Scole Church of England Primary Academy

Overview

Scole Church of England Primary Academy is a small school where leaders have driven “significant positive changes” following a period of transition. The report describes a setting with “warm relationships and a caring ethos,” where pupils feel safe, behave positively, and achieve well across the curriculum.

Strengths

• Pupils make a “positive start” in the early years, acquiring key knowledge that provides “secure foundations” for Year 1.
• Attendance rates are “consistently above national averages,” supported by clear systems and a dedicated staff member who analyses data weekly.
• The curriculum is “clear and progressive,” with staff delivering a “well-designed phonics programme” that enables pupils to learn letters and sounds quickly.
• Staff support pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) effectively, ensuring they “progress appropriately from their varied starting points.”
• Leaders have established a “deliberate, well-planned” personal, social, health and economic education curriculum, helping pupils learn about healthy relationships and safety.

Areas to improve

• Staff should provide explanations of key knowledge and vocabulary that are “consistently clear and precise” to ensure pupils understand learning tasks fully.
• Teachers need to ensure pupils access “harder work when they are ready” to prompt deeper thinking and achieve higher standards.
• Provision during less-structured times, such as playtimes, should be strengthened with additional activities to make these periods “calmer and more structured.”

Safeguarding

The safeguarding standards are met, with leaders establishing an “open culture in which safeguarding is everyone's responsibility” and concerns are actively identified and managed.