Ashleigh Primary School and Nursery, Wymondham

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Outcome

Ashleigh Primary School and Nursery, Wymondham continues to be an outstanding school.

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils blossom in this highly inclusive school. Pupils are kind and helpful.

They have high levels of respect for each other. Pupils delight in taking on leadership roles. Younger pupils aspire to be prefects and play leaders.

This is because older pupils act as excellent role models. Pupils know they make a positive difference to their school. They do this through school council discussions.

Leaders have high expectations for pupils' academic achievements and personal development. Pupils are happy and confident. They have excellent levels o...f self-control.

An enthusiasm for learning permeates the school. Pupils achieve exceptionally well. Their conduct and attitudes to learning are exemplary.

Pupils relish the extensive opportunities to learn new talents and broaden their interests. All pupils learn to play African drums and ukulele and have samba lessons. Pupils are immensely proud of the sporting talents they develop through dance club, karate and football.

A nearby farm provides a unique space for pupils to learn to care for living things. Pupils like to collect eggs from the chickens. They develop a deep awareness of sustainability by growing their own fruit and vegetables.

What does the school do well and what does it need to do better?

The school's broad curriculum is highly ambitious for all pupils. It is precise about what pupils will learn, from Nursery through to Year 6. The sharp focus on increasing pupils' vocabulary is highly effective.

Teachers deliver lessons that are consistently well organised and engaging. They provide precise instructions and present information clearly. Teachers enhance pupils' learning by using strategies pupils find familiar such as 'meet in the middle', 'three for tea' and partner talk.

Pupils articulate their thinking and consolidate their learning exceptionally well. Teachers frequently check pupils' knowledge is secure. The proportion of pupils that achieve higher standards in their reading, writing and mathematics is significantly above national averages by the end of Year 6.

Pupils develop a love of reading. They thoroughly enjoy the books they share in class. These evoke discussions about social and moral dilemmas.

Older pupils maintain this passion for reading. They know it expands their knowledge and helps employability later in life. Activities in Nursery prepare children exceptionally well for learning phonics in the Reception Year.

Well-trained staff teach phonics highly effectively. Familiar routines enable pupils to concentrate on learning new sounds. Pupils read books daily that are closely matched to the sounds they know.

This means pupils rapidly become confident and fluent readers. Staff are quick to identify pupils who need extra help to keep up with the pace of the phonics programme so they catch up swiftly.

The school is ambitious for all learners.

Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) achieve exceptionally well. Teachers make sure they adapt work to meet individual pupils' needs. This means pupils with SEND successfully access learning with their peers.

Children in the early years enjoy the calm space 'The Orchard' provides. Staff know children's needs well. They provide frequent high-quality interactions.

This helps children's communication, language development and emotional expression.

Provision in the early years is of exceptional quality. The learning environment is very well organised.

It invites children to rehearse what they have been learning. For example, children use their mathematical thinking as they sort equipment to tidy it away. They apply their knowledge of tallying and counting to find which colour their peers like best.

Children develop their creative skills and persevere as they practise their writing. Children develop their physical skills in the outdoor area. They grow in confidence as they climb and jump off large equipment.

All of this ensures that children are extremely well prepared for their transition to Year 1.

Personal development is promoted exceptionally well. A wide and rich set of experiences enhance learning in each subject.

Pupils speak enthusiastically about their experiences, such as botanical painting in the gardens at Sandringham. Different sports activities help pupils widen their interests. These enable pupils to develop a strong sense of how to keep themselves physically and mentally fit.

The school's approach to promoting pupils' character is exemplary. Their 'guiding stars' values are intrinsic to this. Pupils are highly respectful, engage well in lessons and build positive social behaviours.

Leaders have effective and meaningful engagement with staff. Staff feel very well supported in terms of their workload and well-being. Leaders are forensic in their evaluation of the school.

The school's ethos of 'all different, all equal, all learning' underpins every strategic decision to benefit pupils.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

Background

When we have judged a school to be outstanding, we will then normally go into the school about once every four years to confirm that the school remains outstanding.

This is called an ungraded inspection, and it is carried out under section 8 of the Education Act 2005. We do not give graded judgements on an ungraded inspection. However, if we find evidence that a school would now receive a higher or lower grade, then the next inspection will be a graded inspection, which is carried out under section 5 of the Act.

Usually this is within one to two years of the date of the ungraded inspection. If we have serious concerns about safeguarding, behaviour or the quality of education, we will deem the ungraded inspection a graded inspection immediately.

This is the first ungraded inspection since we judged the school to be outstanding in June 2018.