St John’s Church of England Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

All pupils, including pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), flourish here. From the moment they set foot in Nursery, they feel safe and become caring young people. Pupils rightly have confidence that there are always adults to talk to.

Staff deal with any bullying or unacceptable behaviour right away.

Pupils, staff and many parents and carers value the family feel of the school. The vision of being a 'family of diverse, unique and equal people' is brought alive for everyone in school.

All pupils, but especially pupils with SEND, are well supported to be successful. The school's ambitions for pupils' learning and developing life ski...lls are met.

Pupils understand that respect is a two-way process.

Staff model the school's values. Pupils follow in their footsteps. Apart from the occasional lapse, pupils grow and develop in managing their own behaviour.

They recognise and accept that some pupils need extra help on occasion to do the right things in the right way.

Residentials, responsibilities, the right to have your voice heard and to vote are intrinsic to school life. Parents and pupils appreciate these.

Both see the school as a nurturing place where memories are made.

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

The school has successfully established a curriculum that builds pupils' knowledge over time. Staff are very clear on what needs teaching, when and how.

The school has thought deeply about how to help pupils remember their learning over time. 'Rewind, recap and remember' is the golden thread spun throughout the classrooms.

Staff have exciting and effective ways of looping back and weaving in and out of learning across topics and time.

This is working very well. You do not walk many paces without hearing the golden thread being discussed. Children in the early years frequently hear 'remember what, remember when, remember how and remember why'.

And they do. They remember the sequence to make a sandcastle. They use what they learn in phonics to write signs.

They recall how to twirl a hoop around their hips or balance safely along beams.

Pupils with SEND receive precise and personalised support. This is because their needs are accurately identified.

Parents are involved and informed. Staff are well trained in knowing how to make the right changes to resources used. They are in tune with knowing when some pupils with SEND need time to relax and regroup.

They do this with skill and success. This starts right from the early years. Individual programmes allow children in the early years to learn and develop successfully.

Children with SEND share time between navigating their own pathway and joining in with their friends.

Pupils are well prepared for the next stage of their education. They build upwards and onwards from the strong foundations of the early years.

By the end of Reception, many have everything they need to be ready for the learning ahead of them in Year 1. By Year 6, pupils achieve very well in English and mathematics. However, across curriculum subjects, expectations are not consistently high enough for the most able pupils.

The work they are given does not always deepen their knowledge. Nor does it provide enough opportunities for them to show what they know in their own way. For all pupils, there are occasions when teachers do not address errors.

Sharing stories is intrinsic to school life. Learning to read is given clear priority. This journey starts in Nursery where songs are sung with joy, regularity and spontaneity.

It grows in Reception where pupils start to link sounds to letters in phonics. It builds over time through the successful teaching of phonics. Pupils learn to read with accuracy and fluency.

Any faltering along the way is noted and addressed. Older pupils enjoy discussing texts that they are reading. They recall poems that link to significant historical events.

Pupils' learning and understanding are enriched by a range of visits, visitors and workshops. The 'oohs and aahs' heard from the hall during the inspection as pupils learned about the human digestive system showed memories were in the making. The school involves parents in school life in many ways.

This includes promoting a return to their school days by joining a science workshop in the evening.

A strength of the school is how well looked after staff feel. As one, all staff spoke of the support and training they receive.

They spoke of the difference it makes to feeling and being successful in their job. This has been especially important as the needs of pupils and behaviours they manage have become more complex and challenging since the COVID-19 pandemic.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• The school is not expecting enough of the most able pupils. This means these pupils do not achieve as well as they could. The school should ensure staff have the knowledge and skills to adapt learning activities in a way that fully extends the most able pupils and allows them to meet their full potential.

• The school does not ensure that staff consistently address basic errors in spelling and punctuation well enough. This means pupils are sometimes unaware of when they have got something wrong. The school should continue to build on its current systems to tighten up how staff make sure pupils know what is wrong and what to do about it.

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