Walsh CofE Junior School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Walsh CofE Junior School provides a calm and safe place to learn. Pupils attend regularly and enjoy coming to school. Pupils behave well at social times and generally get on well together.

They are polite and courteous. Pupils say that recently there has been a greater focus on the school rules, 'Ready - Safe - Respectful' and behaviour is getting better. Pupils trust most adults to help them if they have a worry or concern.

Fewer incidents of bullying are taking place because they are now dealt with quickly by leaders.

Leaders are aspirational for pupils and support them to develop personally, during their time in school. Pupils enjoy the trips and visits th...at enrich the curriculum.

They learn about faiths and cultures different to their own. Older pupils spoke about the need to value differences in faith and opinion.

Pupils participate regularly in a variety of events to support local and national charities.

They are proud to represent the school in community events. A number of pupils take on a range of additional responsibilities, including becoming a school councillor and a reading ambassador.

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

Leaders are committed to working with external partners to improve the school.

The lack of professional development for curriculum leaders since the last inspection has contributed to a weak curriculum. Recently, leaders have effectively supported subject leaders to consider the important, 'sticky' knowledge that they want pupils to learn in each subject. Also, leaders have prioritised work on improving systems to ensure that pupils improve their behaviour within lessons and around the school.

Despite these improvements, pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), do not achieve as well as they should across the whole curriculum. This is because, in some subjects, teachers do not routinely plan learning that helps pupils to gain the key knowledge that they need to be successful.

In subjects such as science and mathematics, teachers use assessment information well to plan lessons that build on what pupils already know.

For example, in mathematics, teachers help pupils use their knowledge of arithmetic accurately when reasoning and solving problems.

Leaders have been less successful in ensuring that teachers use assessment information as well in some other subjects, including geography and reading. As a result, there are times when teachers do not check that pupils' earlier learning is secure.

This hinders pupils from gaining firm foundations on which to build. As a result, some pupils lose interest in their work and become distracted.

All staff have had training so that they are well equipped to support those pupils who find it difficult to read, including those attending Nightingale Class.

Many of these pupils read accurately. Teachers ensure that pupils have books that match the sounds they know. However, there are times when staff, who support pupils with reading, do not follow leaders' agreed approach to teaching phonics.

This hampers some pupils from catching up quickly and becoming confident and fluent readers.

Leaders provide enrichment activities in order to give pupils wider experiences of the world. For example, pupils have made visits to places of interest to enhance topic work.

These activities are not fully sequenced into the curriculum, so that pupils can build on these experiences over time.

Pupils talk about the things they should do to help them learn, such as listen carefully to adults and each other. Until recently, activities have not been explicitly planned to help pupils reinforce important skills that will help them consistently demonstrate good behaviour.

In some lessons, pupils' behaviour is not as good as leaders expect it to be. This happens when work is not matched closely enough to pupils' ability.

New members of the governing body have introduced precise systems for checking on leaders' work.

Now, governors have an accurate understanding of the school's strengths and weaknesses. They know that leaders are developing the curriculum to ensure that pupils succeed in all subjects.

Staff feel that leaders support them well.

They appreciate the actions that leaders have taken to reduce their workload.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

Leaders have enhanced systems to keep children safe in and out of school.

Recruitment processes are robust. The designated safeguarding leads ensure that staff are well trained in identifying pupils who may be at risk of harm. Regular checks on staff's safeguarding knowledge ensure that they remain vigilant.

Everyone understands their roles and responsibilities. Staff know what to do if they have a concern about a child. Leaders work with a range of agencies to ensure that pupils and their families receive appropriate support to keep them safe.

Through the curriculum, pupils are taught how to keep themselves safe in a variety of situations. They learn about the potential dangers that they may face online. Pupils can talk confidently about the different ways to stay safe.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• In some subjects, leaders do not provide sufficient support for teachers to help them deliver the curriculum plans well. In addition, some teachers struggle to use assessment strategies effectively so that they can consolidate previous learning, revisit lost learning and help pupils to overcome misconceptions. As a result, in some subjects, including reading, pupils do not achieve as well as they should.

Leaders should ensure that teachers have professional development and are supported effectively to implement the intended curriculum and use assessment strategies well. Leaders need to enable teachers to plan learning that builds on what pupils know and allows them to remember what they have learned. ? The changes made to the reading curriculum have not been embedded.

This means that pupils do not yet benefit from a systematic approach to developing their phonic knowledge and broader reading skills. This has limited some pupils from becoming confident and fluent readers as quickly as they should. Leaders should ensure that all staff fully understand the expectations of the school's reading strategy to help pupils catch up swiftly and further develop fluency.

• The system for checking how well pupils demonstrate good behaviour and appropriate conduct during learning and around the school has recently been reviewed and refined. As yet, some pupils still lose interest in learning and become distracted. Leaders should continue to embed the agreed protocols and ensure that all teachers have high expectations of pupils and apply these consistently and fairly.

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