Dearham Primary School

Inspection of Dearham Primary School The Went, Dearham, Maryport, Cumbria CA15 7HR

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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 Outstanding

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The headteacher of this school is Samantha Busigny. This school is part of Changing Lives Learning Trust, which means other people in the trust also have responsibility for running the school. The trust is run by the chief executive officer, Judith Schafer, and overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by David Davidson.

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Until November 2020, the school was exempt from routine inspection because it was judged as outstanding for overall effectiveness at its previous inspection under section 5 of the Education Act 2005. The school has not been inspected under section 5 of the Act since December 2012. Since September 2024, schools have not been awarded an overall effectiveness grade. 23 and 24 April 2025

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy coming to school. They know that the school is an important place in their community. Children in the early years love to explore the exciting activities that adults provide for them. Older pupils enjoy playing or chatting with their friends at breaktimes. Pupils of all ages trust staff to take good care of them.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils know that teachers expect them to work hard. For instance, in the early years, children learn to listen carefully. Older pupils complete their work with care. Pupils try their best to live up to the school’s high expectations. They achieve successfully in a broad range of subjects. This includes those pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND).

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What is it like to attend this school?

There are clear rules and routines for pupils’ behaviour. Pupils follow these well. They are polite to staff and to each other. They show respect and courtesy by listening to what others have to say. The school is a calm and orderly place.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils benefit from an exciting programme of activities for their wider development. These include cross-country running, sewing and cookery. Pupils learn about difference and diversity among families and in the wider world. These activities support pupils’ personal development well.

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

Since the last inspection, the school has experienced considerable change in leadership and staffing. This has led to some inconsistencies in provision, especially in the teaching of the mathematics curriculum. There is now greater stability in the school. The school and the trust have taken effective action to improve the ways in which pupils learn mathematics. Unfortunately, this work came too late for pupils in Year 6 in 2024, who did not achieve as well as they should have. However, pupils across the school are now achieving well in mathematics as a result of the improvements that the school has made.

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

Pupils benefit from a curriculum that is broad and ambitious. This curriculum is organised well. Pupils build knowledge in carefully ordered steps from the early years to Year 6. This helps to ensure that in each subject, new knowledge builds logically on what pupils have already learned.

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

Staff make sure that pupils understand new learning. Any misconceptions are corrected swiftly so that pupils can move forward securely to the next learning. In the majority of subjects, the school has a clear overview of the impact of curriculum on pupils’ ability to know more and remember more over time. In a very small number of subjects, work to develop such an insight is at an earlier stage. This limits the school’s ability to make further refinements to the curriculum in these subjects if needed.

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

The school ensures that any pupils who may have SEND are identified quickly. The school communicates effectively with parents and carers and with a range of professionals to secure expert support for these pupils if it is needed. 23 and 24 April 2025

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Staff are adept at making adaptations to enable pupils with SEND to learn the curriculum successfully. Very occasionally, the adaptations that some pupils receive in mathematics do not help them to work as independently as they could. When this happens, it limits the opportunities that these pupils have to try applying their skills in different situations, so that their understanding deepens.

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The school has ensured that reading is at the heart of the curriculum. Children in the Nursery learn to listen carefully for sounds in songs, stories and rhymes. This prepares them well for the phonics programme, which begins at the start of the Reception year. Older pupils develop fluency through the rich range of texts that the school provides. Pupils across the school achieve well in reading, including pupils with SEND.

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Pupils are expected to behave well in lessons, and they do. They listen carefully and try not to distract each other by chatting. This contributes well to their achievement. The school is working successfully to improve pupils’ rates of attendance.

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Through the curriculum, pupils learn important lessons about internet safety. They learn about the qualities of good friendships and relationships. Pupils relish the many opportunities to take on responsibilities such as acting as librarians, school councillors or house captains. These experiences help pupils to prepare for life beyond school.

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Trustees, governors and leaders have an accurate understanding of the school’s strengths and weaknesses. Their successful actions have ensured that pupils, including those with SEND, are provided with a high-quality education. Leaders and trustees have due regard for any impact on staff’s workload and well-being in the decisions that leaders make about the school.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 In a small number of instances, the adaptations that staff make to mathematics learning for some pupils with SEND do not support these pupils to practise their knowledge independently. This limits these pupils’ ability to apply their skills in different situations without help. The school should ensure that staff know how to make adaptations to mathematics learning for pupils with SEND that are consistently effective.  Some subject leaders are new to their roles. Their work to understand the impact of the curriculum in their subjects, including for children with SEND, is at an early stage. This makes it more difficult for them to make any further refinements to teaching or to the curriculum that may be necessary. The school should ensure that subject leaders are fully equipped to understand the impact of the curriculum in their subjects. 23 and 24 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). 23 and 24 April 2025

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School details

Dates of previous inspection 4 and 5 December 2012

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Information about this school

 The school is part of the Changing Lives Learning Trust.  A new headteacher was appointed to the school in January 2024. A new chair and a number of new governors have also been appointed.  The school offers breakfast and after-school care.  The school does not make use of 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. 23 and 24 April 2025

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 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.  The inspectors met with the headteacher, the deputy headteacher and with other members of the leadership team.  The lead inspector met trust leaders, including the chair of trustees, the CEO, the strategic lead for primary schools and the school improvement adviser. She also met with members of the school’s local governing body.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: early reading, mathematics and history. For each deep dive, inspectors discussed the curriculum with subject leaders, visited a sample of lessons, spoke to teachers, spoke to pupils and looked at samples

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of pupils’ work. The lead inspector also listened to some pupils reading to a familiar adult.  Inspectors also spoke to leaders about the curriculum in some other subjects and looked at a range of pupils’ books.  The inspectors considered the views expressed by parents in their responses to Ofsted Parent View. This included free-text comments. The inspectors also chatted to a few parents at the start and end of the school day.  The inspectors considered the responses to Ofsted’s online surveys for staff and for pupils.  The inspectors spoke to some pupils about their experiences of school life.  The inspectors spoke with staff to discuss the school’s support for their workload and well-being.  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

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safeguarding that puts pupils’ interests first.

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Inspection team

Mavis Smith, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Sharon Cliff Ofsted Inspector 23 and 24 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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