St Margaret’s CofE Junior Infant and Nursery School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

St Margaret's Primary School is a warm and welcoming learning environment. Pupils are proud of their school.

Pupils work hard to live up to leaders' high expectations of their learning and behaviour. Leaders, staff and pupils are keen to make sure that St Margaret's vision of being a 'place to become' is at the heart of everyday school life.

Pupils are happy and safe in school.

They understand the importance of tolerating and respecting one another. Pupils explained that there are caring relationships between everyone. If they have any worries, pupils know where to go to get help.

Pupils feel confident to report bullying. Pupils said that leaders dea...l effectively with the small number of incidents that do occur.

Pupils behave well in lessons and they concentrate on their work.

Pupils are confident to discuss their ideas within lessons. They debate with maturity and they are considerate of others' views.

The curriculum is effective.

Across subjects, pupils achieve well. Pupils produce work of which they are proud. Children in the early years are well prepared for the next steps in their education.

Pupils have frequent opportunities to develop their wider talents and interests. They engage well in school performances and wider learning that takes place outside of the classroom. Pupils work closely with a resident poet and an artist who enhance their wider learning and development.

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

Curriculum development has been a considerable aspect of leaders' work to improve the quality of education for pupils since the previous inspection. From the early years to Year 6, leaders have set out an ambitious curriculum for all pupils. This includes pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND).

Everyone accesses a broad and balanced curriculum, including children in the early years. Leaders have successfully identified the key knowledge that they expect pupils to learn. Pupils appropriately revisit this knowledge throughout the curriculum so that they develop a deep and rich body of subject knowledge.

Teachers carefully design their lessons to ensure that pupils learn well. In the main, they select activities that are appropriate to deliver the curriculum content. Subject specialists are helping to improve teachers' confidence in delivering the full suite of national curriculum subjects.

Staff successfully use leaders' assessment strategies to check what knowledge pupils are retaining from units of work. However, some teachers do not adapt the delivery of the curriculum as effectively as they should when pupils develop occasional misconceptions in lessons. Nevertheless, pupils build up a secure body of subject knowledge on which they can make connections to future learning.

Within the early years, leaders ensure that children benefit from a well-designed curriculum. Staff focus very closely on developing children's communication and language skills. This helps to prepare children well for the demands of the Year 1 curriculum.

Leaders identify and assess pupils with SEND as soon as possible. Teachers make necessary changes to ensure that pupils with SEND can access the curriculum. Pupils with SEND learn well across the curriculum.

Children in early years start their journey of learning to read as soon as they join the Nursery class. Staff immerse the youngest children in different books, rhymes and stories. Children in the Reception Year learn phonics well.

Staff receive effective training to ensure that they deliver the phonic curriculum consistently well. Pupils learn the sounds in a logical order. This helps them become more proficient readers.

Staff check on pupils' reading knowledge to identify which pupils are at risk of falling behind their peers. When needed, staff provide timely support to keep pupils on track with their reading. The books that pupils read match the sounds that they know.

This helps them to become more confident readers.

Pupils' behaviour and attitudes to their learning are strong. Pupils conduct themselves well around the school, including at social times.

Older pupils show care and support for younger pupils through their role as mini mentors. Within lessons, pupils concentrate on their learning. Interruptions to lessons are rare.

Leaders have designed a well-thought-out curriculum to promote pupils' wider personal development. Pupils benefit from a range of different leadership opportunities. This includes becoming members of the school council, the ethos committee and the reading committee.

Pupils understand how to keep themselves physically and mentally healthy. Pupils have a deep understanding about the different religions and races which make up modern day Britain. Leaders have clear actions in place to improve pupils' wider personal development further still.

Governors and leaders know the school well. They have taken effective action since the previous inspection to continue to improve the curriculum. Governors routinely challenge leaders about how well pupils are learning.

Staff value the attention that leaders give to their well-being.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

Leaders and staff ensure that safeguarding is a key priority in school.

Staff know their families well. They use this knowledge to keep vigilant to any changes in pupils' behaviour.

Leaders have introduced effective systems to ensure that safety and welfare concerns about pupils can be reported swiftly by teachers.

Leaders take effective action about any issues raised. They work closely with external agencies to keep pupils safe. Leaders keep detailed and appropriate records of the actions that they take.

Pupils learn how to keep themselves safe. This includes about how to keep themselves safe when using the internet. They know what they need to do if they see something untoward.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• In some subjects, adaptations that teachers make in lessons for pupils, including those with SEND, could be enhanced further. Occasionally, the current adaptations made in those subjects are not always having the desired impact. Leaders should ensure that teachers are well trained to identify the adaptations that are needed in these final few subjects.

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