The leadership team has maintained the good quality of education in the school since the previous inspection. You have provided clear direction during a period when this diverse school population has continued to expand. You have built on the good work of the previous headteacher and have vigorously grasped the challenge of making the school even better. Since taking up your post you have restructured the leadership team to focus more acutely on the quality of teaching and learning. Your drive and determination are shared by your team and this has enabled you to bring about improvement. Pupils from many diverse backgrounds and abilities make good progress throughout their time at the school. Outcomes for pupils at the end of key stage 2 improved markedly in 2016, with pupils making better progress in all subjects than the national average. The proportion of pupils reaching standards appropriate for their age also rose from previous years. Those pupils who join the school from other settings or from abroad receive excellent support to help them to settle in quickly so that they are ready to learn. Good relationships are the hallmark of the school and pupils mix exceptionally well with each other. You have successfully addressed all the issues raised in the previous inspection report. Leaders check frequently on teaching quality and you have not shied away from challenging underperformance. You have changed the way in which teaching assistants support learning and as a result, pupils’ additional needs are met at an earlier stage of lessons. In the early years, learning has been enhanced by the creation of a separate nursery outdoor area, a significant investment for the school. You acknowledge that while literacy has been an area of development in recent years, it is now time to focus on improving the teaching of mathematics to enable more pupils to reach and go beyond standards expected of their age. When we visited lessons and looked through pupils’ books, we agreed that sometimes lesson time could be used more effectively and that tasks did not provide consistent challenge for all groups of pupils. We also looked at the way reading is taught and promoted across the school. Older pupils are able to talk about favourite story types and authors and some of the most able readers enjoy visiting the local library. For younger pupils the teaching of phonics is secure. We were pleased to see a wide and varied curriculum in action. The coverage of subjects and pupils’ learning is enriched through a varied programme of events, visitors and visits. These provide stimulating and valuable first-hand experiences, such as the very popular Year 2 visit to Filey, which stands out vividly in pupils’ memories. Parents have a positive view of the school and comment on how much their children enjoy school. ‘My child would like to come to school at weekends and in the holidays,’ said one. Staff value your support and describe a strong and growing sense of teamwork. The governing body has recently been reconstituted and governors are keen to play a key role in the life and work of the school. However, the governing body’s work is at an early stage of development and lacks a cohesive framework to steer different governor activities. Safeguarding is effective. The leadership team has ensured that all safeguarding policies and procedures are fit for purpose. Staff are clear about what to do if they have any concerns for pupils’ welfare, by keeping high-quality records and alerting those senior staff responsible for safeguarding immediately. Leaders have followed procedures swiftly where any safeguarding incidents occur. You provide frequent updates to ensure that staff and governors take any new issues into account. Induction arrangements are thorough. You have placed a high priority on training for all staff groups to ensure a common understanding of emerging safeguarding issues, such as keeping safe online. For those families who need extra help and support, you have worked persistently to ensure that provision through external agencies is put into place quickly. A very small minority of parents felt that bullying could be tackled more effectively, but the inspection findings do not support this view. Pupils were adamant through the online survey and through discussions with the inspection team that staff resolve problems and fall-outs promptly. When pupils were observed at play and around the school, they showed high levels of cooperation and respect for each other. Inspection findings On becoming headteacher you quickly formed an accurate view of where improvements were needed and took bold actions to strengthen the leadership team. You have worked effectively with the local authority and other school leaders through the ‘MyBD5’ partnership to identify and adopt better practice. A sharply focused improvement plan means that everyone knows the part they play in moving the school forward. Above all, teaching is consistently good as a result of these approaches. The school receives pupils who may have experienced trauma or difficult circumstances in other countries. Some of these pupils arrive with little or no English and find difficulty in controlling their emotions. Leaders have appointed a ‘new to English’ teacher to provide language tuition and identify new pupils’ needs closely. The parental involvement worker also supports families to help them to integrate and understand school expectations. This effective work is helping pupils to adapt rapidly to and participate positively in school life. At key stage 2, proportions of pupils reaching the expected standards in all subjects in 2016 were close to or better than the national average. Proportions reaching higher standards in reading and writing were similarly favourable. Outcomes at key stage 1 also showed improvement, particularly for the least able boys. However, in mathematics, few pupils at key stages 1 and 2 achieved at a deeper level. Pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities receive good support for learning. Teaching assistants know the pupils well and provide support at just the right level. Work to track the progress of this group in greater detail is developing. Disadvantaged pupils, including the most able pupils, also receive good support and in 2016 their progress was better in all subjects than other pupils nationally. Pupils respond well to the guidance that teachers provide to help them improve their written work. They conduct themselves responsibly around school and in lessons so that learning time is productive. They are polite, friendly and respectful to visitors and are fiercely proud of their work and the positive way in which different cultures mix together. The school vision statement, ‘A united, caring community of learners,’ is reflected well through its pupils. Leaders have targeted considerable effort at raising standards in literacy and have introduced new approaches to improve pupils’ reading and writing. An emphasis on comprehension has helped pupils to develop clearer understanding of unfamiliar words and the deeper underlying meaning of the text. Well-chosen fiction books support work in other subjects and pupils are encouraged to read beyond the classroom. A newly stocked library provides a wide selection of books to promote reading further. Grammar and punctuation is taught very systematically and supports the development of independent writing well. Work in other subjects provides motivating starting points for writing that are often thought-provoking. In Year 6, the most able pupils produced very well-crafted pieces about evacuation at the start of the Second World War, based on the animated story ‘Ethel and Ernest’. Many pupils are able to demonstrate stylish handwriting, but some of the least- able, mainly boys, struggle to form and join letters consistently, so this area has been identified by leaders as a current focus. Leaders have greatly improved the outdoor provision in the early years by creating a separate area for nursery children. It offers a wide range of activities to entice and excite young learners. Adults in the early years engage well with children, promoting language effectively and helping them to enjoy their learning to the full. Although there are strengths in the teaching of mathematics, there are also inconsistencies across year groups in the level of challenge presented to pupils, resulting in uneven progress. For example, some tasks are too easy or do not require pupils to sufficiently explain their problem-solving strategies. Conversely, pupils are sometimes asked to make too much use of drawings to support simple calculations where sharp recall of times tables or use of a formula would be more appropriate. There are limited opportunities to apply mathematical skills in other subjects. The governing body is starting to exert greater influence on the work of the school. Governors are keen to play their part, and several of them, including the chair of the governing body, make frequent visits to view the school at work, discuss school improvement and meet leaders. Governors admit that a more cohesive approach that draws together meetings, visits and training throughout the year would enable them to offer better support and challenge to leaders. Next steps for the school Leaders and those responsible for governance should ensure that they: improve the consistency of teaching in mathematics so that more pupils reach and exceed standards expected for their age further develop the expertise of the governing body to support and challenge school leaders more effectively I am copying this letter to the chair of the governing body, the director of education for the diocese of Leeds (CE), the regional schools commissioner and the director of children’s services for Bradford. This letter will be published on the Ofsted website. Yours sincerely James Reid Ofsted Inspector Information about the inspection During this inspection, inspectors met with you and also with senior and subject leaders. You and I jointly observed teaching and learning in six classes. We also viewed the school’s latest assessment records. The inspection team scrutinised pupils’ work in a range of subjects and viewed displays of work around the school.