Foxbridge Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are happy and proud to attend Foxbridge Primary School.

The school's motto to 'nurture, empower, succeed' is engrained in school life. Pupils feel valued, listened to and safe. They are guided by the school's values to show respect and kindness to others.

They welcome new friends and learn and play harmoniously together.

The school is aspirational for all of its pupils. The curriculum is broad and ambitious.

Pupils study a wide range of interesting topics and read books that enthuse them to learn new and ambitious vocabulary. Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) have the same opportunities as their peers and are wel...l supported to be successful. Pupils try hard and achieve well.

Pupils are enthused by the enriching experiences that the school provides. These include meeting with visiting experts and learning outdoors and in the community. Pupils enjoy a range of interesting clubs.

These activities help to nurture their interests and talents.The school is calm and orderly. Pupils enjoy making their own contribution to school life, for instance, as school councillors and lunchtime monitors.

Pupils aim to show responsibility and be resilient. They are proud to be recognised by the school for doing this.

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

The school's curriculum is ambitious and engaging.

It is well structured. In all subjects, the school has identified precisely what pupils will learn and when they will learn it. For example, there are many opportunities to revisit important concepts.

This is built carefully right from the start of the Reception class. This helps pupils to gain knowledge securely and remember what they have learned.

Teachers have secure subject knowledge.

They present concepts clearly. In classrooms, pupils discuss their learning enthusiastically and use subject-specific vocabulary well. Teachers provide interesting activities and opportunities for pupils to practise skills they have learned.

Teachers check pupils' learning often. However, teachers do not use these checks of pupils' learning carefully enough to spot pupils' misunderstandings or learning gaps. This means that, sometimes, teachers do not make appropriate decisions about pupils' next learning steps.

As a result, some pupils do not progress as quickly as they could through the school's curriculum.

Reading is a priority in the school. Phonics is taught well right from the start.

This includes a sharp focus on supporting weak readers to catch up quickly. Pupils, including those with SEND, learn the knowledge needed to become accurate readers. Pupils read often from books that are well matched to their stage of reading.

This helps them to develop fluency and confidence.

Pupils learn demanding vocabulary through the wide range of texts that the school has placed at the heart of the curriculum. Subject-specific vocabulary is studied as part of every topic.

This starts with communication and language being threaded through, from the moment children join the Reception class. Teachers support pupils to structure their written and oral responses well. Pupils use increasingly sophisticated language in their spoken and written explanations.

They become confident, skilful communicators.

The school takes inclusivity seriously. It provides sensitive support to help pupils with SEND learn successfully alongside their peers.

Staff make careful adaptions so pupils thrive and achieve well.

Opportunities to promote pupils' well-being and help them to make safe choices are woven through everything the school does. Pupils learn to respect and appreciate difference, including different cultures, beliefs and family structures.

Pupils are well prepared for life in modern Britain.

Pupils show positive attitudes to all aspects of school life. Leaders have put in place careful induction procedures, so pupils new to the school get off to a strong start.

Pupils move around the school calmly and follow routines and instructions without fuss. The school keeps the importance of attendance in parents' and carers' minds. The school is approachable and offers tailored support to families, when needed.

Parents are highly appreciative of this. They say that they value the positive impact of the school's nurturing ethos on their children.

Staff are proud to work at the school and are excited to be part of growing this new school.

They understand the ongoing changes that this necessitates. They value leaders' actions to consider staff's workload and to respect their health and well-being.

The trust's collaborative support is a strength.

Leaders and staff appreciate the opportunities for training that help them in their work to provide pupils with the best education possible. Local governors and trustees are knowledgeable and passionate about the school and are integral to this endeavour.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• In some foundation subjects, teachers do not use their assessment of pupils' learning carefully enough to spot pupils' misunderstandings or learning gaps. This means that teachers, sometimes, do not make appropriate decisions about pupils' next learning steps. The school should support staff with checking what pupils have learned and what they need to revisit or do next, so that pupils achieve well in all subjects.