Southbourne Junior School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Outcome

Southbourne Junior School continues to be a good school.

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are happy at this school.

Leaders ensure staff take the time to get to know pupils. This helps pupils to feel individually supported. They thoughtfully appreciate that, sometimes, their classmates may need some additional support.

This understanding means that pupils respect each other's differences. They trust adults to teach them and look after them. Pupils say that their kind and caring teachers are a strength of the school.

Leaders have high and consistent expectations of pupils. Staff provide pupils with space to reflect and learn about why good behaviour is... important. Because of this, pupils' behaviour is calm and focused throughout the school.

In lessons, pupils work well individually, in pairs and in groups. Pupils are friendly and welcoming. They take a keen interest in each other's thoughts and ideas.

Pupils relish the different positions of responsibility they are offered. They actively support the school council and other committees. Sports leaders organise activities at lunchtime for other pupils.

This helps pupils feel included, and part of their community. When playing in the outdoor spaces and on play equipment, pupils are sensible. They follow the rules and are proud that they can be trusted to do this.

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

Leaders and staff enthuse and engage pupils in their learning. Teachers bring a variety to lessons through exploring learning in both the indoor and outdoor spaces. Pupils are keen to participate and learn.

During lessons, teachers check what pupils know and understand. Support is provided when pupils find it more difficult to recall what has been learned before. This process is particularly well developed in English and mathematics.

Leaders are currently supporting teachers to ensure they have the expertise to do this across every subject.

The school's curriculum is well organised. Leaders and teachers help pupils to make links between the different ideas and concepts that they are learning.

In many subjects, the knowledge that pupils will learn, from Year 3 to Year 6, is precisely identified and tracked. However, some of the foundation subjects do not have some of the specific skills and knowledge outlined. This means teachers do not always precisely help pupils build their understanding.

Leaders know this, and are working to make sure that all subject curriculums are considered with equal precision.

Leaders are determined that pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) have the same opportunities as their peers. Teachers know what support pupils with SEND require to help them to achieve.

This includes the use of adapted resources or small-group sessions. Leaders regularly check that support is working effectively and that all pupils can participate fully in the life of the school.

Reading is prioritised.

Pupils talk with excitement about the books they read. They say that reading lets them imagine different places and find out about people they will never meet. Support for pupils who find reading more difficult is systematic.

Leaders have trained all teachers and teaching assistants to help pupils decode and to practise reading. This means that pupils make rapid progress.

The school's expansive personal development programme equips pupils with lifelong skills.

This includes helping pupils to understand their own emotions. Pupils are also taught to recognise and value people's differences. Leaders ensured that their pupils had a voice in shaping the school's programme of '50 things a pupil should do before they are 12'.

Many of these activities happen in the school's meadow and tepee spaces. Pupils value these activities highly. They consider them to be some of the best aspects of their school life.

The personal, social and health education (PSHE) curriculum develops pupils' understanding of relationships and how to stay healthy. Class yoga and assemblies include purposeful opportunities to help pupils pause and reflect.

Leaders are highly analytical about all aspects of the school's practice.

This means that processes are efficient and improve the school without overburdening staff. Parents are very supportive of the school. A large majority would recommend the school to another parent.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

The school has a strong culture, and detailed tracking, of safeguarding. Record-keeping is precise.

This helps leaders to identify specific concerns about a pupil's safety or well- being. Leaders work closely with other agencies to ensure pupils and their families receive any additional support that they need. All staff, including governors, are trained to recognise the effects of local safeguarding concerns.

Pupils feel safe in school. They know what to do if they have concerns. Pupils are taught to stay safe through the PSHE curriculum.

Leaders use forest school activities to help to teach pupils abut identifying and managing risk.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• In some subjects, leaders have not yet identified the precise knowledge and skills they want pupils to learn. Consequently, teachers are not able to precisely teach and then check on what has been learned.

This means that pupils can have some gaps in their knowledge and understanding. Leaders should ensure that the knowledge and skills are precisely identified, taught and then checked in every subject across the curriculum.

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 February 2018.

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