Blackawton Primary School

What Ofsted said

From the inspection on 28 March 2023

Pupils at Blackawton Primary School are happy, safe and proud of their school. Leaders provide many roles of responsibility for pupils to contribute to the school. As an example, pupil reading leaders cherish the time they have to read to younger pupils. One pupil said, 'We enjoy reading to the younger ones and helping them to learn to read.' Leaders have created a broad and ambitious curriculum that is carefully sequenced from Nursery through to key stage 2. All pupils follow the full curriculum, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Pupils build their knowledge well. Pupils are respectful to others. Staff build positive relationships with pupils. This helps to create a calm and orderly environment. Most pupils show positive attitudes to learning. They understand what bullying is and say that it rarely happens. Pupils are proud to be trained as anti-bullying representatives. Any concerns are resolved quickly. Parents are supportive of the school. They speak highly of the regular opportunities leaders provide for pupils to learn outdoors. One parent said, 'We feel so grateful to be part of this wonderful, caring school community.'

What the school should improve

• Some staff expectations of pupils' behaviour are not always high enough. As a result, some pupils do not behave as well as they could. Leaders should ensure that staff have equally high expectations for behaviour.
• Teachers do not use assessment well enough to check pupils' understanding. Subsequent learning does not always build on what pupils know and can do. Leaders need to ensure that assessment is rigorous across the curriculum. This will help teachers to adapt learning based on pupils' prior knowledge.

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