Stokesley Primary Academy

Inspection of a school judged good for overall effectiveness before September 2024: Stokesley Primary Academy 5 Springfield, Stokesley, Middlesbrough TS9 5EW

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Outcome

Stokesley Primary Academy has taken effective action to maintain the standards identified at the previous inspection.

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Outcome

The principal of this school is Janet Madden. This school is part of The Enquire 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 (CEO), Darren Holmes, and overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by Delyse Turrell.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are proud of their school. They relish the plentiful opportunities on offer to be involved in the wider life of the school, for example growing vegetables in the new polytunnels to reduce the school’s carbon footprint. Pupils enjoy helping others to make their school a better place.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils show kindness to each other. They reflect the school rules of ‘ready, respectful and safe’ extremely well. Pupils feel safe because they know that staff will help them when they have worries. In lessons, pupils cooperate with each other to overcome challenges. They delight in the success of others.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Staff skilfully provide support to any pupil who may need help to manage strong emotions. Pupils appreciate this support. Behaviour in lessons is settled, enabling pupils to concentrate well. Pupils understand that it is important to attend school to work hard and try your best. Most pupils aspire to this and achieve well, particularly in English and mathematics.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school prepares pupils, both personally and academically, for life beyond the school extremely well. Pupils enjoy engaging in activities in the local community, such as singing and running a coffee morning in the local town hall. Pupils understand the importance of being active citizens. 23 and 24 April 2025

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

Since the last inspection, there have been many changes in staff. The school has taken appropriate action to improve the education offer. As a result of this positive work, most pupils now learn and achieve well.

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

With support from leaders in the trust, the school has worked diligently to make improvements to the curriculum and approaches to teaching, as seen in the school’s published outcomes. The curriculum identifies the specific knowledge that pupils must learn. Teaching approaches support pupils to remember important knowledge. Any gaps in knowledge in English and mathematics are addressed before new learning is introduced. For example, pupils recall multiplication tables in mathematics before tackling complex problems later.

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

The school has strengthened its approach to teaching pupils to read. Staff have expertise in teaching the phonics programme. The school ensures a consistent approach to teaching. Children in Reception make a strong start by learning the letters and the sounds they make. This helps children to read words. Those who struggle to read receive effective support.

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

Staff regularly check pupils’ understanding of the curriculum, which provides them with clear information about how well pupils are learning. However, in some subjects, assessment is not used as precisely as it could be to identify the gaps in pupils’ knowledge prior to teaching. Occasionally, some pupils are not ready to learn new content, which hinders pupils from achieving highly across the whole curriculum.

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

In the early years, children follow routines well. They play happily together. Children are supported effectively to learn the knowledge and skills that they need to prepare them for future learning, this includes the provision for two-year-olds. There is a strong focus on oracy and language development. Children enjoy singing songs and saying rhymes together. This helps children to remember new vocabulary.

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

The school works effectively with external professionals, such as educational psychologists, to identify and assess the needs of pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Pupils who access the resourced provision receive support and teaching that is specific to their individual needs. Pupils with SEND get the help they need to achieve well from their starting points.

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

Attendance is a high priority in the school. Most pupils attend often and on time. The school tailors support for families to ensure that pupils attend school. Leaders at all levels show diligence in working to improve the attendance of pupils who are persistently absent. This work is helping to reduce absence. Nevertheless, leaders acknowledge that there is more to be done to improve the attendance of some pupils.

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

The school ensures that pupils benefit from a wide range of activities to prepare them for life beyond the school. Older pupils enjoy the responsibility of taking on leadership roles, such as being reading buddies for younger pupils. Pupils enjoy the range of clubs on offer 23 and 24 April 2025

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which include tag rugby and football. The school works particularly well with a local secondary school to ensure that pupils are prepared for transition to Year 7. Activities include pupils participating in a range of sports.

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The school and trust work extremely well together to maintain the school’s motto of ‘collaboration, achievement, respect and empathy’. A dedicated team spirit exists in the school. The trust and the academy improvement committee understand the school’s priorities. They offer effective support and challenge to improve the quality of education for all pupils.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 In a few subjects, teachers do not know the precise gaps in pupils’ knowledge before they introduce new content. This means that in these subjects teachers do not identify and address gaps in pupils’ knowledge until the point of teaching. This hinders some pupils’ progress through the curriculum. Consequently, pupils do not achieve as well as they could. The school should ensure that assessment is used to support teachers to understand gaps and inform next steps in learning.  Attendance for some pupils is too low. This means that these pupils miss important learning over time and develop gaps in their knowledge and skills. The school should continue its work with families and other stakeholders to remove barriers to regular attendance.

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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, 23 and 24 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 second ungraded inspection since we judged the predecessor school, Stokesley Community Primary School, to be good for overall effectiveness in October 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). 23 and 24 April 2025

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School details

Dates of previous inspection 2 and 3 October 2019, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The school is part of The Enquire Learning Trust.  The school has a provision for two-year-olds.  The school has a specially resourced provision for pupils with SEND. This is a social, emotional, mental health (SEMH) hub for eight pupils from the local area, funded by the local authority.  There have been several changes in staffing since the last inspection, including the principal, who took up post in September 2022.  The school does not use any alternative providers.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspections are a point-in-time evaluation about the quality of a school’s education provision. 23 and 24 April 2025

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 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 her evaluation of the school.  The inspector held meetings with the principal and vice-principal. In addition, the inspector met with members of the academy improvement committee, including the chair. The inspector also met with the CEO and the trust school improvement lead and spoke online with the chair of the board of trustees.  The inspector visited a sample of lessons, spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work.  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 the extent to which the school has created an open and positive culture around safeguarding that puts pupils’ interests first.

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 The inspector observed pupils’ behaviour in lessons and at social times.  The responses to Ofsted’s online survey for parents and carers, Ofsted Parent View, were reviewed. This included any free-text responses. The responses to staff and pupil questionnaires were also considered.  The inspector spoke to some parents and carers at the end of the school day.

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Inspection team

Kathryn McDonald, lead inspector His Majesty’s 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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