New Monument Primary Academy

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Outcome

New Monument Primary Academy continues to be a good school.

The headteacher of this school is Mandy McDowall. This school is part of Bourne Education Trust, which means other people in the trust also have responsibility for running the school.

The trust is run by the chief executive officer, Alex Russell, and overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by Andy Field.

What is it like to attend this school?

The school is a welcoming place to be. Pupils enjoy coming to school and live up to the very high expectations that adults have for them.

The positive culture is built on a shared commitment to the school's values of 'Thrive, Aspire, Achieve'.

Pupils behave... well throughout the school. They follow the rules of 'be ready, be respectful, be safe'.

Pupils have an admirable attitude towards education. They are attentive in lessons, respect their teachers and engage positively with learning.

Relationships between adults and pupils are strong and caring.

Pupils are happy and feel safe. The school prioritises pupils' pastoral support. Pupils know that there are always adults who can help them with their mental health and well-being if they have a problem or concern.

The school is committed to broadening pupils' horizons and aspirations. The 'BET Guarantee' provides a variety of opportunities to support learning about life in modern Britain and to develop pupils' interests. This includes a well-planned programme of trips and visitors to the school.

A recent example, which made an impression on pupils, was their visit to a Victorian classroom as part of their trip to a local museum.

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

The school's curriculum is ambitious. Pupils study a broad range of subjects.

The school has carefully mapped out the important knowledge it wants pupils to know. This has been sequenced so that it builds cumulatively from the early years onwards.

Overall, the curriculum is taught well.

Teachers present new learning clearly, making appropriate adaptations for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), whose needs are identified in a timely way. This includes providing additional resources or breaking down the learning into smaller steps when needed. Where teaching is most effective, teachers use assessment to check carefully what pupils remember, including new and ambitious vocabulary.

Pupils have regular opportunities to recall content, concepts and ideas that they have learned previously. This helps pupils to remember more over time. However, in the nursery and in some foundation subjects, checks on learning are not used as well as they could be.

This means that, sometimes, future learning activities do not build as well as they could on what pupils already know.

Reading is a high priority in this school. A rigorous phonics programme is taught from the Reception Year, where children get off to a promising start in learning to read.

All staff get the training they need to be experts in teaching reading. They quickly identify and support pupils who struggle with reading, helping them keep up. High-quality texts, poetry competitions, a book vending machine, book corners and the school's library all positively encourage and inspire pupils to read for pleasure.

As a result, pupils develop a love for reading.

Pupils behave well. Staff model positive behaviour and have established clear routines.

Pupils know what is expected, and they rise to the challenge. As a result, social times are harmonious, and pupils enjoy disruption-free learning. Pupils attend well, and staff work positively with families to ensure everyone understands the importance of ongoing good attendance at school.

The curriculum for personal, social and health education is detailed and effective. Pupils learn about discrimination, respect and democracy, and about different faiths and religions in modern Britain. As a result, they show an inclusive attitude towards differences and contribute actively to the harmonious culture in this school.

There are several opportunities for character development. This includes positions of responsibility, where pupils can serve on the school's pupil parliament, as prefects or as eco-leaders. This helps them to develop leadership skills and an understanding of democracy.

The trust and the school share the same high ambitions for all pupils. Everyone believes that all pupils deserve the best from their time at school. Leaders understand the school's strengths and act effectively to improve any relative weaknesses.

Trustees and governors provide appropriate support and challenge to leaders. The trust has made sensible decisions about how responsibilities and workload are shared out. It ensures that staff receive useful and relevant training.

As a result, staff feel well supported.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• In some foundation subjects, assessment is less well developed than in the rest of the school.

Consequently, staff are less clear about what pupils have learned and what they need to learn next. The school should ensure that checks on learning consistently enable teachers to identify and address gaps in pupils' learning across the curriculum. ? In the nursery, learning activities do not always match the intended curriculum well enough.

This means that children do not learn and develop as well as they could. The school should ensure that staff have the knowledge and expertise to deliver the school's curriculum consistently well across all parts of the early years provision.

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 June 2018.