Connor Downs Academy

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Main findings

Connor Downs is a good school. The headteacher and the staff provide a very caring and nurturing environment in which pupils flourish and feel very secure.

Pupils' behaviour is outstanding and they make an excellent contribution to the school and the wider community. Parents and carers are exceptionally supportive of the school. One praised the 'caring ethos' while another noted that 'nothing is too much trouble' for the staff.

These very positive views are representative of almost all parents and carers who returned the questionnaire and are similar to those of the inspection team. Children get off to a good start and make good progress in the Reception Year as a result of the significantly ...improved provision in the Early Years Foundation Stage. Progress is also good in Key Stages 1 and 2.

The school has successfully devoted much energy to improving progress in English, providing diverse and rich opportunities to support higher attainment in writing. Current Year 6 pupils have made much better progress in English than pupils last year and their attainment is above average. Mathematics is an established strength of the school, where attainment is also above average, with teachers' assessments indicating an impressive proportion reaching the higher Level 5.

Pupils' good overall progress is the result of the careful checking of the progress of individual pupils, better provision for literacy within an already good curriculum and good, and improving, teaching. Teachers mark work well and pupils understand and value the targets for improvement they are set. Occasionally, teachers are too dependent on expecting pupils to respond differently to tasks according to their level of attainment, rather than using different activities and materials that might address their individual learning needs more effectively.

This sometimes results in slower progress than might be the case, particularly for higher attaining pupils. Although pupils' progress is carefully monitored, data are not used systematically enough to evaluate the impact of actions to raise their attainment at key points during the year. The strong leadership of the headteacher and the school management team has established a widely shared commitment to continuous improvement.

Self-evaluation is broadly accurate and results in clear and appropriate priorities for future action. Although not always reached, challenging targets contribute well to raising standards. Consequently, the capacity to improve further is good.

Information about the school

Connor Downs is of smaller than average size and serves a mainly White British community in the village and the surrounding rural area. The proportion of pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities, including those with a statement of special educational needs, is above average and the percentage known to be eligible for free school meals is increasing but remains below average. The school has dyslexia friendly status, validated by the British Dyslexia Association.