Harehills Primary School

Inspection of a school judged good for overall effectiveness before September 2024: Harehills Primary School Darfield Road, Harehills, Leeds, West Yorkshire LS8 5DQ

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Outcome

Evidence gathered during this ungraded (section 8) inspection suggests that aspects of the school’s work may not be as strong as at the time of the previous inspection. The school’s next inspection will be a graded inspection.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy coming to school. They are safe and happy. Staff have high expectations of pupils’ behaviour. Pupils respond well. They are keen to learn. At social times, pupils get on well together. They enjoy the wide-ranging activities that the school puts on at lunchtime, including music, sports and other games. Some pupils are play leaders. They help everyone to join in. There are many other leadership opportunities in the school, such as roles on the school council and as well-being ambassadors. Pupils are proud to lead. They make a valuable contribution to the life of the school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school has recently begun a journey of improvement. It has identified some important priorities to improve the quality of education and published outcomes. However, this is still in its early stages. There is variability in how well the curriculum is designed and implemented. Pupils’ experiences of the curriculum are inconsistent, which impacts on how well they learn.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school offers a programme of exciting extra-curricular opportunities, including educational visits and visitors coming into school. Pupils visit Malham Cove as part of learning about mountain formations. They handle genuine historical artefacts and learn about the Roman military from a local expert.

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

The curriculum is developing. The school introduced a new mathematics curriculum in January 2025. This provides pupils with more opportunities to apply new knowledge within problem-solving tasks. This is helping to improve how well pupils learn in mathematics. 1 and 2 April 2025

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The school’s approach to teaching reading is also developing. There is a consistent approach to teaching phonics. However, phonics sessions do not give all pupils sufficient practise in sounding out words and blending sounds together to read the words. Some pupils do not learn to read fluently as well as they should. Staff provide pupils with books that match the sounds that they know. The school has recently introduced more opportunities for pupils to read books individually to an adult.

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Staff have begun to receive ongoing training to support them to implement the curriculum. They are starting to use strategies that help pupils learn and remember. However, there is still variability in how effectively the curriculum is implemented. Sometimes, teaching does explain new ideas clearly. Checks on pupils’ learning do not consistently identify gaps in their knowledge or any misconceptions they have. Pupils do not learn as well as they should. Pupils with SEND have mixed experiences of the curriculum. A small number of pupils with more severe or complex needs follow a bespoke curriculum. This curriculum is delivered by highly trained staff and meets pupils’ learning and development needs well. However, for pupils with SEND who study the school’s main curriculum, learning activities are sometimes not well matched to their next steps, which prevents them from moving on quickly.

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Children in the early years are well cared for. Staff have high expectations for children’s behaviour. The positive attitudes seen across school begin to develop in Nursery and Reception. Children usually play well together. Activities are usually purposeful. Staff receive training to help them support pupils to learn new vocabulary. The school continues to strengthen this aspect of its work.

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Relationships between staff and pupils are very positive. Staff celebrate pupils’ contributions to school life and their achievements. Pupils are keen to learn and achieve. Some pupils do not come to school regularly. However, the school has robust processes to improve attendance. It provides effective support for families. This work is highly effective and is leading to a rapid reduction in the number of pupils who are persistently absent.

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The curriculum for pupils’ personal, social and health education (PSHE) is well designed. Pupils learn how to keep safe in the community and online. They learn about different faiths and cultures. Difference is celebrated. Pupils remember learning from PSHE lessons well. They discuss complex topics, such as bullying and managing relationships, with maturity. This is a real strength of the school. There are a range of extra-curricular clubs available, which include cooking, computing, choir and sports. Pupils with SEND participate fully in the wider school community, including taking on leadership roles.

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The school is beginning to draw on the high level of expertise that governors bring. Governors are committed to supporting the school on its journey to improve the quality of education. Governors carry out their statutory duties effectively. Leaders have an accurate overview of aspects of the school that need to be developed. The school has not ensured that subject leadership has the same precision in its approach. This means that the school does not have a clear view of some of the weaknesses in the implementation of the curriculum and where to prioritise further improvement actions. Staff morale is high. They feel well supported and are keen to improve the school. 1 and 2 April 2025

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 There is inconsistency in how well the curriculum is implemented. Too often, the focus is on what pupils are doing rather than what they are learning. This means that pupils do not learn the important knowledge that they need as well as they should. The school should ensure that teachers know what pupils should be learning, and have the knowledge and expertise to explain carefully, and check that knowledge is being understood and retained.  The school’s evaluation of the effectiveness of its curriculum design and implementation, including within core subjects, does not consistently identify areas for improvement. Where this happens, weaknesses in the school’s provision are not addressed quickly. The school must ensure that it has the expertise within subject leadership to ensure that weaker aspects of provision are accurately identified and addressed.  Sometimes, learning activities are not well matched to the needs of pupils with SEND.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

Where this happens, pupils with SEND do not learn as well as they should. The school must ensure that staff have the knowledge to select tasks and activities that consistently enable pupils with SEND to learn and achieve well .

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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 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 second ungraded inspection since we judged the school to be good for overall effectiveness in November 2015.

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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

Dates of previous inspection 13 and 14 November 2019, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 A new headteacher joined the school in September 2024.  A new chair of governors was appointed in August 2024.  The school does not make use of 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. Inspectors discussed the impact of the pandemic with the school and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  Inspectors met with senior leaders, including the headteacher, deputy and assistant headteachers. The lead inspector also met with representatives of the local governing body, including the chair. 1 and 2 April 2025

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 Inspectors visited a sample of lessons, spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work.  An inspector observed pupils reading to a familiar adult.  An inspector spoke to parents and carers as they dropped their children off at the school gate.  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 observed pupils’ behaviour throughout the school day, including during breakfast club, during lesson visits and at breaktime. Inspectors spoke to groups of pupils about their views on behaviour at the school.  Inspectors reviewed the responses received through the Ofsted online questionnaire, Ofsted Parent View, including free-text responses. Inspectors also considered

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responses received through Ofsted’s staff questionnaires.

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Inspection team

Zoe Helman, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Sam O’Brien 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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