Toddington St George Church of England School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils at Toddington St George 'let their light shine' just as their school motto encourages them to do.

Pupils are happy and achieve well, including those in the early years.

Pupils show high levels of involvement in their learning.

Pupils are taught to be 'respectful, ready and safe'. Pupils understand that they are expected to behave well.

Pupils say they feel safe and know that they can talk to staff if they have any worries. Bullying rarely happens, but if it does, staff are quick to sort it out.

Well-being is a priority.

Pupils are cared for and encouraged to think about and express their feelings. This enables pupils to discu...ss and resolve any issues that might arise with their peers.

Everyone is included at this school.

Pupils who attend the specially resourced provision for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) access the same curriculum and opportunities as pupils in the main school. Pupils are proud to be members of the school council and help make positive changes to the school.

Pupils' talents and interests are recognised and developed.

Pupils benefit from the visits and the sports and music clubs that leaders provide.

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

Leaders have designed a curriculum that clearly sets out what pupils will learn from Nursery to the end of Year 4. Curriculum leaders have provided support and training to ensure staff have the knowledge to teach the curriculum confidently.

Teachers focus on pupils learning important concepts and key vocabulary.

Throughout lessons, teachers check pupils' understanding and adapt their teaching to address pupils' misunderstandings. However, in some foundation subjects, the use of assessment is not as effective.

On occasion, teachers move pupils on to more complex learning before they are secure in their knowledge of more basic concepts. This results in pupils having gaps in what they know. This hinders them from successfully understanding and remembering more complex information.

Leaders have ensured the reading curriculum is delivered effectively. Staff have received training to teach the phonics programme consistently well. This means that most pupils can read well.

Pupils who find reading more challenging benefit from extra opportunities to practise and apply the sounds that they have learned. Pupils across the school read books that are suitably matched to their reading knowledge and skills. Pupils are keen to get better at reading.

They enjoy using online quizzes to check their understanding of the books they have read.

Children in the early years benefit from an engaging and interesting curriculum. Leaders ensure that children are introduced to a wide range of vocabulary linked to the world around them.

Staff make sure that children can use different resources to practise their learning. Staff have high expectations that children, including those in the Nursery class, will listen to and follow instructions. Children respond positively to staff and learn routines quickly.

Pupils with SEND are fully included in all aspects of school life. This includes pupils who attend the specially resourced provision. Teachers use specific resources and give lots of reminders about what pupils know already so that pupils with SEND access the curriculum and learn successfully.

Leaders and staff make sure that pupils are cared for and that they feel valued. Pupils recognise this. They want to behave well for their teachers and help each other.

The school values of 'love, respect, perseverance and thankfulness' thread through the daily life of the school. Pupils are proud to receive rewards linked to these values.

Leaders place a great emphasis on promoting pupils' personal development.

Pupils show respect for differences and commonalities within the school community. However, the opportunities to explore some aspects of diversity are limited as the school community is not culturally diverse. This means pupils are not as confident in their knowledge of other cultures as they are about different family groupings or disabilities.

Governors hold leaders to account and offer appropriate support. Leaders, including governors, are committed to further improving the school. They have sought the support of external specialists to assist them in carrying out their roles and responsibilities effectively.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

Leaders ensure that staff are confident and well trained to identify when a pupil may be at risk of harm. Staff are quick to take action if an issue arises.

Similarly, leaders follow up any concerns, however small. Leaders make sure that vulnerable families can access the support they need.

Pupils learn about healthy relationships and personal safety in their personal, social and health education (PSHE).

This helps pupils understand how to keep themselves safe in different situations.

Leaders, including governors, ensure that the right checks are in place regarding safer recruitment and that safeguarding policies are kept up to date.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• In some of the foundation subjects, teachers are not always accurate in their checking of pupils' understanding.

Consequently, some pupils have gaps in their knowledge of basic concepts. This hinders pupil's ability to fully understand and apply their new knowledge. Leaders must ensure teachers are always using suitable assessment methods to check that pupils have remembered the basic knowledge before moving on to more ambitious content.

• Opportunities for pupils to experience cultural and religious diversity are currently quite limited. This means that pupils lack confidence when talking about this compared to other strands of diversity. Leaders need to maximise opportunities for pupils to gain greater knowledge of different cultures and religions, so they are more confident when comparing and contrasting any form of diversity.

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