The school received an Ofsted inspection on 7th March 2023, just a few weeks after our new Headteacher had started. There was much to be celebrated and Ofsted said:

“It is a place where children thrive with focused activity and positive relationships. Right from the start, children learn important skills, such as curiosity and resilience…Partnership with parents and carers is strong and built on effective communication.” (Ofsted 2023)

However, there were areas we had not yet developed which we were aware required some improvement. Ofsted gave us five areas to work on and you will see from our full report that they had confidence that we had already started much of the work which needed to be done. We are confident that the issues raised have all now been dealt with as detailed below and we look forward to their return shortly.

Governance

Since the inspection, existing governors have received training. We are also delighted to have welcomed several new governors to the board. New monitoring procedures have been put into place and the governors visit during the day at least once each term to see the school in action. The headteacher works closely with governors to ensure that they are well informed about any issues and progress against School Improvement targets.

Reading

Since the Ofsted visit, the school have made a switch to the ‘Read Write Inc’ method of teaching reading. All staff attended a day of training for this. Children from Year R onwards have a daily phonics session until they are secure in their knowledge of these and we are already seeing the impact of this in our phonics test results. In addition, we have introduced ‘Destination Reader’ to Key Stage 2, so that all of our children now receive a high-quality teaching session each day to ensure they continue to make good progress with their reading. A substantial investment has been made into reading books and each year, we hold a ‘Bounce for Books’ event to ensure that we can continue to invest into reading books.

Behaviour

Ofsted were impressed with our children’s behaviour on the playground and around the school. However, they noted that in two of our classes, the standards of behaviour were not as we would expect them to be. Leaders were already aware of these issues and relevant action has been taken for September 23. In addition, we have implemented a new Behaviour Management Policy. We do not tolerate disruption in the classrooms.

Curriculum

When Ofsted visited, our work to develop our curriculum was not finished and so there were subjects where the detail was not available. However, Ofsted were impressed with the work we had already done, such as in Maths and Geography. They wrote, “Leaders should finish the work they have started…” This we have done and our curriculum is now complete and offers a rigorous, exciting education to all of our pupils.

Safeguarding

Ofsted found our safeguarding to be effective and were happy with our current processes. However, they noted some issues with one or two historic cases where the paperwork had been stored in different places, so that the chronology of those concerns was not as clear. Much of this paperwork was rectified during the inspection.

To see our latest Ofsted Report please click here.

As a Church of England Primary School we also have a Statutory Inspection conducted by the Diocese.  Our last SIAMS (Statutory Inspection of Anglican & Methodist Schools) was on 18th May 2017.

We are delighted that the Inspection confirms that Cranford Park CE Primary School, through its distinctive Christian character, is good in meeting the needs of all learners. The Inspector judged both the impact of collective worship on the school community and the leadership and management of the school to be good.

“The distinctiveness and effectiveness of Cranford Park Primary as a Church of England school are good

• The school’s Christian values of peace, respect and courage are clearly articulated and understood by all members of the school community. These are reflected in the positive quality of relationships throughout the school community.
• The emphasis placed on the well-being of all pupils, providing them with an inclusive environment where the uniqueness of each individual is celebrated and respected.
• The clear understanding of the nature and purpose of prayer which is lived out by pupils within their daily life at school.
• The strong partnership between school, church and parents secures an inclusive community where all are valued and welcomed.

The reports states:

“Cranford Park CE Primary school is a happy, caring Christian community where all members are valued and welcomed. Pupils and parents from all backgrounds know that they are accepted, respected and, as one parent commented, ‘everyone is made to feel special’. The school is highly inclusive, committed to meeting the needs of the whole child and providing extra support where needed.”

and that…

“The school’s Christian values are evident in the highly positive relationships between pupils, parents and staff. Pupils explain the importance of these values with confidence and are able to relate them to their everyday lives. One pupil described how the values ‘help us know how to live, behave and learn’.”

A full copy of the report can be downloaded here.