Ofsted inspectors have said Swinnown Primary School ‘requires improvement’ following their most recent inspection.
Inspectors said the school, which was previously rated as ‘good’ overall, had ‘warm and caring’ relationships between staff and pupils, and praised pupils’ behaviour and attitude.
While there was also praise for the school’s early years’ provision, the inspector raised concerns over the quality of education, leadership and personal development of pupils.
The report said: “Leaders have made recent changes to the curriculum that pupils are taught. However, what pupils are taught in some subjects and how it is taught need development. The school does not have a clear picture of which areas of the curriculum this development needs to happen.
“Children get a positive start to their education in the early years. This positive start is not then continued into key stage 1 and 2. Some pupils do not achieve as well as they could in national assessments.”
The report adds: “Leaders want pupils in the school to achieve well. This aspiration is not reflected within the ambition of the curriculum that pupils are taught. This is because there is variation in how well some subjects are taught across school.”
Subjects, such as history and design and technology, are being taught in ‘blocks’ because leaders wanted pupils to build “more subject-specific knowledge” over time. This is beginning to have a positive impact on pupils’ learning.
Headteacher Becky Naylor said: “We are naturally disappointed with the overall Ofsted assessment however we are pleased the report recognised many positive strengths of our school including the fabulous behaviour of our pupils and the standard of provision in our early years setting.
“We are aware of areas for further action and have already made significant progress in making the necessary improvements, as we strive to give all our pupils the best possible education. We look forward to continuing the good work we have already started.”
The full report can be read here.
Sponsored content
