John Clifford Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

There is a strong atmosphere of love and care here.

Pupils are proud of their school's cultural diversity. Alongside being respectful and open to different beliefs, pupils value being immersed in them. New pupils often join the school.

They are warmly welcomed by everyone. They quickly settle in and make friends.

The school has a calm and purposeful atmosphere.

Pupils are polite and considerate. They work hard in lessons and get on well at playtimes.

Pupils' personal development is prioritised.

The school makes the most of having 'the biggest garden in Beeston'. Through regular outdoor learning, pupils develop resilience and problem...-solving skills. They collect honey from the beehives and tend to the animals.

Pupils also run a daily mile and learn to swim and ride a bike to complete the 'JC triathlon'. This results in pupils developing confidence and a sense of responsibility.

The school has high ambitions for pupils' academic achievement.

Sometimes, published outcomes do not fully reflect the good quality education which the school provides.

The school's 125-year history at the heart of the community is celebrated throughout the building. Pupils are encouraged to gain a sense of their place in this.

As one parent aptly stated, the school helps pupils 'build positive memories to look back and build on from'.

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

Reading is central to the curriculum. The school makes sure phonics teaching begins right at the start of the Reception Year.

Trained staff teach phonics well. Pupils have lots of practice recognising new sounds. Recently, phonics attainment dipped compared to previous years.

This is mostly due to many new pupils joining in Year 1. Often, new pupils arrive at the earlier stages of speaking English, with little phonics knowledge. The school acts quickly to help pupils catch up.

Pupils throughout school receive effective extra support if needed. Pupils love reading and their achievement is improving compared to their starting points. They look forward to the daily story time.

In the Nursery Year, children enjoy rhyming stories. Stories are used well to help pupils of all ages increase their vocabulary. Texts are carefully chosen to reflect pupils' different backgrounds, as well as support their understanding of key topics.

The school is also determined to improve pupils' attainment in writing. Approaches for teaching writing are carefully considered. The school ensures pupils learn accurate letter formation and joined handwriting.

Pupils receive specific guidance and targets on how to improve their writing. As a result, pupils write with improving accuracy and sophistication.

The school has developed an ambitious curriculum that is both interesting and relevant for pupils.

It is well designed to enable pupils to build knowledge over time. The curriculum design makes clear what pupils need to learn and when. The curriculum is mostly delivered well.

Teachers clearly explain new concepts, making use of appropriate resources. They revisit past learning to help pupils make links with what they know already. Targeted questioning is used to check pupils' understanding.

However, at times, lesson activities are not well designed to help pupils secure knowledge. This includes in the early years, where sometimes activities lack a meaningful purpose.

The curriculum is inclusive for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND).

Teaching and lesson activities are appropriately adapted to meet these pupils' needs. The school provides more bespoke support for a few pupils with SEND who find school more of a challenge. These pupils are well supported in a calmer, more nurturing environment so they engage more readily with learning.

Pupils' positive behaviour and attitudes are borne out of deliberate teaching of the school's values. The 'JC promises' weave through every aspect of the school and the curriculum. These support pupils' personal development.

There is a weekly focus on individual 'promises' in assemblies. Pupils consider and debate how the 'promise' corresponds with life in modern Britain. Pupils are encouraged to develop a sense of personal responsibility to help them become good citizens.

Staff, particularly those in the early stages of their career, find the school provides a supportive environment in which they can develop.

The trust and local governing committee work in partnership to assure themselves that the school fulfils its responsibilities. The trust has helped the school make improvements in monitoring activities.

This has ensured greater ambition in curriculum design and improvements in pupils' achievement in some subjects. The school aims to raise achievement throughout the curriculum. However, it is not always clear how the school is going to make improvements.

This is because monitoring activities in some areas are not sufficiently well focused. These do not always help the school to identify what could be better.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• Sometimes the activities or work given to pupils, including in the early years, do not purposefully support the intended learning. As a result, pupils do not learn the intended knowledge, and their recall of what has been taught is limited. The school needs to make sure that activities are appropriately designed to support the intended and meaningful learning.

• The school does not check the implementation and impact of the curriculum and provision well enough. Often, monitoring activities do not always help the school to identify where there are weaknesses. The school should ensure that any monitoring clarifies exactly what is working well and what needs to improve.

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