Monkspath Junior and Infant School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Main findings

This is a good school where pupils achieve well and reach above-average standards by the time they leave at the end of Year 6.

Pupils are enthusiastic learners and are exceptionally well behaved. A parent accurately stated that it is a, 'Very supportive and caring school, where the whole child matters.' Underpinning the school's success is the very strong commitment to pupils' all round academic and personal development.

The added benefit of the exceptionally well-managed childcare provision places the school at the heart of its community, enabling it to provide outstanding extended services, care and support for children and families. The majority of children join the Nursery and Reception c...lasses with skills and aptitudes that are broadly in line with those expected of three- and four-year-olds. As a result of the good foundations laid in these early years, attainment is rising steadily throughout the school in reading, mathematics and science.

Pupils' progress in writing is improving but at a slower pace than in reading. Pupils who reach or exceed the levels expected for their age in reading do not always do so in writing. Some pupils are unable to apply common spelling rules and there are inconsistencies in the quality of handwriting and punctuation.

Some very effective teaching is improving pupils' writing, with encouraging signs that they are becoming confident and independent writers. However, some lessons do not set precise writing targets to help pupils understand how best to improve their work. Pupils are exceptionally well cared for and many have stated that they feel safe and secure.

They enjoy school, and this is reflected in above-average attendance rates. They have formed trusting relationships with other pupils and staff and benefit from mainly good teaching across the school. One pupil commented, reflecting the views of many, 'We learn lots of new and exciting things.'

This is understandable as lessons are usually engaging and purposeful with practical tasks that interest pupils, although some lessons miss opportunities to accelerate the pace of learning so that more pupils reach levels that are above those expected for their age. Teachers share the learning objectives of each lesson but do not always adapt these to meet the specific needs of more-able pupils, which slows their progress. This is reflected in national test results as some pupils, particularly by the end of Year 2, just fell short of higher than age-related levels.

Improved planning is beginning to address this, and an increasingly common feature is the attention teachers give to providing extension tasks for more-able pupils. However, this has yet to be fully established in practice across the school and in all lessons. The school is very committed to inclusion and equal opportunities, which is best demonstrated in its extended childcare provision and the integrated services established with the school's Children's Centre.

This partnership enables the school to forge strong links with external agencies and services that support families and children. It also provides before- and after-school activities and parent workshops with cr?che facilities. Parents and carers are made to feel exceptionally welcome as there are very good arrangements to involve them in well-organised induction sessions for families with children joining the childcare, Nursery or Reception classes.

There has been very good progress since the school's last inspection. The leadership team, staff and governing body have successfully tackled the issues raised then. Despite many staff changes recently, sharp and accurate evaluations of pupils' and teachers' performance have contributed to supporting, developing and improving the quality of teaching and learning, which has maintained above average standards and secured significant improvements to pupils' achievement in mathematics.

The school has successfully adapted its curriculum to incorporate topics that interest and motivate pupils. The leadership team and governing body have been diligent and effective in keeping the school on a consistent path of improvement, demonstrating good capacity to improve further.

Information about the school

This is a very large primary school.

The Early Years Foundation Stage comprises a Nursery class for three-year-olds who all attend part-time, and three full-time Reception classes for four-year-olds. The governing body manages the on-site Monkeys Childcare provision which currently has 24 three-year-olds attending part-time, and in June this year, it took over responsibility for managing the school's Children's Centre. The registered childcare provision had previously been inspected separately in 2006 but was part of this inspection and is reported together with that of the Early Years Foundation Stage.

The childcare provision also manages before- and after-school activities for pupils as well as a holiday club. Throughout the school, the majority of pupils are of White British heritage and others come from a wide range of minority ethnic backgrounds. A lower-than-average percentage of pupils are in the early stages of learning English.

The proportion of pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities, including those with a statement of special educational needs, is below that of most schools. The main areas of additional need include pupils with moderate or specific learning difficulties such as autism. The school has a large number of national accreditations, including the Healthy Schools, Active Mark and Eco awards.