A primary school in North Manchester has been criticised by inspectors who found pupils do not feel safe due to 'boisterous and unruly' behaviour. Crosslee Community Primary School in Blackley has been rated inadequate by Ofsted.
'Homophobic and derogatory language' is commonly used across the school in Crosslee Road, according to inspectors who said that bullying is not dealt with effectively. Pupils explained that they often hear unkind name-calling, a report of the November inspection which was published last week (January 18) said.
Pupils appear happy in the school, the report said, and take part in after-school clubs such as yoga, meditation and hockey. However, the school does not allow pupils to learn about the diverse nature of British society, Ofsted concluded.
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"Crosslee Community Primary School does not provide an acceptable standard of education to pupils," the report said. "Pupils, and children in the early years, do not experience a well designed curriculum that meets their learning needs.
"Pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), underachieve considerably. Leaders’ expectations for pupils’ achievement are low. Pupils, and children in the early years, do not gain the knowledge or skills that they require to be fully prepared for the next steps in their education.
"Leaders do not have high expectations of pupils’ behaviour. Disruptions to lessons are frequent. Pupils’ behaviour is not well managed by staff. This impedes how well pupils learn.
"Although pupils appear happy in school, many pupils who spoke with inspectors said that they did not feel safe in some areas of the school building. This is because they are subjected to boisterous and unruly behaviour. Leaders do not safeguard pupils effectively.
"The use of homophobic and derogatory language is common across the school. Pupils explained that they often hear unkind name-calling. They are not confident that leaders will sort this out. Inspectors found that leaders do not deal with incidents of bullying effectively enough.
"Pupils enjoy learning in the school’s spacious outdoor grounds. Pupils take part in after-school clubs such as yoga, meditation and hockey. However, the wider personal development programme is ineffective. It does not allow pupils to learn about the diverse nature of British society."
The report also said that leaders and governors at the school do not fulfil their statutory duties to keep pupils safe. Inspectors instructed the school to implement a curriculum that enables pupils and children to achieve well.
The school, which is maintained by Manchester council, has been rated Good since its last full inspection in 2012.
A spokesperson for the school said: "We fully accept the findings of inspectors, who also told us during the inspection they could see the progress the school was beginning to make following an intense programme of school development across all areas of the school.
"This work has continued since the inspection - including firm action to address the concerns raised about pupil behaviour - and will carry on at pace until each of the areas identified by inspectors has been fully addressed."
A Manchester council spokesperson said: "We're satisfied the school is taking appropriate action to address the issues identified and we're supporting them in this."
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