Bilton CofE Junior School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Outcome

Bilton CofE Junior School continues to be a good school.

What is it like to attend this school?

The school values of respect, kindness, honesty, forgiveness, perseverance and friendship sit at the core of Bilton CofE Junior School. Pupils learn about their importance because staff model these values. This contributes to a community where all are welcome and pupils are happy and safe.

There are 'no outsiders' in this inclusive school. Pupils are active school citizens, willingly taking on responsibilities. These range from being members of the school science council to physical education monitors.

Leaders and staff expect pupils to work hard and do their best. Pupils know t...his. They 'think hard' when their work gets tricky.

Teachers encourage and support pupils so that they do not flounder but instead persist and ponder. Pupils' good behaviour means that they can learn in lessons. Teachers revisit the school rules of 'respectful, ready and safe' each half term.

These rules are evident in classrooms and throughout the school.

Pupils learn what bullying is. They know how to share any concerns by, for instance using the school worry box.

Staff act promptly when a pupil raises an issue, including any potential bullying. Staff guide pupils to 'talk and repair' to put things right. They make regular checks afterwards to ensure that issues do not reoccur.

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

Senior leaders and governors understand how important it is to develop staff expertise. They have made sure all staff, especially subject leaders, are cultivating the knowledge and skills needed for their respective roles. Staff want to learn how to further improve pupils' education.

They embrace new ideas willingly. Leaders listen to what they have to say and are mindful of their workload. All work together towards a common purpose.

Pupils learn a broad range of subjects. Leaders have sequenced each subject so that teachers know the endpoints that pupils are working towards. In some subjects, such as mathematics and modern foreign languages, leaders have carefully identified the fine detail of what pupils will learn.

This makes it crystal clear to teachers what they should be teaching and when they should be teaching it. In a few other subjects, this remains a work in progress. In these instances, the curriculum does not identify the small steps that pupils should be making.

The effect of this is twofold. Firstly, teachers do not know the key knowledge that they should emphasise to pupils. Secondly, teachers do not know precisely what pupils have learned previously.

This hampers pupils' progress.

Leaders identify and share information about the needs of pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Teachers use this information to adapt the curriculum.

Pupils with SEND benefit from timely classroom support. Sometimes, teachers provide pupils with different work based on the pupils' starting point. At other times, they adapt their approach and employ strategies to help pupils complete the same work as their peers.

All pupils and staff work productively together in lessons. Teachers encourage pupils to discuss their learning with each other. Teachers present new information clearly and check pupils' understanding systematically.

Leaders recognise the importance of reading. Staff read to pupils and take every opportunity to promote reading. They use guided reading lessons to encourage pupils to explore and discuss a range of carefully chosen texts.

Leaders accurately identify pupils who need extra help with their reading. Trained staff then work with pupils to help them improve. This helps to strengthen pupils' phonics knowledge so they can read with greater accuracy.

However, class teachers do not have an accurate overview of the sounds pupils are working on. This means that they do not know how to best support classroom learning for these pupils.

School life extends far beyond the academic.

Staff help pupils to build character and to learn about the wider world in many ways. Pupils learn from an array of visitors, including fire brigade staff, mental health professionals and theatre groups. Visits are equally varied, ranging from a living Victorian museum to a cement factory.

These visits support pupils' curricular learning and broaden their horizons. In school, pupils come together to take part in a range of creative, community, technical and sporting activities. These include a plethora of musical opportunities and clubs, ranging from street dance to allotment club.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

Safeguarding leaders are highly effective. They have developed a strong safeguarding culture in the school.

They act on information swiftly to ensure that pupils and families get the help and support they need. Staff sum this up by saying, 'Our safeguarding team is like the fifth emergency service'. They are right.

Staff know that safeguarding is everyone's responsibility. All are well trained and alert to the signs that a pupil may be at risk of harm. Staff use reporting systems diligently and report any concern, no matter how small.

Pupils learn about how to keep themselves safe and have a trusted adult they can talk to in school.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• In a few subjects, leaders have not set out the detailed knowledge that pupils need to learn. This means that teachers do not know the key knowledge, concepts and ideas that every pupil needs to accurately know and remember.

Leaders should ensure that the precise knowledge that pupils need to know and remember in every foundation subject is clearly defined, ensuring that each teacher knows the small steps that pupils should be making. ? In a small number of subjects, leaders have not ensured that teachers know what pupils have learned in previous years and what they will be learning in subsequent years. As a result, teachers cannot help pupils to see how their new knowledge integrates with what they already know.

Leaders should ensure that teachers have a detailed understanding of the prior knowledge each pupil should have gained in each foundation subject in preceding years and the pivotal knowledge that they will need to remember for later learning. ? Leaders have not ensured that teachers have a clear overview of the sounds pupils are learning in their reading intervention. This means that pupils' phonics work is not being reinforced in their classroom learning.

Leaders should ensure that all staff have a clear understanding and overview of the sounds that pupils who are in phonics interventions are working on. They should ensure that staff use this information effectively so that gaps in phonics knowledge do not prevent pupils from accessing the full curriculum.

Background

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

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 second ungraded inspection since we judged the school to be good in June 2014.