Bidford-on-Avon CofE Primary School

Inspection of Bidford-on-Avon CofE Primary School Bramley Way, Bidford-on-Avon, Alcester, Warwickshire B50 4QG

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Inspection dates: 21 and 22 January 2025

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The quality of education Good Behaviour and attitudes Good Personal development Good Leadership and management Good Early years provision Good Previous inspection grade Good 21 and 22 January 2025

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school provides a nurturing environment where adults listen to pupils. This helps pupils feel safe. Pupils attend well as they enjoy what the school has to offer for their learning, behaviour and wider opportunities. Pupils follow a curriculum that helps them to develop their knowledge and skills year-on-year. This enables pupils to achieve well.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy their learning and talk enthusiastically about it. They have opportunities to develop their talents and interests beyond the curriculum. This includes music lessons and a wide range of clubs. Older pupils talk excitedly about their residential visit. Pupils thoroughly enjoy bell boating as part of their physical education curriculum.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils show respect for one another and the adults around them. They behave well during all parts of the school day. Older pupils serve as positive role models for younger ones, demonstrating kindness and helpfulness through their leadership roles. There are lots of games and activities for the pupils to enjoy at breaktimes. ‘Blue bander’ pupils help others to play together respectfully and engage in activities. Pupils benefit from the caring adults around them, and they trust them to offer help if they are worried.

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

The school’s curriculum sets out what pupils need to learn in all subjects. It makes sure that pupils build upon earlier work in later years. The curriculum approach makes links between subjects. This helps pupils to apply their learning in different contexts. For example, pupils use their knowledge of democracy when studying Greek history. In most subjects, pupils can recall their learning well. They remember their ‘sticky knowledge’ to develop new knowledge. However, in a few subjects, pupils are less secure in their understanding. This is because the important curriculum knowledge is not clearly identified. This leads to some gaps in pupils’ learning.

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

Pupils have access to a wide range of authors and text types. They are encouraged to take books home to share. Children learn to read as soon as they start the Reception Year. Staff work skilfully to develop children’s vocabulary and language, for example learning rhymes and sharing books from the ‘poetry basket’. Parents and carers are invited into school to see how phonics is taught. This helps them to support their child at home. All these strategies culminate in most pupils learning to read well. There is extra support in place for pupils who struggle when learning to read. However, sometimes, limited opportunities to practise reading aloud hinders the development of their fluency skills.

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

The school has systems in place to ensure that pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are identified early. Supportive relationships between pupils and staff help pupils to have the confidence to engage in well-matched activities. As a result, most pupils with SEND achieve well.

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

The school has a range of checks in place to find out how well pupils are learning the curriculum. However, there are occasions when this information is not used well enough 21 and 22 January 2025

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to adjust the curriculum when it is not working as effectively. As a result, some pupils’ learning is not accelerated as quickly as it could be.

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Pupils attend well. The school has clear systems in place to track patterns of non- attendance. The school knows which pupils are not attending as well as they should be. When this is the case, it takes the right actions and involves the right people to improve attendance.

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Pupils’ personal development is at the heart of the school. This helps pupils appreciate that the opinions and beliefs of others might differ from their own. Pupils build a stronger understanding of their local and wider community through different trips. These include visits to museums and wildlife parks. Pupils also take part in enterprise activities, for example raising money by running dressed up as Santa. Pupils are proud to make a positive difference to their school environment and local community. There are many opportunities for pupils to undertake leadership responsibilities, for example ‘eco- monitors’ or ‘Green Ninjas’. Pupils learn about changes to their bodies as they grow up and how to lead healthy lifestyles.

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Staff are proud to be part of the school. Leaders consider the well-being of staff in everything that they do, and staff appreciate this. Governors work in partnership to further develop the areas identified by the school. They are aware of their responsibilities and undertake regular training and updates.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 In a few subjects, the essential curriculum knowledge is not clearly identified to enable pupils to achieve long-term aims as well as they should. This means that, sometimes, pupils do not securely build their learning on what they have learned previously. The school should ensure that, in all subjects, the key knowledge is clearly set out to support pupils in achieving the long-term curriculum aims.  The school’s oversight of curriculum implementation is not as robust as it should be. Sometimes, it does not check with sufficient rigour how well teaching leads to pupils securely grasping new knowledge. This means pupils may have gaps in their knowledge that are missed. The school should check more thoroughly the effectiveness of how well the curriculum is implemented and identify and address any gaps in pupils’ knowledge.  The additional support for pupils who are struggling with their reading does not always

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

include enough planned opportunities for them to rehearse reading aloud. This slows the progress pupils make to read with good fluency. The school should ensure that 21 and 22 January 2025

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pupils have ample opportunities to practise reading aloud to develop their confidence and fluency.

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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). 21 and 22 January 2025

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Website www.bidfordonavon.warwickshire.sch.uk

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School details

Dates of previous inspection 29 and 30 January 2020, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The school is part of the Diocese of Warwickshire. The last section 48 inspection, for schools of a religious character, took place in June 2024. The next section 48 inspection is due to take place within five years.  The headteacher was appointed in September 2024.  The chair of the governing body took on the role in September 2024, having been the vice-chair before.  The school does not use 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. 21 and 22 January 2025

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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 spoke with the headteacher, deputy headteacher, other school leaders and members of staff.  The lead inspector spoke with four members of the governing body, including the chair.  Inspectors spoke with pupils about their experiences in school and their views on behaviour and bullying. They also observed pupils’ behaviour during lessons and at breaktimes.  Inspectors reviewed a range of documents, including school improvement plans and records of pupils’ behaviour and attendance.  To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding, the inspectors: reviewed the single central record; took account of the views of leaders, staff and pupils; and considered

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the extent to which the school has created an open and positive culture around safeguarding that puts pupils’ interests first.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in early reading, English, history and science. For each deep dive, they held discussions about the curriculum, visited a sample of lessons, spoke with teachers, spoke with some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work.  An inspector observed some pupils reading to adults they know.  Inspectors spoke with staff about their workload and well-being. They also considered the responses to Ofsted’s online survey for staff.  Inspectors spoke with some parents to gather their views. They also considered the responses to Ofsted Parent View, including the free-text comments.

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Inspection team

Rebecca Cox, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector

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Inspection team

Khalid Din Ofsted Inspector 21 and 22 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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