Willoughby Road Primary Academy

Inspection of a school judged good for overall effectiveness before September 2024: Willoughby Road Primary Academy Willoughby Road, Scunthorpe, North Lincolnshire DN17 2NF

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Outcome

Willoughby Road Primary Academy has taken effective action to maintain the standards identified at the previous inspection.

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Outcome

The headteacher of this school is Elaine Jupp. This school is part of Delta 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), Paul Tarn, and overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by Steve Hodsman. There is also an executive headteacher, Lee Colley, who is responsible for this school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school has high expectations for all pupils to learn well and succeed. The carefully designed curriculum and personal development offer reflects this ambition.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils engage respectfully with staff and each other. They listen politely and engage in conversation. Pupils show positive attitudes to learning. They move around the school calmly and sensibly, managing their own behaviour well. The school gives effective help to pupils who need additional support to ensure they feel safe and included in all aspects of school life.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The caring and nurturing environment supports pupils well. Pastoral support is a priority. Pupils know staff are there to help. They are encouraged to discuss their feelings. Staff help pupils to manage their emotions. Pupils learn about safety through assemblies and in lessons. The school engages effectively with a range of external services, connecting families with the support that they need.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils develop their talents and interests through a wide range of clubs. Educational visits and visitors to school are meaningfully linked to pupils’ learning. Pupils contribute to the local community, such as delivering harvest festival donations to the food bank. Pupils understand different religions, value diversity and recognise the importance of equality and respect. 1 and 2 April 2025

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

Since the last inspection, the school has significantly refined its curriculum and approach to assessment. The curriculum precisely identifies the key knowledge and vocabulary that pupils will learn from Nursery to Year 6. Teaching subject-specific vocabulary and developing oracy are key features in lessons. The school carefully selects high-quality texts and famous people to enrich the curriculum and bring learning to life.

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

Teachers have secure subject knowledge. They revisit previous knowledge and model new learning in manageable chunks. Staff make effective use of resources to explain new ideas to pupils. Teachers use questions successfully to check and strengthen pupils’ understanding. Staff make regular checks to make sure pupils’ knowledge is secure. They quickly identify misconceptions, ensuring any gaps in learning are addressed.

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

Pupils make connections across different subjects and talk confidently about their learning. There are regular opportunities for pupils to embed their knowledge. Pupils’ learning builds step by step, deepening their understanding as they progress through school. The range of activities in lessons motivates and engages pupils’ interest. Tasks are skilfully adapted to meet the needs of pupils. The needs of pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are clearly identified. The school supports pupils well in lessons to help them achieve well.

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

The school’s approach to teaching phonics and reading is well established and successful. Reading is consistently taught with clear routines, repetition and strong modelling. The development of early reading skills focuses on accuracy and fluency. Pupils have regular opportunities to practise the sounds that they know before new learning is introduced. Well-trained staff support pupils to read fluently. Pupils read books that are matched closely to the sounds they have learned.

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

The emphasis on oracy, starting in Nursery, provides a strong foundation for writing. Pupils write independently from an early age. However, some pupils’ grammar, spelling and handwriting knowledge is not secure. The school recognises that the recently implemented early writing curriculum needs further time to embed. They have plans in place to focus on developing pupils’ foundational knowledge for writing, starting in early years.

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

Staff consistently use the school’s approach to managing behaviour. Right from Nursery, well established routines support pupils to behave well. Staff regularly praise pupils when they get things right. Pupils are enthusiastic about earning ‘green points’ in exchange for prizes. They consistently show ‘green behaviours’ in lessons by being ready to learn and listening to teachers. There have been significant improvements to pupils’ attendance since last year. This is because the school has implemented a more rigorous approach to managing attendance.

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

The personal development offer is comprehensive and well considered to ensure pupils experience a wealth of relevant opportunities. Pupils take pride in their leadership roles 1 and 2 April 2025

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and take an active role in school life. For example, the school council introduced a kindness award following the International Day of Happiness. These opportunities begin in Nursery and develop as pupils grow. Older pupils enjoy leadership roles, such as sports ambassadors, who receive training to support younger pupils with playground activities.

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The trust has managed the interim leadership arrangements well. Trust approaches continue to be embedded throughout school. The staff and community continue to feel well supported. Staff are positive about the wealth of resources the school provides to teach the curriculum well. They feel that leaders listen to them. There is a strong team approach where staff support each other.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Some pupils’ understanding of grammar, punctuation, spelling and handwriting is not secure. This means, in some cases, pupils do not build their writing skills progressively over time as well as they could. The school should continue to implement the early writing curriculum so that pupils develop their writing skills and write accurately and fluently across the curriculum.

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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. 1 and 2 April 2025

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This is the first ungraded inspection since we judged the school to be good for overall effectiveness in June 2019.

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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). 1 and 2 April 2025

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School details

Dates of previous inspection 11 and 12 June 2019, under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The substantive headteacher, named in the report, was not present when inspectors visited the school. An interim head of academy, Abby Blades-Baker, was present during the inspection and has been in post since January 2025. They are due to become substantive headteacher from 22 April 2025.  The school is part of Delta Academies Trust.  There is a breakfast club run by the school on site.  The school does not use alternative provision.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspections are a point-in-time evaluation about the quality of a school’s education provision. 1 and 2 April 2025

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 This was the first routine inspection the school received since the COVID-19 pandemic began. The inspector discussed the impact of the pandemic with the school and has taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  The inspector met with the interim head of academy, the finance manager and early years leader.  The inspector met with a number of leaders from the trust, including the associate CEO and representatives of the trust board.  The inspector visited a sample of lessons, spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work. They held discussions about the curriculum and spoke to staff. The inspector heard pupils read to a familiar adult.  The inspector observed pupils’ behaviour in lessons, around the school, at playtime and at lunchtime. The inspector spoke with pupils about their views of the school, their learning, behaviour and safety.  To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding, the inspector: reviewed the single

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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 inspector considered the responses to Ofsted Parent View, including the free-text comments.  The inspector met with staff to gather their views of the school. They also considered the responses from the Ofsted survey for staff.

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Inspection team

Nicola Beaumont, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector 1 and 2 April 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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