Stoneydown Park School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Outcome

Stoneydown Park School continues to be a good school.

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are welcoming and friendly here. Leaders have created a strong sense of community, which helps pupils to be happy and confident.

Parents and carers said that they appreciate and value being a part of this community. One parent said, expressing the views of many, 'It is a pleasure to be a parent at this school. I feel fully involved in my child's learning.'



Pupils treat each other with respect and look out for one another. They are safe in school and they speak to a trusted adult if they have any worries. Typically, pupils behave sensibly and focus in class, withou...t distraction.

Leaders have ensured that the curriculum for arts subjects is well thought through and sequenced. As pupils progress upwards through the school, they learn to play instruments and compose music. The curriculum includes printmaking, ceramics and textiles.

The work of the pupils' school council is appreciated. Elected pupil members help to make decisions about the school's development. For example, they recently coordinated a charity fundraising campaign to collect money for people abroad who were in need.

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

Leaders have designed a broad and ambitious curriculum. In recent years, leaders have focused on improving subject curriculum thinking across a range of subjects. The impact of leaders' work is shown in many subjects, and in pupils' strong academic outcomes in English, mathematics and science.

Leaders' clear curriculum thinking extends down into the early years. For example, in Nursery and Reception, children learn to recognise and name shapes, including triangles and squares. They are helped to expand their knowledge of subject vocabulary and their understanding of the world.

Pupils build on this knowledge throughout their time at the school.

Leaders continue to expand this curriculum development work across all subjects in the curriculum. For example, in geography in Year 2, pupils completed fieldwork in the local park by collecting litter and showing their findings using pictograms.

In Year 4, pupils move on to plot the results of further fieldwork on a graph. All this builds on pupils' prior learning in geography and mathematics.

Teachers' subject knowledge is typically strong, including in the early years.

Leaders have invested in subject-specialist teachers in art and music. Subject content is generally presented clearly. Teachers often check that pupils understand what they have been taught.

However, pupils' achievement in a small number of subjects is not as secure. This is because sometimes teachers do not deliver the curriculum as coherently as leaders' curriculum thinking intends. In these subjects, checks on pupils' learning are not as effective at identifying and addressing gaps in pupils' knowledge.

Leaders accurately identify pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Leaders work closely with the parents of pupils with SEND and outside agencies. In some instances, leaders have carefully tailored the curriculum, teaching and resources appropriately to meet pupils' needs.

However, support for some other pupils with SEND in the classroom is variable. Sometimes, leaders do not make sure that teachers know what specific adaptations to teaching and resources are needed to meet the individual needs of pupils with SEND.

Leaders prioritise early reading.

Teachers deliver the reading curriculum consistently and confidently. Leaders have put in place effective systems to identify and support pupils who need help to improve their reading confidence and fluency. Teachers provide weaker readers with regular, high-quality support to help them to catch up with their peers.

Leaders and staff also work regularly with parents to help them to support their children's reading at home.

In class, pupils focus on their learning. They move around the school maturely.

They appreciate the clear behaviour and rewards systems that leaders and staff use. Teachers, with support from senior leaders, deal with any rare disruptions to learning quickly and effectively. Teachers support children to build good habits from the early years.

There, staff patiently support children to take turns when playing games and encourage them to be kind to one another.

Leaders organise a range of clubs and educational outings for pupils. For example, pupils visit zoos, museums and many of London's cultural institutions.

Pupils are encouraged to learn musical instruments. Leaders have recently organised for pupils to collaborate with a professional artist to create a painted mural on a wall of the school.

Staff are very supportive of the senior leadership team.

They said that they felt listened to and that leaders act on feedback. Teachers said that they appreciate leaders' approach to flexible working. The governing body works closely with the school's leaders to ensure that the school continues to improve.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

Leaders and staff all take responsibility for pupils' safety and welfare. Pupils are taught to keep themselves safe, including online.

Leaders train staff regularly. Leaders have also put in place clear systems for staff to identify pupils who may need support. Leaders follow up any concerns swifty and keep detailed records of their actions.

They work closely with outside agencies, including the local authority. They also provide support for pupils who may need it in school. For example, leaders have set up gardening, music and art therapy for pupils who may benefit from it.

The governing body monitors these safeguarding practices carefully.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• Sometimes, the intended curriculum in a small number of subjects is not delivered following leaders' curriculum thinking, and teaching does not identify and address pupils' misconceptions as frequently as in other subjects. This leaves gaps in pupils' knowledge, and pupils do not know and remember as much as they could.

Leaders should ensure that in all subjects, the intended curriculum is taught following leaders' curriculum plans. They should also make sure that teachers check what pupils know and address any gaps or misunderstanding. ? Sometimes, teaching is not adapted as well as it could be for pupils with SEND.

This means that these pupils do not achieve as highly as they could. Leaders should ensure that curriculum adaptions for these pupils are implemented consistently across the curriculum so that they build their knowledge more securely over time.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 2011.

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