Great Alne Primary School

Inspection of Great Alne Primary School School Road, Great Alne, Alcester, Warwickshire B49 6HQ

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The quality of education Requires improvement Behaviour and attitudes Requires improvement Personal development Requires improvement Leadership and management Requires improvement Previous inspection grade Inadequate 15 and 16 July 2025

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What is it like to attend this school?

There have been recent changes to school leadership. New leaders are rapidly improving this small school and the impact of their work is positive to see. However, they recognise that many areas of the school still require further improvement.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Relationships between pupils and staff are positive. Many pupils trust staff. In classes, pupils try to support one another. When they speak to adults, pupils are proud of their school and talk about school visits with excitement. They spoke with enthusiasm about trips to a forest school and a Sikh Gurdwara. Most pupils in the school know the values of respect, responsibility and are ready to learn.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school has started to raise expectations of what pupils can achieve. Where they have done so, pupils achieve well. Lessons are delivered with care and thought. Pupils enjoy learning and are eager to find out new facts and information. Adaptations are planned for pupils that need them, particularly those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). However, sometimes teachers do not adapt lessons well enough. This leads to variability. As a result, some pupils achieve less than they should.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Attendance at the school is low. The school is working to address this issue and have clear strategies in place. However, it is too early to see the impact of this work. Many pupils are absent too often. This hinders their academic achievement.

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

Pupils generally feel happy and safe at Great Alne. They are polite and consider one another in lessons and on the playground. The school has recently introduced a clear behaviour system. However, the school has not ensured that this is applied fairly or consistently. Some pupils disengage from lessons and so do not learn as well as they should.

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

The curriculum is under development. The school has focused on the key knowledge pupils should learn and in what order. The school has put in place a comprehensive training programme to improve teaching. This is giving teachers the confidence to make the appropriate choices in how to deliver the curriculum effectively. In most lessons, teachers use subject specific vocabulary accurately. However, teachers do not regularly pick up or address pupils’ misconceptions or common errors. This means that pupils are not secure in their knowledge and often have gaps in their learning. As a result, pupils struggle to build their learning over time.

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

The school has suitable processes in place to identify pupils with SEND. Staff adapt the delivery of the curriculum for pupils that need additional support. In most lessons, adaptations are purposeful, and pupils are supported well. However, some of the support provided for pupils with SEND does not take account of their identified needs. 15 and 16 July 2025

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Staff have the skills and expertise to effectively deliver the phonics programme. Younger pupils develop a love of reading through the books, rhymes and songs that staff share with them. Staff are alert to any pupils who may need extra help to learn the sounds and the letters that they represent. Staff act swiftly to ensure that pupils receive well-tailored and effective support. The books chosen match carefully to the sounds that pupils know. As a result, most pupils, by the time that they are in Year 2, have developed into fluent and confident readers.

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School leaders have recently prioritised attendance at school. They are aware of pupils’ attendance data and seek to improve it. They identify why pupils are absent and seek to support families to return to school. Significant impact is being made for some pupils. Nevertheless, attendance remains stubbornly low.

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The school has a renewed focus on the personal development of pupils. Most pupils can discuss fairness and equality with interest and thought. They understand about discrimination being wrong and can give examples, such as racism and sexism. However, some older pupils have received a previously weaker experience and have not learned about differences that may exist in our society. As a result, they are not prepared well enough for life in modern Britain.

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Governors are aware of, and now fulfil, their statutory duties. They challenge and support the school and have been instrumental in bringing about this period of stability. Governors care about the school and are steadfast in continuing the school’s improvement journey.

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The school is working to improve its relationship with parents and carers. Many parents are positive about the school and can see the improvements that have begun to take effect. However, a significant minority of parents have lost faith in the school over time. As a result, there is still much work to do to repair the fractured relationships that remain.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Attendance is low with many pupils persistently absent. This negatively impacts on pupils’ learning over time. The school should identify and act upon pupils’ and families’ barriers to attending school to ensure that pupils attend regularly and on time.  Adaptions for pupils with SEND are not always followed through. As a result, some provision for pupils with SEND does not meet pupils’ needs well enough. The school should improve the delivery and quality of adaptions to the curriculum so that pupils with SEND learn as well as they should. 15 and 16 July 2025

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 Staff do not consistently identify errors or misconceptions in pupil’s learning. This means that pupils’ misconceptions can persist and hinders their ability to build knowledge well. The school should implement a consistent approach to the checking of pupils’ work, so that staff address any errors or misconceptions promptly and effectively.  Staff do not consistently apply the school’s behaviour policy. Pupils are, therefore, unclear about the expectations and rewards. The school should ensure the behaviour policy is applied consistently so that pupils behave well in lessons and at social times.  The school’s personal development offer does not provide a wide and rich range of experiences for pupils. This means some pupils do not understand key concepts, such as the fundamental British values and protected characteristics. The school should ensure that pupils have the opportunity to learn all that they should to prepare them

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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 pupils 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 pupils (pupils in local authority care) and/or pupils who left care through adoption or another formal route). 15 and 16 July 2025

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School details

Dates of previous inspection 26 and 27 November 2024, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 At the time of the inspection, the headteacher was absent and an acting headteacher was responsible for the running of the school. The acting headteacher had been in post for seven weeks.  The school does not currently use any alternative provision for pupils.  The school provides a before- and after-school club.

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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). 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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In accordance with section 13(4) of the Education Act 2005, His Majesty’s Chief Inspector is of the opinion that the school no longer requires special measures.

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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 members of the local governing board. They held meetings with the executive headteacher, the acting headteacher, school leaders, teachers and pupils. They met with a representative from the local authority. They also talked informally to pupils and staff to gather general information about school life.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: early reading, mathematics and history. 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. They also looked at other subjects to check how they are planned and taught.

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 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 extent to which the school has created an open and positive culture around safeguarding that puts pupils’ interests first.  Inspectors reviewed a range of school documents. These included information about behaviour, attendance, the school curriculum and improvement planning. The school’s website was also checked.  Inspectors observed informal times of the day to evaluate safeguarding and pupils’ behaviour.  Inspectors considered responses to the online survey, Ofsted Parent View, and free-text comments.

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Inspection team

Rob Matthews, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Vanessa Payne Ofsted Inspector 15 and 16 July 2025

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achieve excellence in the care of pupils 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 pupils looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

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