Tenacres First School

Overview

Tenacres First School is described as a welcoming community where pupils feel included, valued, and safe. While the school meets the expected standard in most areas, including attendance, behaviour, and early years provision, the report identifies specific weaknesses in the teaching of writing and reading book matching that require attention.

Strengths

• Staff create a "warm and welcoming environment" where pupils feel safe and develop positive relationships.
• Leaders manage attendance carefully, keeping it "broadly in line with the national average" through close family engagement.
• Pupils behave well, with "clear routines" ensuring lessons remain calm and purposeful.
• Early reading is prioritised, with staff expertly delivering a "coherent phonics programme" that helps most pupils read accurately.
• The curriculum supports personal development, helping pupils learn to "keep themselves physically and emotionally healthy" and build resilience.

Areas to improve

• Leaders must ensure staff use assessment effectively to match writing activities to pupils' starting points, as current gaps in writing knowledge persist.
• Leaders should ensure reading books "closely match pupils' stage on the phonics programme" to support fluency and automaticity.
• Leaders need to embed the new handwriting policy consistently from Year 1 to help pupils develop transcription skills.

Safeguarding

The safeguarding standards are met, with leaders establishing an open culture where concerns are actively identified and managed, ensuring pupils are made safer and feel safe.