Acton Gardens Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

The school has a clear vision centred on helping its pupils to 'learn together for the future'. It has high expectations for all pupils and staff. Children from the Nursery receive a strong start in building their foundations in learning, communication and social skills.

In Reception, children build on these skills, increasing their ability to read, write, and learn mathematics well.

Pupils benefit from a revised curriculum, which has raised aspirations for what pupils should know and be able to do. Teachers ensure that the curriculum is implemented well.

Pupils build their knowledge securely across the curriculum and use what they know with increasing fluenc...y. Consequently, pupils achieve well.

Pupils feel safe and are happy.

They generally attend well. The school's expectations of routines and behaviours are clear and reinforced from the early years onwards. This means that, overall, pupils behave well.

They show positive attitudes and commitment to their learning.

The school places a strong emphasis on personal development, fostering confidence, respect and resilience in its pupils. They enjoy participating in various clubs, including dance, knitting, cookery, yoga and table tennis clubs.

Pupils also take pride in representing the school, in roles such as school council members, play leaders and eco representatives.

What does the school do well and what does it need to do better?

The school ensures that the curriculum is ambitious and thoughtfully organised. It makes sure that pupils build on and apply what they have learned before.

For example, in mathematics, children in Nursery learn to count and recognise numbers up to five. By Year 2, pupils read, use and understand numbers up to 100 with fluency.

The school prioritises reading across all year groups.

From the Reception Year onwards, children are well supported to develop and apply phonics knowledge to read and write words. The school provides targeted and timely support for those who need extra help with learning to read. This includes those who are falling behind and those who join the school with limited experience of learning phonics.

Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are identified appropriately. The school ensures that these pupils' needs are supported effectively, utilising expertise and resources. The school also ensures that adaptations are made to teaching to help pupils with SEND to learn the curriculum well.

Teachers possess strong subject knowledge. They explain concepts clearly and use a variety of suitable activities to develop and enhance learning. This includes helping pupils to confidently make connections to prior learning and apply their understanding.

For example, when studying abstract art in Year 4, pupils draw on what they have previously learned about mixing and creating different colours.

The school has focused sharply on improving the quality of education, particularly to secure better achievement in reading, writing and mathematics. However, across subjects, there is variability in how effectively staff identify and address pupils' misconceptions or when they have difficulty understanding subject content.

This can lead to gaps in pupils' knowledge, and so, occasionally, misconceptions remain uncorrected. Historically, this has affected pupils' achievements, as reflected in the low published outcomes at the end of Year 6 in 2024.

The school has introduced revised, improved approaches to behaviour management.

These reflect its high expectations for pupils' behaviour. Pupils have strong attitudes to learning and often support each other, especially in Years 1 to 4. In a few instances, the school's expectations are not fully established and followed.

Although action is taken by the school, these approaches are not consistently addressed by staff and followed by all pupils.

The personal, social, health and economic education programme is well constructed. The topics are taught in a way that enables pupils to recall and build on their learning.

For example, pupils can recall the dangers of drugs, alcohol and smoking. Educational visits, for example to the London Transport Museum or meeting an author, also enhance the school's provision for pupils' personal development.

The school has managed the amalgamation of the infant and junior schools well, helping staff and pupils to feel part of one community.

The school is currently working on strengthening its partnership with parents. It is focused on ensuring that they have full confidence in different aspects of the school's work.

The school has a secure understanding of its strengths and areas for improvement.

It takes decisive actions to address and strengthen aspects that could be better. The governing body is proactive in supporting and challenging the school in its actions to make sure that these are having a positive impact on pupils' education.

The school aims to ensure a balanced approach to implementing changes to minimise additional work for staff.

The majority of staff members are positive about the school's approach to workload, including approaches to assessment.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• Some teaching does not address misconceptions in pupils' learning effectively.

Consequently, pupils develop gaps in their knowledge which persist. When this happens, it hinders how well they learn overall. The school should ensure that teaching identifies and rectifies pupils' misconceptions.

• The school's new approaches to behaviour management are not consistently implemented. Consequently, there are occasions where some pupils do not meet the school's high expectations. The school should ensure its behaviour management approaches are consistently followed and applied, and that, when needed, pupils receive the necessary guidance and support to improve their behaviour.

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