St Lawrence CofE Aided Junior School, East Molesey

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Outcome

St Lawrence C of E Aided Junior School, East Molesey continues to be a good school.

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils behave exceptionally well in this aspirational school.

They show great kindness and consideration to all. Pupils have a deep-rooted knowledge of the school's values. They welcome visitors warmly to the school and show genuine concern for all pupils and adults.

Pupils know the high expectations that teachers have and work very hard to fulfil them. They walk calmly through the school and play cooperatively. Pupils respond very positively to the rewards system and show great excitement when staff recognise their good conduct.

Pupils feel s...afe and enjoy coming to school.

Pupils participate excitedly in lessons. They recall their number facts through 'rolling numbers' performances in mathematics and skilfully play the xylophone in music.

Pupils share their learning in pairs or when answering challenging questions. They show high levels of concentration in their work. Pupils produce high-quality work and achieve well.

Pupils have a strong understanding of concepts such as democracy and the rule of law. They visit the Royal Courts of Justice and plan campaigns to become 'headteacher for the day'. Pupils aspire to hold the varied leadership roles on offer and show great pride in the positions they hold.

They know that leaders listen to them and that they can affect change in the school.

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

The school has carefully designed its ambitious curriculum. Pupils enjoy a full range of subjects and work towards their teachers' very high expectations.

They have a deep understanding of the subjects that they learn. Pupils recall number facts fluently and use vocabulary accurately when describing their responses to pieces of music. Staff question pupils skilfully to check their understanding.

Gaps in learning are quickly identified and pupils receive support to ensure that these gaps do not widen. However, in some subjects, teachers do not use assessment well enough to ensure that pupils remember what they have previously learned. As a result, pupils do not always recall important knowledge in the long term consistently well.

All pupils, including pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities, write extensively, using vocabulary accurately to express their views and further their learning. Pupils' work shows that they become increasingly sophisticated in the ideas that they have. Pupils thrive in the rich reading culture of the school.

Staff model strategies to help pupils become fluent and confident readers. Pupils talk passionately about the stories that they read. Those who fall behind in their reading quickly receive effective support from knowledgeable staff.

Staff explain learning and activities clearly. They demonstrate useful solutions for common misconceptions in mathematics and strategies to develop fluency in reading. Teachers check pupils' prior knowledge thoroughly and build on this with complex questions.

All pupils respond enthusiastically to these questions.

Pupils show incredibly positive attitudes to learning. They listen attentively to instructions and respond quickly and purposefully.

Pupils show great independence in organising themselves. For example, they quickly tidy away equipment in the music room ready for the next class. Pupils attend frequently, and staff speak regularly to parents, offering a wide range of support to improve attendance for all groups of pupils.

The school has clear aspirations for pupils to become confident and independent. The '12 by 12' programme gives pupils a rich range of activities beyond the curriculum. All pupils perform on stage or build their resilience on challenging residentials.

Pupils participate in complex moral discussions, confidently and appropriately challenging others' views. Pupils develop their skills and talents through a large number of clubs, including times tables and futsal clubs, and some are proud to represent the school in these activities.

Parents are very positive about the school.

They know that the high expectations and rich range of activities prepare pupils well for their next steps. Staff develop their knowledge and leadership skills through a variety of high-quality training. They feel very well supported by leaders and know that leaders value their views and act on them.

The school makes meaningful changes to working practices to manage staff workloads.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• In some subjects, teachers' assessment does not support pupils to remember as much as they could over time.

As a result, pupils occasionally do not retain key aspects of their learning. Leaders should ensure that assessment in these subjects supports pupils in retaining and recalling more of the knowledge and skills that they have previously learned.

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 November 2013.

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