Kings Road Primary School

Inspection of a school judged good for overall effectiveness before September 2024: Kings Road Primary School Kings Road, Chelmsford, Essex CM1 2BB

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Outcome

Kings Road Primary School has taken effective action to maintain the standards identified at the previous inspection.

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Outcome

The head of school of this school is Karen Riches. This school is part of The Brickfields 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), Hayley O’Dea, and overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by Sarah Threadgold.

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What is it like to attend this school?

This is a school that is deeply invested in its vision of helping pupils to become ‘learners for life’. Pupils, including the youngest children in Reception Year, experience a broad curriculum, including well-planned trips and visits, such as the regular geography fieldwork. Pupils rise to the school’s high expectations about what they can achieve. Most pupils are enthusiastic learners who learn and achieve well.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils value their school community. They appreciate how staff work hard to create a rich range of extra-curricular opportunities. Many pupils take part in after-school clubs or the competitive sports programme. Other pupils enjoy opportunities in public speaking or singing competitions, such as Young Voices. Many pupils take on increasing roles and responsibilities, such as being attendance champions, members of the school council, eco- warriors, running lunchtime clubs or supporting younger pupils in Reception. One pupil said, ‘Staff enjoy seeing the joy on our faces.’

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils know staff will listen to them and help them with any worries they have. Pupils value how caring the staff are. Relationships are kind and respectful. Pupils are polite and courteous. Where a small number of pupils need help to manage their behaviour, they are supported incredibly well by staff. 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 previous inspection, the school has worked well to enhance, broaden and improve pupils’ experience of the curriculum across all subjects. The curriculum is reviewed and adapted to prioritise pupils’ best interests. Typically, teachers deliver the intended curriculum very effectively, including in the teaching of phonics and early reading. Staff identify and provide high-quality, focused support for pupils who are struggling or need extra help, including pupils who join the school mid-way through the year. This starts with the youngest children. As a result, pupils are very well supported to learn to read quickly and fluently.

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

Most staff check routinely for gaps in pupils’ understanding and resolve any misunderstandings quickly. They help pupils to acquire new knowledge and skills and apply their learning in increasingly complex ways. However, some staff focus on the completion of activities rather than helping pupils to understand the concepts taught. As a result, sometimes pupils do not develop the knowledge and understanding in some areas of the curriculum.

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

The school identifies and supports the needs of pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). It seeks specialist support to further enhance its work and provide ongoing high-quality training for staff, for instance, in developing their understanding of pupils’ speech, language and communication needs. Most pupils with SEND are well supported and learn effectively.

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

The school has improved the quality of the youngest children’s experiences in the Reception Year significantly. Well-trained staff deliver a mix of planned and play activities that support children to develop their early language, communication, reading and writing skills effectively. Well-established routines help children to settle quickly and become increasingly independent. Children flourish and, by the end of Reception, are well ready for Year 1.

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

Pupils learn in an age-appropriate way about a range of important issues through their personal, social, health and economic education curriculum. For example, they learn about the importance of healthy lifestyles, mental well-being, relationships and safety, including online. Pupils engage with the wide range of exercise and sports equipment that they can access at breaktimes and lunchtimes. A significant proportion of pupils, including those from disadvantaged backgrounds, enjoy the array of sporting and exercise clubs and competitive sporting events.

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

The school has worked tenaciously since the previous inspection to continue to bring about improvements in the daily experience and well-being of pupils. The school has invested in a range of additional programmes of support for pupils’ well-being and social development through their family inclusion and support worker and the social, emotional, mental health mentor. The school’s work helps to remove issues that hinder pupils attending or accessing learning. As a result, attendance is improving notably and sustainably year-on-year. 1 and 2 April 2025

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A high proportion of parents, carers, pupils and staff are effusive in their praise for the development and work of the school. Most staff say that the school is considerate of their well-being and workload and manages changes well.

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The school and trustees are working well to develop systems for evaluating the school’s work. However, aspects of the school’s monitoring are less precisely developed. For example, some subject leaders do not have a sharp oversight of how well pupils are learning their areas of responsibility. Some monitoring of behaviour does not provide the school with helpful information related to low-level behaviours.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 In some lessons, staff do not check how well pupils have acquired or applied their learning. As a result, some pupils who need extra help find work too hard, or some who are ready to apply their learning in more complex ways find it too easy. The school should ensure that staff are equipped to check pupils’ learning routinely and support pupils to learn effectively.  In some areas, the school does not have a precise overview of the impact of its actions. As a result, it is unable to fully evaluate the difference that it is making. The school, including through governance arrangements, should ensure that all aspects of its work are evaluated effectively so that it can identify where it can be more effective and build on the strengths that already exist.

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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, 1 and 2 April 2025

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behaviour or the quality of education, we will deem the ungraded inspection a graded inspection immediately.

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This is the first ungraded inspection since we judged the school to be good for overall effectiveness in January 2020.

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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 16 and 17 January 2020, 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 runs its own breakfast and after-school club.  The school was previously part of the Hera Academy Trust. In September 2023, the Hera Primary Academy Trust merged with The Brickfields Trust. The school became part of the Brickfields Trust on the same date.

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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. 1 and 2 April 2025

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 The inspector met with the head of school, the deputy headteacher, a range of leaders, staff and pupils.  The inspector met with the CEO and representatives from the trust, including the chair of trustees.  The inspector visited a sample of lessons, spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work.  The inspector reviewed the responses to Ofsted’s survey for pupils. To gather evidence about pupils’ experiences, the inspector observed them at different times during the school day and met with groups of pupils across year groups.  The inspector considered the views of parents submitted via the online survey, Ofsted Parent View, including free-text comments. They also reviewed the responses to Ofsted’s survey for school staff.  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

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the extent to which the school has created an open and positive culture around safeguarding that puts pupils’ interests first.

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Inspection team

Kim Pigram, lead inspector 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 children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

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