Montgomery Infant School and Nursery, Colchester

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

This is an outstanding school. Montgomery has maintained and built further on its previous excellence despite significant changes since the last inspection, including a new team of senior leaders.

Pupils make outstanding progress and in most years they achieve exceptionally well in reading, writing and mathematics. They also demonstrate very high quality work in physical education, art and design and music. Pupils' excellent achievement is due to outstanding teaching.

Staff have a wide range of skills and experience. They make excellent use of their own interests and talents to provide a wide range of interesting activities. The teaching of letters and sounds ...(phonics) is not yet consistently outstanding.

Activities do not always promote individual pupils' progress as well as they should. Pupils' behaviour is exemplary. Their very positive attitudes to learning have a strong impact on their progress.

They demonstrate great pride in their work and their school. The school is led by the headteacher with enthusiasm and passion. She has, with the support of the new deputy headteacher and all staff, continued to improve teaching and achievement and ensure there is no hint of complacency in any aspect of the school's work.

The senior leaders have an excellent grasp of the detailed information the school holds about pupils' progress. However, this information is not readily available in a form that teachers can easily access or use in their lesson planning. The governing body provides very knowledgeable leadership and holds the school to account for its performance.

They are very aware of the school's strengths but share the senior staff's belief in the importance of seeking continual improvement. The school's engagement with parents and carers, and with the local community, is exemplary. Parents and carers are unanimously positive about the school and often look to staff for support beyond that directly involved in the teaching of their children.

Information about this school

Montgomery is an average-sized primary school. The school is close to a Ministry of Defence base and the majority of the pupils are from service families. The proportion of disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs supported through school action is below average.

The proportion at school action plus or with a statement of special educational needs is average but high in some year groups. The majority of the pupils are White British. A small number are from a range of different heritages and a broadly average number start school at an early stage of learning English as an additional language.

A high proportion of the pupils are supported by the pupil premium, which in this school provides additional funding for pupils who are known to be eligible for free school meals and for those from service families. The proportion of pupils who join of leave the school at times other than normal is very high, mainly due to the deployments affecting the large number of service families. Since the last inspection the school has had a new headteacher and a new deputy headteacher.

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