Ashby Fields Primary School

Inspection of Ashby Fields Primary School Wimborne Place, Ashby Fields, Daventry, Northamptonshire NN11 0YP

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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 Requires improvement

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The executive headteacher of this school is Rachel Edkins. This school is part of Inspire Multi Academy 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), Helen Williams, and overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by Linda Brooks. 1 and 2 April 2025

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils thrive at this school. They are happy and feel safe. They respond positively to the high expectations of staff. There is a culture of acceptance. Pupils recognise the value of difference and appreciate a variety of people and cultures. The corridors are full of confident, well-mannered pupils who greet each other and staff warmly. Pupils hold the doors open for adults and for each other. Everyone is welcoming and friendly to all.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils behave well in lessons and work well together. At social times, they enjoy organising games and activities that everyone can join in with. Incidents of bullying are very rare.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school’s ambition for every pupil to achieve their potential is beginning to be realised. Pupils are exposed to a vocabulary-rich environment where staff strive to provide high- quality teaching. As a result, pupils achieve well academically and develop their social and emotional resilience.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school provides pupils with meaningful opportunities to help them to grow as individuals. Pupils are supported to attend annual residential trips that are planned carefully to meet the needs of all pupils. There are also a variety of clubs on offer. The school band is especially popular, performing skilfully for parents and carers on special occasions.

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

Effective leadership has ensured that the school has improved the quality of its work since the previous inspection. The school has worked diligently on clear priorities. It provides pupils with a good standard of education. This is reflected in the published information for pupils’ attainment.

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

The school’s curriculum is ambitious and follows the national curriculum closely. Content has been considered carefully to ensure that key knowledge is taught in a logical order. Pupils build on firm foundational knowledge over time. This helps them make strong progress in learning the school’s curriculum.

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

The school supports teachers well to strengthen their subject knowledge and delivery. Teachers identify gaps in pupils’ knowledge quickly and effectively. They provide close support to ensure that pupils can catch up. However, sometimes, teachers do not present information clearly enough in lessons, and the resources they use with pupils are not chosen carefully enough. This can hinder pupils’ learning.

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

In the early years, learning is well thought out and not left to chance. Activities are purposeful, ensuring that children’s experiences connect to future content. Learning to read starts on children’s first days at school. They learn accurate sounds and corresponding letters, and they quickly develop a strong knowledge of phonics. They also 1 and 2 April 2025

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enjoy the many well-thought-out story times that staff provide. As a result of these experiences, children get off to a good start in developing their reading skills.

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Reading continues to be prioritised as pupils move through the school. Any pupils who find reading more difficult are supported well so that they become confident and fluent readers. The school provides valuable information to parents so that they can support their children’s reading at home.

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Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are well supported. Any pupils who have additional needs are identified quickly. Staff make the necessary adaptations to the curriculum so that pupils with SEND can access learning effectively. As a result of this inclusive practice, these pupils make positive progress through the curriculum.

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Pupils are well prepared for life in modern Britain. For example, they learn about tolerance, respect and kindness towards other people. The school ensures that all pupils are accepted and feel included. The safe environment means that pupils move around the school with confidence and growing independence. Pupils enjoy the trust that staff place in them.

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The school provides support to improve the attendance of vulnerable pupils. However, the school does not evaluate the effectiveness of this support to ensure that these pupils and their families are getting the help they need.

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Leaders and staff are proud to be part of the school. They recognise the impact of their hard work on achieving better outcomes for children. Staff feel valued by the school because it cares about their well-being and workload. Close support from the trust has helped the school continue to improve.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 While the curriculum is well-planned, work to ensure that all teachers have the skills to deliver it effectively is ongoing. Sometimes, new information is not presented clearly enough, and curriculum resources are not chosen as well as they could be. This hinders pupils’ learning. The school should ensure that all teachers have the knowledge and expertise necessary to deliver high-quality teaching in all subjects.  The school does not evaluate the effectiveness of some of the support that it provides to vulnerable pupils well enough. As a result, the school does not know what is working well for these pupils and what needs to change. The school should ensure that it has a 1 and 2 April 2025

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full understanding of the effectiveness of the strategies that it uses to support vulnerable pupils, so that it can target its resources in the most impactful way.

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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 14 and 15 June 2022, under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 Ashby Fields Primary School is part of the Inspire Multi Academy Trust.  The school does not use any alternative provision.  The school runs a breakfast and after-school club for pupils who attend 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. 1 and 2 April 2025

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 Inspections are a point-in-time evaluation about the quality of a school’s education provision.  Inspectors met with the executive headteacher, deputy headteachers, curriculum leaders, the leader with responsibility for provision for pupils with SEND, and teaching and support staff.  The lead inspector met with representatives of the multi-academy trust.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in reading, English, mathematics and history. 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 spoke to leaders about the curriculum in other subjects.  Inspectors examined a range of school documents, including the school’s self- evaluation, school improvement plans and documents relating to attendance and behaviour.  To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding, inspectors: reviewed the single central

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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 considered the responses to the Ofsted’s online survey for parents, Ofsted Parent View. They also considered the responses to Ofsted’s staff and pupil surveys.

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Inspection team

Nyree Parker, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Mark Westmoreland Ofsted 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, safeguarding and child protection.

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