Staplecross Methodist Primary School

Inspection of Staplecross Methodist Primary School Bodiam Road, Staplecross, Bodiam Road, Robertsbridge, East Sussex TN32 5QD

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Inspection dates: 25 and 26 February 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 25 and 26 February 2025

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school has a strong sense of community. Pupils are integral to this. They take on a range of important roles in the school. These include school librarians, play leaders and well-being ambassadors. They recommend books for their friends to read, organise games and ensure that pupils have someone to play with at breaktimes. Older pupils also act as role models for children in the early years. This helps them to settle in quickly. Pupils take care of the school environment and show courtesy to each other and staff.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils build warm relationships with staff. As a result, they feel happy in school. Pupils have multiple trusted adults, and they know that staff will deal with any issues they have quickly. This helps them to feel safe. Teachers apply the school rules consistently, and this helps pupils to behave well. If pupils require additional help, they are confident to share how they are feeling. The school supports pupils to identify and manage their feelings and emotions effectively.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Teachers have high expectations of pupils. As a result, pupils achieve well. Pupils’ work and recall of their learning shows they remember the important skills and knowledge they need. Pupils are well prepared for their next steps.

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

The school has responded quickly to refine the curriculum after low published outcomes in some areas. The school has designed a broad and ambitious curriculum. The curriculum makes clear the important knowledge and vocabulary that pupils need to learn from the early years to Year 6. The curriculum is inclusive and meets the needs of all pupils, including those in mixed-age classes.

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

Teachers have good subject knowledge. This helps them to explain learning clearly. However, in a small number of subjects, the tasks that teachers select are not always matched to the ambition of the curriculum. As a result, a small number of pupils do not learn some important knowledge and vocabulary as well as they could. Teachers check pupils’ understanding to identify what pupils know and remember accurately. Teachers use this to plan activities to help pupils catch up.

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

The school has well-designed processes to identify the needs of pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). This means staff know pupils well. They use this knowledge to plan high-quality support for pupils who require it. This helps pupils to achieve well.

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

Pupils, including those with SEND, develop a wide range of knowledge. This becomes increasingly sophisticated over time. For example, in computing, Year 1 pupils use spreadsheets to calculate the sum of two numbers. By Year 5, pupils use them to calculate the average of multiple numbers.

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

Pupils become confident writers. They write at appropriate length and spell accurately. Children in the early years learn a range of subject-specific vocabulary and use it 25 and 26 February 2025

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appropriately. Pupils have age-appropriate mathematical knowledge and apply this confidently.

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The school has prioritised reading. As a result, pupils become confident and fluent readers by the end of Year 2. This starts in the early years, where expert staff teach phonics consistently well. Staff match pupils’ books to the sounds and letters they know. This means pupils can practise reading at home. Teachers check on pupils’ phonics knowledge carefully. Consequently, they identify pupils who fall behind. Teachers plan appropriate support to help pupils catch up swiftly. Older pupils enjoy reading. They recall the high- quality texts they read and discuss them excitedly.

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Staff enjoy working at the school. They receive high-quality professional development and support to carry out their roles. The school works hard to refine the curriculum to ensure that it is in line with its ambition. However, in some areas, the school is not precisely checking what impact this is having. This means the school is not as clear about pupils’ learning in some subjects. Governors know the school well and offer challenge and support in equal measure.

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Pupils are well prepared for life in modern Britain. They have mature attitudes to difference and diversity. Pupils understand the importance of treating everyone with respect. The school ensures that all pupils have opportunities to develop their interests. Pupils enjoy clubs as diverse as gardening and karate. The school enhances pupils’ learning with exciting activities linked to their learning. Pupils enjoy these and they help them to recall their learning.

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Pupils of all ages work and play together well. This makes the school a calm and happy place. The school has clear systems to track attendance. This helps staff to identify those pupils who may need additional support. Pupils attend regularly, and the school has a number of new strategies to improve this further.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 The school does not always evaluate the impact of its work to refine the curriculum precisely enough. As a result, it cannot identify which improvements have the strongest impact. The school should ensure that it has systems for clearly identifying the impact of its work to better inform the refinement and development of the curriculum over time.  In a small number of subjects, the activities that teachers select do not always reflect the ambition and scope of the curriculum. As a result, some pupils do not always deepen their knowledge and vocabulary as well as they could. The school should 25 and 26 February 2025

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ensure that teachers have the knowledge to select the most appropriate activities that allow pupils to develop their knowledge and vocabulary in line with the goals of the curriculum.

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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

Website staplecross.thebridgefederation.org

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School details

Date of previous inspection 15 October 2019, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 Staplecross Methodist primary school is a Methodist voluntary controlled school. The school’s most recent section 48 statutory inspection of Anglican and Methodist schools took place in July 2023. The school’s next section 48 inspection will take place within eight school years.  The school currently uses no alternative provision.  The school’s headteacher and senior leadership team have changed since the last inspection.

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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. 25 and 26 February 2025

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 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. The lead inspector discussed the impact of the pandemic with the school and has taken that into account in his evaluation of the school.  The inspection team met with the headteacher, other leaders and staff. The lead inspector also held a telephone conversation with a representative from the local authority and the Methodist school partner.  The inspection team carried out deep dives in the following subjects: reading, mathematics, science and history. For each deep dive, 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.  The lead inspector considered the views of parents and carers through their responses

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to Ofsted Parent View. The inspectors spoke to staff and pupils during the inspection and took account of staff’s responses to Ofsted’s online 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.

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Inspection team

Gavin Thomas, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Liz McIntosh 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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