Ofsted Report

Grovelands Primary School - February 2020

Grovelands Primary School

Inspection dates 4–5 FEBRUARY 2020
Overall effectiveness Good

Effectiveness of leadership and management Good
Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Good
Personal development, behaviour and welfare Good
Outcomes for pupils Good
Early years provision Good
Overall effectiveness at previous inspection Good

Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

This is a good school

1
Leaders set unwaveringly high expectations for every member of the school community.
1
Pupils attend school regularly because they love learning.
1
Pupils told us that everyone gets the help they need. Difference is celebrated and embraced.
1
Pupils feel safe in school.
1
Leaders put the interests of pupils at the heart of every decision they make. This includes the many successful changes to the quality of education
1
Leaders have made reading a priority. Phonics is taught well and pupils quickly learn to read words using familiar sounds.
1
Leaders make sure that pupils study a wide range of subjects.
1
Children settle quickly into early years, engaging with adults well. Enjoying stories and developing language are at the heart of the early years curriculum.
1
Leaders support pupils in knowing how to be good learners by linking learning values to characters.

It is not yet an outstanding school because

1
In other subjects, such as geography and art, sequences of learning are less developed and pupils do not learn quite as well. Subject leaders know the changes that are needed and have started on this work.
1
Staff are ambitious for what pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) can achieve. Teachers plan lessons well to meet the needs of pupils with SEND, including in The Dell. However, this is not as effective for lower-attaining pupils as teachers do not always understand well enough what these pupils can and cannot yet do. Work is sometimes too difficult. When this is the case these pupils lose focus, and this hampers their learning.
1
In Reception, caring and attentive support guides children, building their confidence and curiosity. Overall, teachers use the ambitious curriculum to plan interesting activities. However, staff do not always use their observations well enough to identify what children understand and what their next steps in learning should be. This means that sometimes staff’s support for children as they learn is not matched well enough to their needs. Leaders have plans in place to strengthen this aspect of work.

What does the school need to do to improve further?

1
Leaders should ensure that all subjects are well sequenced so that pupils build their understanding securely over time.
1
Leaders should ensure that teaching consistently builds on what children already know and understand.
1
Leaders need to make sure that all teachers use assessment skillfully so that teaching builds on what pupils already know and understand.

GROVELANDS OFSTED REPORT

View full Grovelands Ofsted Report from February 2020.

Connect with us

Grovelands School, Dunbar Drive,
Hailsham, East Sussex, BN27 3UW.

Staff Contacts

  • Executive Headteacher: Mr Jon Goulding
  • Head of School: Miss Kathleen Swaine
  • School Business Manager: Mrs Helen Fingerneissl
  • School Secretary: Miss Carol Williams
  • Chair of Governors: Mr Michael Nix
  • Designated Safeguarding Lead: Mr Jon Goulding
  • Deputy DSLs: Miss K Swaine, Ms C Adams, Miss N Squires, Miss S Coates, Mr R Williams
  • Inclusion Leader: Ms C Adams

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