Broadwindsor Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School

Controlled Primary School

Address: Drimpton Road, Broadwindsor, Beaminster, Dorset, DT8 3QL Unique reference number (URN): 113777

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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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Early years Expected standard

Children in the early years have benefited from a more stable staffing team than elsewhere in the school. This stability has enabled staff to establish the curriculum securely and refine it where necessary to match children's starting points. For example, staff place additional emphasis on children’s personal, social and emotional development, including turn-taking, to help them to learn well together. Staff work closely with a range of early years providers to support children’s transition into school. This helps them to gain a detailed understanding of children’s strengths, personalities and barriers to learning, including for those with special educational needs and/or disabilities.

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Early years Expected standard

Staff are caring, patient and nurturing. As a result, children are happy, settled and ready to learn. Teaching is typically effective. Leaders have enhanced the learning environment so that it supports children’s development well. Staff teach phonics effectively and quickly identify children who need extra help, providing timely support to help them keep up. Staff share carefully chosen books with children to help them to develop a love of reading and broaden their vocabulary. They place a strong emphasis on accurate pencil grip and letter formation. As a result of this positive start, most children leave the early years well prepared for the demands of Year 1.

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Achievement Needs attention

Despite reading and writing outcomes generally being in line with national averages, pupils' learning across the school is uneven. Historically, the school has placed too much emphasis on providing intensive catch-up support to older pupils to improve key stage 2 published outcomes. This approach masked weaknesses in the school's curriculum and teaching. Consequently, some pupils did not learn well over time. Their knowledge in much of the wider curriculum is particularly weak. This means that pupils move to secondary school with patchy or superficial knowledge. Some pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities do not achieve well from their starting points. Leaders have started to ensure that pupils learn better across year groups and subjects, but it is early days.

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Achievement Needs attention

Pupils do learn some aspects of the curriculum more securely. Pupils achieve well in the Year 4 multiplication tables check. Most younger pupils learn the phonics code quickly. However, too many pupils lack the basic skills they need in handwriting, punctuation, spelling and grammar to write well across the curriculum.

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Attendance and behaviour Needs attention

Leaders recognise the importance of promoting high attendance and communicate their expectations clearly through newsletters. Over time, pupils' attendance has typically been in line with national averages. However, during the previous academic year, the school's overall attendance dipped. This was due to a small number of pupils who joined the school mid-year with historically low attendance and other significant barriers to attending regularly. Leaders quickly identified and worked closely with these pupils and their families to provide additional support. As a result, attendance for these pupils is improving.

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Attendance and behaviour Needs attention

Pupils are generally polite and courteous to one another and to visitors. At social times, most pupils play well together. However, pupils' attitudes to learning are variable. In lessons, too many lose focus and their attention drifts. A small number of pupils talk over teachers’ instructions and disrupt the learning of others. This occurs mostly when teaching is less well tailored to pupils' needs, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities. Pupils understand what bullying is and can distinguish between isolated incidents and repeated, unkind behaviour. Bullying is rare and, when it occurs, staff address it effectively.

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Curriculum and teaching Needs attention

Leaders quickly identified that the quality of teaching was too variable across the school. They have begun to strengthen staff expertise through appropriate training. Additionally, they have made many changes to the curriculum in many subjects to clearly identify what pupils should learn. However, it is too soon for this work to have secured the improvements that leaders intend. Staffing changes mean that some staff have not yet received the training needed to deliver aspects of the curriculum effectively.

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Curriculum and teaching Needs attention

Staff do not use what they know about pupils' prior knowledge well enough. As result, they do not match learning closely to what pupils can already do. Work is sometimes too easy or too hard. This is particularly the case for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities. Some do not receive the precise support they need to learn well and work independently. In addition, some staff do not address errors in pupils' written work, such as spelling and handwriting. This means that their misconceptions persist.

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Curriculum and teaching Needs attention

In contrast, the teaching of phonics is more effective. Established staff have the subject knowledge needed to teach the phonics programme effectively. They provide timely support for pupils who fall behind. This helps them to keep up with their peers.

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Inclusion Needs attention

The number of pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) has increased sharply since the last inspection. However, leaders' systems to ensure a robust oversight of the school's provision have not kept pace with this rise. Until recently, leaders have not had sufficient capacity to assure themselves that pupils with SEND are receiving the support they need. While the school does have effective processes for the early identification of pupils who require extra help, some staff lack the expertise needed to ensure that pupils with SEND learn well. Their targets within pupils' learning plans are too broad. Staff do not have a clear enough understanding of the adaptations required or the outcomes pupils are working towards. As a result, the help provided is not closely matched to some pupils' needs. They disengage or become overly reliant on adult support. This includes the small number of pupils who struggle to manage their behaviour.

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Inclusion Needs attention

The school uses the government's additional funding for disadvantaged pupils appropriately. This means that overtime, disadvantaged pupils achieve in line with their peers nationally as reflected in the end of key stage 2 published outcomes. The school works closely with its families of vulnerable pupils to ensure that everyone's voice is heard.

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Leadership and governance Needs attention

The school has been through a difficult period. There have been changes in leadership, staffing and governance. The number of pupils on roll has fallen and leaders have reduced the number of classes as a result. This has unsettled some of the school community, particularly some parents and carers.

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Leadership and governance Needs attention

New leadership has started to tackle these problems head-on. They have an accurate and realistic view of where the school's strengths and weaknesses lie. While some progress has been hampered by the turnover of staff, the school is becoming more stable. Leaders know the priority is to improve staff's expertise across many aspects of their work. For example, leaders have trained staff to revisit previous learning more regularly to help pupils remember key content over time. However, it is too early to see the impact of this work. Staff are overwhelmingly supportive of the school's leadership and share the same vision and drive for improvement. They feel leaders support them well with their workload and wellbeing.

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Leadership and governance Needs attention

Since the last inspection, the governing body has not held leaders well enough to account for the impact of their actions. While governors have faced financial challenges, they have not focused enough on the quality of education that pupils receive. This has led, until recently, governors having an overgenerous view of the school. The current governing body acknowledge that there is much to do to improve governance. It has started to provide more robust support and challenge for leaders. However, this remains in its infancy.

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Personal development and wellbeing Needs attention

Leaders know there is more work required so that pupils experience a logically ordered and systematic personal development offer. While there are many experiences for pupils to enjoy, too many of them are isolated and lack consideration of how they build on what pupils have learned before. Pupils participate in a range of clubs to develop their talents and interests. Leaders track which pupils attend to see if any are missing out on these opportunities. Pupils experience the thrill of taking part in a national singing concert. This develops their confidence and fosters a sense of achievement.

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Personal development and wellbeing Needs attention

Pupils learn an ambitious personal, social and health education (PSHE) programme. This helps pupils to understand how their bodies change as they get older. Pupils know how to keep physically healthy. They know how to stay safe online, such as understanding the importance of not sharing personal details. However, as a result of weaknesses in teaching, pupils struggle to recall much of the PSHE content they have been taught. This includes important knowledge about different faiths and cultures. As a result, pupils have limited understanding of religions beyond Christianity and only a patchy grasp of fundamental British values. Consequently, they are not well prepared for life in modern Britain.

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Personal development and wellbeing Needs attention

Pupils have some understanding of how people can be different. They know the importance of equity. For example, they understand that some of their peers require more support with their learning and know why this is fair. Staff provide effective pastoral support for pupils who need it. They identify those who require ongoing help and respond swiftly when pupils’ circumstances change, ensuring that support is adapted to meet emerging needs. For example, some pupils enjoy the 'Feel Good Friday' club to help improve their mental health and wellbeing.

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

Pupils are happy and safe at this school. Leaders ensure that pupils from all backgrounds feel welcomed and valued. This includes pupils who join partway through their education. Children in the early years experience a positive start to life at Broadwindsor. However, too many pupils in the rest of the school have not received the quality of education they should. Some have not secured the depth of knowledge across the curriculum that they need. As a result, too many pupils are not well prepared for their next stage of education. New leaders have begun to raise expectations of pupils’ learning and behaviour, but there remains more work to do. In particular, some pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities do not receive the support they need to achieve well.

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

Pupils recognise and value the improvements that leaders have made. They especially appreciate the positive changes to behaviour across the school. Pupils say there are now fewer disruptions to their lessons than in the past. Nevertheless, some pupils do not concentrate well on their learning. At times, they are passive and do not concentrate well on their work. Pupils have confidence that adults will deal with bullying on the rare occasions that it does occur. Generally, they attend well.

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

Pupils enjoy a range of trips to complement their learning in the classroom. This includes visiting places of historical interest, such as Stonehenge. Pupils learn the importance of resilience through opportunities such as residential visits. Leaders ensure that everyone can take part in these experiences and work closely with families to remove potential barriers to participation. Nevertheless, pupils' experiences beyond the academic are not systemically planned to ensure that pupils develop their character or broaden their horizons as fully as they could.

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Next steps

Leaders should ensure that staff have the expertise to set precise learning targets and make effective adaptations to learning so that pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities learn well. Leaders should evaluate the impact of this work rigorously. Leaders should ensure that staff use assessment effectively to identify how well pupils are learning the curriculum and provide learning tasks that are closely matched to pupils’ starting points. Leaders should ensure that teaching improves pupils' basic writing skills in letter formation, handwriting, spelling and the use of punctuation across the curriculum. Governors should improve their oversight of the school’s work by holding leaders rigorously to account for the impact of their actions, so that governors have an accurate understanding of the school’s performance.

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Team inspector:

Jyotsna Paranjape, Ofsted Inspector Leaders should support staff to raise expectations of pupils’ engagement in lessons so that pupils develop positive attitudes to learning. Leaders should establish a coherent personal development programme, with learning experiences planned carefully, so that pupils develop secure knowledge of the personal, social, health education curriculum, including cultural diversity in modern Britain.

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About this inspection

The chair of the board of governors in this school is Carolyn Dalziel.

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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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About this inspection

This inspection took place from 22 September to 23 September 2026.

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About this inspection

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 HMI.

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About this inspection

Inspectors spoke with the headteacher, school staff, a representative from the local authority, pupils, members of the governing body, and parents and carers during the inspection.

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About this inspection

The inspectors confirmed the following information about the school:

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About this inspection

This school is registered as having a Church of England religious character. It is in the Diocese of Salisbury. The school received a section 48 inspection for schools of a religious character in May 2019.

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About this inspection

The school currently uses no alternative provision.

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About this inspection

At the time of the inspection, there were 80 pupils on roll.

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About this inspection

The school runs its own breakfast club provision.

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About this inspection

The headteacher took up her post in September 2025.

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About this inspection

In September 2026, the school reduced to 3 classes.

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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 22 September 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. National average: 26.5%

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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

2024/25 (final) 60% 62% Close to average

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average

2022/23 (final) 53% 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

2024/25 (final) 80% 75% 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

2022/23 (final) 67% 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) 69% 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

2022/23 (final) S 59% S ‘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) 5.8% 5.2% Close to average

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national average

2023/24 (3 term) 5.3% 5.5% 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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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

You may reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence , write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk .

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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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