Damhead Primary School

Overview

The inspection was conducted during industrial action, meaning teachers did not cooperate with inspectors. Consequently, the ETI states it is “unable to assure... of the quality of education being provided” and could not evaluate core areas such as teaching, learning, or outcomes.

Strengths

• Parents responded “extremely positive[ly]” to questionnaires, praising the “dedicated, enthusiastic leadership of the principal” and “approachable and supportive teachers”.
• A “robust process for school development planning” has been implemented, informed by “meaningful consultation with all stakeholders”.
• A senior leadership team has been formed, and coordinators have “developed effectively their areas of responsibility” through sharing practice and professional learning.
• Governors are “well-informed about the life and work of the school” and have established “useful links” with school coordinators.
• Safeguarding arrangements “reflect broadly the guidance from the Department of Education”, and sampled children reported they “feel safe and happy in school”.

Areas to improve

• The report does not list specific areas for improvement because the ETI was “unable to evaluate” the quality of provision, outcomes for learners, or the effectiveness of leadership due to staff non-cooperation.

Safeguarding

The report states that safeguarding arrangements “reflect broadly the guidance from the Department of Education” and children feel safe, but the ETI was “unable to evaluate fully the outworking of the arrangements” due to the industrial action.