Bollin Primary School

Overview

Pupils describe the school as a “calm and welcoming” community where they are “kind to each other” and “respectful and well behaved.” Leaders have designed an “ambitious curriculum” that is “broad and balanced,” ensuring most pupils develop a “secure body of knowledge” as they progress. The inspection highlights high expectations for achievement and effective support for pupils’ wider development and well-being.

Strengths

• The curriculum is “well-thought-out,” with leaders carefully planning how “key knowledge builds from the beginning of the Nursery Year to the end of Year 6.”
• Reading is prioritised effectively; older pupils become “avid readers” and “most pupils are fluent and confident readers by the end of key stage 2.”
• Staff provide “high-quality opportunities” for personal development, including leadership roles such as looking after the school’s “chickens and allotment.”
• Children in the early years “settle quickly” and are “well prepared for key stage 1,” with staff providing additional support where needed.
• Governors and trustees work closely with leaders, and their expertise “successfully contributes to improvements in the quality of education.”

Areas to improve

• In a few subjects, leaders have not finalised guidance, meaning some teachers are “not clear about the key knowledge that pupils must learn.”
• Some teachers do not sufficiently use information about pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) to “adapt the delivery of the curriculum,” which occasionally hinders their learning.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are “effective,” with staff being “vigilant” and ensuring vulnerable pupils receive “timely support.”