Coltishall Primary School

Inspection of Coltishall Primary School St John’s Close, Coltishall, Norwich, Norfolk NR12 7HA

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The quality of education Good Behaviour and attitudes Good Personal development Good Leadership and management Good 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 December 2013. Since September 2024, schools have not been awarded an overall effectiveness grade. 3 and 4 December 2024

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils like their school. Pupils are happy and safe because teachers keep pupils’ welfare at the forefront of their minds. Pupils understand they can seek help from an adult if they ever have a concern. Most pupils learn well because of their teachers’ high expectations.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Children’s behaviour in Reception is exemplary because their teachers have established highly consistent routines. Pupils attend regularly, and the majority of pupils behave consistently well. When they do not, most teachers intervene swiftly. Pupils listen attentively to their teacher and their friends. They enjoy learning. Pupils participate with enthusiasm in class. Older pupils demonstrate considerable maturity. They discuss and debate ideas with sensitivity.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils appreciate a rich range of trips and other extra-curricular activities. They visit museums, sites of historical importance, the zoo and the theatre. Pupils acknowledge how these experiences help enhance their curriculum knowledge. The buddy system ensures older pupils become important role models. They check on younger pupils’ well-being. Pupils have a voice, and their teachers listen. The school councillors’ suggestions lead to changes in school life such as creating quiet areas where pupils can meet and reflect. Pupils raise money for charities and sing for the local community.

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

The school has an ambitious vision for its pupils’ lives. The early years curriculum provides a firm foundation for future learning. The knowledge children gain is carefully chosen. They have many opportunities to practise what they have learned. As a result, Reception- age children quickly build an understanding of the world around them. They develop a rich vocabulary to express their ideas and emotions. They are resilient learners and work well with their friends.

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

In most areas of the curriculum, the knowledge pupils learn builds on prior learning. This ensures that pupils grasp more sophisticated ideas and apply their knowledge independently. In mathematics, for example, pupils share their knowledge to tackle complex problems. They use precise subject-specific vocabulary to explain their working out. Pupils are confident learners and embrace more demanding work. The school is refining some other areas of the curriculum to ensure pupils achieve the same high expectations.

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

Children in Reception learn to read well. They gain new sounds with ease. They blend these sounds to read new words and sentences. In Year 1, pupils read familiar language with some fluency. They apply their phonics knowledge to read unfamiliar words. Older pupils are confident, expressive readers. At their best, pupils construct highly imaginative stories. They write at length on a range of themes such as space travel, environmental issues and the First World War. Teachers carefully check how well pupils read. Pupils who fall behind receive immediate support, and they improve. 3 and 4 December 2024

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The school works with a range of agencies to identify pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Leaders provide guidance to staff on how best to support pupils with SEND. However, some teachers do not adapt the writing curriculum appropriately for some younger pupils with SEND. Furthermore, teachers do not rigorously identify spelling, punctuation and grammar errors in these pupils’ written work. Therefore, some pupils with SEND do not achieve as well as they could. Leaders are aware.

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Teachers in reception demonstrate the exact behaviours they want children to adopt. Pupils across the school understand how their actions may make others feel. Pupils know what is right and what is wrong. At times, a small minority of pupils’ behaviour can be challenging. Leaders respond appropriately. Suspensions are used as a last resort. When pupils return to school, they receive support to manage their behaviour better.

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The school’s provision for pupils’ wider development is a strength. The personal, social and health education curriculum ensures pupils build an age-appropriate understanding of how their bodies develop as they mature. Pupils know how to nurture healthy relationships based on respect and trust. While their knowledge of world religions is more limited, pupils embrace difference and diversity in society. They challenge any prejudice and discrimination. Pupils are kind, open-minded and caring.

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Staff appreciate the high-quality training they receive, which helps them to implement most areas of the curriculum well. They are proud to work at the school. A significant majority of parents are pleased with the education their children receive. However, leaders do not rigorously check how well some areas of school provision are operating. As a result, some actions to improve the school are not as precise or as swift as they could be. Leaders understand that more robust evaluation will strengthen their capacity to improve the school further.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Some teachers do not adapt the writing curriculum well enough for some pupils with SEND. Furthermore, they do not rigorously identify spelling, punctuation and grammatical errors in these pupils’ work. As a result of this, pupils with SEND do not learn to write as well as they could. The school must ensure that teachers support pupils’ writing more effectively and systematically check the quality of pupils’ work to ensure that pupils with SEND achieve better.  Leaders’ monitoring of some areas of school provision is not as rigorous as it could be. As a result, leaders are not as well informed of how well the school is functioning. Some of their actions to improve the school are not as precise or as swift as they could 3 and 4 December 2024

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be. Leaders need to ensure more robust monitoring of some areas of school provision such as pupils’ participation in extra-curricular activities and attendance records, for example, so they have a precise understanding of what the school does well and how it needs to improve.

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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). 3 and 4 December 2024

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Date of previous inspection 5 and 6 December 2013

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Information about this school

 The school makes no use of 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.  This was the first routine inspection the school received since the COVID-19 pandemic began. The inspectors discussed the impact of the pandemic with the school and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  The inspectors met with the chair of governors, other governors, the headteacher, other leaders, subject leaders, teachers and support staff. The inspectors carried out 3 and 4 December 2024

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deep dives in English, mathematics and history. These included discussions with subject leaders, visits to lessons, meetings with staff and pupils, scrutiny of pupils’ work and a review of any curriculum documentation. Inspectors also considered curriculum documentation, scrutinised work and spoke to pupils and leaders from other areas of the curriculum.  To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding, the inspector 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 inspector considered the views of pupils, staff and parents. There were 19 responses to Ofsted’s staff survey. There were 110 responses to Ofsted’s online survey, Ofsted Parent View. The inspector considered 101 free-text responses from parents.

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Inspection team

Adam Cooke, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Jo Nutbeam Ofsted Inspector 3 and 4 December 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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