Gastrells Community Primary School

Inspection of Gastrells Community Primary School Kingscourt Lane, Stroud, Gloucestershire GL5 3PS

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The quality of education Requires improvement Behaviour and attitudes Good Personal development Good Leadership and management Requires improvement Early years provision Good Previous inspection grade Requires improvement 17 and 18 June 2025

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What is it like to attend this school?

Gastrells is an inclusive school, which cares deeply for its pupils. It provides a calm and nurturing environment. The school motto ‘PRIDE’, which includes ‘positivity, respect and inclusivity’, shines through in pupils and adults alike. Pupils enjoy school, feel safe and attend regularly.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Many pupils who attend this school face some challenges with their learning. The school is ambitious for every pupil to achieve well. However, the quality of education is not yet good. In some subjects, learning has not been designed well enough to enable pupils to gain a deep body of knowledge. In these subjects, the school does not have rigorous systems in place to check how well pupils remember the knowledge they have been taught. This means pupils’ recall of prior learning can be insecure.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school has high expectations for pupils’ behaviour. Pupils behave well during lessons and social times. They demonstrate high levels of respect and kindness towards one another. They understand the consequences of poor behaviour.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Provision for pupils’ wider personal development is a strength. Pupils value the rich and varied opportunities on offer. These help to develop their skills and interests in many areas, such as music, art and sports.

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

The school wants all pupils to experience success and achieve well across the curriculum. There is evidence that the school has addressed some of the areas of improvement identified at the time of the last inspection, for example, in aspects of curriculum design. However, the pace of improvement has not been sufficient to ensure pupils receive a good quality of education overall. In some subjects, pupils are unclear of what they have learned. The school does not make the necessary checks to ensure pupils have secured the knowledge they need across all subjects. This means that pupils cannot recall essential knowledge, which makes it difficult to build on prior learning.

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

Leaders prioritise reading. From the start of the Reception Year, teachers know which sounds children need to learn each week. Books match pupils’ phonic knowledge. This enables pupils to build their reading fluency well and a love for reading. Teachers make careful checks to identify pupils who need extra help. This helps pupils to catch up and keep up. As a result, pupils become fluent readers.

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

The school has clear processes for identifying pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). The school monitors, evaluates and reviews support to check if pupils’ needs are being met. The school is aware that the improvements needed in the quality of education, overall, are the same for these pupils.

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

Pupils who attend the communication and interaction centre are very much part of the Gastrells family. These pupils receive bespoke provision and support to help them to achieve success in their learning. 17 and 18 June 2025

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Children in the early years get off to a good start. The curriculum builds children’s knowledge and skills well, including in early reading, writing and mathematics. Clear routines help children settle to learning quickly. Children learn new ideas and vocabulary through well-thought-out learning. Adults keep a close eye on what children learn. They adapt their teaching so that children receive the right support.

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The personal, social, health and economic education curriculum is carefully considered. Pupils are taught the knowledge that they need to lead healthy and successful lives. They talk with confidence about the importance of staying safe when online and how to manage their emotions. Pupils are prepared well for the next stage of their education.

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The provision for pupils’ personal development is a strength of the school. The school provides pupils with a wealth of experiences, such as campouts and class sleepovers. Such opportunities develop pupils’ perseverance and resilience, alongside team and leadership skills. Trips to museums and the theatre are a firm favourite with pupils. There are a wealth of clubs, which include crochet, dance and music. Pupils value the rich and varied opportunities available. Clubs are inclusive to all pupils and are well attended.

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Staff are proud to work at the school. They feel valued and respected. Staff welcome the support and consideration of leaders to manage their workload and well-being. Many governors are new since the last inspection. They have a secure understanding of the school’s effectiveness. Governors recognise that the pace of improvement needs to quicken to ensure all pupils have access to a good quality of education.

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Parents have mixed views of the school. A few are unhappy. However, other parents have confidence in Gastrells. Parents welcome the ‘abundance of creativity and sports’ on offer to their children and the ‘nurturing and kind environment’.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

The school keeps pupils safe. It responds promptly to support pupils in need of help. Staff carry out the required checks on the suitability of staff to work with pupils. Leaders provide a curriculum that teaches pupils to understand risk, including healthy relationships and how to stay safe online. Pupils know that adults will listen to them if they have any worries. However, sometimes, records do not reflect the actions that leaders have taken. This could lead to vital information being missed. 17 and 18 June 2025

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 The school has not designed learning well enough in some subjects to enable pupils to gain the depth and fluency of knowledge they need. This means that pupils cannot remember the key knowledge taught across these subjects. The school must ensure that all components are consistently in place so that the knowledge pupils need is connected.  In some subjects, the school has not established rigorous systems to check how well pupils remember the knowledge they have been taught. As a result, pupils’ recall of prior learning can be insecure in these subjects. The school needs to ensure assessment is used effectively in order to check what pupils know and remember across these subjects.  Staff respond to safeguarding concerns swiftly. However, sometimes, records do not reflect the actions that leaders have taken. Therefore, the school could miss recording vital information. The school needs to make sure that all records clearly and consistently

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

demonstrate the action which is taken in response to any safeguarding concerns.

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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). 17 and 18 June 2025

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Website www.gastrellsprimaryschool.co.uk

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School details

Dates of previous inspection 12 and 13 October 2022, under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 There is a specialist communication and interaction centre within Gastrells School called Merlins. All pupils who attend the centre have an education, health and care plan. Pupils are placed at the setting by their representative local authorities.  The schools uses three registered and one unregistered 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 education provision. 17 and 18 June 2025

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 Inspectors discussed any continued impact of the pandemic with the school and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  Inspectors met with the headteacher, deputy headteacher and wider staff.  The lead inspector met with members of the board of governors, including the chair.  Inspectors held telephone conversations with two officers from Gloucestershire local authority.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: English, mathematics and art. For each deep dive, the 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 lead inspector listened to some pupils from Year 1, 2 and 3 read to an adult. She heard other pupils from across the school read.  Inspectors sampled pupils’ work in science, history and geography.  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; considered the extent to which the school has created an open and positive culture around safeguarding that puts pupils’ interests first.  Inspectors considered key documentation, including the school’s self-evaluation, the school improvement plan and governors’ minutes.  Inspectors observed pupils’ behaviour in lessons and around the school site. An inspector met with school leaders to discuss and review how they respond to behaviour incidents and pupils’ attendance.  Inspectors considered the responses to the staff and pupil surveys and the online survey, Ofsted Parent View, including parents’ free-text comments.

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Inspection team

Jen Southall, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Gary Richards Ofsted Inspector 17 and 18 June 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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