Breachwood Green Junior Mixed and Infant School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy attending this welcoming school. There is a strong sense of community.

Pupils follow the school's ethos of working together 'to be the best they can'.

Pupils readily take on extra responsibilities, such as being sports ambassadors or school councillors. Pupils willingly support others.

They feel proud of their achievements and the contribution they make to the school life. Pupils are encouraged to be aspirational and to think how they can make a difference in their community and the wider world. This contributes well to pupils becoming responsible, caring citizens.

Pupils behave well in lessons and around the school. Pupils listen carefu...lly to instructions. They engage positively with their teachers and with each other.

Pupils learn to celebrate kindness. They are kind and caring towards each other. Pupils play happily together at breaktimes.

Pupils say that bullying hardly ever happens. They are confident that there is always someone they can talk to who will help them resolve any worries they may have.

Parents and carers are positive about the work of the school.

They appreciate the kind and caring ethos in which their children learn. Parents valued the regular contact they had with school during the pandemic.

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

Leaders have carefully considered the curriculum, which is designed to help pupils build their knowledge across a broad range of subjects.

Pupils are well supported to access the ambitious curriculum, including pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities. Staff are well trained to support the specific and complex needs of some pupils, so they too are successful alongside their peers. However, some aspects of the curriculum are new.

Leaders have not yet evaluated the full impact of the changes they have made in order to ensure that pupils learn and achieve as well as they can.

Pupils get off to a good start with learning to read. The teaching of phonics is clear and consistent.

In Reception, children start learning to read from the moment they join the school. This approach continues systematically throughout pupils' first years in school. Pupils read books that enable them to practise the sounds they are learning.

As a result, they become confident and fluent readers. Pupils who are not making as much progress as they could in reading are quickly identified and given the extra help they need. Leaders promote reading well and teachers read to pupils regularly.

This helps pupils gain an enjoyment and love of reading that continues through their time at school.

Leaders provide staff with the guidance and training they need to teach the curriculum well. Teachers check carefully what pupils can do and use the information well to plan lessons that build on what pupils have learned before.

In some subjects, such as in art and design, pupils can easily talk about colour mixing using appropriate technical language and vocabulary, which demonstrates they remember what they have learned before. However, this is not the same in all subjects in the school's two-year curriculum cycle. Teachers are not consistent in ensuring that pupils have learned the key vocabulary they need to secure important knowledge and understanding.

Children start well in Reception. Adults are caring and consistent, and they quickly establish clear routines. Adults have developed a purposeful environment where children enjoy learning and playing together.

Children are encouraged to sing, talk and share rhymes. Children develop their interests in the world around them. Children gain the knowledge they need and are well-prepared for learning in Year 1.

Leaders ensure that the curriculum to support pupils' personal development is effective. Pupils learn to respect different cultures and beliefs. They learn about different kinds of relationships.

They can talk about the strategies they can use to support their positive mental health. Pupils develop positive attitudes towards others and towards their learning. Pupils are well prepared for their next stage of education.

Governors make a positive contribution. They know the school well and offer effective challenge and support for leaders. Governors work effectively and well with school leaders to ensure that the school continues to improve.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

There is a strong culture of safeguarding. Staff are well trained.

They are alert to the potential signs that a pupil may be at risk. Staff understand and follow the school's safeguarding procedures. Staff report concerns promptly.

Leaders take the action required to ensure that pupils and families access the support that they need.

Pupils are confident to report any worries that they have. They are taught appropriate strategies to help them stay safe, including when using the internet.

Governors check that leaders are fulfilling their safeguarding responsibilities effectively. This includes rigorous pre-employment checks.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• Some aspects of the school's curriculum are new.

Subject leaders have not had the opportunity to evaluate the effectiveness of these changes to their two-year curriculum cycle. This means that subject leaders do not know whether the changes they have made are helping pupils to learn and achieve as well as they can. Leaders should evaluate the changes to the curriculum to ensure that the curriculum is being implemented well in all subjects.

• Teachers do not routinely plan opportunities for pupils to practise and deepen their use of key vocabulary across all subjects. As a result, some pupils are not able to remember how to use key words in their correct context. Leaders should ensure that teachers implement the intended curriculum well across all subjects.