Caldmore Primary Academy

Inspection of Caldmore Primary Academy Carless Street, Walsall, West Midlands WS1 3RH

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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

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The principal of this school is Hiliary Mitchell. This school is part of Academy Transformation Trust, which means other people in the trust also have responsibility for running the school. The trust is run by the acting chief executive officer (CEO), Derek Trimmer, and overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by Patricia Beanland. 18 and 19 March 2025

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What is it like to attend this school?

Caldmore Primary School is an inclusive school with a richly diverse community of pupils. Many pupils join the school at different points in their primary education. Whenever they join, they are welcomed warmly.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Parents and carers rightly reflect that the school is a haven of calm in this busy urban community. Everyone follows the ‘Caldmore Way’, which clearly sets out how pupils should behave. As a result, pupils behave well in school. Pupils appreciate that staff show kindness to them and help them if they have any worries. Positive relationships between pupils and staff are borne out of mutual respect.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The curriculum has been adapted to make it more exciting for pupils. The school has high expectations for pupils’ achievement. While these expectations are yet to be realised in some key stage 2 outcomes, pupils make good progress from their starting points.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school has listened closely to its pupils and put in place a broad range of wider opportunities to develop their talents and interests. Pupils relish these opportunities and enjoy taking on roles and responsibilities. For example, some are mental health champions, and others are on the junior leadership team.

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

Children get off to a good start in the early years. Routines are quickly established. The development of children’s communication and language is at the heart of the early years curriculum. The school checks each child’s language development effectively and then adapts the curriculum to support their individual needs.

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

The school quickly identifies any special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) pupils may have so the right support can be put in place. Newly arrived pupils who speak English as an additional language are well supported through one-to-one or small-group interventions.

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

The curriculum is well sequenced and implemented in many subjects. For example, the school has precisely identified the important knowledge pupils need to know to build their writing fluency. The school has also put in place an effective phonics programme for those pupils who are at an early stage of learning to read. Pupils who do not secure their reading fluency in the early years benefit from reading catch-up lessons and, as a result, rapidly improve their reading fluency. Some other subjects have also been strengthened. In science, physical education and design and technology, for example, the curriculum now focuses on the right things. There is a clear progression of learning from early years to Year 6, so everyone knows what to aim for. For example, the sequencing of skills over time in design technology enables pupils to describe using different stitching types. Pupils could demonstrate their ability to do a backstitch in Year 5 and build on this to combine a

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

running and backstitch in Year 6 to produce a stitched nameplate. 18 and 19 March 2025

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There is still variation in the quality of learning and how this is checked in some subjects in the wider curriculum. The school does not always pick this up. Furthermore, the school’s work to establish effective learning sequences in some subjects in the wider curriculum is also in development. In these subjects, pupils do not make connections between their current and previous learning. The school is already seeking advice from the trust on how to improve some of these aspects of their curriculum.

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All pupils have a positive attitude to learning and are making good progress from their starting points. However, the school’s published outcomes are not in line with national expectations. This is because of some specific challenges the school faces, including a high level of mobility of pupils into and out of the school. The school works well to mitigate and overcome the challenges.

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The school has a well-devised personal development programme. Pupils learn how to stay safe online and how to keep themselves healthy. Pupils are encouraged to demonstrate tolerance and respect for others. One pupil’s comment reflects the sentiments of many: ‘No one can change the way we are, and we are all different, but school help us respect our rights and tells us how to respect others.’ Pupils are well prepared for life in modern Britain.

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The trust knows the school’s strengths and areas for improvement. Teachers appreciate that leaders listen to them, and they gave an example of changes the school has made in order to support their workload and well-being. Staff morale is high.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 The school has not ensured that assessment systems are used consistently well to check that pupils have remembered the knowledge they have been taught in some wider curriculum subjects. This hinders their ability to build new learning and make connections with their prior learning. The school should ensure that assessment systems are used well across all subjects so gaps in pupils’ learning are identified and addressed effectively.  The school has not ensured there is a clear and effective sequence of learning in some subjects. Consequently, in some subjects, pupils do not learn enough knowledge over time. The school should ensure that the content and order of the curriculum are clear and embedded for each subject in the wider curriculum.

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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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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). 18 and 19 March 2025

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School details

CEO of the trust Derek Trimmer (Acting CEO)

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School details

Dates of previous inspection 15 and 16 October 2019, under section 5 of the Education Act 2005.

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Information about this school

 The school does not use any alternative provision.  The school has a free breakfast club managed by the school.

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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 was the first routine inspection the school received since the COVID-19 pandemic 18 and 19 March 2025

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began. Inspectors discussed the impact of the pandemic with the school and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  Inspectors met with the principal, the vice-principal and the assistant principal of the school. Inspectors also met with a number of teaching staff.  The lead inspector held a virtual meeting with the chair and the vice-chair of the trust. She also held a virtual meeting with the acting CEO of the trust.  The inspectors carried out deep dives in the following subjects: reading, English, mathematics, history and science. For each deep dive, inspectors discussed the curriculum with subject leaders, visited a sample of lessons, spoke to teachers, spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work.  Inspectors also discussed the curriculum in other subjects and looked at a sample of work and documentation from other subjects.  To gather evidence on pupils’ wider development, inspectors met with the headteacher,

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teachers and groups of pupils.  Inspectors observed pupils’ behaviour in lessons and around the school site.  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.  The lead inspector gathered parents’ views by considering responses to Ofsted Parent View, including the free-text comments. Inspectors also evaluated responses to Ofsted’s online staff and pupil surveys.

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Inspection team

Jane Edgerton, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector

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Inspection team

Gill Turner Ofsted Inspector 18 and 19 March 2025

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