All Saints' CofE First School

Overview

All Saints’ CofE First School is described as a ‘friendly, nurturing school’ with a distinct ‘family’ feel, where pupils feel safe and treat each other with respect. Despite significant impacts from the COVID-19 pandemic, leaders have managed well, and pupils achieve successfully with high expectations set by staff. The inspection highlights a strong community spirit, effective support for special educational needs, and a curriculum that is ambitious and broad.

Strengths

• Pupils enjoy a ‘wide range of activities’, including residential visits and inter-school competitions, fostering resilience and teamwork.
• Leaders prioritise reading, introducing a new phonics scheme and ensuring teachers make reading ‘vibrant and fun’.
• There is ‘effective support for pupils with special education needs and/or disabilities’, ensuring they learn as well as their peers.
• Staff skilfully adjust communication styles to support children’s language development, using songs, rhymes, and practical activities.
• Governors and trustees have a ‘clear and accurate picture’ of the school’s strengths and hold leaders to account effectively.

Areas to improve

• Leaders should ensure all staff receive appropriate support to strengthen curriculum delivery in subjects that are ‘less well developed’ due to pandemic disruptions.
• The school must ensure all staff are trained, confident, and skilled in teaching the new phonics scheme, as not all have been trained yet.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective, with staff receiving regular training and rigorous recruitment checks to keep pupils safe.