School is put into special measures after critical report

Cherry Orchard Primary School has been put into special measures in the wake of a critical report by Ofsted.

Pupils’ progress in reading, writing and mathematics were “not good enough” according to the report, with the school’s leaders and governors not recognising that or doing enough to tackle the weaknesses.

The leaders and teachers had “low expectations” of pupils, who were not sufficiently challenged to achieve highly in maths or given enough opportunities to write sufficiently in English.

Their work books also showed they wrote “very little” in subjects like history.

“Teachers’ approaches to learning and assessment place little emphasis on the importance of correct grammar, punctuation and spelling,” the report said, adding: “They do not identify pupils’ errors and misconceptions.”

Standards and rates of progress had been “low” in recent years up to 2018, falling “sharply” in 2019 and showing “little sign of improving”.

The report stated: “Leaders spend too much time justifying low standards and progress as issues at the expense of identifying the root causes of underachievement in school.

“Leaders do not formally monitor how well teachers are implementing the curriculum or the impact it is having on pupils.”

More positively, children were said to “get off to a good start with their learning in early years”, the Ofsted report said.

It added: “Pupils behave well throughout the school. They have positive attitudes to learning.”

“They are kept safe and bullying is exceptionally rare. Leaders deal well with any isolated incidents.

“Leaders place a very high emphasis on pupils’ emotional well-being.

“There is a rich range of experiences, subjects and activities on offer. This includes forest school and clubs such as sports, gardening and photography.”

Leaders “plan well” for pupils’ personal development through an “extensive range” of subjects, trips and activities and experiences.

The report said: “The very high number of responses from parents, pupils and staff were overwhelmingly positive about the many strengths in the school.

“These were especially around care and support, safety, the wider curriculum and the commitment of staff.

“However, a small minority were rightly concerned about the school’s approach to reading and writing and the quality of SEND [Special Educational Needs and Disability] support.”

Overall effectiveness, quality of education and leadership at the school was rated inadequate following the Ofsted inspection, carried out in January this year.

Behaviour and attitudes, personal development and early years provision were rated good.

Ofsted’s Chief Inspector said the school required special measures because it was “failing to give its pupils an acceptable standard of education and the persons responsible for leading, managing or governing the school are not demonstrating the capacity to secure the necessary improvement in the school”.

Cherry Orchard Primary School’s deputy headteacher, Lee Card, said: “Ofsted recognised the behaviour and attitudes of our pupils as positive and drew attention to the personal development of pupils at our school.

“They noted that the early years provision is strong and that our curriculum offers a rich range of experiences, subjects and activities for the children of our school.

“They were also very clear that our safeguarding arrangements are effective and that leaders put the safety of our pupils at the heart of all we do.

“These are endorsements that mean a lot to us here at Cherry Orchard Primary School.

“We are, however, very disappointed with the overall outcome of the report – a grading of ‘Inadequate’ and one which now places the school in ‘special measures’.

“In response to the inspection we have, with support from the local authority, reviewed and updated our robust action plan to address the key findings.

“We are confident that we have the steps in place that will lead to the necessary improvements as soon as possible. 

“The staff and governing body are totally committed to working with parents and the local authority to successfully carry out the improvements that are required.”