Wayfield Primary School

What Ofsted said

From the inspection on 4 December 2025

The school's safeguarding procedures are not effective in keeping pupils safe. Pupils' learning is frequently disrupted by the poor behaviour of others. Pupils do not routinely show respect to each other, the staff or school resources. Leaders' and staff's expectations for pupils' behaviour are inconsistent. There are too many occurrences where staff physically intervene when managing pupils' behaviour. They do not have the training and skills to do this safely. Pupils do not worry about bullying. However, some pupils do not feel safe. They are upset about the way some pupils behave and how staff respond to such incidents. Pupils do not receive an acceptable standard of education. For too long, the attainment of Year 6 pupils in reading, writing and mathematics has been below the national average. Across the rest of the school, many pupils have significant gaps in their learning. They do not accumulate the knowledge and skills that they need to be successful. This means that pupils are not prepared for their next educational steps and life in modern Britain. Leaders have not acted with urgency to address this situation. Deficiencies in the design and delivery of the curriculum remain. Disadvantaged pupils and those with special educational needs and/or disabilities do not receive the support that they need to overcome barriers to their academic achievement. Their learning and wellbeing needs are not identified accurately or shared well enough with staff. Leaders do not ensure that disadvantaged pupils access and benefit from the school's wider opportunities, such as extra-curricular clubs. Leaders continue to build relationships with families and the wider community and to promote the importance of attending school. Even so, some pupils do not attend school regularly and this affects their learning and inclusion in the school's wider opportunities. Pupils, parents and carers are greeted warmly by school staff as they enter the school site. However, a significant proportion of parents expressed dissatisfaction with the communication that they receive from the school.

What the school should improve

• Those responsible for governance must fulfil their statutory duties in relation to safeguarding so that they have the information they need to check on procedures and hold leaders to account for pupils' safety.
• Leaders must ensure that the behaviour management procedures eradicate poor behaviour, support pupils' wellbeing and lead to pupils feeling and being safe.
• Leaders must ensure that record-keeping about behaviour incidents, especially incidents linked to restrictive physical intervention, is accurate and shared with the local governing body and trust.
• Leaders should ensure that they evaluate the quality of teaching to identify where improvement is needed, and then provide staff with suitable support to help them gain the subject knowledge and teaching skills that they need to deliver the curriculum well so that pupils achieve well.
• Leaders and those responsible for governance should ensure that evaluation of the school's strengths and areas for improvement is evidenced by accurate information and robust analysis.
• Leaders should ensure that the learning and wellbeing needs of disadvantaged pupils and those with special educational needs and/or disabilities are identified accurately and that these pupils receive the support they need to thrive and succeed.
• Leaders should check pupils' attendance with more rigour so that patterns and themes are identified, leading to appropriate support to reduce the barriers to regular school attendance.
• Leaders should ensure that staff have the knowledge and skills that they need to teach pupils to read.
• Leaders should ensure that children in the early years are supported with their language and communication through staff engaging them in high-quality interactions.
• Leaders and those responsible for governance should check and evaluate the use of pupil premium funding to ensure that it benefits disadvantaged pupils.

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