Dunholme St Chad's Church of England Primary School

Inspection of Dunholme St Chad’s Church of England Primary School Ryland Road, Dunholme, Lincoln, Lincolnshire LN2 3NE

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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 Requires improvement 15 and 16 July 2025

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils at Dunholme St Chad’s Church of England Primary School enjoy coming to school. Staff and pupils live by the school values of ‘open hearts and open minds’. There is a real sense of community here. Pupils are very polite and friendly. They play happily with each other. Relationships between pupils and staff are warm and nurturing. The school is calm and orderly. Pupils at all stages behave well and work hard.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school is ambitious for all pupils. Pupils enjoy learning new knowledge in lessons. They demonstrate mature attitudes to learning. Staff are committed to doing their very best for every pupil. The majority of pupils achieve well.

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What is it like to attend this school?

In assemblies, pupils celebrate what they have achieved both in and out of school. The school provides lots of opportunities for pupils to get involved with community and charity events. Pupils and staff take great pride in collecting food to support local people in need. Pupils take part in clubs, trips and residentials. They also take part in school performances, such as the recent performance of ‘Porridge’. They decide how to improve the school and take action. For example, they raised funds to purchase construction toys for younger pupils. Pupils value responsibility and contributing to the school community.

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

The school has designed a broad and ambitious curriculum. It has identified what pupils need to learn and when they should learn it. In most subjects this is taught well. This means that pupils build a coherent body of knowledge. Teachers use their strong subject expertise to explain clearly and check for understanding. In most subjects, pupils recall key information and link it to what they have learned previously. This is because teachers revisit the most important content. The curriculum makes meaningful links with the local area. For example, pupils remember detailed knowledge about how people affect the environment.

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

In a small number of subjects, pupils’ learning is less secure. They have gaps in their knowledge. This is because some parts of the curriculum are not yet taught in the same depth as others. Leaders have not yet developed an agreed approach to teaching the most important knowledge in these subjects.

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

The school places a high priority on reading. From the start of Reception, pupils learn phonics through a structured programme. All staff receive high-quality training to become experts in early reading. They quickly identify pupils who need extra help and provide immediate support. This helps pupils to become fluent and confident readers. Teachers use age-appropriate books and ask carefully considered questions to teach comprehension. They expect pupils to explain their answers clearly. Pupils enjoy reading.

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

Most pupils achieve well and are well prepared for the next stage in learning. This includes pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Teachers quickly and accurately identify pupils’ needs. Most pupils with SEND follow the same curriculum as their peers. Teachers know pupils well. They adapt lessons and provide additional 15 and 16 July 2025

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resources to support learning. The school works in partnership with families and external agencies to ensure that the needs of pupils with SEND are met.

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Staff employ routines to support good behaviour fairly and consistently. Pupils behave well in lessons. School systems to improve attendance have worked well. The school identifies what the barriers are to attendance for each pupil. They work well with families and external agencies to remove these barriers. Attendance has improved over time.

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There is a purposeful and nurturing learning environment in the early years. Warm relationships between adults and children support positive development. The curriculum builds strong foundations in all areas of learning. Well-planned opportunities for talk deepen learning in the inside and outdoor environments. Children concentrate well on what they are doing. They share their ideas with confidence. They leave Reception ready for future learning.

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Pupils learn important knowledge in their personal, social and health education lessons. They are well prepared for life in modern Britain. Pupils feel well supported. They have an age-appropriate understanding of healthy and unhealthy relationships. They learn how to look after their physical and mental health.

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Staff morale is high. Leaders support them to manage their workload and are considerate of their well-being. Professional development is carefully planned to improve teaching for all pupils. It helps to improve the quality of teaching. Governors understand the school well and fulfil their duties effectively. They provide both challenge and support. Leaders have developed a positive school culture of teamwork and continual improvement. However, the school has not yet developed effective processes to evaluate the impact of the curriculum in some subjects.

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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, the curriculum is not delivered consistently well. As a result, pupils have gaps in their knowledge and do not gain the same depth of understanding as in the other subjects. The school should ensure that all subjects are taught with equal clarity and depth.  In some subjects, the school does not measure the precise impact of the curriculum. This means that leaders cannot accurately identify where further improvements to the curriculum can be made. The school should ensure that there is a comprehensive approach to checking the impact of all curriculum subjects. 15 and 16 July 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). 15 and 16 July 2025

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Dates of previous inspection 17 and 18 January 2023, under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The school does not use any alternative provision.  The headteacher took up their post in September 2023.  This school is a voluntary-controlled Church of England school in the Diocese of Lincoln. Its most recent Statutory Inspection of Anglican and Methodist Schools (SIAMS) took place in June 2023. The school’s next SIAMS inspection is due to take place by June 2028.

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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. 15 and 16 July 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 met with the headteacher and a range of staff.  The lead inspector met with members of the governing board.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: early reading, mathematics, science and geography.  For each deep dive, inspectors held discussions about the curriculum, visited a sample of lessons, spoke to teachers, spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work.  Inspectors also discussed the curriculum, visited lessons and looked at pupils’ work in some other subjects.  To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding, inspectors: reviewed the single central record; took account of the views of leaders, staff and pupils; and considered the

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extent to which the school has created an open and positive culture around safeguarding that puts pupils’ interests first.  The lead inspector listened to pupils read to a familiar adult.  Inspectors observed pupils at breaktime, lunchtime and when moving around the school.  Inspectors spoke to parents and carers and considered the responses to the online survey, Ofsted Parent View, including free-text responses.  Inspectors spoke with pupils and staff to gather their views.  Inspectors also considered the responses to Ofsted’s online surveys for pupils and staff.

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Inspection team

Mark Westmoreland, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Luella Dhoore His Majesty’s Inspector 15 and 16 July 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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