Woodville Primary School

Inspection of Woodville Primary School Brent Avenue, South Woodham Ferrers, Chelmsford, Essex CM3 5SE

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Inspection dates: 26 and 27 November 2024

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The quality of education Good Behaviour and attitudes Good Personal development Good Leadership and management Good Early years provision Good

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Previous inspection grade Not previously inspected under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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The headteacher of this school is Jacqui Phillips. This school is a single-academy trust, which means other people in the trust also have responsibility for running the school. The trust is overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by Gillian Bowyer.

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Ofsted has not previously inspected Woodville Primary School under section 5 of the Education Act 2005. However, Ofsted previously judged Woodville Primary School to be outstanding for overall effectiveness, before it opened as an academy. The school received a no formal designation inspection under section 8 of the Education Act 2005 on 25 and 26 February 2020. Since September 2024, schools have not been awarded an overall effectiveness grade. 26 and 27 November 2024

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils love school. A part of the reason for this is the variety of experiences available to them. They are eager to learn new ideas in lessons because staff make them relevant. For example, they explore how their current lives compare to those of people in the past. This clear connection helps pupils to learn more and remember new ideas.

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What is it like to attend this school?

In most subjects, pupils achieve highly. They take pride in completing work well and trying their best. Pupils’ workbooks show their progress. For example, the youngest children develop their ability to form letters correctly. Additionally, over time, older pupils use more complex grammar.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils, including the youngest children, listen well in lessons. This is because teachers encourage and praise them. Pupils exhibit good behaviour and staff maintain high expectations. During playtimes, pupils are considerate of each other.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils like to have extra responsibilities. Many do so. For example, some are play leaders and help to organise games during break times. Others are role models and show visitors around the school. These opportunities help pupils to learn that they can be helpful members of the school community.

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

In most subjects, the curriculum is well-planned and coherently sequenced. This means that staff know what to teach and when. Staff are well trained in these subjects and have strong subject knowledge, allowing them to explain new learning clearly to pupils. Staff design effective tasks that help pupils retain knowledge. In the early years, children develop essential reading, writing, and mathematical skills. They also learn to understand the world through topics, like Diwali and Bonfire Night.

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

However, in a few subjects, the school has not identified clearly the knowledge that pupils should learn. Teachers are not as secure in their knowledge of these subjects to enable them to teach these subjects as effectively as others. This includes ensuring that children in the early years learn the basic knowledge needed for future learning in these subjects. This means pupils do not achieve as well as they could in these subjects.

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

Pupils achieve highly in reading. This starts in the early years, when children learn to enjoy and share books. Alongside this, pupils learn an appropriate phonics programme. All staff model the correct sounds very clearly, which means that pupils learn to do the same. Teachers check pupils’ understanding regularly. They ensure any pupils who fall behind with reading get the help they need to catch up. Pupils across the school practise reading regularly. They read books that match their phonics knowledge. This helps them build their reading skills securely and they become confident, fluent readers. Older pupils enjoy reading a wide variety of different stories, poems, and plays. They particularly enjoy the well-chosen class books they read together. 26 and 27 November 2024

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The school identifies the needs of pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) accurately. Skilled staff know pupils well, so they target guidance and support precisely when pupils need it. This ensures that pupils can build essential independent skills. The school works closely with parents and, if needed, external agencies. This ensures that pupils with SEND get the right support at the right time. Pupils with SEND make strong progress through the curriculum.

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Pupils show positive learning behaviours. For example, they start work promptly, so learning time is not lost. They know that if they all follow the school rules, this means that they can learn well. Staff make sure that they provide work that is appropriately challenging, which helps pupils to develop resilience. The school works effectively to support families and identify barriers to attendance. It provides support tailored to individual pupils. This has improved the attendance of many pupils, including for pupils with SEND.

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The school provides valuable help to support pupils’ positive mental health. Pupils know who they can ask for help if they need it. Pupils learn a well-sequenced personal, social, health, and economic education curriculum. This promotes equality and diversity. Pupils learn why it is important to respect others’ views and beliefs. This helps pupils to show positive behaviour towards others.

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School leaders, trustees, and governors work together well to improve pupils’ education. Pupils’ positive outcomes in national tests and assessments reflect this focus. The school has ensured that leaders have the expertise needed to carry out their roles effectively. Recently, some staff have expressed concerns that their well-being is not a priority. However, many staff members feel supported by the efforts the school makes to reduce their workload.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 In some foundation subjects, the school has not defined clearly the specific knowledge and skills that pupils need to learn from the early years to Year 6. As a result, teachers do not have sufficient information about how to teach these subjects effectively and pupils do not learn all the knowledge they need to be ready for their next stage. The school should ensure that the knowledge and skills that pupils should learn are identified clearly in all subjects and that staff have the information and guidance needed to teach all subjects well. 26 and 27 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). 26 and 27 November 2024

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School details

Website www.woodvilleprimaryschool.org.uk

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School details

Dates of previous inspection Not previously inspected under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 Woodville Primary School became an academy in December 2013. The predecessor school, also called Woodville Primary School, was previously inspected by Ofsted in 2008 and its overall effectiveness was judged as outstanding.  The school uses one unregistered 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. 26 and 27 November 2024

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 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.  The inspectors met with the headteacher, other leaders and staff. The lead inspector met with representatives from the governing body, including the chair. She also met with the chair of the board of trust and a representative from the local authority.  Inspectors carried out deep dive in these subjects: early reading, mathematics, science, music and history. For each deep dive, inspectors held discussions with leaders about the curriculum, visited a sample of lessons, spoke to teachers, spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of work.  Inspectors also discussed the curriculum in some other subjects, they spoke to pupils and looked at samples of their work.

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 The inspectors spoke to pupils in class, in small groups and on the playground. They also met with parents at morning school drop off.  The inspectors considered responses to Ofsted Parent View, including free-text responses. They also considered the responses to Ofsted’s online staff and pupil surveys.

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Inspection team

Jessie Linsley, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Craige Brown Ofsted Inspector 26 and 27 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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