Bird In Bush School

What Ofsted said

From the inspection on 2 July 2024

Bird in Bush school was formed at the start of the year from the merger of two previous schools. Leaders have brought the two communities together very effectively. They have created a harmonious and welcoming atmosphere with a culture of aspiration. Pupils are happy and safe. They enjoy school and attend regularly. If they are worried about anything, they know they can talk to an adult who will help them. The school acknowledges that many children and their families face wider challenges in everyday life. Many pupils benefit from the free breakfast and after-school clubs. They can also attend the free holiday clubs organised by the school. Pupils deepen their cultural understanding through trips to museums, places of worship, and cultural sites such as Kew Gardens and the Barbican Centre. Leaders have high expectations of pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). The school has made sure that it provides a strong quality of education for pupils but recognise that there is still more work to do in this area. The provision for children in the early years is not as strong as it could be. Parents and carers are very positive about the school and greatly appreciate leaders' work to support their children's academic and personal development.

What the school should improve

• In some subjects, the curriculum is not ambitious enough and not enough time is given for it to be taught effectively. In these subjects, the school's curricular thinking does not provide opportunities for pupils to review and revisit their learning regularly. As a result, pupils are not building up a broad body of knowledge in each subject. The school must ensure that the curriculum for every subject is ambitious and is given enough time to be taught systematically across the year in order to enable pupils to develop a deepen their knowledge and understanding over time.
• On occasions, systems to check that pupils are taught important content and subject-specific vocabulary lack precision. This means that pupils do not embed key knowledge in their long-term memory limiting readiness for future learning. The school must ensure that all teachers check what pupils know and can do regularly and systematically in lessons.
• Provision in the early years does not enable children to benefit from meaningful learning across the curriculum. There is not a sharp focus on building up children's knowledge and skills across the seven areas of learning, particularly communication and language and mathematics. As a result, children are not prepared effectively for Year 1. The school must ensure that all aspects of early years provision effectively contribute to children's learning and development.

Read the full Ofsted report (opens in a new tab)