Broadlea Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy school, have positive attitudes towards learning and want to do well. They told inspectors that they feel happy and safe.

The high-quality pastoral support helps to provide strong guidance and care for pupils and their parents. Staff check and help pupils with their social, emotional and mental health needs. This helps pupils to feel secure at school.

Leaders are aspirational for all pupils and determined to ensure that they are successful academically and become responsible young people. Leaders have high expectations of pupils' behaviour. Pupils understand the school's approach to promoting respect towards others.

They respond positively to wha...t staff expect of them, engaging meaningfully in their learning and achieving well.

Pupils behave well in lessons and around the school. They focus on their work diligently and do not interrupt the learning of others.

Pupils are polite and considerate. Bullying is not tolerated. If it happens, pupils say that staff deal with it quickly.

Staff are keen to broaden pupils' experiences. Pupils participate in many sports competitions with other schools. This, combined with other opportunities outside of the classroom, such as star gazing, helps pupils to learn beyond academic subjects.

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

Leaders ensure that pupils study a broad curriculum. Pupils enjoy learning. Leaders have set out the knowledge and skills that pupils should gain and develop at specific times in their education.

The curriculum is challenging and builds on pupils' knowledge, skills and interests step by step. Staff, including support staff, are quick to provide extra challenge in lessons if the work is not demanding enough. The curriculum is less well developed in physical education (PE).

Planning does not make clear what leaders want pupils to know, be able to do and by when. Some subject leaders are not fully confident in leading their curriculum areas. This is because they do not yet have sufficient knowledge about certain aspects of the subject.

Teachers and teaching assistants know the pupils and their different needs well because they assess pupils' achievement carefully. This helps staff to introduce new knowledge at the right time. Staff in the early years get to know children before they join the school.

This enables the school to plan activities that match and address children's educational and emotional needs from their first day at school.

Staff identify pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) quickly and accurately. Leaders, support staff and teachers all contribute effectively to making sure that the needs of pupils with SEND are met fully.

Targeted support means that pupils with SEND, including those in the early years, remember what they have been taught and keep up with new learning.Leaders ensure that reading is a high priority. There is a clear phonics programme in place.

Leaders have trained staff to teach the phonics programme well. Phonics is taught from the very start in the early years. This sharp focus on ensuring that pupils, including disadvantaged pupils, know and use their phonics correctly is successful.

Pupils who find the learning of letter sounds hard catch up quickly because of strong support. Pupils read books that match the sounds that they are learning in class. This helps pupils to remember the sounds that they have been taught and become confident, fluent readers.

Leaders have a strong policy to manage pupils' behaviour. Staff follow the policy closely and pupils know what is expected of them. As a result, pupils' learning is not disturbed by others.

Children in the early years have positive attitudes to learning and the activities planned for them. They enjoy learning in the classroom and in the well organised outside area.

Leaders view pupils' personal development as important.

Leaders plan extra-curricular activities to develop pupils' wider experiences. They ensure that all pupils, including those who are disadvantaged, have opportunities to take part in an extensive range of activities. Pupils know how to look after themselves, including how to eat healthily.

Pupils reflect thoughtfully on different issues that are important to the school. This includes the school's values of respect, resilience and excellence.

Staff say that leaders care about their well-being.

They feel that leaders take account of their workload and work–life balance. Staff are confident to speak to the school leaders if they have a problem.

Governors share the school leaders' ambition for the academic, social and emotional success of each pupil.

Governors have an accurate view of the school's strengths and areas for improvement. They ensure that their work and skills support the school's plans for further improvement.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

Leaders make sure that staff are well trained. Staff are confident in knowing what they need to do if they have any concerns about a pupil's welfare. Staff feel that these will be followed up swiftly and appropriately.

Leaders seek help and guidance from other professionals. This ensures that pupils and their families receive the right help.

Leaders ensure that recruitment processes are robust and that all adults have the necessary background checks.

Leaders record this information carefully.

Pupils say that they feel safe and are looked after well. All parents who responded to the Parent View survey agree.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• Leaders' curriculum plans in PE are less clear than in other subjects. This means that pupils do not develop their knowledge and skills in an appropriate sequence. Leaders need to ensure that the planning makes it clear what pupils should know and be able to do by the time they reach specific points in the academic year.

• Some subject leaders do not have sufficient expertise in their curriculum area. As a result, subject leaders do not always help teachers to know when pupils are ready to move on in their learning. Leaders need to ensure that all subject leaders have deep subject knowledge in the subjects that they lead.

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