John Shelton Community Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Outcome

John Shelton Community Primary School continues to be a good school.

What is it like to attend this school?

At John Shelton, leaders place pupils at the heart of everything. Their ethos is built on inclusivity, where every pupil has the right to thrive and feel success, and they do. Pupils know they are valued and cared for by all staff and they love coming to school.

Staff have created a welcoming learning environment where everyone feels safe. Pupils behave very well. They are kind and respectful to one another and to staff.

At lunch and breaktimes, they play together happily.

Pupils have a good understanding of what bullying is. They say it is rare and, if it d...oes happen, staff deal with it quickly.

Staff know the pupils well and do all they can to make sure that they succeed at school. Pupils enjoy learning because teachers give them interesting and worthwhile work to do. The teaching of phonics and early reading and the many extra and unusual activities that go on outside the classroom are significant strengths.

There an air of positivity at this school. Staff support all pupils effectively.

Parents and carers have nothing but praise for the work of the school.

They are delighted with the progress their children make.

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

Reading is given the highest priority at John Shelton. The teaching of phonics is skilled and effective.

Children begin learning the sounds they need as soon as they join the Nursery class. Any child who falls behind with their reading is quickly identified and receives the extra support they need. Teachers help parents to support their children's reading at home through workshops and reading diaries.

Staff make sure that reading books are well matched to pupils' reading abilities. Pupils gain the knowledge and skills they need to read fluently and they develop a love of reading. An excellent link with the local library service means high-quality reading materials are always available.

In mathematics, leaders have mapped out carefully what they want pupils to learn and in what order. Teachers know what to teach and when, and know the subject well. Pupils have a firm grasp of the key knowledge they need in mathematics.

As a result, they can solve problems and work out answers for themselves.

Leaders have involved staff in creating a well-designed curriculum, which is carefully linked to the school's agreed approach to teaching. Pupils develop a good understanding of important subject skills and demonstrate the use of these skills in their learning.

However, there is still work to do to refine aspects of the curriculum. In some foundation subjects, pupils are not able to recall specific knowledge from the topics they are studying. When this happens, pupils find it difficult to link their learning to what they have learned previously.

In addition, some subject leaders are new to their post and are still developing their expertise.

The headteacher and governors act with integrity. They provide thoughtful and determined leadership to ensure that the school moves from strength to strength.

Leaders, teachers and support assistants make an inspirational team. They want the very best education for all the pupils in their care and have high expectations of behaviour. Staff say leaders are considerate about their workload.

Pupils get off to a flying start in the early years. Staff know the children well and make sure that they are happy and settled in school. Teachers provide purposeful activities that encourage children to ask questions.

Children are interested in what they are learning and are well prepared for when they move to Year 1.

Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities make good progress. All staff are well trained in how to support pupils' different needs.

Pupils benefit enormously from the wide range of additional activities provided for them. Pupils talk enthusiastically about the extra opportunities they enjoy, such as radio club and being members of a leadership group. As well as this, pupils run a school bank which helps them learn about managing finances.

Leaders organise exciting events like residential visits, careers fairs and theatre trips. Excellent use of the local community and business links give pupils the opportunity to develop a wider view of the world. This supports them to become confident, well-rounded citizens.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

There is a very strong culture of safeguarding in this school. All staff work very well with parents and have a good knowledge of the pupils in their care.

Staff spot concerns quickly and act on them straight away. All pupils say they feel safe. Staff are well trained and kept up to date with any new requirements.

Leaders and governors make sure that all records are kept correctly. They make all the required checks on staff and volunteers before they begin work at the school.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

In some foundation subjects, pupils cannot recall knowledge from the topics they are studying.

This means pupils can find it difficult to link learning to what they have learned previously. Leaders and teachers should continue to make explicit the knowledge to be learned in each subject area and ensure that they plan for enabling pupils to have opportunities to remember and use this. .

Some subject leaders are quite new to their posts and still getting to grips with their roles. Leaders should continue to support all subject leaders to further develop their expertise.

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 a section 8 inspection of a good school or non-exempt outstanding school. We do not give graded judgements on a section 8 inspection. However, if we find some evidence that the school could now be better than good or that standards may be declining, then the next inspection will be a section 5 inspection.

Usually this is within one to two years of the date of the section 8 inspection. If we have serious concerns about safeguarding, behaviour or the quality of education, we will convert the section 8 inspection to a section 5 inspection immediately.

This is the section 8 inspection since we judged the school to be good on 23 June 2015.

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