Kedington Primary 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 executive headteacher of this school is Vicky Doherty. This school is part of Unity Schools Partnership multi-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 (CEO), Tim Coulson, and overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by Christine Quinn.

What is it lik...e to attend this school?

Pupils delight in coming to school. Classrooms are awash with learning because pupils have highly positive attitudes towards their work.

Classrooms are vibrant, happy places. While pupils have much fun and laughter with their friends, they know that when play stops and work starts, they are expected to concentrate and try their best. This is exactly what they do.

Adults expect much of pupils, and pupils live up to these expectations.

Pupils' behaviour is exemplary. A culture of respect flows through the school.

Adults keep a close eye on how pupils are feeling. If a problem occurs, pupils know that adults are on hand to help them. Pupils know that they are all different in their own special way.

These differences are respected and celebrated, creating a harmonious environment.

Opportunities for pupils to broaden their horizons are aplenty. Through the 'Kedington 50', the school provides pupils with rich experiences ranging from overseas trips and theatre visits to sporting opportunities.

Pupils benefit greatly from these, as well as the many opportunities they have to bring about real change in school. Pupil 'role models' set the standard for others to follow. Pupils who share their passions by running lunchtime clubs for others thrive in doing so.

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

Pupils across the school learn exceptionally well. They develop deep and detailed knowledge across the curriculum. This is because teachers have strong subject knowledge in the subjects they teach.

They are skilled at teaching the curriculum. Regular checks are made to ensure pupils remember what they have learned in the past. This means pupils have a solid base on which to build their new learning.

For example, pupils tackle complex mathematical problems successfully because they have the mathematical facts they need at their fingertips. Similarly, pupils' artwork is also of high quality because they have ample opportunity to learn, practise and refine the skills and techniques they need to paint, draw, or print.

Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities achieve exceptionally well.

The school accurately identifies these pupils' needs. Following this assessment, staff skilfully adapt activities to meet pupils' needs. This ensures that all pupils learn an ambitious curriculum.

The school ensures that pupils learn to read extremely well. The youngest pupils build strong foundations in their phonics knowledge because adults are expert in teaching reading. Pupils who need a little more help in getting to grips with reading receive high-quality support.

As they move through the school, pupils apply their strong phonics knowledge to read ever more complex books. Some of these are read independently. Some are read as part of the school's whole-class reading programme.

Older pupils read a range of rich texts that provide high-quality opportunities to enrich their vocabulary, grammar and understanding of language.

Pupils experience lessons that are interesting and make them think hard. They have highly positive attitudes to their learning.

Consequently, lessons are rarely disrupted, and little time is wasted.

Children in Reception learn in a caring and nurturing environment. Adults working in early years are highly skilled.

They know the children extremely well. This means they provide activities to help children develop the knowledge, skills and attributes they need for Year 1. These youngest children benefit greatly from 'structured story time'.

They encounter ambitious vocabulary, delight in hearing a range of stories and poems and build their understanding of language. Children in the Reception class are guided superbly well to develop high levels of independence and resilience.

Pupils' wider development is extremely well considered.

There are a range of rich and deliberately planned opportunities for pupils to see the wider world. Pupils have a strong sense of their place in the world. They thrive on the responsibility they are given, for example as members of the school council.

All pupils are involved in voting for major changes and initiatives. Pupils value being involved in the democratic process and having an impact on school life.

The school keeps a sharp eye on pupils' attendance.

Most pupils attend regularly. Where some pupils' attendance has dropped, the school's work to help this improve is of high quality. The school knows the barriers some pupils face with attendance and puts in place highly effective strategies to help overcome these.

Staff are highly valued by the school. Their workload and well-being are closely considered when change is made, or new ways of working are introduced. High-quality training and development opportunities are on offer.

These ensure that teachers remain at the top of their game.

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 first ungraded inspection since we judged the school to be good in March 2019.

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