Fountains Church of England Primary School

Inspection of a school judged good for overall effectiveness before September 2024: Fountains Church of England Primary School Grantley, Ripon, North Yorkshire HG4 3PJ

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Outcome

Fountains Church of England Primary School has taken effective action to maintain the standards identified at the previous inspection.

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Outcome

The executive headteacher of this school is Christopher Parkhouse. The school is part of Leeds Diocesan Learning 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), Richard Noake, and overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by Peter Foskett. The executive headteacher is responsible for this school and two others.

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What is it like to attend this school?

This is a welcoming school, where pupils thrive. A typical comment from parents and carers is that ‘children are happy and feel nurtured by everyone at the school.’ Staff know pupils individually. Pupils enjoy positive relationships with each other and with staff.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy learning and most pupils participate fully in lessons. The school aspires for all pupils to achieve highly, particularly in English and mathematics. Most pupils meet these expectations. Pupils achieve well, particularly in reading, as they progress through school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils behave kindly during social times. They help each other. For example, pupils wait for others to finish eating and help tidy away chairs before going outside. Older pupils are positive role models for younger pupils.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils appreciate the wide range of experiences on offer, such as trips to places of worship and residential visits. There are many opportunities for pupils to express their views and make changes in the school. For example, through raising their wishes with adults, an outdoor football pitch was created. Pupils understand how to stay safe in the community and when online. The school provides experiences such as ‘Let’s Learn Moor’, where pupils learn about safety in the countryside. 5 March 2025

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

The school has worked hard to maintain and improve standards since the last inspection. Leaders on all levels, including the trust, have designed a new curriculum that is ambitious for pupils. The school has identified the important knowledge and vocabulary that pupils must learn as they progress through the school.

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

Leaders, including the trust, support the school effectively to teach the revised curriculum subjects. Staff include opportunities in most lessons for pupils to recap what they have learned before they introduce new knowledge. They check important subject vocabulary and correct errors in spellings. This helps pupils to build a broad vocabulary and knowledge of spelling. However, feedback does not consistently support pupils to understand what they need to do to improve their work in all aspects of learning, including handwriting. This means that some pupils misconceptions are not addressed and, consequently, are repeated.

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

Pupils are passionate about reading. They enjoy choosing books from the plentiful stock of high-quality texts in the school’s reading areas. From the start in Reception, children show enthusiasm as they vote for their favourite book to share in class. In Reception and Year 1, pupils learn phonics every day. The school uses its checking processes to carefully identify gaps in pupils’ knowledge and address these when supporting pupils to learn to read. Pupils receive precise support when learning to read. The school ensures that pupils practise reading often with books that are well matched to their phonics knowledge. The school provides extra support and practise for pupils who struggle to read. Pupils gain the knowledge and skills to become confident and fluent readers.

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

Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are supported effectively. The school works with external expertise, such as the local authority ‘SEND Hub’, to understand needs. The school ensures that resources and learning are adapted to enable pupils with SEND to learn alongside their peers. Pupils with SEND achieve well.

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

Most pupils engage with their learning in lessons and demonstrate positive attitudes. However, there are some inconsistencies in approaches to managing expectations for behaviour in lessons. This means that sometimes pupils do not engage as well as they could. The quality of work that some pupils produce does not meet the high standards that the school expects. Some pupils do not show consistently positive attitudes to their learning.

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

Pupils learn how to keep healthy and safe through the opportunities and experiences provided by the school. They develop their fitness through a range of clubs and activities at breaktimes, including sports club. Pupils benefit from a range of visitors and visits, such as to a mosque in Bradford. This helps pupils to develop mutual respect and tolerance. The school prepares pupils well for their next steps in education. For example, older pupils appreciate visits to the local high school. 5 March 2025

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The trust supports the school well. Trust leaders facilitate collaboration between other schools in the trust to strengthen expertise. For example, staff develop their subject and teaching knowledge by working with colleagues across the trust who hold similar roles. The local academy council provides support and challenge to leaders. They check that their actions benefit pupils. Leaders consider staff workload and well-being. This ensures that staff feel valued and well supported.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 The feedback that pupils receive is not consistently clear enough to enable pupils to improve their work. Sometimes, pupils are not given sufficient opportunity to act on feedback to improve their work. This means that errors are sometimes repeated over time and some pupils develop gaps in their knowledge. The school should ensure that feedback is precise, so that it helps pupils to deepen their understanding and address misconceptions.  There are inconsistencies in expectations of pupil behaviour in lessons. As a result, a few pupils do not maintain positive attitudes to their learning. The school should ensure that high expectations for behaviour are upheld across the school, so that all pupils develop positive attitudes towards their learning.

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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. 5 March 2025

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This is the first ungraded inspection since we judged the predecessor school, Fountains Church of England Primary School, to be good for overall effectiveness in December 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). 5 March 2025

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School details

Dates of previous inspection Not previously inspected

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Information about this school

 The school joined the Leeds Diocesan Learning Trust in September 2022.  The interim executive headteacher took up their post in January 2025.  This is a smaller-than-average-sized primary school. Pupils are organised into three classes.  This is a Church of England school and is part of the Diocese of Leeds. The school’s religious character was last inspected under section 48 of the Education Act 2005 in October 2022.  The school currently does not use any alternative providers.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspections are a point-in-time evaluation about the quality of a school’s education provision. 5 March 2025

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 This was the first routine inspection the school received since the COVID-19 pandemic began. Inspectors discussed the impact of the pandemic with leaders and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding, 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 held meetings with the executive headteacher, the deputy headteacher and subject leaders.  Inspectors also met with the trust CEO and Director of School Effectiveness. An inspector held a telephone conversation with a representative from Leeds Diocese. The lead inspector also met with members of the local academy council and a trust director who joined the meeting online.  Inspectors visited a sample of lessons, spoke to some pupils about their learning and

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looked at samples of pupils’ work. Inspectors observed pupils’ behaviour during lessons and breaktimes. In addition, inspectors met with pupils to hear their views.  Inspectors considered the responses to the online survey, Ofsted Parent View. They also spoke to staff to consider their views about the school.

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Inspection team

Kathryn McDonald, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Michael Rowland Ofsted Inspector 5 March 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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