South View Junior School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Outcome

South View Junior School continues to be a good school.

What is it like to attend this school?

South View Juniors is a friendly and caring school. Pupils and staff are kind to one another and work well together as a team.

Pupils enjoy coming to school.

They especially like being taught a wide range of additional life skills through their 'pupil passports'. They enjoy learning about first aid, money management and mindfulness. They know these will help them now, and in the future.

Leaders expect everyone to do their best in school. Pupils take pride in their work. They behave well in lessons and around school.

Pupils are happy and safe. Some have been trai...ned as mental health champions who support their peers. Pupils enjoy looking after each other and know there is always someone there to help if needed.

On the rare occasion that bullying occurs, pupils know that it will be dealt with.

Pupils get many opportunities to develop as individuals. They enjoy a wide variety of clubs, football, cross-stitch and choir being among their favourites.

They enjoy spending time in the school allotment. Older pupils are excited that they get to be play leaders at the linked infant school. School councillors, reading ambassadors and eco warriors relish the responsibility that they have to shape and support school life.

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

Leaders have high expectations of what pupils can achieve. They are just as ambitious for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) or pupils who attend the school's resourced provisions. Leaders have set out a well-designed and ambitious curriculum which gives pupils the knowledge and skills that they need.

The school's well-sequenced curriculum enables pupils' knowledge to build over time.

Reading is a priority for everyone in the school; they are dedicated to improving reading skills for all. Reading is an important element of school life.

Reading ambassadors promote the love of reading well. Pupils who need more reading practice get extra time reading to well-trained adults. These pupils grow in confidence and catch up quickly.

Reading is cherished across the school.

Leaders are determined that all pupils become fluent in their mathematical number work. They have made sure that children know their times tables and number facts and can use them with confidence.

In lessons, teachers' strong subject knowledge enables them to explain the precise mathematical ideas that pupils need to understand. A clear focus on developing mathematical language helps pupils remember key concepts.

Teachers make effective choices of activities to help all pupils to learn the curriculum.

Teachers and teaching assistants help pupils with SEND gain knowledge in all subjects. In reading and mathematics, teachers regularly check what pupils know and remember. Pupils who need extra support are swiftly identified and helped to keep up.

In these subjects, teachers frequently revisit prior learning. This helps pupils to remember important knowledge. Teachers do not revisit knowledge in some of the other subjects as often.

This means that pupils forget some important concepts and ideas in subjects such as history.

Pupils' wider development is a priority for leaders. The personal, social and health education (PSHE) curriculum is effective.

Pupils have clear understanding on issues such as diversity, which helps make them tolerant and respectful. Pupils are becoming positive members of society. The school council provides opportunities for pupils to develop decision-making skills.

Pupils take their councillor roles seriously. The school's work on promoting mental well-being is an important part of the school life and is having positive impact for all.

The school is well led.

Leaders put pupils at the centre of everything they do. Governors are effective. They have a wide set of skills and provide effective support and challenge.

There is a real team spirit in school. Staff are proud to work at South View Juniors. The vast majority feel that leaders take workload and well-being into account when making decisions.

Staff feel valued; one said: 'I feel extremely valued as a member of staff at South View. My ideas and opinions matter and I feel challenged and motivated within my role.'

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

Procedures for checking, recruiting and training staff are thorough. Staff and governors have updates through regular safeguarding newsletters. Leaders run 'scenario' workshops to ensure that pupils' welfare is always top of staff's agenda.

Leaders have developed a strong pastoral team to give early help to families when needed. Prompt action is taken to ensure that pupils are safe, including enlisting the help of outside agencies when necessary.

Pupils feel safe.

They know they can speak to staff or post a worry in the 'worry box' when they need support. Pupils learn how to keep safe through assemblies and the PSHE and computing curriculums.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• In some foundation subjects, teachers do not systematically revisit important knowledge to check that it has been learned securely.

As a result, pupils do not consistently remember key concepts they have been taught in these subjects. Leaders should develop ways of checking that the important information they want pupils to learn is committed to pupils' long-term memory.

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 a section 8 inspection of a good or outstanding school, because it is carried out under section 8 of the Education Act 2005. We do not give graded judgements on a section 8 inspection. However, if we find evidence that a school would now receive a higher or lower grade, then the next inspection will be a section 5 inspection.

Usually this is within one to two years of the date of the section 8 inspection. If we have serious concerns about safeguarding, behaviour or the quality of education, we will deem the section 8 inspection as a section 5 inspection immediately.

This is the second section 8 inspection since we judged the school to be good in December 2012.

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