Greasby Junior School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils at Greasby Junior School are part of a welcoming and nurturing community.

Pupils are happy and clearly enjoy school life. Their actions are well informed by 'the three Cs' of courtesy, care and consideration. Pupils make friends easily and are kind to one another.

The pupils that we spoke to were resounding in their praise for adults at the school. They feel safe because of the level of care and support that staff provide.

Pupils achieve well.

They enjoy an engaging curriculum. There are high expectations in place for all pupils, including disadvantaged pupils and those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Pupils with soc...ial, emotional and mental health (SEMH) needs are well supported to make sure that they are ready to learn.

Pupils' conduct is exemplary. Pupils told us that bullying is rare because staff tackle any incidents decisively. Pupils understand the effects of bullying well.

They are respectful of others' feelings.

Pupils have a range of responsibilities. These include running activities at lunchtimes to add to the wide range of clubs that are on offer at the school.

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

Senior leaders and governors have a clear understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of the school. Governors question leaders well so that they have an accurate view of provision. Teachers are positive about the steps taken by leaders to reduce their workload.

In 2019, the progress and attainment of all pupils, including disadvantaged pupils and those with SEND, at the end of key stage 2 in reading, writing and mathematics were similar to those of other pupils nationally. Leaders quickly identify pupils' individual needs. They provide advice for staff on how to support pupils to achieve well.

In reading, leaders have improved the quality and range of the books that pupils read. Pupils are positive about reading because these books match their interests and abilities well. Staff are effective at extending the range of pupils' vocabulary.

They consistently build on what pupils already know. This helps pupils to become increasingly expressive readers as they move through the school. Staff provide targeted support to help pupils to catch up if they have gaps in their knowledge of the sounds that letters make.

Pupils use their phonics knowledge automatically to read fluently.

The strong focus on developing pupils' vocabulary has also helped improve pupils' writing. Leaders have mapped out clearly the punctuation and grammar skills that they want pupils to know.

This ensures that pupils build on their prior learning well. Pupils use a range of vocabulary and punctuation to enrich the quality and complexity of their written work.

Leaders have taken effective action to improve pupils' progress in mathematics.

There is now a highly structured approach to teaching mathematics. This builds well on pupils' prior learning. Pupils have opportunities to revisit their knowledge of different methods of calculation and apply these well to solve problems.

Senior leaders have ensured that the school's curriculum matches the national curriculum well. They have started to develop the role of subject leaders to improve the planning of the curriculum even further. Pupils achieve well in some subjects, such as science, physical education (PE) and computing.

The leaders for these subjects have made good use of published materials to devise strong plans for pupils' learning. However, they have not had enough opportunities to check on the quality of education in their subjects.

In subjects such as history, geography and French, leaders have not provided staff with enough guidance on how to link learning between topics to build on pupils' prior knowledge.

Leaders have not checked closely enough on how well pupils have remembered their learning. Pupils' recall of their learning varies between subjects because it is not reinforced often enough. This is also true of some aspects of pupils' personal development.

Pupils have a clear understanding of the school's values. They also have a wide range of opportunities to learn about their own culture and that of others. They do this through taking part in trips to museums, studying a range of different artists and learning about different faiths.

However, pupils' recall of their work on British values and equalities is patchy. They remember some of their work well but find it difficult to recall other aspects in enough detail.

Parents, carers and pupils alike value the work of staff at the school.

Attendance at the school is well above the national average. Pupils actively contribute to maintaining the strong positive ethos of the school. As peer mentors, they support other pupils to resolve any minor disputes at breaktimes.

Pupils' behaviour at breaktimes and in lessons is excellent.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

Leaders have put in place appropriate safeguarding training for staff to ensure that all adults are vigilant.

The processes and procedures to follow are known well by staff if they have any concerns about a pupil's well-being. The special educational needs coordinator and the pastoral leader ensure that there is early help for pupils who have SEMH needs. They work well with other professionals to support pupils and their families.

Pupils have a strong awareness of how to keep themselves safe, including when online.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

Although the quality of education in the school is good, the curriculum planning for some subjects is stronger than for others. In subjects such as history, geography and French, the curriculum plans do not provide enough detail about how learning builds on what has come before.

This means that pupils' recall of their learning is not consistently strong across subjects. Leaders should ensure that teachers plan more carefully to build on pupils' prior knowledge and to link learning across subjects so that pupils' learning is even more meaningful. .

Subject leadership is at an early stage of development. Curriculum leaders have not had the opportunity to check on how well staff are implementing curriculum plans so that pupils know and remember more. Subject leaders should check regularly on the quality of education in their subjects to ensure that pupils have remembered the essential learning that has been defined for each topic.

. Although pupils are well prepared for life in modern Britain, they forget some aspects of their learning in relation to equalities and British values. Leaders should ensure that pupils have opportunities to revisit and consolidate their learning in these areas so that they remember the main teaching points in more detail.