Brampton Primary School

Inspection of a school judged good for overall effectiveness before September 2024: Brampton Primary School Sawmill Lane, Brampton, Cumbria CA8 1BZ

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Inspection dates: 14 and 15 January 2025

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Outcome

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

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are very much at the heart of this vibrant school. Just as the school’s vision states, they strive to ‘believe, persevere and succeed’. Pupils celebrate differences between themselves and others. Staff make sure that new pupils very quickly feel welcome in the school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Most pupils achieve well. They work hard to live up to the school’s high expectations for their achievement. Pupils show enthusiasm in lessons and take great pride in their work.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Children in the early years learn in a calm and purposeful environment. They benefit from clear routines and expectations that help them to make a positive start to their education. Older pupils behave extremely well in classrooms and around the school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils benefit from the school’s determination for them to be well prepared for life beyond school and their immediate rural location. The school provides opportunities for pupils to visit a variety of museums, to visit cities, such as Newcastle, and to take part in residential experiences, including in the Lake District.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school welcomes regular visitors, such as a Buddhist monk, to widen pupils’ knowledge of other cultures. Pupils learn how to lead safe and healthy lifestyles.

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

The school provides pupils with a broad and ambitious curriculum, which is carefully designed to take account of its location and context. The school carefully considers how effective the curriculum is and makes changes when necessary. For example, some aspects of the English curriculum have become more ambitious. This has helped pupils to 14 and 15 January 2025

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develop their writing skills in English and across the other subjects they study. Pupils take great pride in their work. They achieve well.

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The school is alert to any pupils who may have special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). There are effective systems in place to identify the needs of these pupils early. Pupils with SEND are supported well to access learning alongside their peers.

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Staff teach the school’s chosen phonics programme well. Children in the Nursery class find out about sounds. This is built on in the Reception Year as children link these sounds to letters. Pupils in key stage 1 learn to become competent and fluent readers. Staff identify any pupils who struggle to keep up with the programme and swiftly provide the support that they need to catch up.

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Mostly, staff check on pupils’ understanding. However, in a small number of subjects, teachers’ checks on what pupils remember over time do not help teachers to identify gaps in pupils’ knowledge. In these subjects, pupils cannot confidently recall their previous learning.

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Pupils fully understand the school’s expectations for their behaviour. They know that if they make the wrong choice, staff will support them to put this right. Relationships between staff and pupils are very positive. Pupils care about each other. Older pupils support younger pupils during playtime and with their learning.

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Most pupils attend school regularly. When this has not been the case for some pupils, the school has been quick to tackle absence levels. As a result, the attendance of these pupils has improved over time.

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The school provides a range of experiences to support pupils’ personal development. For example, pupils have regular opportunities to debate current affairs. This helps pupils to develop the confidence to express their opinions, even when they differ from those of other people. It also contributes to their readiness for life beyond the school. The school’s programme for teaching personal, social, health and economic education is well organised and clear. Pupils understand the importance of equality and the need to treat everyone with respect.

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Pupils have the opportunity to develop their interests and talents. Through a range of clubs, they improve their artistic, musical and sporting skills beyond their learning in the classroom.

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Staff are very proud to work at this school. They acknowledge that their workload is sometimes high, but they fully appreciate the school’s efforts to reduce unnecessary burdens.

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Governors fulfil their roles well. They consider carefully the fine balance between offering the best support that they can while also considering staff’s workload and well-being. This enables them to hold the school to account effectively. 14 and 15 January 2025

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 In a small number of subjects, the checks on what pupils know and remember over time are not effective enough. As a result, teachers do not have the information they need to identify and address any gaps in pupils’ knowledge. The school should ensure that teachers use assessment strategies to spot, and then resolve, pupils’ misconceptions so that they can build their knowledge securely over time.

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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 July 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.

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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. 14 and 15 January 2025

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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). 14 and 15 January 2025

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Chair of governing body William Johnston

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School details

Dates of previous inspection 2 and 3 July 2019, under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The school does not use any alternative provision for its pupils.

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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 has taken that into account in his evaluation of the school.  The inspector held meetings with the headteacher and other members of staff. In addition, he met with representatives of the governing body and the local authority.  The inspector visited a sample of lessons, spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work. He also considered documents and spoke to some staff about the curriculum, SEND, attendance, safeguarding, personal development and behaviour.  The inspector observed pupils’ behaviour in lessons and around school. 14 and 15 January 2025

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 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 responses to Ofsted Parent View were reviewed. This included the free-text responses.  The inspector considered the responses to Ofsted’s online staff survey. There were no responses to Ofsted’s pupil survey.

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Inspection team

Keith Wright, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector 14 and 15 January 2025

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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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