Barford Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are happy and enjoy being at this welcoming school.

There are warm working relationships between all the school community. The pupils and staff demonstrate the school values of trust, empathy, love, respect and resilience. Pupils and staff value the school being like a family.

Pupils behave well. They have positive attitudes to learning and participate readily, including in extra-curricular opportunities. Pupils develop a sense of responsibility, including putting their points of view across in the school council.

Pupils are proud of their achievements and pleased to receive rewards and praise.

Pupils are kept safe. They know they can always s...eek support for any concern from a trusted adult.

Pupils learn about how to keep themselves safe, including when online. Staff look after pupils well.

There are not yet consistently high enough expectations for what pupils can achieve.

Pupils do not achieve consistently well in all subjects.

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

Since the last inspection, the school has experienced considerable turbulence in leadership and staffing. As a result, some important aspects of the school have declined.

Strong leadership and governance arrangements now in place have resulted in much improved provision. However, there are still weaknesses and inconsistencies in the school's curriculum and how well it is taught.

The school has improved the core curriculum of English, mathematics and science by making clear what should be taught and when.

This has resulted in current pupils achieving more in these subjects than in recent times, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND).

The school has recently improved the phonics curriculum. Pupils are now learning early reading skills well.

Teaching builds pupils' phonics knowledge step by step. Staff carry out checks on pupils' reading skills and provide extra support to help them to catch up if needed. Pupils mainly practise reading with books appropriate to their phonics knowledge.

Pupils generally enjoy reading, and staff are developing pupils' love of reading across the school.

Subjects other than English, mathematics and science are at different stages of development. While pupils study a broad range of subjects, the school has not made clear what knowledge should be taught and how it builds on what pupils aready know.

This means that there are gaps in pupils' knowledge in a number of subjects.

Staff identify pupils with SEND and put effective support in place for them to access the curriculum. Recent improvements in record-keeping have meant that the timeliness and communication regarding support are improving.

As is the case for all pupils, pupils with SEND learn less well in curriculum subjects that are not fully developed.

The teaching of the curriculum varies across the year groups. Teachers do not always find out exactly what pupils know, remember and can do.

This means that teachers do not always know when pupils are ready to move on to new learning. Additionally, some pupils have gaps in important subject knowledge.

The school is calm and purposeful, with clear routines established for pupils.

Leaders have developed a well-defined behaviour policy, which staff implement consistently. Behaviour has improved markedly in recent times.

The school has improved attendance significantly this academic year through various strategies, including enhanced support for parents.

Fewer pupils are frequently absent from school.

Pupils learn about being a good citizen. They learn about diversity in our society and how to be tolerant of others and to respect different beliefs.

The school community is highly inclusive, with pupils showing empathy towards others. The school places importance on times for reflection and celebration, often inviting parents to share pupils' successes.

Staff receive regular and effective training, and this has improved the teaching of the core curriculum.

Staff can see that the school is making strides forward and are proud to be part of this improving school. Leaders strive to keep staff workload manageable and actively support staff well-being.

The school communicates regularly with parents Parents recognise the improvements being made and speak highly of the school.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• Most foundation subjects are not yet fully implemented across all year groups. This is because curriculum plans do not set out the small steps of knowledge that pupils need to learn.

The school should complete the work on curriculum plans that set out what pupils should learn step by step. The school should ensure that staff continue to receive sufficient training so they are confident to deliver these plans. Currently, teachers do not identify precisely what pupils have learned in some subjects.

Teachers do not always know when pupils are ready to move on to new learning. Sometimes, pupils have gaps in their knowledge. The school should make sure that all staff have the skills to check pupils' prior learning so that they know precisely pupils' next steps in learning and plan for these accordingly.