Stansfield Hall Church of England / Methodist Church Primary School

Inspection of Stansfield Hall Church of England / Methodist Church Primary School Todmorden Road, Summit, Littleborough, Lancashire OL15 9PR

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Inspection dates: 22 and 23 October 2024 and 19 November

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The quality of education Good Behaviour and attitudes Good Personal development Good Leadership and management Good Early years provision Good Previous inspection grade Requires improvement 22 and 23 October 2024 and 19 November 2024

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils thrive at this happy, welcoming and inclusive school. This is because staff place pupils’ well-being at the heart of all that they do. Staff know pupils and their families exceptionally well. This helps the school to identify and address any barriers that pupils may face. Pupils feel safe and cared for. They typically describe the school as ‘brilliant’, ‘amazing’ and ‘fun’.

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What is it like to attend this school?

This is a rapidly improving school. There are high aspirations for all pupils, including pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). The school’s curriculum is designed with this ambition in mind. Pupils arrive at school each day full of excitement. They love spending time together. Pupils new to the school settle quickly and make new friends. In the playground, pupils chatter happily with each other and their teachers. In lessons, pupils try their best in their work.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils blossom as a result of the school’s provision for their personal development. Staff plan activities that help pupils to grow into kind, caring and confident citizens. For example, older pupils are role models to children in the early years, helping them to play well together. Pupils in the ‘ethos club’ work diligently to raise money for charities.

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

Pupils’ outcomes in national assessments are below average . However, leaders have worked tenaciously with staff to improve the effectiveness of teaching and learning. Leadership of the school is now secure at all levels. Staff and leaders share an almost palpable determination to raise standards. This is leading to rapid improvements in the quality of pupils’ education. Pupils across the school know more and remember more of the curriculum. Outcomes for current pupils are improving.

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

The school is successfully addressing previous weaknesses in the delivery of the curriculum. The curriculum is now logically sequenced. It is well constructed to address any barriers that pupils have previously faced, or currently face, in their learning. For example, in the early years, children develop their speaking and listening skills from the moment they start school. The provision for pupils with SEND has been strengthened. These pupils have their needs identified quickly. Staff work closely with parents and carers and a range of professionals to achieve this. Pupils with SEND benefit from a wide range of effective support. Parents were keen to share how staff go ‘above and beyond’ to help pupils with SEND to achieve success.

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

In most lessons, teachers check to ensure that pupils have the knowledge that they need to progress through the curriculum. This helps to give pupils the necessary building blocks on which to layer new ideas and concepts. However, on occasions, teachers do not spot and address pupils’ errors and misconceptions well enough. This means that some pupils’ learning falters because they do not have the necessary knowledge to complete tasks and activities successfully. 22 and 23 October 2024 and 19 November 2024

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Reading lies at the heart of the school’s improved curriculum. Developing pupils’ love of reading starts in the early years. Children love taking part in story time and listening to poems and rhymes. Older pupils speak with enthusiasm about the many fun and engaging opportunities that they have to read and enjoy different texts. The school’s phonics programme is taught consistently well. This ensures that pupils get off to a flying start in their early reading. The school quickly identifies any pupils needing extra support in their early reading. Effective strategies are in place to help these pupils to catch up. Pupils in key stage 2 are becoming increasingly confident and fluent readers.

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A whole-school focus on language is helping children in the early years and pupils across the rest of the school to strengthen their speaking and writing skills. However, some pupils’ written work is not of a high standard. This is because of weaknesses in their knowledge of grammar and spelling. Some pupils do not develop legible handwriting as soon as they could.

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The school provides many extra-curricular clubs, including cross-country and singing. Trips and visits help to open pupils’ eyes to the world around them. Pupils regularly visit the local church and enjoy taking part in community events. They learn about different faiths and religions.

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Pupils strive to follow ‘Stansfield Stars’, such as being polite, friendly and listening carefully. In the early years, children settle very quickly. They play and learn happily together, quickly learning new routines.

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Governors have regular training to keep their skills up to date. They know the school well. They provide a careful balance of challenge and support to the school. Staff benefit from a range of training to develop their expertise. Leaders are highly considerate of staff’s workload and well-being. Staff form a happy and hardworking team.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Sometimes, teachers do not check pupils’ understanding precisely enough before setting new work. This means that pupils can sometimes be provided with work that they find too difficult or develop misunderstandings about their learning. The school should ensure that teachers check pupils’ understanding better so that pupils are ready to build new knowledge securely.  On occasions, the school does not address weaknesses in pupils’ written work well enough. For some pupils, these weaknesses in spelling, handwriting and grammar limit their ability to produce work of high quality in subjects across the curriculum. The 22 and 23 October 2024 and 19 November 2024

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school should improve how these fundamental skills are taught so that these pupils are better able to produce work of high quality.

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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). 22 and 23 October 2024 and 19 November 2024

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Website www.stansfieldhall.rochdale.sch.uk

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School details

Dates of previous inspection 22 and 23 November 2022, under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 Since the previous inspection, a new headteacher has been appointed.  The school offers before- and after-school provision, including a breakfast club that is available to all pupils.  The school is a Church of England school and a Methodist school. The next section 48 inspection is due in December 2025. The previous section 48 inspection took place in December 2017.

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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. 22 and 23 October 2024 and 19 November 2024

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 Inspections are a point-in-time evaluation about the quality of a school’s education provision.  The inspection started on 22 October 2024. Inspectors returned on 19 November 2024 to gather additional evidence in line with Ofsted inspections and visits: Deferring, pausing and gathering additional evidence policy.  Inspectors discussed any continued impact of the pandemic with the school and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  The inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: early reading, mathematics, and art and design. For each deep dive, inspectors held discussions about the curriculum, visited a sample of lessons, spoke to teachers, spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work. The lead inspector observed pupils reading to a familiar adult.  The inspectors also looked at the curriculum, met with leaders, spoke with pupils and

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looked at pupils’ workbooks in some other subjects.  The inspectors spoke with pupils about school life, including behaviour.  The inspectors held meetings with a range of staff, including senior leaders, subject leaders, the school’s special educational needs coordinator and the family support worker.  The lead inspector met with members of the governing body.  Inspectors spoke with representatives of the local authority and the diocese.  The inspectors considered responses to Ofsted Parent View. An inspector spoke with parents at the start of the school day. The inspectors considered the responses to Ofsted’s online questionnaires for staff and pupils.  To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding, 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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safeguarding that puts pupils’ interests first.  The inspectors spoke with a range of staff to discuss the support that leaders provide.

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Inspection team

Stephanie Innes-Taylor, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Timothy Gartside Ofsted Inspector 22 and 23 October 2024 and 19 November 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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