Beckfoot Allerton Primary School and Nursery Ofsted Report

Full report

What does the school need to do to improve further?

• Improve the quality of teaching, learning and assessment so that it is consistently good or better, and improve pupils’ outcomes by ensuring that:
  • teachers have strong subject knowledge, particularly in reading and mathematics
  • teachers have high expectations of pupils’ achievements and provide work which challenges pupils, particularly the most able pupils
  • teachers use accurate assessment information to match activities to pupils’ needs in all subjects, including in the early years
  • pupils’ misconceptions are addressed swiftly, particularly in mathematics and science
  • pupils have frequent opportunities to edit and improve their work in all subjects, including in writing
  • the books that pupils use to practise early reading are precisely matched to their phonics knowledge
  • teaching assistants contribute to pupils’ learning consistently well.
• Improve the effectiveness of leadership and management by ensuring that:
  • all teaching is good or better
  • all members of staff adopt improvement strategies promptly and consistently
  • middle leaders receive further professional development to enable them to take responsibility for improvements in teaching, learning and assessment in the areas they lead
  • leaders make rigorous and regular checks on, and evaluation of, the difference they have made to the quality of teaching and pupils’ outcomes, including for disadvantaged pupils and pupils with SEND
  • in the early years, professional development of staff leads to accurate assessments of children and the provision of activities which meet children’s needs precisely
  • effective systems are in place for parents to share their views. An external review of the school’s use of pupil premium funding should be undertaken in order to assess how this aspect of leadership and management may be improved.

Inspection judgements

Effectiveness of leadership and management

Requires improvement

• Over the last 18 months, a new senior leadership team has been established, bringing considerable expertise to the school. This includes the headteacher, who took up post in September 2017. A significant number of new teachers have also joined the school during this period, many of whom were newly qualified when appointed. The headteacher, alongside trust leaders, has managed this period of turbulence well and staff morale is high.
• Senior leaders are accurate in evaluating the school’s current effectiveness and in identifying priorities for improvement. Their honesty about the school’s current position and their determination to improve this significantly are clearly evident.
• Leaders have acted appropriately to strengthen the quality of teaching through the introduction of assessment, planning and systems to hold staff to account. However, a number of initiatives are in their infancy and shortcomings in subject knowledge for some teachers remain. Therefore, the quality of teaching, learning and assessment remains variable.
• In some year groups, members of staff are not adopting new strategies for improvement consistently and promptly. This means that leaders spend time checking that staff are compliant with these, rather than focusing on improving the effectiveness of teaching.
• Leaders have focused considerable attention on improving the quality of teaching in writing and mathematics. Working with other trust schools, leaders have provided professional development for teaching staff. The newly introduced teaching strategies are starting to improve the effectiveness of teaching. However, there remains work to do before these initiatives are fully embedded.
• As a part of a trust initiative, leaders have recently analysed the barriers to learning faced by disadvantaged pupils. Leaders are beginning to put in place support and teaching to overcome these barriers in some year groups. However, because this approach is at the early stages of development, leaders are unable to evaluate the effectiveness of their spending. It is too early to detect any improvements to disadvantaged pupils’ outcomes, which lag behind those of pupils nationally.
• Leaders have recently ensured that the cognitive needs of pupils with SEND are identified accurately. However, targets for this group are often not in place. Where targets do exist, these are too broad. Therefore, although some individual pupils receive effective teaching, leaders do not have systems in place to ensure that this quality is consistent.
• From the start of this academic year, leaders have introduced a new curriculum design. They have ensured that the curriculum is broad and balanced, and is relevant to pupils and their community. They aim to reinforce pupils’ understanding of pertinent topics by linking subjects together. For example, pupils learn about climate change in subjects such as history, geography, science, English and art. Subjects are also linked together to support pupils’ understanding of important issues, such as human rights, the Holocaust and the suffragettes.
• The trust has effectively supported the development of both senior and middle leaders. For example, by providing training for teachers given the role of English or mathematics ‘champion’, they have played a crucial role in building leadership capacity. Middle leaders are passionate and knowledgeable about the subjects they lead. They are often involved in advising and training colleagues to support improvements to teaching. However, leaders’ checks on the quality of teaching in subjects other than English and mathematics are limited. As a result, the quality of teaching in a range of wider curriculum subjects, including history, geography and science, is variable.
• Leaders spend the primary physical education (PE) and sports funding appropriately. Leaders ensure that pupils are able to participate in extra-curricular clubs and competitions. The PE leader has recently introduced ‘fixture Friday’, which offers pupils the opportunity to try new sports. This has increased pupils’ participation rates in extra-curricular activities. Leaders have also invested in resources to strengthen the quality of PE teaching. However, they have not checked on the difference this has made to teaching or to pupils’ outcomes.
• Most parents who spoke to inspectors hold positive views of the school. They appreciate the opportunities they have to attend events and workshops, such as a chocolate-making workshop in Year 4, linked to pupils’ learning about fair trade. However, a small but significant number of parents feel that their views are not gathered and taken into consideration.
• Leaders have ensured that pupils benefit from highly effective provision for their spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. Leaders have planned a wealth of valuable experiences for pupils as they move through the year groups. For example, leaders from a range of faiths deliver assemblies each week. As a result, the ethos in the school is one of care, tolerance and nurture for each other.

Governance of the school

• Trustees and members of the local school committee are accurate in their view of the school’s current effectiveness and are highly ambitious for the achievement of all pupils. They demonstrate integrity in their vision for rapid improvement and passion for the community and wider city.
• Trustees have a clear understanding of the school’s priorities and of the improvements secured to date. They have considerable knowledge and expertise in leading school improvement.
• Senior leaders provide trustees with detailed information about the quality of teaching, pupils’ outcomes and attendance. Trustees use this information well to provide suitable challenge and support as required.
• Trustees understand their responsibilities well and hold leaders to account effectively. They commission external consultants to monitor and evaluate leaders’ progress toward key priorities. They use this to validate leaders’ evaluations.

Safeguarding

• The arrangements for safeguarding are effective. Leaders have successfully established a culture of safeguarding in the school.
• Members of staff are aware of their responsibilities in keeping children safe. Staff with designated responsibility for safeguarding are swift to refer to external agencies where necessary.
• Leaders have ensured that effective emotional support is in place for pupils and their families whose circumstances make them vulnerable.
• Pupils who shared their views during the inspection said that they feel safe in the school and that they trust the adults to support them with any worries they may have. Pupils were knowledgeable about the dangers they may face, including online. They referred to assemblies and lessons when explaining the actions they would take to keep themselves safe.
• Leaders have ensured that appropriate measures are in place to check that staff and volunteers are suitable to work with children. Records in relation to this are well maintained and organised.

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Requires improvement

• Despite recent improvements to the quality of teaching, this remains variable across year groups and subjects. Leaders have rightly focused considerable effort on developing the accuracy of teachers’ assessments. In some year groups, teachers use this assessment information to plan activities which are well matched to pupils’ needs. However, too often and in a range of subjects, pupils, particularly the most able, receive work which is too easy. This hinders their progress and means that few pupils reach the higher standards of learning.
• The teaching of reading comprehension skills is particularly variable. This is because teachers do not always have the expertise they need to move pupils’ learning on effectively. In some year groups, the activities pupils do to develop their understanding of texts and books are too easy. Similarly, too often, teachers’ expectations of pupils’ work in reading comprehension tasks are too low. Hence, pupils are not supported to think deeply and give detailed responses.
• Leaders have been successful in ensuring that reading for pleasure is high profile within the school. Pupils told inspectors that they appreciate the choice of books available and enjoy author visits. The lunchtime library club is a popular choice among pupils.
• Following professional development for teachers, pupils’ opportunities to develop their reasoning skills in mathematics are increasingly frequent. However, teachers are not always equipped with the knowledge they need to provide activities in mathematics that are challenging enough, particularly for the most able pupils. Pupils’ misconceptions are not addressed quickly enough and pupils’ opportunities to correct their errors are rare. Despite improvements to the teaching of mathematics, these factors inhibit pupils’ progress.
• The newly introduced approach to teaching writing has secured improvements to the way pupils structure their writing. Teachers link pupils’ learning in English to topics they are studying in other subjects, such as history, and pupils are motivated by this. Consequently, lower-attaining pupils now show improvement in their stamina for writing at length. However, pupils’ errors in English grammar, punctuation and spelling are not addressed consistently by teachers and are then repeated by pupils. Pupils’ opportunities to edit, improve and redraft their writing are infrequent. As a result, pupils’ progress in writing is not maximised.
• The difference teaching assistants make to pupils’ learning varies considerably. Some teaching assistants show a high level of skill in consolidating and extending pupils’ knowledge. However, in some year groups, teachers do not direct teaching assistants for all parts of lessons. In these classes, teaching assistants are passive, particularly during whole-class teaching, and are not effective in fostering pupils’ progress.
• Pupils enjoy their learning in subjects such as history, geography and science. For example, Year 4 pupils were excited to tell inspectors about their Ancient Egypt topic. Pupils are also enthused by the home learning activities they do regularly with their parents in relation to these topics. However, teachers do not check pupils’ skills, knowledge and understanding in these subjects rigorously. Hence, too often, teachers do not address pupils’ misconceptions. Additionally, the work pupils receive lacks challenge, particularly for the most able pupils.
• Some pupils with SEND receive tailored support which enables them to learn effectively alongside their peers. This is typically the case for pupils with social, emotional or sensory needs. For some individual pupils, teaching staff give careful consideration to how lessons can be altered to meet pupils’ needs. However, pupils’ cognitive needs have only recently been pinpointed. Therefore, it is too early to evaluate whether the teaching they receive is effective in securing good progress from their starting points.
• The teaching of phonics is successful in supporting most pupils to develop their early reading skills well. Teaching staff demonstrate strong subject knowledge: they consolidate and extend pupils’ phonic knowledge effectively. However, each year group has a slightly different approach to teaching phonics which slows pupils’ progress as they learn new strategies instead of building on existing ones. The books pupils use to practise their reading are sometimes too difficult and contain words which pupils cannot decode. This hinders pupils’ progress, particularly for lower-attaining pupils.
• Leaders place high priority on providing rich learning experiences for pupils through educational visits and visitors to the school. These enhancements are successful in motivating and inspiring pupils to learn. For example, while on residential, the outdoor environment is used effectively to extend Year 6 pupils’ learning about the artist Andy Goldsworthy.

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 is underpinned by the principles of ‘SCARF: safety, caring, achievement, respect and friendliness’. These values permeate through pupils’ experiences. For example, the ‘belonging in Britain’ themed week provided pupils with an effective link between SCARF and their understanding of British values.
• Opportunities for pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development are a strength of the school. Teaching staff bring this learning to life for pupils through teaching them about significant people and events. Pupils also benefit from a wealth of experiences. For example, when in Year 3, pupils learn from their partnership with pupils from a school in a contrasting locality.
• Leaders promote equality and celebrate diversity with good effect. This work is well supported by assemblies, as well as through the curriculum areas of religious education (RE) and personal, social, health and economic (PSHE) education. As a result, pupils demonstrate respect for others and are well prepared for modern Britain. One pupil represented the views of many, saying ‘Everybody is unique…and everybody is welcome here.’
• Pupils are keen to take on the wide-ranging leadership roles on offer to them. Sports leaders, librarians and school councillors are all proud of the contribution they make to the school. For example, the school council has led an initiative to introduce recycling to the school. Pupils have been involved in fundraising for recycling bins and in educating other pupils on the impact that plastic has on the environment and the food chain. As a result of these leadership opportunities, pupils are mature and responsible.
• Pupils enjoy a variety of extra-curricular clubs, including cheerleading, table tennis and crafts. Pupils from the school’s dance group were proud to tell inspectors that they had won an annual dance competition just prior to the inspection. A significant proportion also start their day well at breakfast club. Pupils understand what makes a healthy lifestyle, and the important role that diet and exercise play.

Behaviour

• The behaviour of pupils is good. Pupils conduct themselves well and are courteous and friendly. The atmosphere in the school is calm and harmonious. Incidents of bullying and poor behaviour are rare. The support in place for pupils who struggle to manage their behaviour is well developed and effective. Most pupils demonstrate strong social skills and they work together very well.
• Strong relationships exist between pupils and teaching staff. Pupils are eager to please members of staff. As a result, pupils demonstrate consistently positive attitudes to learning.
• Leaders have rigorous systems in place to check on attendance and follow up pupils’ absences. They also have a number of initiatives and incentives in place to promote good attendance. As a result, pupils understand the importance of regular attendance, they value their education and attendance is in line with the national average.

Outcomes for pupils Requires improvement

• For the last two years, pupils’ outcomes at the end of key stage 2 have been poor. In 2018, pupils’ progress in reading and writing was well below average and for mathematics was below average. Pupils’ attainment in all three subjects has been in the lowest 20% of schools for the last two years. As a result of leaders’ work to improve the quality of teaching, progress for pupils currently in school is strengthening. In some year groups, pupils now make good progress in English and mathematics. However, for some pupils, their progress is hindered by the variability in the quality of teaching that remains.
• Across year groups, too few pupils reach the standards expected for their age in English and mathematics. This is the legacy of historic weaknesses in teaching which have left gaps in some pupils’ knowledge and skills. Teaching staff are becoming increasingly skilled in filling these gaps to support pupils in making stronger progress.
• Disadvantaged pupils’ attainment is particularly low. Leaders’ recent strategies to strengthen disadvantaged pupils’ progress are in their infancy. Therefore, it is too early to see any improvement in pupils’ outcomes. As a result, disadvantaged pupils’ outcomes lag behind those of other pupils nationally and this gap is not diminishing quickly.
• For pupils with SEND who have social, emotional or sensory needs, their needs are typically well met through bespoke adaptations of teaching. This enables them to make strong progress from their starting points. Where pupils with SEND have cognitive or academic needs, leaders are at the early stages of ensuring that teaching is effective. As a result, progress for this group of pupils is variable.
• Pupils’ outcomes at the end of key stage 1 are better than those seen in key stage 2. In 2018 in key stage 1, pupils’ attainment was just below average in reading and writing and was average in mathematics.
• Most pupils develop their early reading skills well. However, lower-attaining pupils’ progress is not always as strong as it should be. Consequently, in 2018, the proportion of pupils who reached the expected standard in the Year 1 phonics screening check was below average.

Early years provision Requires improvement

• The early years leader joined the school in September 2018. She has accurately identified the priorities for improvement and has started work towards these. The pace of improvement has been slowed by necessary changes to staffing mid-year.
• With support from the trust, leaders have focused considerably on training staff to aid effective assessment of children’s knowledge and skills. However, there remains work to do to ensure that assessments are systematic and accurate. Because of this, it is not possible for leaders to evaluate children’s progress across early years in a meaningful way.
• The quality of teaching in the early years is not consistently good. As a result, only two thirds of children are currently on track to reach a good level of development by the end of Reception Year.
• Leaders have increased expectations of what children can achieve and have designed activities which incorporate a higher level of challenge. However, as adults do not have a precise view of children’s skills and knowledge, they are not able to match tasks and teaching to children’s needs effectively. Therefore, children’s progress is slowed.
• Adults show high levels of care for the children. Some adults are adept in extending children’s learning through questioning and demonstration. Children with SEND are particularly well supported by skilled adults. However, some teaching assistants intervene in children’s learning unnecessarily. This hampers children’s independence and learning.
• Leaders’ improvements to the learning environment have ensured that it is attractive and welcoming. There is a wealth of activities for children to choose from, which are aimed at developing a range of skills. Children find the activities enticing and are able to sustain concentration for extended periods.
• The majority of parents who shared their views praised the early years for being a welcoming, nurturing setting. However, parents do not have regular opportunities to share information about their child’s learning outside of the school. Similarly, some parents do not feel that they are given sufficient information to support their child’s learning effectively at home.
• Adults have established high expectations of children’s behaviour and clear routines for children to follow. Consequently, children conduct themselves well. They learn cooperatively with their peers and are polite and kind. Leaders have ensured that all welfare requirements are met and that the setting provides a nurturing atmosphere.

School details

Unique reference number Local authority Inspection number 143092 Bradford 10086835 This inspection was carried out under section 8 of the Education Act 2005. The inspection was also deemed a section 5 inspection under the same Act. Type of school Primary School category Age range of pupils Gender of pupils Academy converter 3 to 11 Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 474 Appropriate authority Board of trustees Chair Headteacher Telephone number Website Email address John Winkley Kate Horton 01274 541587 www.beckfootallerton.org office@allerton.bradford.sch.uk Date of previous inspection Not previously inspected

Information about this school

• Beckfoot Allerton Primary School and Nursery is a larger-than-average-sized primary school. It became a part of the Beckfoot Trust in September 2016. A significant proportion of the staff team, including teachers, leaders and the headteacher, have joined the school since September 2017.
• The school has a Nursery for children from the age of three. It also has a breakfast club which is well attended by pupils.
• The proportion of disadvantaged pupils is just above average.
• The majority of pupils are of Asian or Asian British Pakistani heritage or White British heritage. Twelve different ethnic groups are represented in the school. The proportion of pupils who speak English as an additional language is just above average.
• The proportion of pupils with SEND is above average.

Information about this inspection

• Inspectors observed learning in a range of subjects in classes across all year groups. Some of these observations were carried out jointly with leaders.
• Inspectors looked at pupils’ work and listened to them read. They gathered pupils’ views about the school through formal and informal discussions. They observed pupils’ behaviour in lessons and around the school, including at playtimes and lunchtimes.
• Inspectors met with senior and middle leaders, a group of trustees, including the chief executive officer, a group of staff and representatives of the local school committee. They also viewed the school’s staff survey results.
• Inspectors scrutinised a range of documentation, including the school’s self-evaluation and improvement plans, minutes of trust meetings, safeguarding documents and monitoring records of the quality of teaching and learning. Inspectors also evaluated information relating to pupils’ outcomes, behaviour and attendance.
• Inspectors gathered the opinions of parents at the start and end of the school day. They also viewed the school’s parent survey results.

Inspection team

Karine Hendley, lead inspector Janet Lunn Diane Reynard Gerry Wilson

Her Majesty’s Inspector Ofsted Inspector Ofsted Inspector Ofsted Inspector