Swaythling Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

This is a good school The quality of teaching is now good across the school.

There are times when some teaching is outstanding. Improvements in the quality of teaching have been brought about by the concerted efforts of the headteacher and deputy headteacher to raise expectations of teachers and hold them to account. Pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities make strong progress because of the knowledge of the leader for special educational needs.

She identifies their needs accurately and intervenes swiftly to put in place support that means pupils can catch up quickly. In mathematics in particular, pupils are learning to reason well and to... talk and write about their understanding in some depth. This is particularly the case in Year 5 and Year 6.

The strong ethos of the school helps to create a calm, purposeful but welcoming atmosphere centred on learning. The school's motto, 'Be Thoughtful' permeates the actions of pupils and adults and ensures that pupils feel very safe at school and listened to by adults. Children receive a good start to their education in the early years and make good progress because : they are taught well.

Pupils have highly positive attitudes to learning. They are proud of their learning and their school. They are extremely polite and well mannered and behave exceptionally well.

Governors know the school well. They make much more constructive links between the quality of teaching and the progress pupils achieve. It is not yet an outstanding school because : Teaching in the early years and in key stage 1 does too little to encourage children to reason, question and explore to deepen their understanding.

Pupils' appreciation of fiction books has not yet developed in the same way as their love of information books. The school's improvement plans do not easily identify the measures for success which governors and other leaders can monitor.

Information about this school

Swaythling is slightly smaller than the average-sized primary school.

It is a one-form-entry primary school with class sizes of around 30. The proportion of pupils from minority ethnic backgrounds is much higher than the national average and in the highest fifth of all schools nationally. The number of pupils for whom English is an additional language is well above the national average and in the highest fifth of all schools nationally.

The number of pupils supported by the pupil premium (additional government money to support children looked after by the local authority and pupils known to be eligible for free school meals) is much higher than the national average. The proportion of pupils receiving support for their special educational needs and/or disabilities is well above the national average. The proportion with an education, health and care plan or statement of special educational needs is slightly below the national average.

The proportion of pupils who have joined the school at times other than normal transition times is much higher than the national average. The school is a member of the Cantell Federation of local schools centred on the local secondary school. This is a 'soft' federation in which schools provide mutual support for each other.

The headteacher is currently chair of the federation's governing body. The school meets requirements on the publication of specified information on its website. However, in some areas there is little supporting detail.

For example, information about the governing body gives little

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