Haddenham Community Infant School

Inspection of Haddenham Community Infant School Woodways, Haddenham, Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire HP17 8DS

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Inspection dates: 10 and 11 January 2023

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Overall effectiveness Good

The quality of education Good Behaviour and attitudes Good Personal development Good Leadership and management Good Early years provision Good Previous inspection grade Outstanding

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Overall effectiveness Good

This school was last inspected 13 years ago and judged ‘Outstanding’ under a previous inspection framework. This reflected the school’s overall effectiveness under the inspection framework in use at the time.

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Overall effectiveness Good

From then until November 2020, the school was exempted by law from routine inspection, so there has been a longer gap than usual between inspections. Judgements in this report are based on the current inspection framework and also reflect changes that may have happened at any point since the last inspection. 10 and 11 January 2023

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What is it like to attend this school?

As many parents note, pupils thrive at the school. There is a strong community feeling around the school, to which pupils are an integral part. Pupils are happy to come to school and benefit from the genuinely warm and caring relationships they have with staff. Inclusivity permeates throughout the environment, and all pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), trust that adults in the school will always support them.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils show mutual respect, and bullying is rare within the school. They have secure knowledge of what bullying is and how they can access support if it does happen. Pupils behave well throughout the school day. They are purposeful in lessons and have genuine enthusiasm to learn. Breaktimes are positive and calm, and pupils share and play well with each other.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils live up to the high expectations that staff have for their behaviour and learning. They understand and value these expectations and have confidence that teachers want what is best for them. Some pupils have improved a lot since joining the school. Staff give all pupils, including those with SEND, the support they need to engage and achieve well.

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better?

Leaders have planned a well-sequenced and ambitious curriculum throughout the school. They have taken effective decisions about what pupils will learn and when. Leaders’ vision for what pupils will be able to achieve beyond their time at the school drives these decisions. The curriculum within Reception is aspirational and prepares children well for learning in Year 1. Leaders have recently implemented a new phonics scheme. They have been tenacious in making sure that this is in place and that teachers are delivering it well.

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better?

In most subjects across the school, all pupils, including those with SEND, progress well through the curriculum. However, some curriculum areas and leaders within the school, including in Reception, are new. These leaders are still embedding their curriculum area consistently well. Where this is the case, staff are not yet fully trained to ensure that pupils are learning as well as they could.

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better?

Teachers from Reception onwards use assessment well in all lessons to spot when pupils may have fallen behind. When this happens, they put in place additional activities to help pupils catch up. In phonics lessons, staff check how well pupils are reading and give them rapid support if needed. As a result, pupils become confident and fluent readers.

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better?

Leaders have high expectations for how pupils will behave. Mutual respect and kindness are clear to see in classrooms. From Reception and beyond, pupils’ 10 and 11 January 2023

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attitudes towards their learning and towards others are positive. In a small number of lessons, low-level disruption occurs. In these lessons, staff are quick to respond, and any negative impact on learning is low. Pupils attend the school regularly. Leaders support families well where attendance has been a concern. However, persistent absence of the most vulnerable pupils is too high. Due to this, not all pupils are benefitting from school as well as they could.

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Inclusion is a priority in this school. Pupils with SEND are very well supported. Staff are highly skilled in the work they do to ensure that pupils with SEND are fully involved in school life. Leaders also have a sharp focus on the well-being and mental health of all pupils. They put in place well-being weeks throughout the year, where pupils and their families learn how to keep mentally healthy. The personal, social, health and economic (PSHE) curriculum is well planned. It provides pupils with the knowledge they need to make appropriate choices to keep themselves healthy, happy and safe. The curriculum also teaches pupils about protected characteristics and different cultures and communities. Due to this, they understand the importance of equalities and respecting difference in others.

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Leaders and governors of this school do not stand still. There is a culture of development and improvement throughout. Leaders have absolute awareness of the areas the school needs to work on and are determined to create the best provision for their pupils. The vision for the school inspires staff. They show great pride in working for the school and serving the community. While recruitment challenges have impacted workload, leaders have prioritised the well-being of staff. Governors meet all statutory duties. They care a great amount about what pupils in this school will achieve. Their vision goes beyond the academic and focuses on what pupils need in order to become positive members of society. Governors and school leaders work together well to ensure that the pupils are at the heart of all they do.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

There is a strong culture of safeguarding within the school. Leaders ensure that staff have the knowledge to spot if pupils or their families need help. Safeguarding leaders take a robust approach to record keeping. When concerns are raised, the right action is taken and at the right time. As such, pupils and their families are well supported by the school and external agencies. Governors have secure oversight of safeguarding practices.

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Safeguarding

The PSHE curriculum teaches pupils how to recognise potential risks and keep themselves safe. They have knowledge about online safety and how to be safe within the community. 10 and 11 January 2023

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Persistent absence of the most vulnerable pupils is too high. These pupils do not fully benefit from all that the school has to offer. Leaders should carefully consider what additional strategies and support these pupils and their families need to help them to further improve attendance.  Some middle leaders are new to their roles, and their vision is not yet fully realised. Consequently, in a small number of subjects, some staff do not have the subject knowledge required to implement the curriculum consistently. Leaders should ensure that ongoing development, support and challenge enables those leaders to have a positive impact on the implementation of their subject.  Changes to the curriculum within Reception are recent, and leaders have not yet fully implemented these changes within the classroom. As a result, some activities are less well designed than others, and children do not always learn as well as

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

they could. Leaders must ensure that planned activities within Reception match the ambitious intended outcomes of the curriculum.

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How can I feed back my views?

or to 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.

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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. 10 and 11 January 2023

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School details

Inspection number 10256343 Type of school Infant

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Website www.haddenhaminfant.bucks.sch.uk

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School details

Date of previous inspection 26 and 27 November 2009, under Section 5 of the Education Act 2005.

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Information about this school

 The headteacher and chair of governors are new in post since the previous inspection.  The school does not currently use any alternative provision.  There is a before- and after-school club provision managed by the school, which was part of the inspection.

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Information about this inspection

The inspectors carried out this graded inspection under section 5 of the Education Act 2005.

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Information about this inspection

 This was the first routine inspection the school received since the COVID-19 pandemic began. Inspectors discussed the impact of the pandemic with leaders and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  Inspectors met with the headteacher, who is also the special educational needs coordinator, and other members of the leadership team. The lead inspector met with the chair of governors and four other members of the governing body. 10 and 11 January 2023

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 The lead inspector also met with a representative from the local authority.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in the following subjects: early reading, mathematics, music, and physical education. For each deep dive, inspectors discussed the curriculum with subject leaders, visited a sample of lessons, spoke to teachers, spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work.  Inspectors observed pupils’ behaviour around the school and in lessons. They also spoke to pupils in lessons and during play and lunchtimes.  Inspectors considered a range of documents including leaders’ evaluations of the school, their school improvement plan and minutes from governors’ meetings.  Inspectors spoke to parents and carers and also took into account their responses to the Ofsted Parent View.  Inspectors took account of the views of staff through conversations and the responses to the online staff survey.

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 Inspectors evaluated the effectiveness of the safeguarding arrangements in the school by speaking with leaders, staff and pupils. The lead inspector met with the designated safeguarding leads to discuss the arrangements for safeguarding. During these meetings, the lead inspector scrutinised records and sampled case files to explore how the school identifies and supports pupils at risk of harm. A team inspector examined the school’s work to recruit and check on the suitability of staff. Inspectors also checked the knowledge of staff about their responsibilities.

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Inspection team

Nina Marabese, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Rachel Roberts Ofsted Inspector 10 and 11 January 2023

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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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