Three Bridges Primary School

Inspection of a school judged outstanding for overall effectiveness before September 2024: Three Bridges Primary School Melbury Avenue, Norwood Green, Southall, Middlesex UB2 4HT

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Inspection dates: 28 and 29 January 2025

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Outcome

Three Bridges 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?

Three Bridges Primary is a remarkable school. Its vision for pupils is ‘a developing critical mind; eyes wide open, hands outstretched; a full, strong and healthy heart’. This is thoroughly integrated and realised through all of its work. The school is highly effective in developing the ‘whole child’ to be academically successful and physically and mentally healthy.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The curriculum is ambitious and carefully constructed, providing a highly positive and inspiring learning environment. From Nursery, children establish strong foundations in their learning, including how to communicate, cooperate and care for each other. This is built on throughout the school, with teaching helping pupils to acquire a broad range of knowledge and skills. Pupils, particularly those who are disadvantaged, achieve exceptionally well.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school has very high expectations for pupils’ conduct. This contributes to how well pupils thrive here. They attend well and show positive attitudes. The school’s approach to promoting pupils’ personal development is also very well structured. It helps them to become confident, articulate and respectful individuals. For example, pupils enjoy engaging in debates and contributing their views meaningfully. They take on roles such as digital sports leaders and members of parliament. Pupils also relish the various trips and clubs, especially for sports and the arts. 28 and 29 January 2025

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

The school has developed a very ambitious curriculum. Early English is emphasised, with a strong focus on developing pupils’ language from the Nursery onwards. For example, Nursery-age children enjoy learning words to talk about dinosaurs and their diets. Reading is also highly valued and prioritised. Starting in the Reception class, the effective approach to phonics enables children to blend and separate sounds to read words accurately. By Year 1, pupils read with increased fluency and accuracy. Those who struggle receive targeted support. This boosts their confidence and reading skills. The curriculum is highly effective in developing pupils’ composition skills, including using phonics knowledge to write words and sentences accurately.

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

Teachers receive excellent professional development. This equips them with the expertise to deliver the curriculum across all subjects consistently well. They impart knowledge carefully and check pupils’ learning skilfully. This helps to ensure that teaching develops and deepens pupils’ knowledge in progressive steps. In mathematics, for example, Reception-age children learn to count to five and understand how to add or subtract through various approaches. By Year 1, they apply what they know to add and subtract with a wider range of numbers. Well-focused teaching also helps pupils to know and remember more in greater detail. For example, in geography, Year 3 pupils confidently recall the differences between a map and a globe and make comparisons between different hemispheres.

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

Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) achieve very well. This is due to the school’s robust approaches to the identification and assessment of pupils’ needs and careful adaptations to resources and teaching. Staff provide expert support, which helps pupils to learn effectively with increasing independence.

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

The school places a strong emphasis on pupils’ behaviour and conduct. Right from the Nursery Year, children learn to cooperate, take turns, play purposely with each other and be responsible. Older pupils help and support each other, including in the playground. Pupils flourish because they are supported to love learning. They feel very safe and say that bullying is rare, with teachers addressing any incidents swiftly. The school also works very effectively to improve the attitudes of the small minority of pupils who struggle to regulate their behaviour. The school has also prioritised punctuality, emphasising why this is important to pupils, both now and in their future lives.

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

The school has thoughtfully incorporated religious education and personal, social, health and economic education into its curriculum. Students learn about online safety and what they can do to protect themselves. For example, they develop a strong understanding of water safety, including learning how to kayak and canoe safely near a canal. Additionally, the curriculum enables pupils to build a deep appreciation for different faiths, cultures and communities.

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

The school has successfully created a culture of growth, trust and innovation for staff. Leaders, including governors, are highly reflective and use an evidence-informed 28 and 29 January 2025

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approach to bring about further improvements. Their approach to checking that their work leads to impact is forensic.

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Professional development is of the highest quality. Staff benefit from conducting ‘passion’ projects that contribute to their professional development as well as the school more widely. Staff highly appreciate the efforts of leaders to reduce workload, including using a bespoke assessment system and allocated time to embed new initiatives. Staff well- being is a priority, and they value the well-being days.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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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 outstanding 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 outstanding 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. 28 and 29 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). 28 and 29 January 2025

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Dates of previous inspection 10 and 11 July 2019, under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The school uses no alternative provision.  The school is the primary lead training and development partner for Teach West London.  The school offers Nursery provision for three-year-old children.

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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 their evaluation of the school.  The inspector spoke to the headteacher, deputy headteacher, assistant headteachers and special educational needs and disabilities coordinator. 28 and 29 January 2025

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 The inspector spoke to a range of staff, including curriculum subject leaders, teachers and support staff. The inspector spoke to members of the governing body and representatives of the local authority.  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 took account of responses to Ofsted’s online survey, Ofsted Parent View, including the free-text responses. The inspector also considered the responses of staff and pupils to Ofsted’s online surveys.  The inspector spoke with groups of pupils during lessons and social times.

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Inspection team

Ray Lau, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector 28 and 29 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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