James Elliman Academy

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Outcome

There has been no change to this school's overall judgement of good as a result of this ungraded (section 8) inspection.

However, the evidence gathered suggests that the inspection grade might be outstanding if a graded (section 5) inspection were carried out now. The school's next inspection will be a graded inspection.

The headteacher of this school is Tajinder Johal.

This school is part of The Park Federation Academy Trust, which means other people in the trust also have responsibility for running the school. The trust is run by the chief executive officer, Martin Young, and overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by Muralee Nair.

What is it like to attend this school? ...

Pupils are happy, confident and articulate at this positive and welcoming school.

They are eager learners, and pupils new to the school settle quickly. The school is highly ambitious for pupils to succeed. It has the highest academic expectations.

All pupils are supported to achieve highly and to develop self-belief, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND).

Pupils' behaviour is exemplary, both during lessons and at playtimes. They have trusting relationships with each other and with staff.

Pupils say they feel safe, valued and cared for at school. They are proud of their school and respectful and courteous to others. They develop a deep understanding of different faiths and cultures.

Pupils make a valuable contribution to school life through the roles and responsibilities they hold. For example, some are champions for curriculum subjects. Pupils in Year 6 develop an understanding of their environmental responsibility by measuring their daily plastic use and participating in 'The Big Plastic Count'.

There is a large range of extra-curricular clubs for pupils to attend. Pupils are well prepared for the next stage of their education. They start to learn about potential careers from an early stage, through the school's 'Skills Builder Programme'.

This means pupils are very well prepared for their future lives.

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

There is a culture of the highest aspirations at this school. The ambitious curriculum starts from the beginning of Nursery.

The school has carefully identified the important knowledge and vocabulary and the order in which to teach it to pupils. Leaders have included close links to people and places within the school's locality within the curriculum. For example, Year 2 pupils learn about the Elliman family, from Slough.

Teachers use their strong subject knowledge to deliver consistently effective lessons. Teachers address any pupil misconceptions quickly. Staff routinely check that pupils know, remember and understand important content before moving on in learning.

Pupils say that they find this very useful, especially when applying their learning to new contexts, such as in mathematics. The school identifies pupils with SEND quickly. Careful and bespoke adaptions are made to the curriculum when needed.

As a result, pupils learn superbly across the curriculum, including those who are disadvantaged. Pupils achieve particularly highly in key stage 1 and 2 assessments.

The school fosters a love of reading across the school.

It makes sure that pupils have the opportunity to explore a range of authors and high-quality texts. For example, pupils spoke excitedly to the inspector about the hundred books they aim to read by the end of Year 6. Those who are at the start of their reading journey have effective support from staff to help them learn to read with accuracy.

Pupils' phonics skills are precisely developed. They read books that match the sounds they have learned. This ensures that all pupils, including those with SEND, get off to a great start in learning to read.

Children in the early years get off to an excellent start. They settle quickly and make strong progress. The indoor and outdoor learning spaces are of a high quality and support children well in developing their knowledge across all areas of learning.

For example, children plant different vegetables and then enjoy describing and tasting them.

Pupils' behaviour in class is exemplary. At playtimes, well-being champions make sure that any pupil new to the school has someone to play with.

Attendance rates are rapidly improving. The school carefully analyses data to gain an understanding of the causes of any absence and then uses the information to support families to improve attendance.

The curriculum for personal, social and health education is expertly developed.

Staff carefully support pupils to consider other people's points of view. For example, those elected to the school council understand that they need to represent all pupils' views. The themes of equality and diversity are well embedded.

In art and design lessons, pupils study artists from a range of different cultures and backgrounds. The range of extra-curricular activities is extensive, both in sports and creative experiences.

Pupils and staff are rightly proud of their school.

Those with governance responsibilities and leaders have a wealth of experience. They know the school well and are dedicated to ensuring the school provides an exceptional quality of education. Staff morale is high, and they are well supported to manage their workload and well-being.

Staff appreciate the professional development opportunities to strengthen their teaching. The school engages positively with the local community. Parents are overwhelmingly positive about the school.

As one parent stated, 'Our child has flourished, the school is excellent and well loved by all.'

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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

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

This is the second ungraded inspection since we judged the school to be good in January 2015.