St Barnabas CofE Primary School, Barnetby

St Barnabas CofE Primary School, Barnetby

Address: St Barnabas Road, Barnetby, Lincolnshire, DN38 6JD Unique reference number (URN): 118004

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Monitoring inspection: 23 June 2026

Urgent improvement This school had a full inspection on 3 February 2026 . We graded some areas as 'urgent improvement' and 'needs attention' from the full inspection. We carried out a monitoring inspection on 23 June 2026.

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Monitoring inspection: 23 June 2026

Inspectors only considered the areas marked as updated. Inspectors focused on the following areas: Achievement, Curriculum and teaching, Leadership and governance. To find out more read our monitoring inspection guidance.

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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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This school requires special measures

His Majesty’s Chief Inspector is of the opinion that this school requires special measures because it is failing to provide an acceptable standard of education, and the persons responsible for leading, managing or governing the school are not demonstrating the capacity to secure the necessary improvement in the school.

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Attendance and behaviour Needs attention

Leaders, who have recently joined the school, have renewed the school’s approach to managing pupils’ behaviour. However, the new behaviour policy is not applied consistently by all staff. Pupils’ attitudes to learning vary. In lessons, they do not always respond quickly to staff direction or follow instructions. A significant number of pupils do not engage well with their learning. They often do not involve themselves fully in the tasks they need to complete.

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Attendance and behaviour Needs attention

Beyond the classroom, most pupils respond well to leaders' high behaviour expectations. Pupils walk around school calmly and sensibly. They are polite and well mannered, holding doors open for one another and engaging in conversations with visitors to the school. Recent training has improved staff understanding of how to help the most vulnerable pupils manage their feelings and emotions. As a result, the number of incidents of poor behaviour has reduced.

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Attendance and behaviour Needs attention

New systems to check and monitor pupils’ attendance and punctuality have led to improved attendance for some. However, disadvantaged pupils and pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities do not attend school often enough. Leaders know there is further work to do to ensure that those at risk of persistent absence attend school more frequently.

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Achievement Updated Urgent improvement

Pupils do not achieve well enough. This includes pupils who have barriers to their learning and those with special educational needs and/or disabilities. Pupils' outcomes at the end of key stage 2 vary too much when compared with national measures. In some aspects of writing, such as in spelling, grammar and punctuation, pupils’ outcomes have declined. In other subjects such as mathematics, pupils do not learn or remember their times tables well enough.

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Achievement Updated Urgent improvement

Pupils’ achievement in English and mathematics is improving. Pupils are remembering more of what they study. Many pupils are closing gaps in their knowledge in reading and writing. This is helping pupils to gain more of the basic knowledge and skills that they need. However, this is not consistently the case. Pupils’ knowledge is not sufficiently secure to enable them to achieve well across the curriculum.

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Achievement Updated Urgent improvement

In several subjects, some pupils are not able to access and remember the curriculum successfully. This means that these pupils do not develop the knowledge and skills that they need to be well prepared for the next steps of their education.

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Curriculum and teaching Updated Urgent improvement

Leaders recognise that the quality of the curriculum and teaching is not at the expected standard. They have acted quickly to bring greater structure to improvement work, including external support and professional development. However, these actions are relatively recent. Their impact on what pupils learn, remember and can do is still limited.

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Curriculum and teaching Updated Urgent improvement

Across the school, the curriculum, beyond that in mathematics, reading and writing, is not planned or implemented well enough to ensure that pupils learn securely over time. In many subjects, leaders are taking action to address this. They are identifying the important knowledge that pupils need to learn and remember at each stage, and are developing subject leaders’ and teachers’ subject-specific knowledge and pedagogy.

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Curriculum and teaching Updated Urgent improvement

Teaching and learning in mathematics, reading and writing are increasingly purposeful, and there are frequent examples of calm, well-managed teaching. This is not typical throughout the curriculum. At times, activities in the wider curriculum either lack pace or purpose, or do not demand enough of pupils. When this happens, pupils lose focus or complete tasks without deepening their knowledge, skills and understanding.

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Curriculum and teaching Updated Urgent improvement

Teachers are becoming more proficient in their checks of what pupils know, understand and remember. This means that gaps in pupils’ knowledge in reading, writing and mathematics are increasingly being identified and addressed. Staff are beginning to use more inclusive approaches, including visual timetables and sensory support. These are positive developments, but they are not yet embedded well enough to ensure that all pupils access and remember the curriculum successfully. Leaders have prioritised training and have begun to refresh staff's knowledge of phonics and reading. There are signs of more precise practice where staff follow the school’s chosen approach carefully. However, pupils who need to catch up do not consistently receive the sharp support that leaders are aiming for.

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Early years Urgent improvement

Children in the early years do not receive an education that meets their needs or stage of development. The curriculum has only been developed recently and is, currently, not implemented well. Children spend too much time not engaged in purposeful learning.

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Early years Urgent improvement

Leaders have prioritised the developments that are needed urgently. This includes enhancing the learning environment by providing purposeful learning activities so that children build their knowledge and plug gaps in their learning. This work is at a very early stage. Some staff training has taken place. However, child-adult interactions do not promote high-quality language and social skills.

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Early years Urgent improvement

Children in the early years are beginning to follow some of the rules and routines in place. However, a lack of consistency in how staff implement these is having a negative impact on some children’s behaviour.

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Early years Urgent improvement

Leaders are working to develop relationships with parents and carers, who they recognise are important partners in their child’s early education. Changes to the start of the school day mean that parents have regular opportunities to speak with staff.

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Early years Urgent improvement

There is a phonics programme in place for the teaching of early reading. However, teachers do not deliver this consistently well. Children in the early years are not prepared well enough for their next stage.

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Inclusion Urgent improvement

Leaders do not identify the needs of pupils who are in receipt of pupil premium funding clearly. As a result, the school does not help these pupils to overcome the barriers to learning that they face well enough. The wider offer for disadvantaged pupils is limited. It is not targeted specifically to support the learning or development of these pupils.

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Inclusion Urgent improvement

Recently, new leaders have put much-needed systems and procedures in place to identify the needs of pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). However, this work is at an early stage. Leaders seek help for pupils with SEND from external agencies and professionals. However, while some of these pupils now benefit from wider support, this is not the case for all of these pupils who need it.

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Inclusion Urgent improvement

Teachers do not effectively meet the needs of pupils with SEND or resolve gaps in their learning. Bespoke interventions do not happen often enough. They are not consistently of the quality needed to ensure that these pupils make suitable progress from their starting points. Training to develop staff knowledge and expertise about how to support pupils with SEND is new. It is too soon to evaluate its impact. Leaders have started to establish some effective relationships with parents and carers to ensure that everyone is working in the best interests of pupils who are vulnerable.

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Leadership and governance Updated Urgent improvement

Leadership and those responsible for governance have acted quickly to identify and prioritise the school's weaknesses. They have brought greater structure and direction to the school. Their work to strengthen safeguarding systems, learning routines and behaviour expectations is having a positive effect. Pupils recognise some improvements, including calmer behaviour and clearer expectations. Staff value recent training and the more purposeful tone that leaders are establishing. However, many changes are recent and are not embedded. Leaders know that there is still substantial work to do to ensure that the improvements have a sustained impact on pupils.

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Leadership and governance Updated Urgent improvement

The school and the local authority have recognised the need to strengthen oversight of the school's journey of improvement. Leaders continue to utilise the support of external partners, including, for example, from the diocese. They make use of precise phase- and subject-specific support to drive improvement. Leaders have not yet ensured that that staff are suitably equipped to take responsibility for the implementation and evaluation of these improvements.

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Leadership and governance Updated Urgent improvement

Leaders have prioritised staff's professional development. They have ensured that staff receive important training, including in safeguarding, phonics and support for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities. A small number of staff express concerns about the impact of changes on their workload and wellbeing. Leaders and members of the interim executive board are mindful of this when planning changes. They monitor and offer support appropriately.

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Personal development and wellbeing Urgent improvement

The personal development offer is limited. Pupils talk of the clubs they can attend, such as choir, karate and football. Some pupils undertake roles such as worship councillors or reading ambassadors. However, these opportunities are not available to all pupils. Additional experiences, such as visits out of school, are not planned regularly to help pupils find out more about the wider world or make links with their learning in school.

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Personal development and wellbeing Urgent improvement

Disadvantaged pupils and those with special educational needs and/or disabilities do not receive targeted opportunities to develop the wider knowledge or skills that they need to be prepared fully for their next steps. This includes opportunities to develop specific character traits, such as confidence and resilience.

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Personal development and wellbeing Urgent improvement

Leaders, who have recently joined the school, have put a pastoral offer in place for pupils. Currently, leaders are the main source of this support. External agency involvement, for example counselling and health support, has been provided recently for some pupils. Most pupils in school can identify staff they can talk to if they have any worries or concerns. They are building positive relationships with the new leaders. The taught curriculum for personal, social and health education (PSHE) includes the teaching of sex and relationships education. Pupils know about healthy relationships and have an age-appropriate understanding of consent. They know how to keep themselves safe online. There are currently no systems in place to identify how well pupils have learned key knowledge from the PSHE curriculum in order to keep themselves healthy and safe.

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Personal development and wellbeing Urgent improvement

The ethos of the school guides pupils to show respect to one another. However, their understanding of fundamental British values and the protected characteristics is in its infancy. Leaders have prioritised the need to develop this knowledge so that pupils are prepared fully for their next steps, both in education and in the wider world.

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Monitoring inspection : 23 June 2026

Behaviour around the school is generally positive. However, during lessons, a small number of pupils do not wholly engage with their learning. The current curriculum does not fully meet their needs.

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Monitoring inspection : 23 June 2026

The needs of pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities are being identified. However, this is not yet fully the case for pupils in receipt of pupil premium funding. The school does not provide effective support to swiftly address the barriers to learning for these pupils.

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Full inspection : 3 February 2026

The school has been through a period of significant turbulence. Pupils do not benefit from the high-quality education and care that they need to be ready for their next stage of their education. New leaders, who have recently joined the school, recognise this. They are addressing the improvements needed with urgency.

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Full inspection : 3 February 2026

Pupils have positive relationships with staff in school. Most pupils say they feel safe. While pupils identify some cases of bullying, they say staff respond to incidents quickly. Pupils benefit from the new morning routines in place. They meet their friends happily on the playground before coming into school safely and calmly. Pupils generally attend well. However, there has been a recent decline in the attendance of some groups of pupils. This includes pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Leaders are aware of this and are taking action to address it.

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Full inspection : 3 February 2026

Behaviour around school is generally positive. However, during lessons, too many pupils do not engage with their learning. The current curriculum does not meet their needs.

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Full inspection : 3 February 2026

In the early years, actions to improve the quality of teaching and learning are at an early stage. There is not the sharp focus needed to develop children’s language and social skills in order to be ready for Year 1.

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Full inspection : 3 February 2026

The needs of pupils with SEND are being identified. However, this is not the case for pupils in receipt of pupil premium funding. The school does not provide effective support for these pupils to address their barriers to learning swiftly. The personal development offer for pupils is too narrow. Pupils talk positively of the clubs they can attend at lunchtimes and are keen to share their responsibilities as worship leaders. However, opportunities and experiences to broaden their understanding of life in modern Britain are limited.

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Next steps

Those responsible for governance must act with urgency to ensure that leaders have the capacity and support they need to bring about rapid school improvement. Leaders must ensure that the provision for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities and those in receipt of pupil premium funding accurately identifies and reduces barriers to the learning and achievements of these pupils. Leaders must improve the curriculum, across all subjects, so that it identifies clearly the knowledge that pupils need to learn at each stage and that this builds effectively on what pupils know already. Leaders must continue their work to upskill staff to ensure that staff deliver the curriculum effectively and in line with leaders’ expectations. Leaders must ensure that pupils at all stages secure the foundational knowledge that they need in communication and language, reading, writing and mathematics so that pupils are

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Next steps

prepared well for their next steps in learning. Leaders must develop the quality of education and provision in the early years, including making sure that staff understand how children learn. Leaders should continue to improve pupils’ attendance so that more pupils, particularly disadvantaged pupils, attend school every day and on time. Leaders should continue their work to ensure that staff have high expectations of pupils’ behaviour at all times of the school day. Leaders should ensure that all pupils, including those who are disadvantaged, benefit from a comprehensive personal development programme that offers a wide range of experiences and opportunities.

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About this inspection

The inspectors conducted this monitoring inspection under section 8(2) of the Education Act 2005. It was carried out to evaluate the progress leaders have made in improving the evaluation areas graded as ‘Urgent improvement’ and ‘Needs attention’ at the previous full inspection.

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About this inspection

This was the first monitoring inspection since the school was judged to require special measures following the full inspection that took place in February 2026.

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About this inspection

The purpose of the monitoring inspection was to identify and report on the school’s progress in addressing the priorities for improvement set out in the report card from the full inspection. The inspection focused specifically on leaders' actions to address the weaknesses in the

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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 3 February 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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School capacity

curriculum, teaching and achievement. Inspectors may change a grade for one or more evaluation area determined at the full inspection based on evidence gathered during the monitoring inspection.

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School capacity

Inspectors confirmed the following information about the school:

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School capacity

An interim executive board (IEB) has taken responsibility for governance since the previous inspection. The chair of the IEB is Rachel Stevenson. The executive headteacher took up the post in January 2026. The school uses one registered alternative provision and one alternative provision that is not registered.

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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

2023/24 (final) 66% 61% 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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national average

2023/24 (final) 76% 74% Close to average

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national average

2022/23 (final) 76% 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 (revised) 70% 72% 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

2024/25 (revised) 78% 74% 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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average

2022/23 (final) 50% 44% Close to average

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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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average

2022/23 (final) 50% 60% Close to average

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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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average

2024/25 (revised) 50% 59% Close to average

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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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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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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 (2 term) 4.4% 5.2% Close to average

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national average

2022/23 (3 term) 5.2% 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

2023/24 (3 term) 12.1% 14.6% Close to average

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national average

2022/23 (3 term) 14.0% 16.2% 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

services providing education and skills for children and learners of all ages, and inspects and regulates services that care for children and young people.

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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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