Woods Bank Academy

What Ofsted said

From the inspection on 9 July 2024

Pupils at Woods Bank Academy are well behaved, polite, and have good manners. They form positive relationships with staff and each other. The school sets high expectations for pupils' learning and behaviour. Pupils meet these expectations well. Many pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), achieve well. Pupils are well prepared for the next stage of their education. Pupils enjoy their learning and feel valued and safe. They know who to talk to if they are worried about anything. Pupils are proud of their roles as anti-bullying and reading ambassadors. They help resolve conflicts and support other pupils at playtime. They also help younger pupils with reading. These roles help pupils learn about leadership and how to support one another. This creates a friendly school, where everyone looks out for each other. The school uses a structured approach to teaching phonics and reading. Pupils enjoy reading and confidently discuss books they have read with enthusiasm. Pupils enjoy a well-structured curriculum that builds knowledge across subjects. This includes children in the early years. However, in the early years, staff do not yet communicate well enough with children in order to support their learning. Some learning activities are not easily accessible, which limits children's learning.

What the school should improve

• Some teachers do not check pupils' understanding effectively. This means some opportunities for some pupils to revisit and build on knowledge are missed. The school should ensure that all teachers can make effective use of a range of suitable strategies to help pupils retain and recall their learning.
• On occasion, teachers' subject knowledge is not secure enough. In these cases, new concepts may be introduced before pupils are secure in previous learning. The school should ensure all teachers have the subject knowledge they need to recognise when pupils may need to re-visit or practise their learning.
• In the early years, some staff interactions are not as effective as they should be in developing language and communication skills. As a result, some children are not making as much progress in these areas as they could. The school should ensure all early years staff promote language development consistently, in line with the school's vision for early years education.
• In the early years, some learning activities are not easy for all children to access. This means not all children participate or learn as well as they could. The school should ensure activities used in the early years support all children's learning and development across all areas of the curriculum.

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