Monkton Park Primary School

Inspection of a school judged good for overall effectiveness before September 2024: Monkton Park Primary School Sadlers Mead, Chippenham, Wiltshire SN15 3PN

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Outcome

Monkton Park 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?

The school’s vision, ‘grow and learn together’, is at the core of Monkton Park Primary School. Pupils and staff are proud members of this community. Staff build positive relationships with pupils and their families. Pupils know that trusted adults in school will help them with any worry or concerns they have. Pupils feel safe and are happy.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school has high expectations of pupils to succeed in their learning. Across the curriculum, pupils achieve well. They show commitment to their education. During lessons, pupils are attentive and keen to make a contribution to class discussions. Classrooms are purposeful and calm. As a result, pupils learn without disruption.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils try their best to follow the school rules ‘ready, respect, safe’ in everything they do. They move around the school sensibly. Pupils benefit from the well-organised activities during social time. This makes it an enjoyable experience for all.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school provides many opportunities to develop pupils’ character and interests. Pupils talk enthusiastically about the residential trips and visitors to school. They relish the opportunity to represent the school in a range of different sporting competitions. The school ensures that all pupils experience the broad and varied range of clubs the school offers.

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

The school has designed an ambitious curriculum to support the mixed-age classes. It has identified the important knowledge and specific vocabulary that pupils need to learn as they move through the school. For example, in science, pupils describe with confidence a range of sources of light, how light travels and how the length of the shadow changes 1 and 2 April 2025

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throughout the day. Children in Reception learn to recognise numbers to five and older pupils use their knowledge of number to calculate percentages of amounts and solve mathematical problems. This supports pupils to deepen their understanding.

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In some lessons, teachers check pupils’ understanding and address misconceptions effectively. In these subjects, the school has a clear understanding of what pupils know and can do as they move through the curriculum. However, in a few areas, the school’s approach for checking if pupils have learned and remembered the important subject content are not as secure. This means that some pupils do not build knowledge sequentially and there are gaps in what they know and remember.

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Pupils enjoy reading. They are particularly proud of their well-stocked school library and the wide and diverse range of books available. Pupils talk confidently about their favourite authors, and reading ambassadors delight in the role they hold. Children learn to recognise letters and sounds as soon as they start in Reception Year. They learn to segment and blend sounds to read words and sentences. Staff promptly identify pupils at risk of falling behind with their reading. These pupils receive the extra support they need to keep up and catch up. Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) benefit strongly from the reading programme.

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The school identifies and supports the needs of pupils with SEND well. Most teachers adapt learning well, including providing additional resources to meet pupils’ individual needs. The school ensures that pupils with SEND play an active part in school life and achieve well.

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Pupils have positive attitudes to learning. This begins in Reception Year, where children learn the routines and expectations well. Pupils are keen to succeed and try their best. Almost all pupils attend well. Overall attendance is in line with national averages. Where needed, the school works closely with pupils and their families to improve attendance so that pupils miss less learning and benefit from all that the school offers.

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Pupils learn in an age-appropriate way about important themes such as consent. For example, they understand the importance of personal space and healthy relationships. Pupils celebrate difference. ‘Neurodiversity week’ supports pupils to understand the unique way people’s brains work. Pupils are adamant that everyone is welcome in their happy and inclusive school.

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Pupils are proud of the roles and responsibilities the school provides. House captains, play leaders and school councillors all benefit from developing their leadership roles and confidence. Pupils benefit from the school’s extensive extra-curricular clubs on offer to them, including ‘t-track’, book club and sports clubs. This helps to develop pupils’ interests and talents.

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Skilled governors provide support and challenge to school leaders. Governors take a robust approach to checking that the school’s practice and policy are working well. This helps to shape the priorities that drive continuous improvement. Staff feel valued. They 1 and 2 April 2025

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know that their well-being is carefully considered. Parents and carers are very positive about the school. They appreciate the care and guidance their children receive.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 At times, assessment is not used well enough to check that pupils have remembered the key knowledge that they have been taught. As a result, some pupils have gaps in their knowledge that persist or weakens future learning. The school should ensure that staff use assessment effectively to check what pupils know and remember and use this to inform future learning so that pupils build knowledge sequentially 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.

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Background

This is the third ungraded inspection since we judged the school to be good for overall effectiveness in December 2010. 1 and 2 April 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). 1 and 2 April 2025

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Chair of governing body Sean Dennien and Peter Dodd (co-chairs)

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School details

Dates of previous inspection 5 and 6 February 2020, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The school does not use any 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.  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 school leaders, members of the local governing board and spoke to a representative from the local authority.  The inspector visited a sample of lessons, spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work.  To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding, the inspector: reviewed the single central record; took account of the views of leaders, staff and pupils; and considered 1 and 2 April 2025

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the extent to which the school has created an open and positive culture around safeguarding that puts pupils’ interests first.  The inspector observed pupils’ behaviour in lessons and around the school site. Additionally, the inspector spoke to pupils to discuss their views about the school.  The inspector considered responses to Ofsted’s online survey for parents, Ofsted Parent View, including free-text responses. They also looked at responses to Ofsted’s online staff and pupil surveys.

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Inspection team

Wendy D’Arcy, 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 looked-after children, safeguarding and child protection.

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