Bonner Primary School

Inspection of a school judged good for overall effectiveness before September 2024: Bonner Primary School Stainsbury Street, Bethnal Green, London E2 0NF

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Inspection dates: 25 and 26 February 2025

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Outcome

Bonner 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?

Bonner Primary School is a very happy, friendly and inclusive place in which to learn. School leaders strive successfully to ensure that all pupils develop a sense of confidence, respect and a love of learning. Pupils work hard and achieve well. Pupils are well prepared for their next stages of learning.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are polite and respectful to adults and towards each other. Behaviour in class is exemplary and there is little time lost to learning. This is because the school establishes high expectations of pupils’ behaviour from Nursery onwards.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school supports all pupils in their studies well. This includes disadvantaged pupils and pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Pupils with SEND flourish, alongside their peers.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils feel safe in this school. Pupils say that adults listen to them and support them with any worries. The school has an accurate understanding of pupils’ individual needs.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy taking on leadership responsibilities across the school. They talk with pride about their roles as change makers, digital leaders and eco-warriors. Pupils benefit from a wide range of visits that include museum trips, art galleries and a residential visit for Year 6.

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

The school’s curriculum is ambitious and well sequenced. Pupils are introduced to new knowledge and vocabulary in a logical order. In core subjects, such as mathematics, pupils remember their learning well, talking confidently about what they are doing now 25 and 26 February 2025

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and what they have covered before. However, pupils do not remember important knowledge securely in some areas of the curriculum. This is because teachers do not always revisit important prior learning or consistently address misconceptions. Overall, pupils achieve broadly in line with national averages at the end of key stage 2.

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Teachers have good subject knowledge. They ask questions that challenge pupils to think deeply. Children get off to a great start in the early years. They learn on their own, as well as being able to work and play together effectively. Some aspects of the early years curriculum are of high quality, for example expressive arts and design, counting and language development. However, staff sometimes do not pay enough attention to securing basic skills such as pencil grip and early letter formation. This affects pupils’ handwriting, spelling and writing fluency as they move through the school.

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The school has created an inclusive and nurturing environment where every pupil is welcome. Pupils with SEND are supported in their learning and achieve well. The school identifies pupils’ needs promptly and with accuracy. Learning is adapted effectively to enable pupils with SEND to learn the same curriculum as their peers.

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Reading is a high priority. The school’s approach to teaching early reading using phonics is effective. Children in the early years start learning phonics straight away. Staff identify those pupils who fall behind. These pupils are given timely support to help them keep up. Pupils read books that closely match their stage of reading. This helps them practise using their phonics knowledge to become confident, fluent readers. Pupils’ enthusiasm and love of reading continue as they move through the school.

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Pupils of different ages play together and enjoy each other’s company. They manage themselves well as they move around the school. Consistent routines help pupils to know what to do and when. This begins in the early years, where staff enable children to follow instructions very well.

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The school places pupils’ wider development at the heart of everything it does and is highly effective. Pupils talk confidently about what fundamental British values mean and how they relate to their own lives. Pupils understand about healthy eating and know what it means to be a good friend. They know how to keep themselves physically and mentally healthy and have a deep awareness of how to stay safe when online. The school’s work helps pupils to become independent and self-assured.

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The school maintains strong oversight of pupils’ attendance. Overall attendance is in line with local and national averages. Pupils are keen to come to school and enjoy all the extra-curricular activities on offer, such as Bangla club, badminton and coding lessons.

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Governors know the school well. They know its strengths and areas for improvement. They have thus ensured that the school has continued to improve its performance. Staff are proud to work at the school. Parents and carers highly value the school’s work. 25 and 26 February 2025

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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, sometimes, pupils’ mistakes are not identified and addressed in a timely manner. This means that misconceptions continue. Staff should ensure that pupils’ misconceptions are identified and addressed swiftly to ensure pupils know more and can remember more over time.  Sometimes, staff do not support pupils’ early writing skills effectively. This means that some pupils do not have secure transcription skills. This hampers their ability to write fluently because they cannot form their letters correctly. The school should ensure that strategies to support pupils with their writing and letter formation skills are in place so that pupils become confident writers.

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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 good 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 good for overall effectiveness in October 2019. 25 and 26 February 2025

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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). 25 and 26 February 2025

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Chair of governing body Syed Nahid Uddin

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School details

Dates of previous inspection 16 and 17 October 2019, under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 Bonner Primary School is operating across two school sites more than a mile apart.  Since the previous inspection, two deputy headteachers have been appointed to their posts.  The school runs a breakfast club and an after-school club.  The school does not currently make use of any alternative provision for pupils.

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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. 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 headteacher, senior and curriculum leaders and groups of staff and pupils. 25 and 26 February 2025

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 Inspectors visited lessons, looked at pupils’ work in a range of subjects and also met with teachers and pupils.  The lead inspector met with representatives of the governing body, including the chair. He also had a discussion with a school improvement partner from the local authority.  Inspectors took account of the responses to Ofsted Parent View, including the free-text responses. They considered the responses to Ofsted’s staff survey.  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 safeguarding that puts pupils’ interests first.  Inspectors reviewed school documents, including those relating to governance, behaviour and attendance. Inspectors scrutinised leaders’ plans for improvement and their assessment of the school’s effectiveness.

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 Inspectors spoke informally to pupils at breaktimes, in the dining hall and on the playground.

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Inspection team

Sean Flood, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector

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Inspection team

Sarah Lack Ofsted Inspector 25 and 26 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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