Queen’s Manor School and Special Needs Unit

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Key findings

This is a good school. Pupils, parents and carers are extremely positive about its work.

Relationships are excellent and pupils develop exceptionally well in this welcoming and caring environment. The school is not outstanding because the quality of teaching is not strong enough to ensure that pupils make consistently excellent progress. Children enter the Nursery with skills that are generally below those expected for their age and make good progress as they move through the school.

Pupils leave Year 6 with attainment that is broadly average in reading, writing and mathematics. Year 2 pupils have sound reading skills due to their understanding of how to break down words into sounds. Pupils in... the unit make good progress.

Teachers have high expectations of all learners and have good subject knowledge. The characteristics of this good teaching include very effective questioning and well-planned work which matches pupils' needs. Nevertheless, there are sometimes insufficient opportunities for pupils to review their learning and to develop even greater independence as learners.

Pupils' behaviour is exemplary, both in lessons and around the school. Pupils display very positive attitudes to learning, enjoy working together and sharing ideas. This is demonstrated in their sense of ownership and pride in their school.

The school places a high priority in ensuring pupils are kept safe. The leadership of teaching and learning has been effective in improving the quality of teaching, resulting in teaching that is consistently good with some outstanding practice across the school. The headteacher is inspirational and motivates staff and pupils to try their best.

Leadership at all levels is good; strong performance management, which is sharply focused on areas for development, is resulting in rising attainment. However, teaching assistants do not always make a full contribution to accelerating pupils' progress and in this respect their skills are underdeveloped.

Information about the school

Queen's Manor Primary School and Special Needs Unit is an average-sized primary school.

The proportion of pupils who are from minority ethnic groups is well above average, the largest group being those from Black African heritages. An above average proportion of pupils speak English as an additional language, although few are at the early stages of learning English. The proportion of pupils known to be eligible for free school meals is well above average.

The proportion of disabled pupils and those with special educational needs, including those in receipt of a statement of educational needs or being supported at school action plus, is above average. The main areas of support required relate mainly to moderate and specific learning difficulties. The school has specially resourced provision for pupils with special educational needs.

This is in the form of a unit which provides bespoke support for up to 30 pupils with moderate learning difficulties. The school meets the government's current floor standards, which set the minimum expectations for attainment and progress. The school has gained the Artsmark Gold and Sing-up Gold awards.