Sandal Castle VA Community Primary School

What Ofsted said

From the inspection on 7 January 2025

Pupils enjoy attending this welcoming, friendly school. They are happy and safe. They know that adults have their best interests at heart. Pupils understand the school rules and meet the high expectations set in class. In most cases, they play nicely together during breaktimes and lunchtimes. However, some pupils report that they can experience unkind words and behaviours in the playground, and this is not always dealt with by adults in a timely manner. Pupils benefit from a wide range of experiences beyond the classroom, such as extra- curricular clubs and well-planned trips that help to bring the curriculum alive. Recently introduced pupil leadership roles give some pupils opportunities to contribute to the life of the school. The school aspires for all pupils to achieve well. Effective improvements to the curriculum are having a positive impact. However, not all pupils achieve as well as they should in all subject areas yet. This is because the changes to the school's curriculum are very recent. This school has experienced a significant period of turbulence since the last inspection. As this has stabilised, pupils are now benefiting from the many, well-considered improvements that new leaders have brought about. However, the quality of education that pupils receive still needs further improvement.

What the school should improve

• In some subjects, the school's systems to check what pupils know and have remembered over time do not provide staff with sufficient information to be able to identify and address gaps in pupils' knowledge effectively. This makes it difficult for staff to check and help pupils learn the intended curriculum securely. The school should ensure its systems enable staff to evaluate the impact of the curriculum on pupils' learning and address any gaps effectively.
• The school's revised reading curriculum beyond early reading and phonics is in the very early stages of being implemented. Pupils do not build successfully on their phonics knowledge to develop fluency and comprehension. The school should ensure that the revised reading curriculum supports pupils across the school to read fluently and with understanding effectively.
• The English curriculum does not set out well enough the basic skills for writing, beginning in the early years. As a result, pupils are not able to write with accuracy. The school should ensure that the curriculum identifies these basic skills from the early years clearly and progressively so that pupils build fluency in the basic skills and are able to write independently with confidence and fluency over time.
• Behaviour during unstructured times does not always meet the same high standard as inside the classroom. Staff members' expectations of behaviour at these times are inconsistent. As a result, some pupils demonstrate behaviour that falls below that expected by leaders. The school should ensure that all staff have the skills and expertise to demonstrate consistent expectations of behaviour throughout the school day.

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