New Bewerley Community School: Ofsted downgrades Leeds primary over quality of education concerns

New Bewerley Community School, located on Bismarck Drive in Beeston, was downgraded to Requires Improvement during its recent inspection – despite ranking as Good in four of the five key areas.

In their latest report published this week, Ofsted rated the primary as Good in the areas of behaviour and attitudes, personal development, leadership and management and early years provision but a Requires Improvement grading in the quality of education was enough to see the school marked down.

The education watchdog said: “The New Bewerley Community Primary is more than a school to those who attend here. This school is a caring welcoming hub within the community. A place which values everyone. Leaders have the highest expectations and care for all pupils.

“However, there is still more work needed to ensure that pupils can attain ambitious outcomes that prepare them well for Year 7 and beyond.”

Inspectors note that the school has taken “clear and purposeful action” to develop its curriculum but that how teachers deliver some subjects is “less well developed”.

The report said: “For example, in mathematics pupils struggle to explain what they have been learning about. The school’s approach to checking pupils’ understanding of what they are learning is weak.”

The school was praised for ensuring that pupils with SEND receive “targeted and appropriate support” while behavioural expectations are “consistently reinforced by staff” who work with families to improve attendance.

Leaders, meanwhile, were also praised for supporting staff and for taking “effective measures to manage workload”.

Head teacher, Juli Aldwinkle said: “We are pleased that the report recognises the many positives about our school. We are proud to be an inclusive school at the heart of the community, meeting the diverse needs of our pupils and with our positive values strongly embedded throughout the school.

“As the report notes, we have taken decisive action to develop the curriculum and our leadership team has plans in place to continue our journey of improvement. We are working closely with the council and our own school community to make further progress and fulfil our commitment to high quality teaching and learning so every pupil can achieve the best outcomes.”