Rosherville Church of England Academy

Overview

Rosherville Church of England Academy is described as a “friendly place” where staff and pupils model values such as “compassion, trust, courage, wisdom, fellowship and thankfulness”. The report states that “senior leaders and the Aletheia Academies Trust have brought about significant improvements”, resulting in a school where pupils “feel safe and happy” and behave well. However, the inspection notes that “early years and some aspects of the school’s curriculum need further strengthening”.

Strengths

• Pupils “learn to read quickly and fluently” due to a “systematic approach to the teaching of phonics” and carefully selected books.
• The school fosters an “inclusive ethos” where leaders “understand and meet the needs of all pupils”, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities.
• Leaders show “great vision and passion” in developing “well-rounded individuals”, with pupils achieving all items on the ‘50 things to do before we leave Rosherville’ list.
• Staff feel “well supported” with a “strong sense of camaraderie”, appreciating leaders’ attention to their “well-being and workload”.
• The environment is “calm and orderly”, with pupils who “listen attentively” and whose learning is “rarely disrupted by off-task behaviour”.

Areas to improve

• Leaders must refine the early years curriculum, as activities “do not always have a clear learning focus” and fail to “positively develop children’s curiosity”.
• Leaders should “precisely identify the knowledge” pupils are to learn in subjects such as art, geography, and history across the whole school.
• Leaders need to monitor work more effectively to ensure they have an “accurate and informed understanding of the impact of the improvements they are making”.

Safeguarding

The report states that “the arrangements for safeguarding are effective”, noting a “culture of care and vigilance” where staff are well trained and recruitment checks are “robust”.