Stanford Junior and Infant School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Short inspection of Stanford Junior and Infant School

Following my visit to the school on 22 January 2019, I write on behalf of Her Majesty's Chief Inspector of Education, Children's Services and Skills to report the inspection findings. The visit was the first short inspection carried out since the school was judged to be good in February 2015. This school continues to be good.

The leadership team has maintained the good quality of education in the school since the last inspection. You and your leadership team are committed to the school's continuous improvement. Together, you regularly carry out thorough self-evaluation and use your findings to identify priorities for the school's improvement.

These prio...rities are comprehensively addressed in your action plans. The senior leadership team is passionate about providing each individual pupil with a well-rounded education. Pastoral support is strong, and the school has a very caring ethos.

The school's work on social, moral, spiritual and cultural issues is well developed. You regularly hold pupil progress meetings to check the progress of individuals and provide additional support when necessary. Leaders have worked effectively to address the three areas for improvement that were identified at the last inspection.

Pupils are expected to work consistently hard. Work in their books shows that they are productive in all their lessons. Teachers make effective use of different subjects to give pupils opportunities to apply and practise their mathematical skills.

For example, pupils created records of expenditure and profit as part of their enterprise project. This work has been effective in deepening pupils' understanding. Learning in literacy is fostered well in the outdoor area in the early years.

The Literacy Lodge is just one of many areas where pupils can read and write. Pupils sometimes choose to write as part of their play. For example, during the inspection, a child acted as a traffic warden, giving tickets he had written to children who were riding bikes.

English and mathematics leaders are able to correctly identify strengths and weaknesses in their subjects. They regularly monitor the quality of teaching and learning. They then use their findings to give teachers effective support and challenge, to help them to make improvements in their teaching.

You have ensured that subject leaders play an important role in the continuous development of the curriculum. They monitor the work that is done by pupils and lead staff meetings to support and challenge their colleagues to refine their practice. Pupils are polite, well-mannered and well-behaved.

At breaktimes, they have lots of equipment to use to keep them occupied and active. Pupils can talk sensibly about the work that they have done on diversity. They show respect and tolerance and see difference as interesting rather than something to make fun of.

Most parents and carers who made their views known are positive about the work of the school. They praise the school for the links it has with the community and the pastoral support their children receive. However, some expressed their concerns about large classes and low standards at the end of key stage 2.

These parents have opposing views about homework. Some say their children get too much, while others think they get too little. Governors know the school well.

They gain knowledge about strengths and weaknesses from visits to school, published data and reports from school leaders. They understand that their role is strategic, rather than operational, and could give examples of how they have provided leaders with both support and challenge. They talked at length about how they evaluate the school development plan.

Staff say that they are proud to work at this school. They say that leaders make sure that everyone has access to quality professional development. Leaders encourage, support and challenge all staff to continually improve their practice.

Safeguarding is effective. Leaders and governors have ensured that all safeguarding policies and procedures are fit for purpose. Safeguarding is high on the school's agenda.

Staff are well trained and are given regular updates. They are diligent in their approach and have a clear understanding that safeguarding is everyone's responsibility. Record-keeping is clear and well organised.

When necessary, actions are taken in a timely manner. The culture of safeguarding across the school is strong. Most parents and carers who made their views known say that their children feel safe in school.

However, a small number of parents do not think that the school deals effectively with bullying. Pupils told me that they feel safe in school and that isolated bullying incidents are dealt with effectively by staff. Scrutiny of the school's records shows that allegations are taken seriously and dealt with in a timely manner.

Pupils are taught how to keep themselves safe when using the internet, crossing the road and riding their bikes. Pupils talked with enthusiasm about the safety advice they got from a visitor from the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children. The group of pupils that I met could all chant out the telephone number that they can ring if they have concerns about their safety.

Inspection findings ? The teaching of phonics is a strength of the school. Staff have a consistent approach and pupils respond well to the routines that have been established. Adults have good subject knowledge and use subject-specific vocabulary accurately.

Pupils have a wealth of opportunities to apply their developing skills in reading and writing. The proportion of pupils meeting the expected standard in the Year 1 phonics screening check has been above the national average for the past three years. ? Pupils read widely and often in school and are encouraged to practise their reading at home.

A group of Year 6 pupils run a lunchtime reading club each week. The club is used well to foster the love of reading and to give support to pupils who do not have regular opportunities to read at home. The proportion of pupils reaching the expected standard and the greater depth standard at the end of Year 2 has been above the national average for two years.

Progress in reading across key stage 2 has been average for the past three years. However, the proportion of pupils reaching the expected standard and the higher standard in reading in Year 6 was below the national average in 2018. The work being done on pupils' understanding of vocabulary is having a positive effect.

However, some pupils do not show a thorough understanding of some vocabulary, especially when it is used in different contexts. ? The teaching of mathematics is well structured. Teachers check pupils' understanding at the beginning of each topic to make sure that work is pitched at the right level.

Pupils have a range of different starting points, but all are moved on to more challenging tasks as soon as they are able. All pupils have regular opportunities to develop fluency, reasoning and problem-solving skills. Pupils working together is encouraged.

This helps pupils to persevere and show resilience when they are given difficult problems to solve. ? The proportion of pupils reaching the expected standard in English grammar, punctuation and spelling in Year 6 has been below the national average for two years. Work in books shows that pupils apply their knowledge of grammar and punctuation well, but that spelling is weaker in upper key stage 2.

Leaders have correctly identified that improvements need to be made to the teaching of spelling, although work to address this is at a very early stage. Next steps for the school Leaders and those responsible for governance should ensure that: ? ongoing work on extending pupils' understanding of vocabulary is continued so that pupils' comprehension skills are further developed ? work is done to improve pupils' spelling skills. I am copying this letter to the chair of the governing body, the regional schools commissioner and the director of children's services for North East Lincolnshire.

This letter will be published on the Ofsted website. Yours sincerely Chris Cook Her Majesty's Inspector Information about the inspection During the inspection, I made visits to all classes with you and some with the deputy headteacher. I looked at books with the English and mathematics leaders.

I met with five governors, including the chair of the governing body. I also met with a representative from the local authority. I talked to several parents as they brought their children to school at the start of the school day and took account of the 28 responses to Ofsted's online survey, Parent View.

I met with a group of staff and took account of the 14 responses to the Ofsted staff survey. I talked informally with pupils in lessons, met formally with a group of pupils, and took account of the 24 responses to the Ofsted pupil survey. I scrutinised a range of documents, including the school's self-evaluation document, minutes of governing body meetings, records of the checks on teaching and learning, school assessment information, and attendance and safeguarding documentation.