Melbury Primary School

What Ofsted said

From the inspection on 18 June 2024

Most parents and carers would recommend the school to others. Typically, a parent commented, 'Melbury is a special school, with love and care for the children, at the heart of all they do.' Parents are welcomed by the school. Many enjoyed attending sports day. Parents value opportunities to celebrate their children's learning and achievements. The school is very much at the heart of its community. Pupils consistently meet high expectations of behaviour. They understand what being a good friend means. Pupils are caring and respectful to each other. They are happy and safe. They know that staff would help them if they have any worries. The firm foundations of children's positive attitudes begin in the early years. Pupils achieve well. The school is inclusive and ambitious for all. It ensures that pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) learn well, alongside their peers. Pupils' personal development is nurtured through the school's lived values. The school promotes pupils' confidence and self-belief. Pupils enjoy different roles and responsibilities including, for example, as ambassadors, school councillors and librarians. Pupils make a positive contribution to school life. The school enables pupils to be ready for the next stage of their education.

What the school should improve

• The school is currently developing its approach to assessment and how analysis of summative assessment information is used effectively to inform the planned curriculum. However, the analysis of assessment information is not used consistently to determine what pupils are learning in the long-term and what needs to be learned next. The school needs to ensure that assessment information, and its analysis, is used effectively to form the curriculum, thus enabling pupils to build learning progressively.
• The school has not ensured that all foundation subject curriculums precisely identify the key knowledge that pupils need to learn over time. As a result, pupils do not build substantive and disciplinary knowledge as well as they could in some subjects. The school needs to ensure that leaders have the pedagogical expertise to develop these curriculums, thus enabling pupils to build learning in all foundation subjects.
• Some foundation subject curriculums are not consistently implemented as well as they could be. At times, formative assessment does not identify misconceptions in pupils' learning. On other occasions, some learning activities do not enable pupils to learn as well as they could. As a result, pupils do not learn as well as they could. The school needs to ensure that subject curriculums are implemented to enable pupils to know, remember and do more over time.

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