Elangeni School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

This is a good school The headteacher and her deputy have inspired a strong and cohesive team of staff.

Their passion and commitment have maintained Elangeni School's exceptionally caring ethos and rich, stimulating curriculum during a period of significant staffing changes. Senior leaders work creatively to support and train new staff so that teaching standards across the school are good. Flexible timetabling allows experienced teachers to support new colleagues and ensure that all pupils experience high-quality learning across the full range of subjects.

Elangeni has particular strengths in the arts, religious education, sports and French. Staff provide pupi...ls with stimulating learning contexts and boost learning through trips, visits and the involvement of visiting experts. As one Year 3 pupil proudly said, 'There is always something to look forward to here.'

Leaders are outward looking and have benefited from working with other local schools. This has helped to support improvements to assessment and provides a variety of curriculum enrichment opportunities. Staff ensure that pupils' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is at the centre of everything they do.

Consequently, pupils are very well prepared for their next steps in education and life in modern, diverse Britain. Elangeni School offers a very warm and inclusive family atmosphere. Pupils are polite and respectful of each other, and their behaviour is excellent.

They are rightly proud of their school and value the friendships they make here. Attendance is consistently above the national average for primary schools. Outcomes at the end of key stage 2 are good.

Pupils make progress in line with the national averages. Pupils' writing skills have significantly improved following a dip in previous years. However, fewer pupils achieve the higher standard by the end of key stage 2 in writing.

More consistent use of teaching assistants in classrooms is needed to accelerate the progress made by disadvantaged pupils and pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) still further. Most parents and carers value the work of the school and were keen to praise the support on offer. However, some parents expressed concerns about the progress their children have made and the quality of communication from the school.

The governors are a keen and dedicated team. However, many are new to their roles and are not sufficiently informed about progress information to challenge leaders and hold staff to account.

Information about this school

Elangeni School is an average-sized junior school.

Most pupils are of White British heritage and speak English as their first language. The proportion of pupils with SEND is well below the national average. The proportion of pupils who are eligible for the pupil premium is well below the national average.

Over the past three years, there has been a period of staffing changes at the school. In addition, several members of the governing body are new to their roles. Elangeni School offers a very wide variety of clubs and activities, both before and after school.

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