The Victory Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils love coming to this highly inclusive school.

The Victory Primary School is an integral part of the local community. Staff have created a nurturing environment, so pupils feel safe and listened to. Pupils understand their emotions, and staff help pupils to feel calm and ready for learning.

Pupils' achievement is improving each year because staff focus well on the areas that make the most difference to pupils' understanding.

The school has high expectations of behaviour based around its motto of seeing 'the best in everyone'. Pupils play together happily on the playground, showing tolerance and respect for one another.

Through the many ways that... the school seeks their views, pupils feel truly listened to. As a result, pupils behave well and disruption to learning is rare.

Pupils across the school love taking on the different roles that they are all given.

These include being book monitors or making sure that laptops are put away safely for their class. These roles help pupils to learn about and value being responsible citizens who have an important role in their school community.

Pupils also benefit from a rich set of experiences that develop their understanding of the world around them.

These include visits to local temples and the planetarium.

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

Over the last few years, the curriculum has been adapted further. This was to address the gaps in knowledge identified for the high number of disadvantaged pupils in the school.

As a result, these pupils are achieving better than they were. Achievement is particularly strong in the early years. All pupils have a secure base from which to move on in their learning.

The school has designed a well-sequenced curriculum that meets all pupils' needs. It sets out the knowledge and skills that pupils will learn at each stage, including in the early years. However, there are some aspects of the curriculum that the school is developing further.

The school has begun to help more pupils write at a higher standard and in an appropriate way for a range of subjects. This aspect of the school's work is still being embedded across the whole school.Staff subject knowledge is strong.

Pupils benefit from opportunities to discuss learning with each other, as it deepens their thinking. Staff make effective adaptations for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), based on swift and accurate identification of pupils' needs. As a result, these pupils achieve well.

Staff check pupils' understanding effectively and address mistakes or misunderstandings well. As a result, pupils' gaps in knowledge are closing rapidly.The school's approach to phonics and early reading is a strength.

From the very beginning, children in the early years get off to a flying start in their joy of singing nursery rhymes and going on a journey through a shared story. They delight in playing and experimenting with making and saying sounds. Reading books are closely matched to the sounds that pupils have learned.

Staff closely follow the school's chosen phonics scheme and provide effective support for pupils who need more practice. Staff choose diverse texts to share and discuss with pupils. Consequently, pupils develop an appreciation of the differences between cultures and develop a love of reading.

In the early years, children get off to an excellent start. Many children enter the school with significant needs. Expertly trained staff support pupils extremely well to develop their communication, language and early writing skills.

As a result, children speak and write with confidence and growing proficiency by the end of their time in Reception.Pupils have positive attitudes towards their learning and behave well. They try hard and low-level disruption is a rarity.

Pupils keep trying when something is difficult. They use prompts to help them, such as discussing their thoughts with a partner. The school continues to work hard to improve some pupils' attendance and punctuality, as these are not as high as the school would wish.

The school has strong systems in place to track and raise awareness of the importance of high attendance. As a result, the attendance of all pupils is improving.Pupils' personal development is exceptional.

The school provides extremely strong welfare and pastoral support steered by the school's values. The school's extensive nurture provision identifies and addresses the social and emotional needs of each pupil effectively. The school develops a deep sense of belonging in the children.

This is shown through events such as weekly pupil book sharing with their families. Pupils talk with a deep understanding about relationships, growing up and what it means to be healthy.Leaders are highly ambitious for all pupils, staff and the community that they serve.

The school prioritises staff workload and well-being. The trust and local governance committee fulfil their statutory duties with expertise, ensuring a strong and ever-improving partnership across the trust.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

• The school's work to further develop pupils' writing skills is not fully embedded. Not enough pupils produce writing of a high standard. The school should further embed and develop the teaching of writing so that gaps in pupils' knowledge and skills are closed effectively.

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