Scarborough, Northstead Community Primary School

Store Street Manchester M1 2WD T 0300 123 1231 www.gov.uk/ofsted

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Shaun Hopper Headteacher Scarborough, Northstead Community Primary School Maple Drive Scarborough North Yorkshire YO12 6LP

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Northstead Community Primary School

This letter sets out the findings from the monitoring inspection that took place on 5 June 2025, on behalf of His Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Education, Children’s Services and Skills. The monitoring inspection was carried out under section 8(2) of the Education Act 2005 and took place because the school meets the monitoring threshold as set out in the Monitoring Inspection Handbook .

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Northstead Community Primary School

The purpose of a monitoring inspection is not to grade the school’s key and (where applicable) provision judgements, but to identify and report on the school’s progress. It is to highlight to the school and parents any improvements that school leaders have made since the school’s previous graded inspection.

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Northstead Community Primary School

During the inspection, I discussed with you, other senior leaders and the local authority the actions that have been taken to improve the school since the most recent graded inspection. We discussed the ongoing impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. I also met with staff, pupils and local governors. In addition, I carried out lesson visits, discussed curriculum plans with some curriculum leaders, looked at a sample of pupils’ work and scrutinised the school’s plans for improvement. I have considered all this in coming to my judgement.

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Main findings

Since the last inspection, the senior leadership roles are more established. This has helped to embed a clear strategic direction. Staff at all levels are united in their commitment to improving outcomes for pupils. You have taken credible steps to strengthen curriculum design, improve assessment practice and build subject leadership capacity.

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Main findings

The school has prioritised the development and design of the curriculum. It is now more ambitious. Teachers have a clearer understanding of how learning builds over time. In most subjects, the school has identified the important knowledge and skills that pupils need to learn and when. Pupils are beginning to benefit from this improvement. However, in some subjects, the benefit is not as advanced. This means teaching is not as effective in a small number of subjects to help pupils make links across their learning and develop depth of knowledge.

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Main findings

You have continued to ensure reading is of a high priority. The changes made to the reading and writing curriculum support pupils to develop better writing and comprehension skills. Pupils are enthusiastic about their learning in these lessons, in particular. The impact of this is evident in the progress made to improve outcomes for pupils across the school. This is an improving picture. However, the impact of the school’s actions to support key pupil groups has yet to impact on their learning.

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Main findings

The school has developed the way checks on pupils’ understanding identify how ready they are to move on to new learning or different activities. These improvements mean that misconceptions are beginning to be spotted and addressed before they become embedded. However, there remains inconsistency in how these checks inform teaching. The school has introduced more robust assessment of pupils’ long-term recollection of knowledge. This system is identifying gaps in what pupils remember and to inform future adaptions to the curriculum. However, as the system is in its infancy, the impact is yet to be fully realised.

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Main findings

Attendance remains an area of focus for the school. The school’s actions to help pupils attend school more often have yet to raise attendance enough. This work is ongoing.

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Main findings

The school has benefited from the support provided by the local authority and a range of external partners. You have valued the support and challenge from a local trust. Staff appreciate the collaborative work with a group of local primary schools to develop their pedagogical knowledge and expertise, with a particular focus on adaptive teaching.

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Main findings

I am copying this letter to the chair of the board of governors, the Department for Education’s regional director and the director of children’s services for North Yorkshire. This letter will be published on the Ofsted reports website. Yours sincerely

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