Brindle St James' Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School praised in latest 'good' Ofsted report

Brindle St James' Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School was inspected on September 13, and was classed as ‘good’ in its report released on October 17. According to the Ofsted website, the school was first rated ‘good’ in 2004, and has remained at that grade ever since, with its last inspection being in 2017.

What did Ofsted say was particurlary good about Brindle St James' CE Primary School?

Pupils at Brindle St James’ were said to be “happy and feel safe”, all achieving well because of staff’s high expectations and confidently taking part in extra-opportunities.

The report states: “Parents and carers told inspectors that this is a school with a great family feeling and a warm welcome.

"Pupils make friends easily. They develop a strong identity to their classes, in which different year groups of pupils learn together.

“Pupils are polite to visitors and keen to explain about their many worthwhile experiences at Brindle St James’. The school has a quiet hubbub of learning because of pupils’ good behaviour and their concentration on their work.”

Staff were said to help Key Stage One children settle in well, care for children across all year groups, and manage incidents of bullying well when they arise.

In terms of the curriculum, inspectors said that “leaders and staff have a good understanding of how to organise and teach” it, and are further strengthening subject curriculums.

Assessment procedures were also praised, as was the focus on reading and the extra-curricular opportunites offered.

What does Brindle St James' CE Primary School need to improve on according to Ofsted?

Inspectors said that in some subjects, “leaders have not identified the subject-specific vocabulary that staff should teach and when this knowledge should be taught”, meaning that pupils do not understand some of the vocabulary that they should.

The report added that in “in small number of subject leaders do not have a sufficient knowledge of the subject that they lead” and so are unable to challenge and support the work of their colleagues as much as they should.

What does Brindle St James' CE Primary School say about their latest rating?

Headteacher, Tracy Austin, said: "We are delighted that the inspectors have produced such a complimentary report and that they identified so many of the positive features that we are all familiar with and proud of. The visit was a positive and helpful experience for all involved and we are grateful for the comments and suggestions made by the inspectors. It is particularly encouraging that areas they identified that could be developed further are matters that we had already begun to work on. We will now use the experience of the visit to continue to further develop and enhance what we do. It was particularly pleasing to note the inspectors’ comments that pupils are happy and feel safe at school, that they recognise that staff care for them and that they are polite to visitors. The inspectors also noted that leaders and staff have a good understanding of how to organise and teach the curriculum and that the headteacher and the governing board know the school well."