North Baddesley Infant School

Inspection of a good school: North Baddesley Infant School Botley Road, North Baddesley, Southampton, Hampshire SO52 9EE

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Outcome

North Baddesley Infant School continues to be a good school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school’s vision of ‘Growing Together - Learning for Life’ is well embedded. This ambitious motto captures the school’s nurturing ethos for both pupils’ academic and pastoral development. The values of ‘respect, resilience and independence’ entwine to create a genuine community feel in the school. Leaders recognise the importance of building strong relationships, both between pupils and with adults. All staff are focused on improving the lives of pupils.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy coming to school. They engage in their learning well and support each other in class. School trips are much loved by pupils. For example, children in Reception Year recall buying a bus ticket and taking a trip around the local area, which they know so well. Pupils also look forward to the whole-school pantomime trip each Christmas.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The phrase ‘Ready, Respectful, Safe’ is repeatedly used by all members of staff to set the behaviour standard. All pupils benefit from this consistent approach, which members of staff model daily. Pupils’ behaviour and conduct, both inside and outside the school, is good. Leaders are mindful of bullying, but there is currently no evidence of this. When instances of unkindness do happen, pupils are confident that staff will help.

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

Leaders have ambitiously grown the school to now include a Nursery Year. They are rapidly developing an exciting curriculum for all four year groups at the school. All subjects detail the key knowledge, skills and vocabulary pupils learn. In the strongest subjects, the curriculum is split into clear areas of learning and spans across all year groups, although this is not the case for all subjects yet. 7 and 8 March 2023

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Leaders’ academic priority is for all pupils to enjoy and understand what they read. The phonics scheme is delivered with fidelity. Pupils have reading books that build their confidence in decoding words and understanding their meaning. While the aim is for all pupils to keep up with the scheme, teachers identify pupils who are struggling to read and give them valuable support to catch up.

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Lessons in all subjects are well organised. Teachers’ questioning of individual pupils enables staff to check how well pupils are learning. For example, ‘Carpet Club’ is a flexible teaching strategy where pupils have more adult support if they need it. Trips and resources enhance pupils’ learning. For example, Year 2 pupils recall key facts about nineteenth-century palaeontologist Mary Anning after a beach study searching for fossils helped to embed their learning.

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Some subject curriculums are not sequenced with clarity. This means pupils do not always learn as much knowledge as they could. For example, in mathematics, one scheme is used in the early years foundation stage and another in key stage 1. A variety of schemes are also used in the personal, social and health (PSHE) curriculum. While pupils receive good PSHE teaching and useful lessons, learning does not always build on what pupils have learned before.

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Disadvantaged pupils and those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are supported well. Leaders are outward thinking and welcome expertise from other professionals. Leaders’ expectations are high for pupils with SEND. They ensure that the provision is personalised no matter how complex the pupils’ needs are. Staff show genuine care in their support of pupils with SEND while ensuring they make strong academic progress at the same time.

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Leaders ensure there is a clear, nurturing ethos. All staff have a positive approach to managing pupils’ behaviour. Staff use consistent strategies, when needed, to support pupils. Pupils understand and appreciate these routines, which enables them to return to their lessons as quickly as possible.

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Pupils develop an early understanding of the wider world. They learn to respect differences in the way people live. A dedicated early careers day promotes learning about the different jobs people do and the skills they need. Pupils develop wider interests through a range of clubs, and they appreciate the opportunities given. However, while more disadvantaged pupils are taking part in clubs than has previously been the case, leaders recognise that there is further work to do to raise their levels of participation.

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Parents are very positive about the school and the experiences their children receive. Staff appreciate leaders’ efforts to support their workload and well-being. This creates a cohesive community, where pupils start their school journey with confidence and success. As one parent commented, ‘The school goes above and beyond. The ethos starts with the headteacher and goes through everyone we deal with. They all understand the importance of true inclusion and make sure it is lived and breathed. We couldn’t wish more from a school.’ 7 and 8 March 2023

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

There is a clear, strong safeguarding culture, which is adopted by all staff. Training is thorough and regularly updated. This helps staff to identify when there may be a concern. Record-keeping is detailed and appropriately actioned. Referrals to wider agencies, including children’s services, is timely. Governors take their safeguarding responsibilities seriously and work diligently to assure themselves of the safety of pupils and staff. Staff and volunteers are appropriately checked before working with children.

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Safeguarding

The school has mapped out its wider safeguarding curriculum to ensure safeguarding is routinely covered in lessons, including online safety, at age-appropriate levels.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Not all subjects have a clear sequence of key knowledge, skills and vocabulary that pupils will learn from the Nursery Year through to Year 2. This means teachers are unable to fully track pupils’ learning across all ages at the school. Leaders need to ensure that the key knowledge and skills to be learned are thoughtfully sequenced in all subjects and in all year groups.

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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 on 4 and 5 July 2017.

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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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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. 7 and 8 March 2023

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School details

Inspection number 10241828 Type of school Infant

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Date of previous inspection 4 and 5 July 2017, under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The school has an on-site nursery with spaces for two-, three- and four-year olds. This provision opened in January 2022.  The school currently uses no alternative provision.

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Information about this inspection

 This was the first routine inspection the school received since the COVID-19 pandemic began. The inspector discussed the impact of the pandemic with leaders and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  The inspector met with the headteacher, the deputy headteacher and members of the governing body, including the chair of governors. The inspector also met with a representative from the local authority and other leaders within the school.  The inspector carried out deep dives in these subjects: early reading, mathematics and history. For each deep dive, the inspector discussed the curriculum with subject 7 and 8 March 2023

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leaders, visited a sample of lessons, spoke to teachers, spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work.  In addition, the inspector also looked at other curriculum areas, including PSHE, art and physical education.  The inspector reviewed the arrangements for safeguarding by scrutinising safeguarding records, interviewing staff, and through discussions with pupils.  The inspector considered the views of parents shared through Ofsted’s online questionnaire, Parent View. They gathered the views of pupils and staff through surveys, interviews and discussions conducted throughout the inspection.  The inspector reviewed a range of the school’s documentation, including self-evaluation reports, minutes of governing body meetings and behaviour incident logs.

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Inspection team

Chris Parker, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector 7 and 8 March 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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