Bishop Cornish CofE VA Primary School

Bishop Cornish CofE VA Primary School

Address: Lynher Drive, Saltash, Cornwall, PL12 4PA Unique reference number (URN): 112034

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Safeguarding standards met

The safeguarding standards are met. This means that leaders and/or those responsible for governance and oversight fulfil their specific responsibilities and have established an open culture in which safeguarding is everyone's responsibility and concerns are actively identified, acted upon and managed. As a result, pupils are made safer and feel safe.

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How we evaluate safeguarding

When we inspect schools for safeguarding, they can have the following outcomes:

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How we evaluate safeguarding

Met: The school has an open and positive culture of safeguarding. All legal requirements are met. Not met: The school has not created an open and positive culture of safeguarding. Not all legal requirements are met.

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Personal development and wellbeing Strong standard

The school's personal development programme supports pupils' welfare very effectively. Pupils learn about factors that have an impact on their mental health and how to overcome them. Leaders work in partnership with external professionals to ensure pupils are equipped with the skills they need to maintain positive mental health. When needed, leaders put targeted interventions in place to help individual pupils to be ready for learning in the classroom. For example, some pupils benefit from music therapy sessions.

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Personal development and wellbeing Strong standard

Leaders use assemblies to provide rich opportunities for pupils to build their ability to reflect and understand matters within the wider world. Pupils appreciate values such as individual liberty and talk with confidence about every individual being unique and valued. Pupils develop a detailed understanding of the importance of being treated fairly and of healthy relationships.

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Personal development and wellbeing Strong standard

Leaders use important aspects of pupils' personal development to enrich pupils’ learning. Pupils develop a secure sense of pride in belonging to the school community through their fundraising events in aid of charity. They plan and organise events as part of their enterprise work, which enhances their economic understanding. Pupils enjoy celebrating their talents and interests in Friday assemblies when their academic and personal achievements are also rewarded.

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Personal development and wellbeing Strong standard

Pupils gain an age-appropriate awareness of safety through the curriculum. They learn how to stay safe online, including through workshops led by external visitors.

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Personal development and wellbeing Strong standard

Pupils enjoy various experiences and visits, such as to local beaches, and musical and sports performances. Leaders consider pupils' views and interests, and ensure they are reflected in the wide range of clubs available. Leaders track and support pupils' participation in enrichment activities, including pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities and disadvantaged pupils. Leaders ensure there is full and equal participation in all activities. Residential experiences for older pupils build their confidence to tackle unfamiliar challenges. During their time at the school, pupils develop strong self-awareness, independence and character. The safe and supportive environment ensures that pupils confidently express their thoughts or ask questions. They develop into respectful and responsible citizens.

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Attendance and behaviour Expected standard

The school’s warm, welcoming ethos encourages pupils to attend regularly. Leaders communicate clear expectations about the importance of daily attendance. They understand the impact that absence has on pupils’ learning. Staff identify the underlying causes of absence. They work with external agencies to remove barriers for pupils and their families. Daily checks on pupils' attendance are thorough. Leaders analyse attendance information

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Needs attention

carefully and act quickly when concerns arise. They draw on wider indicators, such as changes in pupils’ behaviour, to guide their response. As a result of this well-coordinated approach, pupils' overall attendance is in line with national expectations and the number of pupils who are more persistently absent is reducing.

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Needs attention

Leaders model high expectations for behaviour through their daily interactions with pupils. Pupils generally reflect these expectations. Their behaviour only falters when teaching is less effective. Typically, pupils conduct themselves as mature and responsible ambassadors around the school. Older pupils willingly take on roles to support younger pupils. Staff use the school's system for rewards and sanctions fairly. It helps pupils to understand the consequences of their actions. Staff teach pupils to recognise and manage their emotions. They offer effective support to those who need it most. Bullying and discrimination are rare. Pupils generally behave well and enjoy positive relationships across the school.

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Achievement Needs attention

Pupils' outcomes in national tests at the end of Year 6 in reading, writing and mathematics are below the national average. Over time, disadvantaged pupils achieve well below their peers nationally in reading and mathematics. Across the curriculum, pupils' learning is inconsistent, leading to a mixed picture of achievement. Some pupils recall prior learning confidently. For example, older pupils interpret what life was like in ancient Greece using Greek pottery. However, in other subjects such as geography, pupils’ knowledge is less secure. Curriculum activities often cover a range of content and concepts but generally do not build on pupils' prior knowledge securely.

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Achievement Needs attention

Pupils' achievement in the Year 1 phonics screening check remains close to the national average. Pupils achieve in line with the national average in the Year 4 multiplication tables check, although this varies over time. Leaders are strengthening their work to raise standards further, but this work has yet to show significant impact in pupils' attainment at the end of Year 6.

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Curriculum and teaching Needs attention

Teaching is inconsistent across the school. At times, teachers' expectations of what pupils can achieve are not high enough. Where teachers design lessons to meet pupils’ needs precisely, pupils learn well, rise to high expectations and respond positively. However, where expectations are not as high and lessons are not designed as effectively, pupils do not learn well and quickly lose interest. In addition, some support staff are not deployed effectively to support pupils to access the curriculum, meaning some pupils struggle to progress through the curriculum.

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Curriculum and teaching Needs attention

Teachers’ checks on pupils' learning do not address basic errors in spelling, handwriting and number work. As a result, errors persist and pupils develop gaps in their knowledge and skills. Teaching is not adapted sufficiently to meet pupils’ learning needs. At times, pupils are moved on to new curriculum content before they are ready, hindering their ability to gain new knowledge and build confidently on their prior learning. The curriculum in some subjects is not well sequenced from the early years to Year 6. As a result, some pupils do not gain the essential foundations of knowledge they need for later learning.

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Curriculum and teaching Needs attention

Leaders are ambitious for the curriculum and teaching. Their recent changes to the mathematics curriculum are supporting notable improvements in the teaching of mathematics.

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Early years Needs attention

Children’s knowledge, skills and understanding of early reading, writing and mathematics are not developed consistently well or taught securely during their time in the early years. Staff do not routinely check that children form their letters correctly or that errors in children's early writing are tackled quickly. They do not develop children’s language sufficiently, including in mathematics, to encourage children to share, respond, expand and talk about their thinking. At times, some children lose focus in whole-class phonics sessions, which affects how well they learn. Despite this, when teaching is more tailored and accurately targeted to their needs, children generally learn phonics well.

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Early years Needs attention

The early years curriculum lacks opportunities for children to access suitable outdoor provision. This hampers children’s ability to apply and deepen their learning and extend their interests. Staff are unable to routinely provide outdoor learning activities to promote the development of children’s ideas and vocabulary and ensure all areas of learning are covered. Some activities in the early years provision are adapted based on staff checks on children’s learning and development, but their impact is mixed.

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Early years Needs attention

Staff use high-quality texts to link topics of learning and build children’s understanding. They select books that enhance children’s knowledge of rhythm and rhyme and develop their vocabulary. Role-play activities help children to use, repeat and rehearse real-life scenarios such as ordering coffee or taking orders for lunch. Children build secure relationships with adults, behave well and learn how to socialise with their friends.

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Inclusion Needs attention

Teaching does not match pupils’ academic needs consistently or accurately. As a result, some pupils do not learn as well as they could. Leaders do not ensure that barriers to pupils' learning are addressed quickly or effectively. Teachers do not routinely use their checks on pupils' learning to adapt their teaching approaches and support pupils to access the curriculum successfully.

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Inclusion Needs attention

Staff receive appropriate training to help pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) to use suitable resources and access the curriculum. However, leaders do not ensure that staff apply the school's strategies to support inclusive teaching and learning. At times, staff do not consider the specific learning needs of some pupils appropriately when designing tasks. This limits pupils’ understanding. Leaders use additional funding to ensure disadvantaged pupils can play an equal part in the wider life of the school. However, leaders have only recently started to use the funding to support improvements in pupils' academic achievement. It is too early to assess the impact of this work.

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Inclusion Needs attention

Leaders identify pupils’ pastoral needs quickly and provide effective support for pupils with SEND, disadvantaged pupils and pupils known to social care. Leaders work with families and external professionals, including the local authority, to design appropriate support to improve pupils' wellbeing. Leaders seek guidance when necessary from external specialists to provide effective additional support for those pupils with the most acute levels of need.

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Leadership and governance Needs attention

Leaders, including governors, have not secured necessary improvements to the curriculum and teaching, and achievement. Their successful work in building a nurturing ethos and a safe, supportive culture is not yet replicated in the quality of teaching and effectiveness of the curriculum. Leaders have correctly identified the aspects of the school that need development, but these have yet to be fully implemented.

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Leadership and governance Needs attention

Professional development opportunities for staff do not focus sufficiently on improving teaching and raising standards of achievement. Although leaders maintain a focus on continuous improvement and monitor the quality of curriculum and teaching, their strategic oversight and improvements lack precision. Some actions lack sufficient focus on how teaching impacts on pupils’ learning and achievement.

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Leadership and governance Needs attention

Governors demonstrate a secure commitment to the school. They use their expertise to support the school’s ethos. However, they do not provide suitable challenge and support to the school to ensure effective and sustained improvements to the curriculum and teaching, and achievement. They have not ensured that children in the early years make a positive start to their education.

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Leadership and governance Needs attention

Across all their work, leaders offer kindness, warmth and a visible presence. Leaders carefully consider staff wellbeing and workload when making decisions. They work closely with parents and carers and a wide range of external experts and partners to support pupils. Leaders at all levels know pupils well. They are determined to strengthen the school’s provision. Some of this work is having an increasingly positive impact, for example through the recent introduction of a new mathematics curriculum.

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What it's like to be a pupil at this school

All staff at Bishop Cornish school treat pupils with kindness, care and compassion. Pupils feel safe and attend regularly. During their time at the school, they build deep, lasting friendships. Trusted adults listen to them and help them with any worries. The vast majority of parents and carers are supportive of the school.

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What it's like to be a pupil at this school

Pupils experience a mixed quality of learning. In some classes, teaching is clear and engaging and encourages pupils to work hard and concentrate well. Pupils rise to high expectations and show enthusiasm for learning. They enjoy tasks such as enterprise projects, reading activities and discussions in subjects like history. However, in other classes, pupils find it harder to stay focused because teaching is not as effective. At times, teachers' explanations are unclear and tasks do not match pupils' needs accurately. As a result, some pupils lose concentration and do not learn well. Expectations for learning are inconsistent across the school and on occasions, pupils are unsure about the standard of work required. Teachers do not consistently address errors in pupils' basic skills such as spelling and handwriting. Consequently, pupils do not learn and achieve as well as they could.

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What it's like to be a pupil at this school

From Reception to Year 6, pupils' personal, social and mental health needs are identified and supported. The school is very successful in its work to promote pupils' wellbeing. This makes a powerful difference to pupils’ character development and preparation for secondary school. Pupils enjoy learning in a school where the foundations for pupils' successful personal development are at the heart of the school's culture and ethos.

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What it's like to be a pupil at this school

Pupils who need extra support receive care and encouragement from staff. They benefit from effective pastoral support. However, pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities and disadvantaged pupils do not receive the support they need to meet their learning needs well. In early reading, writing and number work, some pupils do not receive timely help to secure important skills. In the Reception Year, children play happily and behave well, but curriculum provision and the way staff interact with children do not promote children's learning as effectively as they could.

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Next steps

Leaders should ensure that teachers have high expectations of pupils' learning so that all pupils achieve well. Leaders should ensure that teaching is highly effective and consistent across subjects and classes, including in the early years. Leaders should ensure that teachers use assessment information accurately to inform teaching, adapt learning and design suitable interventions for pupils when needed. Leaders should support staff in the early years to make the most of their interactions with children so that children develop and extend their vocabulary and communication skills effectively. Leaders should ensure that activities in the early years provision, both indoors and outdoors, consistently enhance children’s experiences across all areas of learning. Leaders and governors should improve their strategic oversight of school improvement priorities and ensure leaders' actions to improve curriculum and teaching lead to

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Next steps

sustained improvements in pupils' achievement at the end of Year 6.

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About this inspection

Inspectors carried out this full inspection under section 5 of the Education Act 2005.

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Team inspectors:

Kerri Conday, Ofsted Inspector Cameron Lancaster, Ofsted Inspector

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Facts and figures used on inspection

This was the data available at the time of the full inspection, taken from different sources . More recent data may have been published since the full inspection took place.

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Facts and figures used on inspection

The inspector(s) used this data during the full inspection on 9 June 2026

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192

Below average Following our renewed inspection framework, all inspections are now led by His Majesty’s Inspectors (HMIs) or by Ofsted Inspectors (OIs) who have previously served as HMIs.

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192

Inspectors spoke with the headteacher, senior leaders, the special educational needs and disabilities coordinator and a group of staff to consider their views. The lead inspector met with 4 members of the local governing body, including the Chair.

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192

The chair of the board of governors in this school is Rev Tim Parkman.

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192

Inspectors visited all classrooms to look at pupils' work and the curriculum, and speak with pupils about their learning and wider school activities.

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192

Inspectors spoke with some parents at the start of the school day. They considered the responses to the online survey, Ofsted Parent View, including free-text comments. Inspectors also considered responses to Ofsted’s staff survey.

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192

The inspectors confirmed the following information about the school:

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192

The school does not use any alternative provision.

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192

The school is registered as having Church of England religious character. It is in the Diocese of Truro. Its last section 48 inspection was on 13 January 2026.

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What does this mean?

The total number of pupils currently at this school and how this compares to other schools of this phase in England.

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What does this mean?

The total number of pupils who can attend the school and how this compares to other schools of this phase in England.

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What does this mean?

The proportion of pupils eligible for free school meals at any point in the last 6 years.

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What does this mean?

The proportion of pupils with an education, health and care plan. This covers pupils with more support than is available through special educational needs support.

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What does this mean?

The proportion of pupils with reported special educational needs support at the school.

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What does this mean?

Based on the English indices of deprivation (2019) and the school's location, we have calculated whether the school is located in a more or less deprived area.

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What does this mean?

Whether school has Resourced provision or SEND unit (if applicable).

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Pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and mathematics

The percentage of pupils meeting the expected standards in a combined reading, writing and mathematics measure.

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average

2022/23 (final) 56% 60% Close to average

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Pupils reaching the expected standard in reading

The percentage of pupils meeting the expected standard in reading.

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average

2022/23 (final) 69% 73% Close to average

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Pupils reaching the expected standard in teacher-assessed writing

The percentage of pupils meeting the expected standard in teacher-assessed writing.

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average

2024/25 (final) 78% 72% Close to average

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average

2022/23 (final) 75% 71% Close to average

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Pupils reaching the expected standard in mathematics

The percentage of pupils meeting the expected standard in mathematics.

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average

2023/24 (final) 73% 73% Close to average

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Disadvantaged pupils' performance

Disadvantaged pupils are those who have been eligible for free school meals at any point in the last six years and children looked after.

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mathematics

The percentage of disadvantaged pupils meeting the expected standard in reading, writing and mathematics.

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Disadvantaged pupils reaching the expected standard in reading

The percentage of disadvantaged pupils meeting the expected standard in reading.

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Disadvantaged pupils reaching the expected standard in teacher-assessed writing

The percentage of disadvantaged pupils meeting the expected standard in teacher- assessed writing.

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Disadvantaged pupils reaching the expected standard in mathematics

The percentage of disadvantaged pupils meeting the expected standard in mathematics.

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average

‘S’ in the table above indicates the data has been suppressed, which is usually due to small cohorts. The suppression rules applied by the DfE when publishing the data have been mirrored and applied in the report card.

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Disadvantaged pupils' performance gap

Disadvantaged pupils are those who have been eligible for free school meals at any point in the last six years and children looked after. The school disadvantage gap is the difference between the performance of the school's disadvantaged pupils compared to the performance of all non-disadvantaged pupils nationally.

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mathematics

The percentage of disadvantaged pupils meeting the expected standard in reading, writing and mathematics, including the disadvantaged gap.

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Disadvantaged pupils reaching the expected standard in reading

The percentage of disadvantaged pupils meeting the expected standard in reading and the disadvantaged gap.

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Disadvantaged pupils reaching the expected standard in teacher-assessed writing

The percentage of disadvantaged pupils meeting the expected standard in teacher- assessed writing and the disadvantaged gap.

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Disadvantaged pupils reaching the expected standard in mathematics

The percentage of disadvantaged pupils meeting the expected standard in mathematics and the disadvantaged gap.

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average

‘S’ in the table above indicates the data has been suppressed, which is usually due to small cohorts. The suppression rules applied by the DfE when publishing the data have been mirrored and applied in the report card.

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Overall absence

The percentage of all possible mornings and afternoons missed due to absence from school (for whatever reason, whether authorised or unauthorised) across all pupils.

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national average

2024/25 (3 term) 4.4% 5.2% Close to average

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national average

2023/24 (3 term) 5.6% 5.5% Close to average

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national average

2022/23 (3 term) 5.9% 5.9% Close to average

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Persistent absence

The percentage of pupils missing 10% or more of their possible mornings and afternoons.

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national average

2024/25 (3 term) 9.7% 13.0% Close to average

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national average

2023/24 (3 term) 13.3% 14.6% Close to average

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Exceptional

Practice is exceptional: of the highest standard nationally. Other schools can learn from it.

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Strong standard

The school reaches a strong standard. Leaders are working above the standard expected of them.

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Expected standard

The school is fulfilling the expected standard of education and/or care. This means they are following the standard set out in statutory and non ‑ statutory legislation and the professional standards expected of them.

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Needs attention

The expected standards are not met but leaders are likely able to make the necessary improvements.

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Urgent improvement

The school needs to make urgent improvements to provide the expected standard of education and/or care.

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Urgent improvement

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Urgent improvement

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Urgent improvement

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Urgent improvement

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Urgent improvement

T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/ofsted

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