Mayplace Primary School

Inspection of Mayplace Primary School Woodside Road, Barnehurst, Kent DA7 6EQ

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Inspection dates: 19 and 20 November 2024

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

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The headteacher of this school is Rachael Flaherty. This school is part of the Primary First Trust, which means other people in the trust also have responsibility for running the school. The trust is run by the chief executive officer (CEO), Lorna Hamilton, and overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by Steve Rumbles. 19 and 20 November 2024

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What is it like to attend this school?

Mayplace succeeds in making pupils feel valued and included. Pupils are proud of their school and show respect and care for all members of its community. Pupils feel safe and are kept safe. They can name a trusted adult that they would talk to who would deal with any concerns they had appropriately.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils’ behaviour is excellent, both in lessons and around the school. Pupils listen to each other and to adults and love to share their thoughts and ideas. Older pupils act as role models for younger pupils. For example, play leaders help younger pupils in the playground.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), benefit from an interesting and challenging curriculum. Pupils’ learning builds from year to year and most pupils achieve well by the time they leave the school. The school identifies any changes needed to continue to improve achievement across the curriculum.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils from the on-site specially resourced provision for pupils with SEND (specially resourced provision) are involved in all aspects of school life. Pupils from across the school learn and play together. Pupils are encouraged and supported to attend clubs, both before and after school. They also enjoy visits to places, such as museums and a farm and taking part in residential trips.

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

The school has designed an ambitious curriculum from the early years through to Year 6. Staff appreciate the training opportunities that they are offered, including support and advice from subject leaders. This helps ensure that staff can present learning clearly and effectively in lessons.

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

Pupils with SEND benefit from the broad and balanced curriculum on offer. There are a range of strategies which help them access the curriculum, including visual resources. The ‘rainbow classes’ which form the specially resourced provision provide an exceptional quality of education for the pupils who attend, whether full or part time.

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

Reading is a priority as soon as pupils enter the school. Nursery children enjoy sound games and stories and from Reception children access the phonics programme. This has been carefully selected to match the needs of pupils and their progress through it is carefully tracked. Pupils can use phonics to blend sounds and read words and books read are at an appropriate level. If any pupils fall behind they are offered additional support to catch up. A love of reading is fostered throughout the school, for example, by pupils participating in book fairs and sponsored reads.

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

The curriculum is designed to ensure pupils’ knowledge and understanding grows and is built on throughout their time at the school. For example, in early years children learn about the properties of ice and Arctic animals. By Year 4, pupils can compare and contrast the Arctic and Antarctica and discuss global warming. 19 and 20 November 2024

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The school has carefully considered the essential vocabulary that it wants pupils to know in each subject. This helps pupils to learn and use a range of words. For example, in science pupils describe plastics to each other as either flexible or rigid.

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In some subjects, the school has made changes to the curriculum. These changes are not fully embedded, and staff are still familiarising themselves with new curriculum content and approaches to assessment. This means that, at times, staff do not identify and correct pupils’ misconceptions in lessons.

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Pupils’ behaviour is a delight to see. Clear routines are firmly embedded, and this means that classrooms are purposeful environments. Teaching staff deliver learning effectively and pupils respond well to this and have excellent attitudes to learning. Pupils with SEND benefit from the school’s clear expectations. Staff manage any dysregulated behaviour calmly and sensitively.

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The school is doing all it can to continue to improve attendance. It works to build trust and collaboration with parents and carers by offering support, identifying barriers, and putting in place solutions.

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Pupils’ personal development is a strength of the school. Pupils know how to stay healthy, both physically and mentally. They learn about different types of families and the importance of persevering at tasks that they may find difficult. Tolerance is taught throughout lessons and assemblies and pupils know to treat everyone with respect. The school invites visitors to enrich the curriculum, including the fire brigade, historical workshops, and parents to give information about careers.

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Staff are overwhelmingly positive about working at this school. They know that leaders are supportive and that they are mindful of their well-being and workloads. Parents praise the staff, the support for pupils with SEND and the pupils’ behaviour. Governors and members of the trust understand their roles. They know the school well and hold leaders to account. They appreciate the school’s constant striving for improvement and its service of the local community.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Improvements to the curriculum are at an early stage in some subjects, including approaches to assessment. At times, gaps in pupils’ knowledge and misconceptions go unnoticed. The school should finish its work to embed improvements to the curriculum, including devising suitable assessment strategies that help pupils to make the progress they should through the curriculum. 19 and 20 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). 19 and 20 November 2024

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School details

Dates of previous inspection 11 and 12 October 2023, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The school is part of the Primary First Trust.  The school does not make any use of any alternative provision for its pupils.  The school has a specially resourced provision for up to 16 pupils with autism.

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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. 19 and 20 November 2024

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 Inspectors discussed any continued impact of the pandemic with the school and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  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 inspectors spoke with the headteacher, senior leaders and subject leaders. They also held meetings with a member of the governance body and representatives from the trust.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: early reading, mathematics, computing, physical education, and geography. 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.

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 The inspectors also spoke with groups of staff and pupils and looked at samples of pupils’ work in other subjects.  The inspectors considered the responses to Ofsted’s online surveys completed by parents, pupils, and staff.  Inspectors checked the school’s policies and records, including those related to behaviour and pupils’ wider development.

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Inspection team

Eleanor Ross, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Deborah Walters His Majesty’s Inspector 19 and 20 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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