Rounds Green Primary School

Inspection of Rounds Green Primary School Brades Road, Oldbury, West Midlands B69 2DP

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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 principal of this school is Helen Heap. This school is part of The Elliot Foundation Academies 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), Hugh Greenway, and overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by Tim Coulson. 4 and 5 February 2025

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are enthusiastic about their school. They are proud of their newly refurbished library, which they help to run. This supports their love of reading. Pupils have positive attitudes to learning and behave well around school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school encourages pupils to aim high, drawing on its strong links to a local university. It ensures pupils are well equipped to overcome challenges they may face through the school’s ambitious provision. This is particularly evident for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), who have a bespoke curriculum in the ‘additional learning space’. As a result, pupils achieve well.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils help each other. There is an effective buddy system to help new arrivals to integrate successfully. The school has received a national recognition for its effective support for pupils who speak English as an additional language.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Provision for sport is strong. Pupils in Year 4 get the opportunity to become sports leaders through the ‘Albion ambassadors’ course with West Bromwich Albion. This builds confidence and independence. Curriculum trips, such as to Tamworth castle, inspire and enrich pupils’ learning.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils know how to keep themselves safe. They say there is always a trusted adult to talk to, and are confident their concerns will be followed up.

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

The school’s ambitious curriculum has high expectations that pupils will succeed, whatever their starting points. It is sequenced well from the early years onwards. This enables pupils to progressively learn the knowledge and vocabulary that they need in each subject. The curriculum reflects the school’s Black Country location and deepens pupils’ understanding of where they live.

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

Children begin to learn phonics promptly in Reception. Many have started learning about sounds in Nursery. There is early identification of pupils with SEND and those new to learning the English language. Consequently, pupils access the phonics programme at their appropriate level. Pupils read books that are matched closely to the letters and sounds they know. There is a sharp focus on making sure that pupils who are at the early stages of learning to read, and those who have fallen behind, quickly gain the knowledge and skills they need to become confident, fluent readers.

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

The school’s adaptions to the curriculum for pupils with SEND, or those who have English as an additional language, including in early years, are effective. These ensure that pupils access the intended learning. The bespoke programmes help pupils to integrate quickly into lessons. The school carefully tracks pupils’ progress to check the impact of the provision they receive. 4 and 5 February 2025

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In English and mathematics, teachers check carefully what pupils have learned in a lesson or at the end of a unit. In lessons, pupils were able to recall previously learned vocabulary such as ‘irrigation’. Questioning by teachers at the start of lessons helps them to identify any gaps or misconceptions. However, the extent to which this happens in the wider curriculum is not as consistent. This means that teachers do not consistently address some gaps in pupils’ learning. On some occasions, the teachers’ focus on pupils achieving the minimum lesson objective means they miss the opportunity to challenge some pupils further.

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The high numbers of pupils with SEND, those new to English, or who are late mid-year admissions, impact negatively on the school’s published outcomes. However, results have continued to improve since 2022.

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The school tenaciously works with families to help them understand the importance of high attendance. Working with other agencies as appropriate, the school supports parents and carers effectively to get their children into school regularly.

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The school actively promotes understanding and respect for the differences and similarities between individuals. The school’s seven virtues, as voted on by the pupils, are ‘respect, citizenship, determination, teamwork, kindness, curiosity and honesty’. Pupils demonstrate these in their attitudes to each other and politeness to visitors. They help with the community shop, which provides fresh food to families. A wide range of curriculum trips, for example to RAF Cosford, and clubs such as dance and multisport, widen pupils’ experiences of the world around them.

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The school ensures that staff have time for training, including in SEND, English as an additional language and in sport. This ensures that staff have the skills they need to be effective practitioners in these areas. The school also takes account of staff workload. For example, those staff with leadership responsibilities have additional time for their roles. Teachers receive detailed resources to support their planning.

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Those with responsibility with governance carry out their roles effectively to provide support for the well-being of staff, and to ask challenging questions about the information they receive. They forensically analyse all aspects of the school’s performance.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 There are times when pupils are not challenged to take their learning further. This means that opportunities to achieve a higher standard, or work at a greater depth, are 4 and 5 February 2025

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lost. Leaders should ensure that teachers consistently provide opportunities for pupils to further deepen their knowledge and understanding.  Arrangements to check what pupils have learned are not as well developed in some subjects as they are in others. As a result, teachers do not always know how well pupils are doing and where there are gaps. Leaders should ensure that, in each subject, they provide teachers with the necessary knowledge and expertise to check pupils’ learning consistently.

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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). 4 and 5 February 2025

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School details

Date of previous inspection Not previously inspected

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Information about this school

 Rounds Green Primary School converted to become an academy in August 2022. When its predecessor school, Rounds Green Primary School, was last inspected by Ofsted, it was judged to be requires improvement for overall effectiveness.  When the school joined the trust, a board of trustees was established and the previous governing body was disestablished. Trust directors carry out the roles carried out by the previous governing body.  The principal and the vice principal were both in post at the predecessor school.  The school currently makes use of one registered 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 4 and 5 February 2025

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provision). Schools receiving a graded inspection from September 2024 will not be given an overall effectiveness grade.

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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 COVID19 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 held meetings with the principal, the vice principal, other leaders and staff.  Inspectors spoke to groups of pupils to learn their views of the school.  The lead inspector met with members of the trust including the chair of the trust, the CEO, the regional director and the safeguarding lead.  Inspectors considered responses to the online questionnaire, Ofsted Parent View. This included free-text comments. They also considered additional feedback from parents. Inspectors reviewed responses to Ofsted’s online surveys for staff and pupils.  Inspectors considered information on pupils’ behaviour, attendance and personal

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development.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: early reading, English, mathematics, history and physical education. For each deep dive, they held discussions about the curriculum, visited a sample of lessons, spoke to teachers, spoke to pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work.  To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding, inspectors: 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.

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Inspection team

Mark Sims, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector

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Inspection team

Donna Wright Ofsted Inspector 4 and 5 February 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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