Shaugh Prior Primary school on the edge of Dartmoor has been rated as ‘needs improvement’ on the quality of education, personal development, leadership and management according to an Ofsted report. Behaviour and attitudes were rated as good.

An inspection was carried out on July 12 and 13.

The report said: “Shaugh Prior is a friendly and welcoming village school. Pupils enjoy great friendships with pupils across the school. New pupils are warmly welcomed by their classmates. Pupils feel safe at Shaugh Prior. In class, at lunch and break times, pupils behave well. Pupils say that bullying is not common. However, a few older pupils show little tolerance of pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Some parents also expressed concerns about this. At times, pupils who join the school struggle initially. However, through the efforts of federation and school staff, they now cope well. The many visits, clubs, sporting activities, competitions and federation events provide a broad range of opportunities for pupils. However, there are few leadership opportunities for pupils. Leaders have started to address the shortcomings identified at the previous inspection. However, due to staff absence, these have not progressed quickly enough. Improvements to curriculum plans and teaching have not been realised. As a result, pupils struggle to remember much of what has been covered.”

On what it does well and what it needs to do better the report continues: “Staff have responded positively following the previous inspection. They have strengthened the teaching of reading in some areas. For example, younger pupils make strong progress in their phonic knowledge. Pupils in key stage one read well. However, pupils in both key stage one and two do not have a secure enough understanding of some texts. Teaching does not enable pupils to understand a range of texts in English and in other subjects, such as religious education or geography. When planning subjects, other than English and mathematics, leaders have not ensured that new learning links to what pupils have learned before. Additionally, teaching often moves too quickly to complex ideas and does not give pupils sufficient time to practise new learning. Consequently, pupils struggle to recall recently taught content. In contrast, where plans are well-considered and taught effectively, such as in music, pupils recall their learning and perform new tunes harmoniously. Teachers are still getting to grips with many of the new plans for different subjects and how to adapt them for their classes. This is complicated further by the gaps pupils have in their knowledge, following lockdowns due to COVID-19. While pupils are starting to catch up on lost learning, too often, teachers do not teach some subjects well. This is also seen in Reception. New approaches to finding out what pupils know and how much they remember do not work as well as leaders intended.

Learning is rarely disrupted and pupils are attentive. However, pupils do not take enough pride in their work. Sometimes, work is incomplete or incorrect. The school has a higher-than-average proportion of pupils with SEND. Staff help pupils who struggle to manage their social interactions or emotions well. However, for pupils with learning needs, staff do not support them well enough. This is because teaching staff do not follow the plans leaders have created with pupils and their parents closely enough. Despite the teaching they receive on the topic, some pupils do not show respect or tolerance of pupils who find school life a challenge. There is a full personal, social and health programme in place. Pupils gain an insight into world religions but little on different cultures. Governors have not been clear enough in setting out their vision and expectations for this school. Nonetheless, staff are positive about working at the school. Overall, they feel well supported and valued by federation leaders. Some staff expressed concern about heavy workload associated with teaching several year groups. Leaders are aware of this and have started to provide some shared resources to reduce workload.