High Leigh Primary School

Inspection of Westfield Community Primary School Westfield Road, Hoddesdon, Hertfordshire EN11 8RA

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The quality of education Requires improvement Behaviour and attitudes Good Personal development Good Leadership and management Good Early years provision Good Previous inspection grade Good 3 and 4 December 2024

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy coming to this school and are keen to learn. They show an interest in all subjects they are taught. They take pride in greeting visitors in different languages and like to know more about the world around them. Pupils are benefiting from the positive changes leaders are making to improve the school. For example, in early years, children are now well prepared for the next stage of their education. However, there are still instances where work given to older pupils is not helping them meet the ambitious curriculum aims.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are kind and respectful towards each other. Pupils therefore form good friendships. The school has high expectations of pupils’ behaviour. Pupils respond well to this and mostly behave well. Children in the early years settle into school well. They learn to listen to adults and concentrate on their learning.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are safe and cared for. They know the risks to look out for when working online. They have trusted adults they can share any worries with.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils’ leadership roles foster an understanding of responsibility. They enjoy ‘work experience’ where they can carry clipboards and organise the library. Pupils also appreciate the sporting opportunities on offer.

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

The school has quickly and effectively identified and prioritised areas for improvement. It is steering itself successfully through a period of change. In a short space of time, it has established an ambitious curriculum. The curriculum now lays out what pupils need to know and when they need to know it. The school has correctly ensured that there is an emphasis on pupils developing their vocabulary. Older pupils use new vocabulary well in their lessons. For example, pupils use words such as ozone, deforestation and trade in their geography lessons and in their writing.

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

Leaders are knowledgeable and are ably supporting staff to understand the curriculum changes. This has been particularly effective in early years. In some other subjects, staff are still getting used to these updates. This means that the work set for pupils does not yet consistently match the key knowledge they need to know. Leaders acknowledge this and have had some early positive impact to address this, for example with the mathematics calculation approach. However, pupils are not yet remembering the level of detail that leaders intend across the curriculum. This is because checks on what pupils can recall or need to secure are not fully robust. As a result, misconceptions emerge or gaps in learning are not fully addressed.

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

The school has prioritised reading. The phonics curriculum is now well planned and implemented in most lessons. Children in the early years successfully learn to read as soon as they start school. Children enjoy reviewing the words they already know and learning new sounds. Pupils in Year 1 become confident readers. However, for pupils who 3 and 4 December 2024

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need extra reading practice, sometimes the books they read do not match the sounds they are learning. This impacts on these pupils’ reading accuracy, fluency and confidence.

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The school has developed effective systems to identify and support pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Staff benefit from the training they receive, which develops their knowledge of the needs of individual pupils. They provide pupils with SEND across the school with the resources they need to access the same curriculum as their peers. Consequently, pupils with SEND develop their independence and progress through the curriculum well.

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The school has also acted effectively to ensure that the behaviour routines to help pupils learn are followed consistently. Pupils understand the rules and values of the school. In most lessons, there is no disruption to learning. Pupils want to do well and try hard. They cooperate with each other and respect the adults in school. The school has been proactive in providing additional help and advice to families, so that pupils’ attendance has much improved.

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The school is aspirational for pupils personally as well as academically. It ensures pupils learn how to take care of their mental well-being and physical health. Pupils are taught about how to be resilient and tackle difficulties. They are developing a deeper understanding of fundamental British values such as mutual respect and celebrating differences. Pupils learn about a range of religions and places of worship. As a result, pupils understand the wider world beyond the school.

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Governors know the school very well. The school has clear direction and vision. Governors are holding leaders to account over the key priorities that are moving the school forward. As a result, the school has shown demonstrable impact on the curriculum, on pupils’ engagement, on attendance and on pupils’ character development. Parents can see the positive difference leaders are making already. Staff also enjoy working at the school and feel well supported to carry out their roles.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 The work given to pupils is not yet consistently well matched to the key knowledge outlined in the curriculum. As a result, some pupils are not acquiring knowledge in the detail intended. The school must ensure that it now tailors support for staff so that the work set routinely meets the ambitious aims of the curriculum.  Checks in lessons on how securely pupils have remembered prior learning are not yet sufficiently robust. This means that pupils’ gaps in knowledge remain, including for pupils who find reading tricky. The school needs to continue to provide staff with the 3 and 4 December 2024

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skills needed so that pupils have gaps in knowledge filled in a timely manner so that they achieve what they are capable of. This includes pupils who need reading catch up.

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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

Date of previous inspection 26 February 2019, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The school runs a breakfast and after-school club for pupils at the school.  The school uses one alternative provision.  Inspectors were aware during this inspection that serious allegations of a child protection nature were investigated by the appropriate authorities. While Ofsted does not have the power to investigate allegations of this kind, actions taken by the school in response to the allegations were considered alongside the other evidence available at the time of the inspection to inform inspectors’ findings.

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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. 3 and 4 December 2024

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 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. Inspectors discussed the impact of the pandemic with the school and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: early reading, mathematics, science and geography. For each deep dive inspectors held discussions with the school, visited a sample of lessons, looked at pupils’ work, spoke to pupils about their work and spoke to staff.  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 had created an open and positive culture around safeguarding that put pupils’ interests first.  Inspectors examined a range of documents provided by the school, including leaders’

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own evaluation of the school and priorities for improvement.  Inspectors also looked at records related to attendance, behaviour, safeguarding and pupil movement.  Inspectors met with senior leaders, a selection of subject leaders, teachers and support staff.  The lead inspector met with the chair of the governing body and a representative of the Hertfordshire local authority.  Inspectors considered the responses to the online survey, Ofsted Parent View. They also took into consideration the online staff and pupil surveys.

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Inspection team

Debbie Rogan, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector

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Inspection team

Georgina Nutton 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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