South Baddesley Church of England Primary School & Nursery

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Outcome

South Baddesley Church of England Primary School & Nursery continues to be a good school.

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils really enjoy attending this small school, where they know each other well. Warm and friendly relationships mean that pupils play together happily at breaktimes and lunchtimes.

They delight in exploring the forest area, making bug hotels, and playing the piano as others eat lunch. Year 6 pupils are enthusiastic 'buddies' for those in Reception. Pupils feel safe because adults and pupils are kind and supportive of them.

Adults have high expectations of pupils' achievement. In line with the school vision and values, pupils 'Strive' and 'Belie...ve' in themselves so that they can 'Shine' in their work and play. They are curious about the interesting questions that start each topic across the school's year groups.

These lead to fascinating conversations between pupils of different ages. As a result, pupils become confident in their learning and achieve well in a range of subjects.

Pupils become responsible citizens of the South Baddesley community.

They make decisions about improving the school through their impactful class meetings, led by ambassadors of all ages. Weekly 'community worship' assemblies and the annual 'clothes swap' are just some of the pupil-led events that take place. Participation in these popular activities develops resilience and public speaking skills.

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

The school has designed a broad and ambitious curriculum for all pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). The school has thought carefully about what they want pupils to learn from the start of nursery. They have broken this learning into clear steps so that knowledge and skills build over time.

The curriculum extends far beyond the academic and pupils benefit from rich opportunities in the outside learning environment. In most key stages, teachers use careful curriculum thinking to present information in an interesting way. The school is in the early stages of implementing a new approach in key stage 1, and at times, the activities do not capture pupils' interest as well as they could.

This means that some pupils do not learn as much as they could.

Staff are confident about the subjects that they teach. They present information clearly and check pupils' understanding well.

Teachers ensure that new learning builds on what pupils already know. Any gaps in learning are quickly picked up and addressed. This helps pupils make strong progress through the curriculum.

The school quickly and accurately identifies pupils with SEND. Staff ensure that pupils with SEND get the help they need to access the same learning as their classmates. Pupils with complex needs are further supported with specific interventions which address their needs well.

Consequently, pupils are ready for their next stages of learning.The school makes sure that reading is a top priority and have built it into every aspect of the curriculum. Pupils in key stage 2 are inspired by the poems and novels they have encountered.

Nursery children are captivated by the wide range of songs, stories and rhymes that are shared with them. Children in Reception learn to read from the very start. The school provides training for staff to help them assess the progress of pupils as they learn to read, and most adults check how well pupils are learning to read carefully.

However, this training is not applied consistently well, and in a few cases, staff support does not enable pupils to develop fluency as well as they could.Staff build warm and trusting relationships with pupils and their families. These underpin high expectations of pupils' behaviour, conduct and attendance.

As a result, pupils behave and attend well. Requests for time out of school, such as for holidays, are dealt with robustly.

The school has thought carefully about how pupils develop strong character traits needed to equip them for life in modern Britain.

For example, pupils in key stage 2 learn about the determination needed to solve complex problems through the example of Srinivasa Ramanujan. Pupils benefit from a wide range of trips and visits. The annual 'Special Me' day draws the whole school together around a story.

The focus on the unique nature of every human, alongside our many similarities, are expertly woven together. This celebrates diversity within this inclusive school community.

Governors know the school and the community well.

They work strategically to provide clear direction, challenge and support to school leaders. Staff value the training opportunities provided by links with local schools and Winchester University, as well as support with their well-being and workload. Consequently, staff are very happy to work here.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• Not all staff assess with sufficient proficiency how well pupils are developing their reading. This means that a small number of pupils do not acquire the fluency they need as quickly as they could.

The school should ensure that staff support for pupils who are learning to read is consistently effective. ? The school has implemented a new approach to learning within key stage 1. At present, the work provided for pupils does not always enable them to achieve the aims of the curriculum sufficiently well.

This means that a few pupils lose interest and do not retain as much as they could. The school should ensure that the new system is embedded so that all pupils progress well through the curriculum.

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 first ungraded inspection since we judged the school to be good in February 2019.

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