Westcott Primary School

Inspection of a school judged good for overall effectiveness before September 2024: Westcott Primary School Westcott Street, Hull HU8 8NB

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Inspection dates: 10 and 11 December 2024

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Outcome

Westcott Primary School has taken effective action to maintain the standards identified at the previous inspection.

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Outcome

The head of school is Louisa Waldron. This school is part of Hull Collaborative Academy 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), Estelle Macdonald, and overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by Malcolm Mathias. There is also an executive headteacher, Deborah Prescott, who is responsible for this school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils demonstrate the school’s ‘STARR’ values confidently in their learning and behaviour. Pupils understand the importance of these core values of support, teamwork, attitude, respect and resilience. This helps them to uphold the school’s behaviour expectations. The school has high academic expectations for its pupils. Typically, pupils achieve well.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils consistently use the school’s ‘remind, reflect, reset’ approach to manage their behaviour positively. Pupils take time to reflect on their actions and then start afresh with positive choices. They learn to resolve differences through open discussion. The strong relationships between staff and pupils promote these constructive conversations.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy school. They are kind and considerate to each other. Many key stage 2 pupils hold positions of responsibility as leaders. They take these roles seriously. Some pupils plan and help younger children play games at lunchtime. The pupil mental health champions are delighted to be role models. They support their peers to talk about their emotions.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school helps pupils to feel safe. Pupils are taught to stay safe online. Pupils experience a variety of educational visits. These develop their interests and their wider personal qualities. Pupils have opportunities to challenge themselves and manage risk 10 and 11 December 2024

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during outdoor adventure activities. These experiences give them a feeling of pride in their achievements.

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

The school has a well-designed curriculum that helps pupils to build knowledge and skills from Reception to Year 6. The school continually reviews its curriculum to check what pupils should know and remember over time. In subjects such as art and design and history, the school clearly identifies the most important knowledge that pupils need to learn. Consequently, teachers know what to focus on in their teaching. This helps pupils to learn well in these subjects. However, in some areas of the curriculum, the most important knowledge has not been as well defined. This means that pupils are exposed too much information and cannot recall the key points they need.

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

The school prioritises the teaching of reading and writing. Teachers have good subject knowledge and present information clearly. Pupils use their phonics knowledge effectively to read unfamiliar words. The school ensures that pupils who are not keeping up with the programme receive extra phonics sessions. This supports them to catch up quickly. In the early years, the school focuses on ensuring that children have the correct pencil grip to form letters correctly. This helps pupils to write with increasing fluency in key stage 1.

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

The school is ambitious for pupils in mathematics. Teachers match tasks to pupils’ mathematical knowledge. The school carefully checks pupils’ understanding during lessons. Adults use this information to provide extra help for individuals or groups of pupils to address any gaps in knowledge. The school also uses this information to support pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). The number of pupils with SEND at the school has risen significantly in the last three years. The school has provided training for staff to ensure that they have the skills to support pupils with SEND effectively.

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

The school meticulously analyses the patterns and trends of pupil attendance. It scrutinises the attendance of each pupil to find out what support it can offer to ensure that absence rates remain low. This personalised support has led to an improvement in the attendance of some pupils.

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

The school has a comprehensive personal development offer that goes beyond their personal, social and health education lessons. Pupils benefit from the carefully chosen activities and experiences on offer. Many of these are relevant to the school and the wider community. For example, Year 5 pupils embark on a gardening project at a local veteran centre and Year 1 pupils write to residents of a care home. This fosters active citizenship, involving pupils in their community.

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

The school acts in the best interests of pupils. Staff share the school’s vision and actively work to develop a curriculum that meets the Westcott community’s needs. Teachers at the early stages of their career are well supported by the school. Staff are positive that the school take their workload and well-being into consideration. 10 and 11 December 2024

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The trust has a clear oversight of the school’s current strengths and areas for continued improvement. The trust delegates aspects of governance to a newly-formed local tier board that increasingly provides challenge and support for ongoing improvement.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Some subjects in the wider curriculum contain too much information for pupils to securely embed in their long-term memory. This means some pupils struggle to recall the most important knowledge they need. The school should ensure that the curriculum focuses upon the key knowledge that pupils need to learn across all subjects and check that pupils acquire this knowledge.

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Background

Until September 2024, on a graded (section 5) inspection we gave schools an overall effectiveness grade, in addition to the key and provision judgements. Overall effectiveness grades given before September 2024 will continue to be visible on school inspection reports and on Ofsted’s website. From September 2024 graded inspections will not include an overall effectiveness grade. This school was, before September 2024, judged to be good for its overall effectiveness.

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Background

We have now inspected the school to determine whether it has taken effective action to maintain the standards identified at that previous inspection. This is called an ungraded inspection, and it is carried out under section 8 of the Education Act 2005. We do not give graded judgements on an ungraded inspection. However, if we find evidence that a school’s work has improved significantly or that it may not be as strong as it was at the last inspection, then the next inspection will be a graded inspection. A graded inspection is carried out under section 5 of the Act. Usually this is within one to two years of the date of the ungraded inspection. If we have serious concerns about safeguarding, behaviour or the quality of education, we will deem the ungraded inspection a graded inspection immediately.

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Background

This is the first ungraded inspection since we judged the school to be good for overall effectiveness in June 2019.

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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. 10 and 11 December 2024

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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). 10 and 11 December 2024

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School details

Local authority Kingston Upon Hull City Council

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School details

Headteacher Deborah Prescott (executive headteacher) Louisa Waldron (head of school) Website www.westcottprimary.org.uk

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School details

Dates of previous inspection 18 and 19 June 2019

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Information about this school

 The school joined the Hull Collaborative Academy Trust in July 2016.  The school uses one registered alternative provision.

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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 inspector discussed the impact of the pandemic with the school and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  The inspector met with the executive headteacher, head of school and other leaders in the school.  The inspector also met with members of the local tier board, the CEO of the trust, and a trustee. 10 and 11 December 2024

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 The inspector held a discussion, by telephone, with a representative from the registered alternative provision used by the school.  The inspector visited a sample of lessons, spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work.  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 responses to Ofsted Parent View, including the free-text comments. They also considered the responses to Ofsted’s online survey for staff. Inspectors spoke with groups of staff and pupils to gain their views about the school.

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Inspection team

Alison Stephenson, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector 10 and 11 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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