Taylor Road Primary School

Inspection of Taylor Road Primary School Taylor Road, St Matthews Estate, Leicester, Leicestershire LE1 2JP

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Inspection dates: 28 and 29 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 28 and 29 January 2025

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils feel safe and happy at Taylor Road Primary School. They like and respect their teachers. Staff know pupils well and encourage them continually to do their best.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Through the ‘STARFISH’ values, pupils learn the importance of making a positive difference to themselves and to their community. Many pupils arrive at the school at the early stages of speaking English. They are welcomed warmly. Staff and pupils help them settle in quickly. Within the school’s culturally diverse community, pupils form firm friendships. Pupils show great respect and tolerance for the variety of cultural and religious views.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils benefit from many opportunities to support their wider development. Enhancements such as steel-pan lessons and visits to theatres or museums make learning more meaningful and enjoyable. Pupils develop their talents through clubs and taking part in many sporting tournaments. They are proud to have responsibilities through the ‘eco club’, class jobs, school council and playtime leaders. Making decisions for the school is important to pupils.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school is ambitious for all pupils, including pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Leaders have worked hard on ensuring pupils benefit from a curriculum that enables them to reach their aspirations. The school has secured the confidence of most parents and carers, who appreciate greatly that their children achieve increasingly well.

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

As soon as pupils join the school, there is a sharp focus on learning to read. Staff are trained expertly to teach phonics. They provide effective support for pupils to keep-up or catch-up with phonics if needed. Reading practice sessions engender younger pupils’ interest and ability. Pupils’ books match the sounds they know, and they soon gain fluency with reading. Staff check older pupils’ understanding from reading through book quizzes. Pupils aim for high scores, hoping to earn a book from the vending machine. Staff read engaging stories skilfully to pupils every day. Younger pupils vote for their favourite stories. The school’s skill at developing a love of reading is reflected in the view of one pupil who said: ‘When you read you can just be free, laugh to yourself and let your imagination go wild; reading opens your eyes.’ Other pupils agreed firmly.

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

The ambitious curriculum is typically taught well. Teachers explain and model new knowledge effectively. They diligently revisit what was taught to support pupils to remember. Largely, the school has refined and clarified the important knowledge it wants pupils to remember. However, these refinements are not complete. This means that teachers are not as clear as they need to be about what pupils should know and when. Therefore, teachers’ checks on pupils’ learning are not as sharp as they need to be, and pupils’ misconceptions are sometimes missed. As a result, pupils’ knowledge is sometimes insecure. 28 and 29 January 2025

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Pupils with SEND have their needs identified accurately. The school works with agencies to secure additional support for these pupils’ needs effectively. There is a high number of pupils who speak English as an additional language, some at the very early stages. Bilingual staff and other pupils support with translation. Staff adapt the curriculum continually for these pupils and those with SEND, utilising helpful training provided by the school. However, adaptations often do not match these pupils’ needs with enough precision. Therefore, these pupils do not build knowledge as well as they could.

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Children enjoy their time in the early years. Their learning is planned carefully so activities build on their knowledge purposefully. The school has improved the focus on children’s language development effectively. Staff model new words and phrases precisely and their interactions with children move learning on well. However, the organisation of children’s learning and activities in the outdoor area is not as effective. Sometimes, this hinders children’s learning.

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Pupils behave well and have positive attitudes. In class, they listen carefully to teachers and work hard. They are kind and considerate to each other at social times. The school emphasises the importance of regular attendance. Pupils’ attendance is closely monitored. Support is offered to families where needed. As a result, attendance is improving steadily.

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The pastoral support for pupils is of high quality. Pupils learn to identify their emotions independently. They know strategies that help them to manage their emotions when needed. The personal, social and health education curriculum is tailored sensitively to the needs of the community. It supports pupils well to learn about themselves and how to keep safe and healthy. Visitors from the police and nursing services enhance this. Pupils engage with different views well and enjoy learning about different religions and cultures. Visits to different places of worship or from parents explaining their traditions strengthen their understanding.

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Governors are effective and ensure that the school fulfils its responsibilities. They support and challenge leaders diligently to drive school improvement. The school has engaged effectively with staff through a significant amount of change to bring about necessary improvements. Staff appreciate leaders’ consideration of their well-being, which has been well conceived. For example, the school has taken effective measures to help make staff’s workload manageable.

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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 important knowledge pupils need to learn has not been clarified. This means that, sometimes, teachers do not focus on the right things when they check pupils’ learning, and misconceptions are not identified. As a result, pupils’ 28 and 29 January 2025

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knowledge is less secure. The school should ensure that it makes clear the important knowledge that pupils should remember in all subjects, and that teachers check pupils’ understanding and address their misconceptions consistently.  Sometimes, the adaptations teachers make for pupils with SEND and those at the earlier stages of learning English do not meet their needs precisely. This means that some pupils do not build knowledge as well as they could. The school should ensure that the curriculum is adapted consistently and appropriately to meet the needs of pupils precisely.  The organisation of learning in the early years outdoor environment does not support the effective implementation of the curriculum. This means that children do not learn consistently well. The school should ensure that the early years curriculum is implemented consistently and effectively throughout the provision.

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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). 28 and 29 January 2025

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Chair of governing body Suzanne Uprichard

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School details

Dates of previous inspection 12 and 13 March 2019, under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 A new headteacher has been appointed since the last inspection.  The school does not currently use any 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.  This is 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. 28 and 29 January 2025

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 The lead inspector met with members of the governing body and spoke to a representative from the local authority.  Inspectors met with senior leaders and considered a range of documentation.  Inspectors carried out deep dives into these subjects: early reading, mathematics, geography, religious education and physical education. For each deep dive, the inspectors: held discussions about the curriculum; visited a sample of lessons; spoke to teachers; spoke to some pupils about their learning; and looked at samples of pupils’ work.  Inspectors listened to some pupils reading to a familiar adult. Inspectors also considered evidence about some other curriculum subjects.  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 the extent to which the school has created an open and positive culture around

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safeguarding that puts pupils’ interests first.  The inspectors observed pupils’ behaviour in lessons and around the school site during breaktime.  The inspectors spoke with groups of pupils and staff. Inspectors spoke to parents and considered the responses to Ofsted Parent View. They also considered the responses to Ofsted’s surveys for staff and pupils.

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Inspection team

Claire Stylianides, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Steve Tague 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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