Tudor Church of England Primary School, Sudbury Ofsted Report

Full report

What does the school need to do to improve further?

• Continue to improve pupils’ progress in reading, writing and mathematics by:
  • ensuring that the quality of teaching is consistently high in key stage 1
  • increasing the amount of challenge, particularly for the most able pupils, across key stages 1 and 2.
• Reduce levels of absence and persistent absence by:
  • introducing strategies to reduce the absence of those pupils who are not persistently absent from school, but whose absence is still too high
  • developing and embedding the actions that are currently beginning to have a positive impact on reducing rates of persistent absence.
• Improve leadership and management by:
  • ensuring that middle leaders are provided with support, training and challenge to embed the implementation of the wider curriculum.

Inspection judgements

Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

• The headteacher has established a culture of high expectations for pupils and staff. She has a clear vision for the school based upon the values of HOPE (high expectations, outstanding outcomes, people matter and enriching lives). This vision is lived out on a daily basis by staff and pupils. The headteacher ensures that all pupils receive the support required to be successful, regardless of their background; she focuses closely, and with impact, on removing any barriers to pupils’ success. Governors, school leaders and teachers share this vision. They are committed to providing pupils with the best possible opportunities, both in and out of the classroom. As a result, pupils receive a good standard of education.
• Leaders have a clear and accurate understanding of the school’s strengths and weaknesses. Their priorities for improvement are appropriate and they review progress towards their improvement plans each term; the plans are well focused and contain precise, measurable targets. Leaders are accurate in their evaluation of the strengths and weaknesses of teaching, learning and assessment. Staff value the training that they receive, particularly the professional development available through the trust. As a consequence, the quality of teaching, learning and assessment continues to improve.
• Leaders know pupils well. They track their progress carefully and identify their strengths and weaknesses. Pupils who fall behind are identified in regular pupil progress meetings and leaders provide them with additional help to catch up. As a result, pupils make good and improving progress across the school from their different starting points. Although leaders were disappointed with pupils’ progress in reading at key stage 2 in 2017, it was in line with the national average and is improving with current pupils.
• The provision for pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is a strength of the school. Corridor displays highlight the current theme that is the focus for the half term, for example perseverance, while pupils regularly make use of the area of the school that is set aside for quiet reflection. The successes of all pupils are celebrated on the walls of corridors and classrooms. Pupils value the opportunity to represent their classmates on the school and faith councils, while the ‘eco friends’ take responsibility for improving the school environment. Pupils are caring and they are proud of their school community. As a result of leaders’ actions, pupils are well prepared for life in modern Britain.
• The special educational needs and/or disabilities coordinator (SENCo) ensures that the funding that the school receives to support its pupils is well spent. Pupils’ needs are identified quickly and a wide range of appropriate and thoughtful support is provided, either through teachers and teaching assistants or links with other professionals. The SENCo provides staff with effective training that supports them to meet pupils’ needs, and she liaises closely with parents and carers. Teaching assistants know their pupils well and provide them with good-quality support. As a result of leaders’ actions, pupils who have SEN and/or disabilities make good progress.
• The primary physical education (PE) and sport premium is spent effectively. Leaders identify a range of sporting experiences that appeal to pupils and they work closely with external providers to increase pupils’ participation. Leaders also ensure that staff receive appropriate training, for example in tag rugby and shallow swimming. As a result of leaders’ actions, there have been increased opportunities for pupils to experience different sports; pupils’ attendance at sessions has increased and more sports teams are now attending competitions. Leaders acknowledge that their impact could be further enhanced by ensuring that all planned actions have clear and precise targets against which success can be measured more closely.
• Leaders provide a broad and balanced curriculum. As a consequence, pupils enjoy learning, both in and out of the classroom. They particularly enjoy participating in art lessons; their high-quality artwork is proudly displayed around the school. In every class, pupils are eager to show the ‘scrap books’ that record the learning activities that they undertake in a wide range of subjects, such as science, technology and humanities. Leaders acknowledge that the wider curriculum is not yet fully embedded; they have identified the needs of subject leaders and are providing them with support, training and accountability, which they value. However, it is too early to see the full impact of these actions.
• Pupils’ experience at school is enhanced by the range of extra-curricular activities that leaders provide. There are many sporting clubs on offer and they are popular with pupils. Pupils are also able to receive additional support at the learning sessions that run before the start of the school day.
• Leaders have a clear understanding of the barriers to learning that are faced by their disadvantaged pupils and they hold teachers to account effectively for the progress of these pupils. Teachers understand disadvantaged pupils’ needs and track their progress closely, providing additional support when needed. The school’s family support worker helps reduce barriers to learning by improving links with families, while leaders use the additional funding to provide disadvantaged pupils with access to a wide range of activities. As a result of leaders’ actions, disadvantaged pupils make progress that is in line with, and sometimes better than, their non-disadvantaged peers. However, leaders’ actions have been less successful in reducing the absence and persistent absence of disadvantaged pupils.

Governance of the school

• Governors know the school well. While they celebrate its many strengths, they are equally aware of its priorities for improvement. Governors receive regular training in relation to their specific roles on the governing body. Through governors’ meetings and their visits to the school, governors offer leaders effective challenge and support. Governors ensure that their statutory duties, especially in safeguarding pupils’ welfare, are fully met.
• The support and challenge that the trust provides is very effective. The trust offers a wide range of training for leaders and teachers, for example through middle leader networks and individual coaching for teachers. It also supports leaders to evaluate the impact of their actions in areas such as safeguarding. The trust contributes to the development and evaluation of leaders’ improvement plans, while it holds leaders to account through regular and effective meetings with its head of school improvement. Leaders value the support and expertise they gain from the trust; they also benefit from the experience of supporting other schools within the trust.

Safeguarding

• The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.
• The school has a strong culture of safeguarding. Staff at all levels receive regular safeguarding training and they know how to identify pupils who are potentially at risk. Staff understand, and follow, leaders’ clear protocols for the reporting of any safeguarding concerns.
• School leaders ensure that safeguarding concerns are logged and they are tenacious in making sure that child protection referrals are dealt with appropriately. The maintenance of child protection files is effective and leaders work well with representatives from other agencies.
• All required checks are carried out when recruiting new staff to work at the school.

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Good

• As a result of leaders’ actions, the quality of teaching across the early years, key stage 1 and key stage 2 has improved. The overwhelming majority of parents who responded to Parent View, Ofsted’s online questionnaire, agreed that pupils are taught well; pupils who met with inspectors said that they enjoy their lessons and that they make good progress.
• Teachers are effective in supporting pupils to share their ideas with each other. Pupils are confident to discuss their learning, with their partner, with pupils on their table or as part of a whole-class discussion. As a consequence, pupils deepen their understanding by making links between their thinking and that of their classmates.
• Teaching assistants provide effective support to pupils who have SEN and/or disabilities. They plan closely with teachers and they understand the needs of the pupils that they are supporting. Their effective questioning and explanation of tasks support pupils who have SEN and/or disabilities to make good progress.
• Relationships between teachers and pupils are very strong. Teachers establish clear routines and have high expectations of pupils. Pupils respect their teachers and have very positive attitudes to learning. As a result, pupils are keen to get involved in activities and they are not afraid to take risks and make mistakes.
• Many teachers question individual pupils, and groups of pupils, skilfully in order to provide them with specific guidance about what they need to do to improve their work. Strong subject knowledge allows teachers to challenge pupils or to provide additional support where necessary.
• Teachers plan activities that take into account pupils’ prior learning; in most lessons, pupils have access to additional resources that are designed to enable them to work in greater depth more quickly. However, pupils sometimes spend too long completing work that they are easily able to complete and they do not move on to more challenging tasks quickly enough. As a result, their progress slows.
• Teaching is less consistent at key stage 1. Learning activities are not always closely matched to the abilities of pupils, while questioning is sometimes not effective in checking what pupils understand. At times, expectations of pupils’ behaviour are not applied consistently.

Personal development, behaviour and welfare Good

Personal development and welfare

• The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare is good.
• The school’s ethos has a very positive impact on pupils’ personal development. Pupils are thoughtful, responsible and caring; they are taught to respect each other and to welcome visitors through acts of kindness, such as opening doors and offering a friendly greeting. Pupils are supported to be reflective through the daily act of collective worship, the inspirational quotes displayed around the school and the use of the area of the school that is set aside for quiet reflection.
• Through a well-planned programme of personal, social and health education, pupils develop a good understanding of how to stay safe in a variety of situations, including when using the internet. Pupils told inspectors that they feel safe in school and that they have the confidence that staff will help them if they have a worry or a concern. Pupils also told inspectors that there is very little bullying in the school; when it does happen, pupils say that it is dealt with quickly and effectively.
• Leaders have developed stronger links with parents and families through the appointment of a family support worker. As a result, many pupils are now more confident in school and make better progress, both socially and academically.

Behaviour

• The behaviour of pupils is good.
• Pupils behave well in and out of lessons. They are friendly, polite and well-mannered. They follow the instructions of their teachers closely and they have good attitudes to learning. Pupils also behave well at lunchtimes and breaktimes. They are well supervised outside, where they socialise or play sensibly in small groups.
• Leaders’ high expectations, along with the introduction of new behaviour management systems, have led to a reduction in the number of pupils who receive fixed-period exclusions; this is now in line with the national average. Disruptions in lessons and incidents of poor behaviour at breaktimes have decreased and are now rare.
• The overwhelming majority of parents who responded to Parent View, Ofsted’s online questionnaire, agreed that pupils are well behaved, as did all staff who completed the Ofsted staff questionnaire.
• Leaders’ work to reduce the proportion of pupils who are persistently absent from school has had some success; however, the number of these pupils is still too high. Overall absence is also above average; leaders have not placed a strong enough emphasis on improving the attendance of pupils who are not persistently absent from school, but whose absence is still high.

Outcomes for pupils Good

• Children join the early years with skills that are often well below those that are typical for their age. As a result of highly effective early assessment, leaders ensure that children’s individual needs are identified quickly and accurately and that well-planned learning activities support their rapid progress. As a consequence, children make outstanding progress across the early years.
• The proportion of children achieving a good level of development at the end of the Reception Year has risen rapidly over the past two years. The progress of children currently in the early years continues to be rapid. Leaders’ assessments, evidence in children’s workbooks and observations of teaching all demonstrate that children this year are making outstanding progress.
• The proportion of pupils achieving the expected standard in the national phonics check at the end of Year 1 has risen rapidly over the past two years as a result of more effective, systematic approaches to the teaching of phonics. The proportion of pupils on track to achieve the expected standard in 2018 is in line with the national average.
• In 2017, at the end of key stage 1, pupils’ attainment in reading, writing and mathematics at the expected standard was in line with the attainment of pupils with similar starting points nationally, having risen rapidly from the previous year. Pupils in Year 2 are currently on track to attain well and make continued good progress by the end of key stage 1.
• Leaders are aware that the progress of pupils currently in Year 1 is slower than those in Year 2. They understand the factors that have contributed to this, for example changes to transition arrangements, and they are working effectively to ensure that those pupils who have fallen behind catch up quickly.
• Pupils’ progress in writing and mathematics at key stage 2 has improved over the past two years and was in line with the national average in 2017. Pupils currently in the school continue to make good and improving progress in writing and mathematics across key stage 2.
• Although, pupils’ progress in reading at key stage 2 has been in line with the national average for the past two years, leaders are disappointed with the progress that pupils, especially girls, made in 2017. Improving progress in reading has been a priority for leaders this year; their assessment records, work in pupils’ books and observations of teaching all demonstrate that progress is improving quickly and that the differences between boys and girls have diminished.
• Pupils who have SEN and/or disabilities and those who are disadvantaged make good progress. Their needs are quickly identified by staff and they are supported effectively in their learning.
• Generally, the most able pupils attain in line with pupils with similar starting points nationally. However, because of inconsistencies in the amount of challenge in some lessons, some of the most able pupils do not achieve as well as they could.

Early years provision Outstanding

• The early years is more effective than the main school because work on improving the provision has had more time to embed. Leaders have brought about rapid and sustained improvements.
• The leader of the early years has very high expectations of herself, her staff and the children who attend the provision. Children are very well supported by an experienced and well-trained team. Adults offer the most appropriate support to each child at the specific time that it is required. They know each child very well, plan to meet their individual needs and work closely with families to support each child’s progress.
• The quality of teaching is outstanding, and consistently so. High-quality questioning supports children and offers them significant levels of challenge during formal teaching sessions, small-group teaching and when they play. Activities are very well planned and adults ensure that pupils are constantly developing their skills, knowledge and understanding in a stimulating and varied environment. Children are able to explain what they are learning and how they have improved. As a consequence, the quality of education is outstanding.
• The early years leader and teaching assistants use observations to assess precisely how well children are learning and developing. They quickly realise when children need additional support and put this into place very effectively. As a result, children, including those who are disadvantaged, make outstanding progress from their different starting points.
• Leaders’ work with parents and other providers is of high quality. Parents are welcomed at the start of the day, where they have an opportunity to meet with adults in the provision. The use of an online platform has enabled parents to see the work of their children on a regular basis and this has been very successful, especially in communicating with parents who are less likely to come into school. Leaders work closely with local nurseries, for example sending ‘Tudor teddies’ with activities for the nursery children to complete; they ensure that transition arrangements are thorough.
• Adults ensure that children behave very well and that they are safe. Children collaborate well, they listen attentively and they support each other. They are confident and proud to talk about the work that they do. The environment is safe and adults are well trained to care for and protect the children. Safeguarding arrangements are secure.
• Children are very well prepared for the transition to Year 1. The skills required for moving to a more formal classroom, such as writing at a desk, are built into the curriculum; these opportunities increase as the children move through Reception. There are close links between Reception and key stage 1 staff; children undertake visits to their new classrooms and their new teachers provide lessons for them during the summer term.

School details

Unique reference number Local authority Inspection number 142026 Suffolk 10046623 This inspection of the school was carried out under section 5 of the Education Act 2005. Type of school Primary School category Age range of pupils Gender of pupils Academy sponsor-led 4 to 11 Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 224 Appropriate authority Board of trustees Chair Headteacher Jane Sheat Elizabeth Campbell Telephone number 01787 372005 Website Email address www.tudor.suffolk.dbprimary.com admin@tudor.suffolk.sch.uk Date of previous inspection Not previously inspected

Information about this school

• This is the school’s first inspection since it joined the St Edmundsbury and Ipswich Multi-Academy Trust in May 2016.
• The school is smaller than the average-sized primary school.
• The proportion of pupils known to be eligible for the pupil premium is above the national average.
• The proportion of pupils from minority ethnic backgrounds is below the national average, as is the proportion of pupils who speak English as an additional language.
• The proportion of pupils who receive SEN support is above the national average.
• The proportion of pupils who have a statement of special educational needs or an education, health and care plan is in line with the national average.
• The school met the government’s floor standards in 2017, which set the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress by the end of key stage 2.

Information about this inspection

• Inspectors held meetings with the headteacher, senior leaders, subject leaders, the SENCo, the early years leader, members of the governing body and a representative from the trust.
• Inspectors gathered a range of evidence to judge the quality of teaching, learning and assessment. Inspectors observed learning in 21 lessons, or parts of lessons, some jointly with the headteacher.
• A wide range of pupils’ workbooks were looked at by inspectors throughout the inspection.
• Inspectors spoke to pupils informally in class and around the school at breaktimes and lunchtimes to seek their views about the school.
• Inspectors met with two groups of pupils more formally to discuss many aspects of school life.
• Inspectors heard some pupils in Years 1, 2 and 6 read. Inspectors talked to pupils about their reading habits and looked at their reading records.
• Inspectors scrutinised the school’s website and a range of school documents, including assessment information, minutes from the governing body meetings and the school’s own evaluation of its effectiveness. Inspectors also scrutinised leaders’ improvement plans and their records about behaviour, safeguarding and attendance.
• Inspectors considered the 35 responses to the Ofsted online questionnaire, Parent View, along with the 25 free-text comments. Inspectors also spoke to some parents before school. Inspectors considered the 14 responses by staff to the Ofsted staff questionnaire.

Inspection team

Daniel Gee, lead inspector Her Majesty’s Inspector Rowena Simmons Ofsted Inspector