Tooting Primary School

Inspection of Tooting Primary School Franciscan Road, Tooting, London SW17 8HE

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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 Jacqueline Wilson. This school is part of Graveney 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), Graham Stapleton, and overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by Ian Parkes. 23 and 24 April 2025

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are happy at this warm and welcoming school and appreciate the strong relationships staff have built. This helps children settle quickly when they start in the reception class. Pupils are polite, curious, and friendly to each other, staff, and visitors to the school. Pupils feel safe because they know how much adults care about them.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school aspires for all its pupils to achieve well. It reviews and refines its approaches constantly to ensure all pupils are challenged to achieve well. Pupils show a keen interest in their learning. They learn the curriculum successfully. Pupils and children in the early years are attentive in lessons and listen carefully to adults and each other.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils live out the school values of ‘kindness, resilience, responsibility and respect.’ At playtimes, the vast majority play together well. Pupils are clear that discrimination is wrong and talk respectfully about people with different views and experiences.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils benefit from a strong personal development programme. They enjoy the wide range of experiences offered by the school, including sports clubs, trips to museums and outdoor learning on Tooting Common. Older pupils are proud of the contribution they make to organise daily activities, which includes roles such as sports leaders and peer mediators.

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

The school provides a broad and engaging curriculum. It is ambitious for all pupils. Recent changes to some subjects in the curriculum are starting to have an impact. For example, pupils undertake practical investigations eagerly to apply their knowledge in science. Learning is enriched through wider opportunities. For instance, in history, pupils take part in drama workshops and visit historical sites. These experiences help them remember what they have learned in the long term. Pupils are immersed in experiences where they hear important words and phrases that are taught to them very well. As a result, pupils can discuss their learning confidently using complex words accurately.

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

The school has taken effective action to ensure that teachers know what to teach and how to deliver it precisely. Teachers appreciate the well-considered training they have received. In the main, teachers check pupils’ understanding well. However, when learning is revisited in some subjects, teachers do not check for emerging gaps in knowledge over time sufficiently. This means that some pupils forget important knowledge.

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

Children receive a positive and nurturing start to their education in the early years. Teachers implement the early years curriculum through a range of experiences that enable pupils to apply what they learn. They learn important reading, mathematics and writing skills, such as how to form letters correctly. Children are well prepared for Year 1.

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

In recent years, the number of pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) has increased. The school has made adaptations to meet this changing need, including introducing a highly adapted curriculum in the resource base. The school works 23 and 24 April 2025

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smartly with external agencies to identify pupils with SEND. These actions help pupils with SEND in the resource base achieve well. The school sets precise targets and actions to inform staff of suitable strategies to support pupils with SEND in the mainstream classrooms. However, this support is not always actioned. As a result, some pupils with SEND struggle to develop the knowledge, skills, and confidence that they need.

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Reading is prioritised. The school wastes no time in teaching pupils how to read. The school’s curriculum for early reading and phonics is embedded securely. Staff teach reading effectively. Staff notice when pupils find a particular sound difficult to learn. Staff make sure that these pupils get extra time to practise these sounds. This builds pupils’ confidence in reading.

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Pupils are polite, show kindness and are keen to learn. When children start in the early years, staff help them to learn the school’s routines swiftly. Pupils say that discrimination does not happen in their school. The school’s work to promote attendance and punctuality is effective. Staff work in partnership with parents and carers to understand the importance of their children arriving promptly and being in school each day. As a result, pupils attend regularly.

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Personal, social, health and economic education is well organised. Pupils learn about relationships, cultures, and faiths. The curriculum helps them know how to stay safe and healthy, including online. Older pupils have an age-appropriate understanding of the many different types of families that exist. Pupils are encouraged to participate in the wide variety of extra-curricular activities and most do.

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Governors and trustees use their expertise well to support and challenge the school effectively. The new leadership team has an accurate and shared understanding of the school’s strengths and priorities. The impact of their considered approach is already evident.

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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, teachers’ checks on prior knowledge are not as effective as they could be. This means pupils can forget important knowledge, which makes it difficult to learn more complex ideas in these subjects. The school should ensure that staff check pupils’ prior knowledge across subjects consistently so that pupils know more and remember more and so can do more.  Sometimes, the teaching and support for pupils with SEND is not matched precisely to their needs and next steps. This means that these pupils do not learn as well as they 23 and 24 April 2025

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could. The school should build on the work they have started to ensure that staff meet the needs of pupils with SEND more precisely.

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How can I feedback 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 feedback 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 23 and 24 June 2015

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Information about this school

 The headteacher and acting deputy headteachers are new to the school since the last inspection.  The school is part of the Graveney Trust.  The school currently uses one registered provider of alternative provision.  The school has a specially resourced provision for pupils with SEND. The provision is for pupils with autistic spectrum disorders.

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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.  Inspectors discussed any continued impact of the pandemic with the school and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  Inspectors held meetings with the headteacher, senior leaders, teachers, and pupils. The lead inspector met with the members of the board of trustees and local governing body, including the chair of trustees.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: early reading, mathematics, science, and history. For each deep dive, inspectors discussed the curriculum with subject leaders, visited a sample of lessons, spoke with teachers, spoke with some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of their work. The lead inspector listened to some pupils read to staff.  Inspectors also considered the curriculum in other subjects.  To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding, the inspectors reviewed the single

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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 took account of a range of other information, including the school’s improvement plans, policies and minutes of governing body meetings.  Inspectors took account of the views of pupils, parents and staff through discussions and their responses to Ofsted’s surveys.

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Inspection team

Sam Johnson, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Kathleen Williams 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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