Booker Avenue Junior School

Inspection of a good school: Booker Avenue Junior School Booker Avenue, Liverpool, Merseyside L18 9SB

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Outcome

Booker Avenue Junior School continues to be a good school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Leaders are ambitious for all pupils, including pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Pupils rise to leaders’ expectations of them. They sustain high levels of focus and behave well in lessons. Pupils are keen to discuss their well- considered ideas. Pupils listen with respect to the suggestions of others. This helps pupils to deepen their own and their classmates’ learning. Pupils, including pupils with SEND, achieve well.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils relish their roles of responsibility. This includes acting as librarians, school councillors and young leaders. In this way, pupils support each other to be considerate, play cooperatively and to develop a love of reading. Pupils play a valuable part in the school community.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy all that school has to offer. They develop a range of interests and hobbies through clubs such as chess, choir and craft. Pupils who are sporting enthusiasts discover new talents through judo, fencing and archery clubs.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Most parents and carers are highly supportive of the school. Pupils are confident that leaders follow up any concerns that they may have diligently. Leaders deal with infrequent incidents of bullying and inappropriate behaviour effectively. This helps pupils to feel safe and happy in school.

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better?

Leaders have designed a relevant and engaging curriculum for all pupils, including pupils with SEND. Leaders ensure that teachers have the expertise to deliver the curriculum well. Teachers bring the curriculum to life for pupils. In some subjects, such as history, pupils explained how the curriculum helps them to imagine what life was like in the past. 8 and 9 February 2023 Leaders ensure that teachers support pupils to learn and remember key knowledge effectively. Teachers regularly check that pupils remember what they have learned. They identify and address pupils’ misconceptions quickly. This helps pupils to understand and learn new things readily. Pupils, including pupils with SEND, achieve well across a broad range of subjects. They are well prepared for the challenges of the key stage 3 curriculum.

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better?

Leaders consider pupils’ strong starting points in their curriculum design. In some subjects, leaders have refined the curriculum so that it goes beyond the ambition of the national curriculum. They have accurately identified where pupils may have gaps in their prior learning and have adapted subject curriculums to address these gaps. Pupils learn well in these subjects.

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better?

In a small number of subjects, leaders’ adaptations to the curriculum have fallen short. Leaders have not designed learning that builds on what pupils have learned in key stage 1. Some teachers introduce new learning before some pupils are ready. Pupils in some year groups have missing knowledge as a result.

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better?

Leaders focus on making sure that pupils become fluent readers. Pupils access high- quality texts that deepen their learning across the curriculum. They said that they are inspired to read non-fiction books ‘for the joy of learning about things’. Pupils enjoy reading. Some are voracious readers. They relish the time available to them to visit and borrow books from the well-stocked and inviting school library.

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better?

The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted pupils’ learning. Some pupils have missing phonics knowledge. This affects their ability to access the broader key stage 2 curriculum confidently. Leaders have put significant investment into supporting these pupils to learn to read fluently. For example, they have introduced a new phonics programme. Pupils who need extra help benefit from focused phonics sessions and regular reading practice with suitable books. These pupils are well supported by skilled staff and catch up with their peers quickly.

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better?

Pupils are immersed in their learning during lessons. They do not disturb others. Skilled staff encourage pupils to do their best at all times. Pupils with SEND have their needs identified well. They benefit from carefully tailored support to enable them to access the curriculum successfully alongside their classmates.

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better?

Leaders carefully consider pupils’ wider development. Pupils are sensitive towards differences between people and families. Pupils respect diversity. They understand values such as democracy. Staff guide pupils to make well-informed decisions about healthy relationships. Pupils are prepared well for growing up in modern Britain.

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better?

Staff are proud to work at Booker Avenue Junior School. They said that leaders trust and value them. Staff appreciate that leaders, including governors, support them to achieve manageable workloads. 8 and 9 February 2023

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Leaders ensure that staff receive regular and up-to-date safeguarding training. Staff know how to keep pupils safe. They are alert to any signs that a pupil may be at risk of harm. Staff pass on any concerns that they have about pupils’ welfare quickly. Leaders put effective and timely support in place in response.

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Safeguarding

Leaders draw on the expertise of school staff to deliver personalised programmes of pastoral support. This means that pupils who need help with their emotional health and well-being receive the care that they need quickly.

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Safeguarding

Pupils are taught to consider risks carefully. They learn how to resist peer pressure when they are online and when they are out and about in the community.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 In a small number of subjects, leaders have not designed the curriculum to build on what pupils have learned in key stage 1. Pupils have some gaps in their knowledge in these subjects which leaders do not identify quickly enough. This means that sometimes pupils do not have the prior knowledge that they need when teachers introduce new learning. Leaders should ensure that the curriculum enables pupils to fully achieve the aims and ambition of the national curriculum in these remaining subjects.

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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 first ungraded inspection since we judged the school to be good in November 2017. 8 and 9 February 2023

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How can I feed back my views?

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. 8 and 9 February 2023

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School details

Inspection number 10256167 Type of school Junior

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Dates of previous inspection 14 and 15 November 2017, under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The school has grown in size since it was last inspected. There are now four classes for pupils in Year 3.  A new chair of governors and vice-chair of governors have been appointed since the last inspection.  Leaders do not make use of alternative provision for pupils.

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Information about this inspection

 This was the first routine inspection that the school 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 met with the headteacher, other school leaders and staff.  The inspector spoke with a group of governors, including the chair of the governing body. She met with a representative of the local authority. 8 and 9 February 2023  The inspector checked the arrangements for keeping pupils safe. She looked at a range of documentation and spoke to leaders and staff. The inspector also spoke to pupils about whether they feel safe in school.  The inspector carried out deep dives in reading, history and mathematics. For each deep dive, the inspector discussed the curriculum with subject leaders, visited lessons, looked at samples of pupils’ work, held discussions with teachers

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Information about this inspection

and talked with pupils.  The inspector listened to pupils read with a familiar adult.  The inspector also spoke with leaders and pupils about the curriculum in a small number of other subjects.  The inspector spoke with groups of pupils about their experiences at school and observed their behaviour at lunchtime. She considered the views of pupils shared through Ofsted’s online survey for pupils.  The inspector spoke with staff about their workload and well-being. She considered the views of staff shared through Ofsted’s online survey for staff.  The inspector spoke with parents and carers as they dropped their children off at school. She considered the responses to Ofsted Parent View. This included the free-text responses.

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Inspection team

Jackie Stillings, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector 8 and 9 February 2023 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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Inspection team

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Inspection team

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Inspection team

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Inspection team

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