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Store Street Manchester M1 2WD T 0300 123 1231 www.gov.uk/ofsted

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Warren Beadell Head of School Northern Parade Junior School Doyle Avenue Hilsea Portsmouth Hampshire PO2 9NE

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Ofsted visit to Northern Parade Junior School

Following my visit with Laurie Anderson, Her Majesty’s Inspector (HMI), to your school on 29 September 2020, I write on behalf of Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Education, Children’s Services and Skills to confirm the visit’s findings. Thank you for the time you made available to discuss your actions since September 2020, when the government expected all schools to open fully to all pupils.

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Ofsted visit to Northern Parade Junior School

This visit was conducted under section 8 of the Education Act 2005 (as amended) and in accordance with Ofsted’s published procedures for visiting schools while routine inspections are temporarily suspended.

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Ofsted visit to Northern Parade Junior School

Ofsted’s visits to schools during the autumn term are not inspections. We are not giving graded judgements. We did not undertake the usual range of inspection activities and were unable to check other sources of evidence, such as visits to lessons or looking at pupils’ work. The content of this letter gives an overview of our discussions about what has happened in your school this term.

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Ofsted visit to Northern Parade Junior School

During the visit, we spoke to you and other members of the school leadership team including the head of the infant school that is federated with the junior school. We also spoke to the executive headteacher, the chief executive officer for the multi- academy trust and the chair of the local governing body. We did not speak to pupils because of the protective measures in place.

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Context

Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Education, Children’s Services and Skills is leading Ofsted’s work into how England’s education system is managing the return to full education for pupils, following an extended break in formal schooling due to the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic.

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Context

In undertaking this focused work, HMI are visiting a broad range of schools. HMI will visit a sample of:

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Context

 approximately 1,200 schools across all Ofsted grades (outstanding, good, requires improvement and inadequate)  maintained schools, academies and free schools, special schools and centres of alternative provision, including those in cities, and coastal, town or rural communities.

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Context

The information from this visit will feed into Ofsted’s national reporting so that the insights can be shared with the government and the education sector. We did not find any significant concerns during the visit. In such a case, an inspection report would be published on our website and available to parents and carers.

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Context

We did not consider your response to COVID-19 during the spring and summer terms 2020, when the school was not open to all pupils.

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From this visit, inspectors noted that:

 The school opened fully to all pupils on 3 September 2020. The vast majority of pupils are attending full time.  Attendance is broadly in line with the normal attendance for pupils at this time of year.  Leaders have prioritised pupils’ learning in English, mathematics, physical education (PE) and personal, social, health and economic education (PSHE), in these first few weeks back. Pupils study all the other subjects they would typically but are currently spending less time on them. Leaders plan for pupils to return to their usual curriculum as soon as possible and by summer term 2021 at the latest.  Teachers have checked what pupils remember in reading, writing and mathematics. They are using this information to help pupils to make up gaps in their knowledge before they move on to their usual learning in these subjects.  Leaders re-designed the wider curriculum during lockdown. Teachers have started to teach these lessons and are assessing pupils’ knowledge as they go.

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From this visit, inspectors noted that:

They aim to adapt the content and increase time spent on these subjects depending on how quickly pupils catch up missed learning in reading, writing and mathematics.  Leaders have put a system for remote learning into place, should it be needed. They have trained staff and pupils to use it. They intend for any remote lessons to continue the learning that would have taken place in school.

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From this visit, inspectors noted that:

Thank you again for contributing to this important national work. The views and experiences you have shared will help to inform future policy.

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From this visit, inspectors noted that:

I am copying this letter to the chair of the board of trustees, the chief executive officer of the multi academy trust, the regional schools commissioner and the director of children’s services for Portsmouth. This letter will be published on the Ofsted website.

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