Upper Horfield Primary School

Store Street Manchester M1 2WD T 0300 123 1231 www.gov.uk/ofsted

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Tim Seddon Headteacher Upper Horfield Primary School Upper Horfield Community School & Early Years Sheridan Road Horfield Bristol BS7 0PU

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Horfield Primary School

This letter sets out the findings from the monitoring inspection that took place on 7 November 2024, on behalf of His Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Education, Children’s Services and Skills. The monitoring inspection was carried out under section 8(2) of the Education Act 2005 and took place because the school meets the monitoring threshold as set out in the Monitoring Inspection Handbook .

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Horfield Primary School

The purpose of a monitoring inspection is not to grade the school’s key and (where applicable) provision judgements, but to identify and report on the school’s progress. It is to highlight to the school and parents any improvements that school leaders have made since the school’s previous graded inspection.

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Horfield Primary School

During the inspection, I discussed with you, senior leaders, other staff, governors and the local authority the actions that have been taken to improve the school since the most recent graded inspection. We discussed the ongoing impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. I also carried out visits to lessons, sampled pupils’ work and reviewed school documents. I have considered all this in coming to my judgement.

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Main findings

Since the previous inspection in June 2023, you have strengthened the school’s leadership structure, particularly middle leadership capacity. These changes have enabled the school to focus on securing improvements in the quality of education for all pupils. You have also increased the rate of pupils’ attendance.

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Main findings

You have made changes to raise the level of ambition in many subjects, including reading. The implementation of the curriculum is improving. Professional development has been provided to ensure that teachers have the skills and knowledge they need to deliver the new, more demanding content. In the strongest subjects, the checks made on pupils’ knowledge identify gaps in learning and address these promptly. This helps those who have fallen behind to catch up and supports pupils to develop their knowledge. However, you recognise the need for further training on the effective use of assessment in wider subject areas, so that it both identifies and resolves gaps in pupils’ knowledge and understanding.

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Main findings

All pupils benefit from the increased ambition of the curriculum. The school has taken steps to strengthen the identification of pupils’ needs and the quality of support. In general, pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) now benefit from well-considered and targeted provision. Despite this, there remains some variation in the quality and precision of support that some pupils receive.

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Main findings

Your actions to prioritise attendance have resulted in a marked improvement. Trends or patterns of absence are identified through careful scrutiny of attendance information. When pupils’ attendance falls below the accepted level, the school works with families to provide the right support to bring about improvement. This has had a demonstrable impact.

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Main findings

You, other senior leaders and governors are clear about the school’s priorities for improvement. You have set out an ambitious programme of improvement that continues to focus on these. However, there is a need for greater clarity about the intended impact and timescales of some planned changes. Without this, it is difficult for leaders to accurately assess the impact of their work in a timely way.

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Main findings

You value the guidance and support provided by external providers and the local authority. Staff are positive about the external training they receive to develop their expertise. This helps to ensure continued progress on the school’s well-judged priorities.

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Main findings

I am copying this letter to the chair of the board of governors, the Department for Education’s regional director and the director of children’s services for the city of Bristol. This letter will be published on the Ofsted reports website.

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