Porter Croft Church of England Primary Academy

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

This is an outstanding school.

All groups of pupils make outstanding progress in reading, writing, mathematics and many other subjects throughout the academy. Children's start to their education in the early years is excellent. They are curious, questioning and eager to learn.

They are very well prepared for Year 1. Disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs make extremely good progress from their individual starting points. They work with confidence and increasing independence.

Pupils who speak English as an additional language make rapid gains in speaking, reading and writing skills that prepare them well for their future learning.... The quality of teaching is outstanding. Lessons are very well planned and work is accurately matched to the needs of pupils of all abilities.

Teaching assistants make an excellent contribution to pupils' learning. Pupils' behaviour is exemplary. They are polite and considerate towards others.

They feel very safe and well cared for. The very good relationships throughout the academy reflect the academy motto, 'Together we are Porter Croft.' The exciting curriculum strongly promotes pupils' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development.

Pupils have a very good understanding of values such as resilience, tolerance and justice and are extremely well prepared for life in modern Britain. The academy is building further international links. The headteacher provides clear and inspiring leadership.

He is very well supported by middle leaders, senior leaders and the governing body whose work is excellent. As a result, the academy is providing a consistently high quality of education to this diverse community. Staff are very involved in researching and improving many aspects of education through work with other schools and educational provision.

This is a priority for development to help the academy improve even further.

Information about this school

Porter Croft Church of England Primary Academy converted to academy status in August 2013. It is part of the Koinonia Academies Trust.

When the predecessor school, Porter Croft Church of England Primary School was last inspected by Ofsted it was judged to be good. The academy is smaller than the average sized primary school. The numbers on roll have risen by over one quarter since it converted to an academy.

The proportion of disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs is well-above average. The proportion of disadvantaged pupils, those supported by the pupil premium funding, is well above the national average. The pupil premium is additional government funding to support pupils known to be eligible for free school meals and those children who are looked after by the local authority.

The majority of pupils are from minority ethnic groups and the proportion is well above the national average. A well-above average proportion of pupils speak English as an additional language. Over 24 different languages are represented in the academy.

A much higher proportion of pupils than usual do not enter the academy in the early years. Many do not join the academy until Year 3 or later. The academy has a breakfast club run by the academy.

Children attend the early years full-time. The academy meets the government's current floor standard, which is the minimum expectation for pupils' attainment and progress in English and mathematics by the end of Year 6. At the time of the inspection the early years children were taught in temporary accommodation in the school hall following a flood in their classroom during the previous week.