expectations of pupils’ presentational skills so that pupils can write and complete written calculations with greater fluency to enable them to learn and remember more of the curriculum. 5 and 6 November 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). 5 and 6 November 2024

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Chair of governing body Matthew Downes-Ward

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School details

Website www.siralexanderflemingprimaryschool.org. uk Dates of previous inspection 26 and 27 March 2019, under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The school has nursery provision for two-year-olds.  The school does not make use of any alternative provision.

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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.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspections are a point-in-time evaluation about the quality of a school’s education provision. 5 and 6 November 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 held meetings with the headteacher, two assistant headteachers, a representative of the local authority, the school improvement adviser, and the chair of governors and four other governors.  The inspectors carried out deep dives in the following subjects: reading, English, mathematics, geography and science. For each deep dive, inspectors discussed the curriculum with subject leaders, visited a sample of lessons, spoke to teachers, spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work.  Inspectors also discussed the curriculum in other subjects and looked at a sample of work and documentation from other subjects.  To gather evidence on pupils’ wider development, inspectors met with the headteacher,

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teachers and two groups of pupils.  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 reviewed a range of school documentation and policies, including the school development plan and minutes of governance meetings.  Inspectors spoke to leaders, staff and pupils about the wider work of the school.  Inspectors reviewed the school’s records of behaviour, including those about bullying, and records of suspensions. Inspectors observed pupils’ behaviour in lessons and around the school.  Inspectors considered responses, including free-text comments, to Ofsted Parent View, the online survey. They also reviewed the responses to the staff survey and gathered

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the views of staff and pupils on site through discussions and through information sent to them during the inspection.

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Inspection team

Jane Edgerton, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector

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Inspection team

Susan Ray Ofsted Inspector 5 and 6 November 2024

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