St John the Baptist Church of England Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Outcome

St John the Baptist Church of England Primary School continues to be a good school.

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy attending this school.

They feel happy and safe and say that their teachers make learning interesting. The ethos of 'living, loving, learning with thankfulness and hope' is interwoven through all school activities. Pupils recognise this, and they are extremely knowledgeable about these school values.

Everyone has high aspirations for all pupils to achieve well in their learning. Pupils behave sensibly around the school and in class. Because they enjoy their lessons, pupils engage positively, participate with enthusiasm and achieve well acr...oss the whole curriculum.

Pupils clearly enjoy the activities on offer at playtimes. They can participate in a basketball game, join in skipping games or appreciate spending time in the quiet area. Pupils say there is always something fun to do.

A wealth of extra-curricular activities such as craft, choir and language clubs helps to develop pupils' interests and talents well.

A distinctive, inclusive outlook characterises pupils' attitudes and their actions. Older pupils reflect maturely on the commitment they make to welcoming newcomers to the school.

This is shown in the kindness given to pupils who join the school from other nations, or who are in the early stages of learning to speak English. New pupils are swiftly befriended to ensure that they feel part of the school community.

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

The school curriculum is broad and ambitious.

In each subject, the skills and knowledge that pupils need to learn are clearly identified. This is carefully sequenced over time, building from children's starting points in Reception through to Year 6. Staff have strong subject knowledge and feel well supported by subject leaders who share their expertise.

This means teachers know precisely what to teach, and when. Subject-specific vocabulary is explicitly taught, and pupils are expected to use this in their work. Over time, pupils build on their learning and achieve well.

The needs of pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are identified accurately. Pupils with SEND are consistently well supported to access the curriculum and, as a result, they are successful in their learning.

Well-established routines help Reception children to settle happily when they join the school.

They are immersed in the language of numbers and counting, and stimulated by resources that inspire curiosity about the world around them. Adults have a sharp focus on developing children's vocabulary. This is modelled effectively through play activities, stories and rhymes.

Phonics is taught from the beginning of Reception, and children enjoy the routine and predictability of the sessions. Staff are well trained to deliver the programme with consistency across all classes. Teachers promptly spot any gaps pupils may have in their knowledge and give them support.

Pupils quickly become fluent and confident readers. They develop a genuine love of reading. In classes across the school, diverse collections of books can be found.

This helps pupils discover favourite authors and genres. Pupils consistently enjoy reading for pleasure.

As well as academic achievement, staff at this school care about pupils' social and emotional development.

Some pupils have particularly benefited from learning useful strategies to understand their emotions and behaviour. This has had a valuable impact on their ability to reflect and take responsibility for their own behaviour and choices. Leaders have plans to extend this consistent approach across all classes.

While clear records are kept about pupil behaviour and well-being, these are not yet streamlined or organised to fully enable leaders to analyse patterns or trends and target useful professional development to staff.

Pupils access a rich variety of wider opportunities. Pupils can recall in detail their recent trips to Buster Farm and to Fishbourne Roman Palace.

These trips gave pupils a flying start to their learning about early civilisations and the Romans. For example, Year 4 pupils learned about the origin of Latin words, and others spoke in detail about the legacy that the Roman invasion has left for our country.

Pupils appreciate the democratic processes within school.

Their voice is secured firmly at the centre of decision-making through the school develop group. Here, pupils from each year group represent the views of their classmates. They are proud of their influence, such as the recent introduction of battery recycling points around school.

Older pupils are also eager to carry out their 'buddy' roles, acting as positive role models for the younger children.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• A variety of systems are currently used to record information about pupils.

While these are well understood by leaders, they are not cohesive, meaning trends or important information about pupils could be missed. Leaders need to embed clear, streamlined processes to further the support they give to their pupils. ? The school is currently strengthening its support to help pupils explore and regulate their emotions.

The new policy is helping pupils to be more self-aware and further develop their social and emotional skills. The school needs to continue to train and develop the expertise of the staff team so that this approach can be consistently embedded across the school.

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 second ungraded inspection since we judged the school to be good in April 2013.

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