Dunston Primary and Nursery Academy

What Ofsted said

From the inspection on 18 March 2025

Pupils enjoy attending this school. They feel well cared for. Older pupils enjoy having responsibility and take pride in contributing to the school community. Members of the pupil parliament, head pupils and play leaders carry out their roles diligently. The school wants pupils to 'do the right thing, in the right way at the right time'. It makes teaching pupils the 'ready, respect and safe' rules a priority from when they start at the school. Younger pupils learn quickly to sit smartly. They listen carefully to their teachers. Pupils try their best to live up to the school's high expectations. When pupils struggle with this, staff support them sensitively and effectively. The effective support for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) remains a strength. Pupils with a disability who access the specially resourced provision for pupils with SEND (specially resourced provision) receive excellent support. They are fully included in the life of the school. The school aims for pupils to be the best they can be. It has recently designed an ambitious curriculum to support this aim. Children get off to a strong start learning this curriculum in the early years. However, as pupils throughout school have not benefitted fully from the curriculum yet, their achievement is not where it should be.

What the school should improve

• The school has not ensured that staff have the expertise to implement the new curriculum effectively. Teaching is sometimes not adapted sufficiently to take account of the deficits in pupils' prior learning. Sometimes, pupils are not well supported to build on and consolidate their knowledge as intended. The school should ensure that staff receive the guidance and support needed to implement the curriculum effectively.
• The school's processes for checking pupils' learning and the use of assessment information are not consistently effective. Sometimes, pupils have persistent misconceptions or gaps in knowledge that hinder their learning as a result. The school should ensure that pupils' learning is checked routinely to identify and address errors and gaps in knowledge.
• At times, the school does not provide enough curriculum adaptation and expert support for pupils who fall behind in phonics and reading. This means these pupils do not catch up quickly enough. The school should ensure that pupils at the earlier stages of learning to read are well supported to catch up quickly.
• Sometimes, the school does not help pupils enough to understand fundamental British values and the importance of equality between different people and communities. As a result, pupils do not have an age-appropriate depth of understanding of these important topics. The school should ensure that it prepares pupils for life in modern Britain effectively.

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