Thornsett Primary School (High Peak Federation)

Overview

The inspection found that Thornsett Primary School is a place where pupils are “proud of their school” and value its “small school, family feel.” Leaders and governors are described as “ambitious for pupils” with a “clear vision” to ensure children are “ready for life beyond school.” The report highlights a cohesive staff team and a strong ethos built around the school’s ‘RESPECT’ values, which pupils understand and strive to embody.

Strengths

• Pupils “behave well” and are “eager to earn the rewards on offer,” demonstrating positive attitudes and a sense of community.
• The curriculum is “well organised” with lessons that “build learning gradually,” allowing teachers to adapt effectively to diverse needs.
• Early reading is supported by a “well-established approach” using a phonics programme with “consistent methods” where children “remember the sounds that they have learned.”
• Mathematics is “well ordered” with content that “builds cumulatively,” ensuring pupils retain previous learning.
• The school provides well for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), working “effectively with a range of external agencies.”

Areas to improve

• In a small number of subjects, the curriculum does not clearly identify the “most important content that pupils are expected to know and remember.”
• The reading curriculum beyond early reading is “not fully sequenced,” meaning the school cannot ensure content is taught in the “best or most logical order.”
• There is an “inconsistent understanding of the role in subject leadership,” with some leaders lacking a view of how their subject links to early years learning.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are “effective,” although the report notes that in a small number of cases, records are “incomplete” because they do not comprehensively document all actions taken to keep pupils safe.