Thrybergh Fullerton Church of England Primary Academy

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy attending this kind and caring school. They learn to respect and care for others. Pupils welcome visitors to the school and have excellent manners.

Older pupils use the same play areas as younger children and enjoy looking after them. Pupils benefit from the safe school environment they create alongside staff.

The school has high expectations for all pupils.

More recent improvements to the curriculum have impacted positively on the progress pupils make. However, this progress is not reflected in the outcomes at the end of key stage 2. These results do not align with the strong quality of education pupils receive.

The impact of the COVID-...19 pandemic, alongside some unique circumstances, disproportionately affected this cohort of pupils.

Pupils behave very well in lessons. They are quick to engage with learning and keen to answer questions.

They show an enthusiastic approach to their learning. In the early years, children enjoy the variety of stimulating activities in the learning environment. They get off to a very positive start in their school journey.

Pupils enjoy a wide range of clubs. These include a samba band and an art club. The school encourages all pupils to attend these clubs.

It works closely with the more vulnerable pupils to help remove any barriers to their attendance.

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

The school has invested significant time and expertise in the curriculum design. Pupils benefit from a well-sequenced curriculum that gradually gets more challenging.

The school carefully considers how the curriculum in the early years foundation stage prepares children to progress to their next stage of learning. For example, children access a range of activities to develop their fine motor skills. This prepares them well to be able to hold a pencil as they get older.

Teachers deliver the curriculum consistently well. In mathematics, teachers ensure that pupils are fluent in their times tables. The school embeds opportunities for pupils to develop their problem-solving skills in every lesson.

Pupils regularly justify their answer to a partner. This ensures that pupils can explain the strategy they use to find their answers.

Highly trained adults teach reading expertly.

From the youngest age, children benefit from precise teaching. Comprehensive assessment strategies ensure that leaders know exactly where pupils are in their understanding of phonics. Adults provide immediate support to ensure that pupils are keeping up with the phonics programme.

Pupils enjoy reading. They happily talk about the books they have read. Leaders ensure that books are challenging.

Year 6 pupils enjoy reading texts such as The Hobbit and Treasure Island.

In some of the wider foundation subjects, the school has not identified the precise learning outcomes as sharply as in other subjects. While pupils benefit from well taught lessons, the most important learning is not as clearly identified as it is in mathematics and reading.

This leads to some variability in what pupils remember.

The school supports pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities well. Teachers understand pupils' needs and address any barriers to their learning.

In the early years, leaders have accurately identified that some children need additional support with their speech and language development. Adults address this through activities such as opportunities to recite nursery rhymes each day. Children in the early years love to learn.

They benefit from well-designed activities that develop their knowledge. For example, children enjoy using different objects in the water area to practise addition to ten.

Pupils' attendance is good.

Leaders put additional steps in place to support pupils and families where attendance is a concern. As a result, attendance is improving for most pupils.

The school ensures that pupils' personal development is central to the curriculum.

Pupils enjoy taking on leadership responsibilities, such as being part of the school council. During road safety week, pupils lead assemblies to ensure that their peers know how to be safe. Pupils benefit from a wide range of educational visits.

These include a Year 3 visit to Cresswell Crags as part of the history topic on the Stone Age.

Leaders, the trust, the diocese and the local school board unite to give pupils the very best education. The recent change to how the trust board oversees the quality of the school has been positive.

The school is under increased challenge from the trustees. The school is rising to this challenge. Staff value the leaders in the school.

They know leaders consider their workload and well-being. As a result, staff are proud to work in this nurturing school.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• In some foundation subjects, the school's curriculum lacks sufficient detail. This means there are missed opportunities to emphasise the most important knowledge pupils need to remember. The school should ensure that the curriculum is consistently clear and detailed to focus on the most important knowledge that pupils need to be ready for the next stage of learning.