Viking Primary School

What Ofsted said

From the inspection on 7 March 2023

Pupils are well looked after in this school. Leaders and staff know their pupils and families well. Pupils receive effective pastoral support which helps them to feel happy and safe at school. Leaders aim for every pupil in this school to be the 'best that they can be'. They have high expectations of pupils. Pupils work hard in lessons. Typically, they are learning the curriculum well across a wide range of subjects. Pupils treat adults and each other with respect. Every year, pupils sign up to a charter which sets out how they are expected to behave in school. Pupils try very hard to adhere to this. On any rare occasions when bullying occurs, leaders deal with it promptly and effectively. Leaders create many opportunities for pupils to experience the wider world outside their immediate community. Pupils get to understand the world of work as they listen to professionals talk about their respective careers. Recently, the school's junior travel ambassadors have been working with the local authority to create a safer school street. Pupils experience democracy for themselves as they elect their school council leaders. Other pupil leaders, like the prefects, must go through an application and selection process before being appointed. Through these roles, leaders aim to support pupils to develop their leadership skills.

What the school should improve

• In a few subjects, leaders have not identified the important ideas that pupils should learn. Where these ideas have not been clarified, the curriculum does not support pupils to develop a rich and deep body of knowledge. Leaders should ensure that they are explicit about what pupils should learn and remember in all subjects.
• Occasionally, teaching does not revisit and reinforce pupils' understanding of subject- specific vocabulary. This means that pupils' understanding of some words is not secured and deepened as effectively as leaders intend. Leaders should ensure that teachers check that pupils have mastered the subject-specific words that they have been taught in order to support them to be successful in their future learning.

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