Woodbridge Primary School

Inspection of Woodbridge Primary School Wilkinson Way, Woodbridge, Suffolk IP12 1SS

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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 Good 29 and 30 April 2025

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy coming to school. They feel safe, are keen to learn and attend well. The school’s learning characteristics, called the 7Cs, include curiosity, confidence and craftmanship. Pupils strive to develop these every day.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy learning an interesting curriculum. This includes carefully chosen trips and visitors. For example, a recent trip supported pupils’ learning about recycling and water safety. Pupils appreciate that these opportunities help to bring their learning to life.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school has high expectations for pupils’ learning and behaviour. Pupils achieve well. Staff have a consistent approach to supporting pupils’ behaviour. This has a positive impact. In class, pupils listen carefully to each other and to the staff. At playtimes, they play well together. They are kind and polite.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy taking part in local community events such as the ‘Fish-Friendly Fireworks Project’. They feel proud having decorated a hare for the local hospice trail ‘Hop to It!’ Pupils take part in a range of clubs, including tennis, yoga and football. They also get the chance to participate in performances such as dance festivals. This helps them to develop their confidence and learn new skills. Year 6 pupils talk enthusiastically about their residential to Derbyshire. These activities help them to develop their self-esteem and resilience.

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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 effectively and improved. This work has proved fruitful. There is now an ambitious and broad curriculum in place for all subjects. This sets out clearly what pupils need to learn from the Nursery Year through to Year 6. Teachers have strong subject knowledge. The curriculum is taught well. In most subjects, pupils are able to talk confidently about what they are learning. However, in some subjects, pupils find it more difficult to talk about how what they are learning currently links to what they learned previously. This is because, in these subjects, the school has not identified the important concepts that pupils need to know over time.

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

The needs of pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are accurately identified. Appropriate support is put in place for pupils when necessary. Staff provide appropriate extra support to ensure pupils with SEND can access the curriculum. Pupils with SEND make positive progress. Leaders recognise that they could do more to improve the information they share with parents and carers of pupils with SEND. For example, they are working to improve the way targets are written in pupils’ personalised plans.

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

Reading is a high priority. Pupils enjoy the daily ‘drop everything and read’ sessions, where teachers read to the class. An established phonics programme is in place. This starts in the Nursery Year, where children are taught to listen and blend sounds effectively. Staff deliver the programme with confidence. Younger pupils are taught the skills they need to become fluent readers. Regular checks mean pupils receive the extra 29 and 30 April 2025

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support they need to catch up with reading if they fall behind. Books are carefully matched to pupils’ reading ability. Older pupils read widely and are enthusiastic readers.

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In subjects such as reading, teachers make effective use of the information they get from checking what pupils know. They use this to inform what they teach next. However, in some other subjects, teachers are not as effective in checking what pupils know to inform their next steps in learning. Some pupils may have gaps in their learning that are not addressed effectively.

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Children make a strong start in the early years. Staff know the children well. Children have opportunities to learn important skills such as counting, reading and forming letters, which help prepare them well for Year 1. They enjoy learning songs and rhymes. Children practise and apply their skills both inside and outside the classroom through a range of carefully planned activities. These are often linked to a theme of learning. For example, children eagerly labelled the main events in the story ‘The Hungry Caterpillar’ with great success. They show a real enthusiasm for learning.

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Leaders have created a culture of respect that celebrates differences. This contributes well to pupils’ positive and respectful behaviour. The comprehensive personal, social and health education curriculum helps pupils develop an understanding of their feelings and emotions. They learn about relationships and how to keep themselves safe online and in the local community. Older pupils learn about Parliament and citizenship. These experiences help them to learn about life beyond school.

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Staff say that they are proud to work here. The governing body knows the school well. It understands the strengths and areas for development.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 In some subjects, the school has not mapped out the important concepts pupils need to know. This means pupils can find it difficult to make connections in their learning over time. The school should ensure that the curriculum for all subjects identifies the important knowledge pupils need to know and ensure it is taught well.  In some subjects, teachers do not use assessment well to inform their teaching, address gaps in pupils’ knowledge and inform future learning. This means that pupils do not learn as well as they could. The school should ensure that teachers use assessment information effectively across all subjects to inform their teaching so that it helps pupils build a deep body of knowledge over time. 29 and 30 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). 29 and 30 April 2025

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Website www.woodbridgeprimary.suffolk.sch.uk

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School details

Dates of previous inspection 11 and 12 October 2023, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005.

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Information about this school

 The headteacher was appointed in September 2024.  The school does not use any alternative provision.

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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.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspections are a point-in-time evaluation about the quality of a school’s educational provision.  Inspectors discussed any continued impact of the pandemic with the school and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  The inspectors met with the headteacher, senior staff, members of the governing body, 29 and 30 April 2025

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including the chair, and a representative from the local authority.  The inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: early reading, art and design, 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. The inspectors also looked at a sample of pupils’ work across year groups and listened to a selection of pupils reading to an adult.  To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding, the 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.  The inspectors considered the views of staff through Ofsted’s staff survey. The inspectors also gathered the views of a range of staff and pupils through meetings and

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discussions conducted throughout the inspection.  The inspectors considered the responses to the Ofsted online survey, Ofsted Parent View, including the free-text comments.

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Inspection team

Heather Hann, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector

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Inspection team

Ashley Best-White Ofsted Inspector 29 and 30 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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