Northampton primary school graded ‘good’ is a ‘happy place’, says Ofsted

Children in the early years get off to a strong start at a Northampton primary school graded ‘good’, says Ofsted.

Boothville Primary School, situated in Booth Lane North, was visited by Ofsted inspectors in February and - in a report published this week - has been graded good in all areas.

Inspectors said: “This school is a happy place. Pupils enjoy learning. They have positive relationships with teachers and other adults. Parents and carers are happy to bring their children here. They speak positively about the teachers and the opportunities the school offers.”

Ofsted found that pupils treat each other with respect and enjoy a wide range of clubs before and after school including coding, gardening, creative writing and a variety of sports. They learn how to keep themselves safe and healthy and know who to talk to if they are worried, the report adds.

Boothville primary school’s ‘Rain and Shine programme’ supports pupils’ mental and emotional wellbeing and pupils told inspectors this helps them to feel calm when they are stressed.

Ofsted found that children in the early years get off to a “strong start” because leaders have created an environment in which pupils can “flourish.”

Teachers were praised for knowing their pupils well, rewarding pupils to encourage them to do their best and supporting those with additional needs effectively.

Leaders have also placed an emphasis on reading, encouraging pupils across the school to read challenging texts. Children told inspectors they enjoy the opportunities they get to read every day.

Inspectors found that, in most classrooms, teachers have clear routines and deal with disruption positively and fairly. However, this was not always the case.

The Ofsted report said: “Not all teachers have consistently high-enough expectations for behaviour. Sometimes they do not challenge pupils that call out or talk out of turn.”

Teachers were commended for having strong subject knowledge, delivering interesting, engaging lessons and providing activities to enable pupils to practice what they have learnt and produce high quality work. However, in a small number of lessons, inspectors found that the activities were not well matched to pupils’ needs.It was also found that teachers are not always sure what pupils have learnt before and they do not always identify or address children’s gaps in knowledge. As a result, people do not remember new knowledge as well as they should, the Ofsted report states.

To improve to outstanding, Boothville Primary School needs to support staff to deliver their new curriculum and check how well it is learnt by pupils, they need to ensure that their behaviour policy is consistently implemented in all classrooms and governors need to ensure that they challenge leaders and hold them accountable for their impact.

Boothville Primary School was graded ‘good’ at their last full inspection in 2012, meaning they have maintained their status as a good school.

Read the full Ofsted report here.