Christ Church is a happy, caring school.” This is the opening sentence of the Frome first school’s most recent Ofsted inspection report.
Ofsted, which graded Christ Church CofE First School and Nursery as “Requires improvement to be good” in all areas back in June 2017, returned to the school on 8th–9th October 2019.
Headteacher, Rupert Kaye said, “The timing of the visit, just five weeks into a new academic year meant that Christ Church was granted the unique privilege of being the first of Frome’s schools undergo a full two-day inspection under the new Ofsted education inspection framework. This time, inspectors were especially keen to find out what children learned and remembered in each and every national curriculum subject, not just in English and maths.”
In her report, lead inspector, Sandra Woodman, praised Christ Church for the work already undertaken to review and improve curriculum design, breadth and quality in every subject saying, “Leaders have set out ambitious plans for pupils’ learning in different subjects. For example, in history there is a clear order for learning about key events. Pupils talk knowledgeably about the invasions of Britain.”
The Ofsted report goes on to acknowledge the strong overall progress Christ Church has made over the last 15 months and judges the school to be “Good” in both “Personal Development” and “Behaviour and Attitudes”. These two affirmatice judgements mean that, although the overall grading for Christ Church remains “Requires improvement to be good”, pupils, parents, staff, governors, partners in the parish and the school’s many friends across Frome can all take great encouragement from the result.
Headteacher, Rupert Kaye, is characteristically upbeat, “Christ Church received two strong ‘Good’ grades and three near misses. I think of it as reaching the Cup Final only to miss out on the trophy by the narrowest of margins. We lost three-two on penalties!”
Sandra Woodman said, “Staff provide strong help and support for all pupils. They support pupils’ emotional and mental health well. Pupils find activities such as yoga very calming. Parents and carers appreciate the school’s nurturing and inclusive environment. They feel their children are in safe hands.”
The Ofsted report also states, “Pupils enjoy school. They like the clubs and after-school activities available to them. They know how to live healthy, active lives. There is a strong sense of community. Everyone is valued here.”
Headteacher, Rupert Kaye said, “Ofsted complimented us on the work we do at Christ Church to prepare pupils to be good citizens. Inspectors were delighted to discover that our pupils could talk enthusiastically about British values – democracy, the rule of law, liberty and freedom, mutual respect and tolerance – as well as our school’s six core Christian values: kindness, courage, respect, responsibility, perseverance and forgiveness.”
Chair of Governors, John Price said he was pleased with many of the report’s findings, which he believes confirm the school’s hard work to improve the school are bringing results.
