Broughton Junior School

Inspection of a good school: Broughton Junior School Broughton Avenue, Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire HP20 1NQ

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Inspection dates: 13 and 14 September 2022

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Outcome

Broughton Junior School continues to be a good school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy attending school and say that the best thing about their school is the staff. They feel safe and cared for. Pupils know that there is always someone to speak to and comfort them if they are sad or upset about something. Bullying is not a problem. Although there are occasional upsets, pupils say that their teachers are good at resolving these.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Leaders and staff have high expectations of pupils’ behaviour and the values they expect pupils to uphold. Relationships are warm and supportive. In class, pupils settle quickly to learning, behave well and work with positive attitudes. During social times of the day, pupils enjoy playing with their friends and appreciate the many activities on offer. However, a handful of pupils sometimes engage in rough play.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Leaders want every pupil to thrive at this inclusive school. Overall, most pupils are doing well and make the most of their time at school. Pupils talk enthusiastically about the school’s many extra activities. Visits such as those to Wimbledon, Silverstone and the pantomime are memorable events for many pupils. Pupils value the pupil parliament. This gives older pupils the opportunity to contribute to decision-making in the school.

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

Leaders have ensured that pupils benefit from an ambitious curriculum that brings learning to life. Pupils learn a wide range of subjects and, overall, most achieve well. The mathematics curriculum sets out a clear pathway to enable pupils to develop their knowledge. Key concepts are revisited to ensure that pupils remember important mathematical knowledge. Teachers have secure subject knowledge and explain new content clearly. They are adept at noticing if pupils are finding things tricky and help pupils to ‘keep up and catch up’.

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

However, in the wider curriculum, content is not yet as carefully considered. In some subjects, leaders have not yet identified with enough precision what they would like pupils 13 and 14 September 2022

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to know and remember. This means that staff do not have enough guidance about what they need to teach.

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Leaders have made reading a priority and have invested significantly in creating a uniquely designed and inviting library. The reading curriculum is appropriately planned. Pupils read good-quality texts, acquire new vocabulary and develop their understanding. While most pupils are doing well, some younger pupils are still at an early stage of reading. Leaders have rightly put in place a phonics programme to support them. However, this is not always focused precisely on the specific gaps in pupils’ learning. Occasionally, books are not well enough matched to pupils’ reading knowledge.

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Leaders have recently overhauled the school’s provision for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Their needs are now more accurately identified and support is now more closely tailored to these needs. Leaders are also taking steps to strengthen parental engagement.

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The school’s enrichment programme makes a strong contribution to pupils’ wider development. Pupils experience visits to places far and wide and enjoy regular forest school sessions where they can explore the outdoors. The school organises many after- school clubs. Music makes a positive contribution to pupils’ personal development. Pupils experience the joy of singing and playing together. One pupil commented that music has the power to evoke emotion.

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Most parents and carers are happy with the school. However, some are concerned about bullying and behaviour. The inspector found that bullying and pupils’ behaviour are not a concern. Nonetheless, during lunchtimes and playtimes, sometimes a small number of pupils engage in rough, boisterous play. This is not always noticed by staff on duty and therefore sometimes goes unchecked.

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Staff are overwhelmingly positive about working at the school. They enjoy the team approach and feel that leaders are very considerate of their well-being and workload. Staff who have joined the school recently are full of praise for the support they have received during their induction.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Safeguarding and pupils’ well-being are priorities at this school. Regular, timely training ensures that staff have a good understanding of safeguarding arrangements. Staff ably fulfil their responsibilities. They know pupils well and are alert to anything that may be a concern. Leaders follow through any concerns and, when needed, refer these on to other agencies. They keep in regular contact with families and ensure that everyone gets the help and support that they need. Recruitment is managed well and record-keeping is well organised and up to date. 13 and 14 September 2022

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 In a number of foundation subjects, including history, geography and music, leaders have not yet identified with enough precision what they would like pupils to learn. This means that staff do not receive clear enough guidance about the precise and most important content that they need to teach pupils. Leaders should refine the curriculum in the foundation subjects. They should ensure that they identify with precision the most important knowledge that pupils need to learn and remember.  Some reading interventions for pupils who need to catch up are not always targeted precisely enough on the specific gaps in their learning. Additionally, books are occasionally not well enough matched to pupils’ reading knowledge. This risks these pupils not catching up quickly enough. Leaders should implement their planned work to address this.  A handful of pupils sometimes engage in rough play during break- and lunchtimes and

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

some pupils play in areas where staff cannot maintain a clear enough line of sight. This means that sometimes boisterous or rough play goes unnoticed and is not addressed. Leaders should take action to address this. They should review the supervision of play areas during social times of day so that all pupils are within sight of staff.

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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.

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Background

This is the second ungraded inspection since we judged the school to be good in May 2017.

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How can I feed back my views?

find out what other parents and carers think. We use information from Ofsted Parent View when deciding which schools to inspect, when to inspect them and as part of their inspection.

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How can I feed back my views?

The Department for Education has further guidance on how to complain about a school. 13 and 14 September 2022

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Further information

You can search for published performance information about the school.

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Further information

In the report, ‘disadvantaged pupils’ refers to those pupils who attract government pupil premium funding: pupils claiming free school meals at any point in the last six years and pupils in care or who left care through adoption or another formal route. 13 and 14 September 2022

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Headteacher Charlie Reed (Executive Headteacher)

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Date of previous inspection

23 May 2017, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 Since the previous inspection, there have been many changes of leaders and staff. The current executive headteacher was appointed to the school as headteacher in September 2017, shortly after the previous inspection of the school. He took up the role of executive headteacher in January 2021 when the infant and junior schools federated. The school federated with Broughton Community School (Infants) in January 2021. Both schools are governed by a single governing body and led by the executive headteacher. The senior leadership team oversees both schools.  The senior leader for SEND took up her post in April 2022.  The school does not currently use any alternative provision.

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Information about this inspection

 This was the first routine inspection the school had received since the COVID-19 pandemic began. The inspector discussed the impact of the pandemic with leaders, and has taken that into account in her evaluation of the school.  The inspector carried out deep dives in reading, mathematics and music. She discussed the curriculum with leaders, staff and pupils. She visited lessons, looked at pupils’ work 13 and 14 September 2022

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and heard some pupils read. The inspector also sampled the school’s curriculum information in history and geography and met with the subject leaders for these subjects.  The inspector met with the executive headteacher and other senior leaders. She met with seven members of the governing body, including the chair and vice-chair of governors. The inspector also held a telephone discussion with a representative from the local authority.  To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding, the inspector met with the designated safeguarding lead. She spoke with pupils and staff and considered a wide range of safeguarding information, including the school’s record of recruitment checks.  The inspector gathered pupils’ views through meetings with them, visits to lessons and during morning play- and lunchtime.  The inspector considered the views of staff during meetings with them and through their responses to Ofsted’s confidential staff survey. She took account of the views of

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parents through their responses to the online survey, Ofsted Parent View, and parents’ free-text comments. The inspector talked with parents on the morning of the second day of the inspection.

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Inspection team

Sue Cox, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector 13 and 14 September 2022

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regulates and inspects to achieve excellence in the care of children and young people, and in education and skills for learners of all ages. It regulates and inspects childcare and children’s social care, and inspects the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (Cafcass), schools, colleges, initial teacher training, further education and skills, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It assesses council children’s services, and inspects services for children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

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