Primary school in Holbeck on its way to being judged 'good' again say inspectors

Ingram Road Primary School was found to be a school that 'Requires Improvement' at an inspection back in February 2020 and has been the subject of further monitoring by government inspectors since.

At its most recent inspection, held in May, inspector Michael Reeves said that "leaders and those responsible for governance are taking effective action in order for the school to become a good school."

He said that while the COVID pandemic, lockdowns and restrictions on schooling had hampered Ingram Road's improvement plans, the headteacher and senior leaders have revised them to get it back on track, while governors are also keeping a watchful eye on the developments to the school improvement plans and the school’s self-evaluation document.

Mr Reeves also referred to steps being taken to improve the teaching of phonics and early reading already having an impact on children's knowledge and capabilities, the maths subject leader taking guidance from a maths hub made for better long term planning, governors were meeting regularly to support and challenge senior leaders and subject leaders were also taking a more active role in development of the curriculum.

He added that pupils behaved well in school and there was a calm and friendly atmosphere.

He said: "The safety and well-being of pupils and staff remain at the forefront of leaders’ thinking. Since the full return to school for all pupils, staff have focused on pupils’ personal development needs. At the same time, they have been finding out where any gaps in learning exist. The recent national recognition for the quality of the school’s breakfast club highlights the school’s focus on pupils’ welfare."

Going forward on its journey to being graded 'good again, Mr Reeves recommended that the school should complete the review of the mathematics curriculum to ensure that it best meets the needs of all pupils and draw effectively on external expertise; complete the review of the foundation subjects to ensure all subject plans are coherent, well sequenced and identify the most important knowledge for pupils to know and remember; update self-evaluation reporting to ensure a clear focus on the quality of education and separate evaluations for behaviour and attitudes, and personal development.