South Lincoln primary school rated ‘inadequate’ by Ofsted

A primary school in Bracebridge Heath has been rated as ‘inadequate’ by Ofsted and action is already being taken with the Headteacher, who said: “our staff and governors are working at pace to ensure these improvements happen”.

Ofsted inspectors visited St John’s Primary Academy on Grantham Road in Bracebridge Heath on July 12 and 13 this year. The report was published this week, in which Ofsted graded the quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, and personal development as ‘requires improvement’.

Leadership and management was rated as ‘inadequate’ and the school’s early years provision as ‘good’. The overall rating was downgraded from ‘good’ to ‘inadequate’.

Ofsted said in its report that “leaders know pupils and their parents extremely well” but “safeguarding procedures are not effective”. It added that leaders have not made sure that all pupils feel as safe as they should in school.

Many pupils said that their teachers would resolve bullying if it happened to them. However, some pupils worry about bullying and some parents are concerned that it is not quickly and effectively dealt with.

The school was praised as pupils behaved well in school and they really like the ‘peg’ behaviour system, and appreciate the rewards they receive of behaving well.

Pupils also enjoy their lessons and appreciate their teachers’ efforts to help them learn. However, the report says that some pupils, particularly those who are disadvantaged, do not learn as well as they could.

The curriculum is not yet fully implemented at the school. In some subjects, the curriculum is said to be coherent, but in others it is “not planned well enough”. Some pupils do not acquire the knowledge and skills that they need in these subjects, the report says.

A systematic reading curriculum is now in place and is in the early stages of implementation. Many pupils learn how to read with confidence and accuracy, however, the report says that some teachers lack the phonics knowledge needed to teach the curriculum correctly.

This means that some pupils who are behind in reading, particularly the most disadvantaged, do not catch up as quickly as they could.

However, Ofsted said leaders have rightly recognised the need to promote pupils’ love of reading further and they now have access to a wealth of books of different genres written by a variety of authors. The library will also soon be up and running.

Many pupils try out new things, including in performing arts, but leaders do not check that the most disadvantaged students benefit from this extra-curricular offer.

The report also notes that the coronavirus pandemic is still having a negative impact on pupils’ attendance. Some pupils are still struggling to get back into the routine of attending school, and some fail to attend regularly enough.

Staff say they are proud to work at the school with one saying “the school is a family”. The report also notes that new leadership is also ensuring that children get off to a great start in early years.

Regarding safeguarding, the report says: “There are no clear, chronological records that detail the actions leaders take to safeguard the welfare of the most vulnerable pupils. It is not clear if these pupils have received the help that they need.

“Leaders have not dealt with some safeguarding concerns in line with the statutory guidance. This includes concerns linked to peer-on-peer abuse and harmful sexual behaviour. ”

It adds that attendance coding is used inappropriately and pupils’ absence is authorised when it should not be.

Ofsted has told the school what it needs to do to improve, including that leaders must urgently ensure that all safeguarding arrangements comply with statutory guidance. Leaders must also make sure that there is a “rigorous procedure in place for the recording of safeguarding concerns”.

Headteacher Lorraine Marcer responded to the Ofsted report by saying: “We welcome inspectors pointing out areas where we can improve. Our staff and governors are working at pace to ensure these improvements happen.

“Our school has a culture of continual improvement and we will welcome the opportunity to make our school community even stronger.”

Read the full Ofsted report here