Ofsted inspectors praise transformation of Northumberland primary school

Inspectors have rated 38-pupil Embleton Vincent Edwards Primary School as ‘good’ – and its Early Years department ‘outstanding’.

It was placed in the ‘requires improvement’ category at its last inspection in December 2017.

Headteacher Nicola Threlfall explained: “Embleton Vincent Edwards Primary School was one of the last schools in the country to have a visit from Ofsted before the lockdown in March, and the start of term was the first opportunity the whole school had together to celebrate.

"The school were delighted that they received a 'good' grading overall, with an 'outstanding' grade for their Early Years department.

"Coming back this term has seen a few changes to support more hand washing, and keeping different groups of children away from each other for as much time as possible, but everyone has come back to school smiling and ready to learn.

"All the children and staff are particularly looking forward to getting back to their weekly beach school sessions!”

Inspectors gave ‘good’ ratings to the quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development and leadership and management.

Lead inspector Ian Dawson reported: ‘Since the previous inspection, the headteacher has developed a strong staff team and has set out a clear vision for improvement. Working together, staff and governors have transformed the school.

‘An ‘Embleton expects’ charter has raised expectations of what pupils can achieve.

‘The headteacher has reorganised staffing so that pupils in early years, key stage 1 and key stage 2 learn in separate classes. This has enabled teachers to plan lesson content and support pupils well.

‘The early years class is a strength of the school. Children get off to a great start. Children make sense of what they have learned through lots of imaginative activities. This is especially the case at the beach school.’

Inspectors say standards have risen as the curriculum has been developed.

By the time they reach Year 3, almost all pupils are fluent readers and there are clear, progressive plans in place for mathematics.

Art and geography have been identified as areas to be improved.

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