Launton Church of England Primary School

What Ofsted said

From the inspection on 20 February 2024

This is a welcoming school. Pupils enjoy coming here where they are safe and well cared for and build secure relationships with staff. Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are fully included in school life. This is across all aspects of learning and wider development. The school is highly inclusive. Pupils often talk with passion about kindness and the importance of doing the right thing. The school has high ambitions for pupils' achievements. However, pupils' learning does not yet meet these aspirations. Exactly what pupils need to know and how this is checked are not yet developed fully enough. This means that pupils' achievement over time is too variable, including in early years. Pupils behave well in lessons and around the school. They increasingly demonstrate the values of the school, such as resilience and compassion, as they progress into older years. Pupils are encouraged to try hard and to act kindly with rewards and certificates in assemblies. Roles such as those of 'assembly monitor' and 'field monitor' provide some pupils with the opportunity to develop responsibility. Pupils also benefit from trips that bring learning to life, for example to the Ashmolean Museum.

What the school should improve

• The curriculum does not identify the knowledge that pupils need to learn precisely enough. This means that, too often, lessons do not systematically build pupils' knowledge over time or provide pupils with activities to practise what they have learned. The school must ensure that the curriculum sets out clearly the knowledge that pupils need so that all staff know what to teach and when.
• Too often, pupils' understanding is not checked carefully enough. As a result, staff do not identify and address pupils' misconceptions as effectively as they should. Staff need to be trained to know how to check for understanding as well as how to adapt teaching to address gaps in pupils' knowledge.
• Children in early years do not consistently benefit from good-quality provision. Their learning and development are not preparing them as well as they should do for when they move into Year 1. This means that many are not getting the best possible start to their time in school. Staff need appropriate training and ongoing support and guidance to improve their practice so that activities and interactions consistently improve children's development, particularly their communication and language.
• The school does not have a sufficiently precise understanding of what it wants pupils to know and remember in personal, social and health education lessons. This means that pupils do not have a secure understanding of some aspects of this curriculum. While there are some interesting and useful opportunities for pupils, such as visits and positions of responsibility, these are not coherently joined up so that it is clear that all pupils benefit from the wider curriculum on offer. The school should look carefully at the current provision to consider how its design and implementation can have more coherence and continuity.

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