Christ Church Church of England Junior School, Ramsgate

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Outcome

Christ Church Church of England Junior School, Ramsgate continues to be a good school.

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils show genuine compassion for one another in this school.

They uphold the school's Christian values of care, share, love and learn.

Pupils enjoy coming to school and form strong friendships with one another. They see themselves as part of the school family.

Staff and parents and carers say that pupils feel safe. Pupils say that they trust the adults to resolve any worries they have. Pupils say that, although bullying sometimes happens, adults work quickly to put things right.

Pupils behave well in lessons and around the school.... They show pride in taking on roles of responsibility, such as online safety ambassadors and school librarians.

Pupils show a keen interest in their learning.

They develop a love of reading and enjoy their time in the school library. Pupils use their reading and mathematical skills across a wide range of subjects, helping them to build their understanding. They enjoy the variety of the school's curriculum.

Displays around the school map out what pupils learn. These maps help pupils to see the important knowledge and skills they need to remember. This builds excitement in the pupils about what they are learning.

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

Leaders have built a meaningful curriculum. Subject leaders plan links between subjects, which helps pupils to connect what they have learned with new learning. The school's 'learning journey' displays around school map out what pupils learn in each year group.

This fuels the interest and excitement shown by pupils in lessons.

Teachers have a good knowledge of the subjects taught. They encourage pupils to build on what they already know and understand.

Pupils then review what they have learned at the end of each topic. This helps them to remember the important skills and knowledge they gain throughout the year. While leaders have thought about the steps in learning in all subjects, there is a mismatch between the assessment system they are using and the curriculum.

Leaders are aware of this and have begun thinking about how to better align the two.

Pupils have a warm relationship with one another and with adults in class. Parents speak positively about the support they have received to help their child learn during the most recent COVID-19 restrictions.

That said, leaders have had to adjust the school's curriculum to help pupils to catch up with learning lost during remote learning.

Pupils build good reading skills and develop a love of reading as they move through the school. Pupils who are school librarians take pride in their role.

Pupils write to authors and vote on awards for non-fiction writers. This creates a real buzz around reading across the school. Some pupils struggle to read.

Staff support these pupils through extra phonics lessons. However, the phonics scheme currently in use does not provide the structure needed to help pupils catch up quickly enough. Leaders are choosing an alternative phonics scheme to provide better support for those pupils who need it.

Pupils experience trips to the beach, church and local sites. These trips help to connect pupils with the community and bring purpose to what pupils learn in lessons. Pupils reflect thoughtfully on their own beliefs and are respectful of the beliefs of others.

This was seen in the discussions pupils held about life in the First and Second World Wars, and when learning about different cultural approaches to sculpture.

The support for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) is strong. Teachers identify the needs of pupils with SEND and make sure that lessons are adapted to support their needs.

As a result, pupils with SEND make similar progress to other pupils across the curriculum. Pupils with SEND say that they feel well supported in class and are rightly proud of the work they produce.

Staff feel valued and say that leaders help them to manage their workload.

Governors make regular visits to the school to meet with leaders to make sure that the plans for improvement are being followed through.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

School leaders create a culture where pupils feel safe.

Staff receive training that helps them to spot pupils who need help. Leaders act immediately, and risks are assessed and acted on quickly. The school has well-established links with outside agencies and when needed, readily engages their support.

School staff help pupils and families to work through difficult times.

Pupils take on the role of online safeguarding ambassadors, helping pupils to stay safe when online. Governors check that policies and procedures are up to date and are implemented consistently.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• School leaders have developed a well-sequenced curriculum, but this is not aligned to the assessment system. School leaders need to ensure that the assessment system reflects the sequencing of knowledge and skills across the curriculum, allowing teachers and subject leaders to systematically check pupils' understanding.

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

Usually this is within one to two years of the date of the section 8 inspection. If we have serious concerns about safeguarding, behaviour or the quality of education, we will deem the section 8 inspection a section 5 inspection immediately.

This is the first section 8 inspection since we judged the school to be good in October 2016.