Mundesley Junior School

Inspection of a good school: Mundesley Junior School Trunch Road, Mundesley, Norwich, Norfolk NR11 8LE

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Outcome

Mundesley Junior School continues to be a good school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are quick to say they enjoy attending school. They feel part of a community because they know they are safe and have a wide range of opportunities available to them. Pupils are polite and kind to staff, visitors and each other. Parents also speak very positively about the school and would recommend it to others.

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What is it like to attend this school?

School leaders have high expectations of the pupils. Teachers are very clear that they want the best for all pupils. This is reflected in planning and support for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Teachers talk positively with children and are role models. Pupils know what is expected of them.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school has clear rules that pupils understand. As a result, pupils behave well during lessons and social times. Pupils say that bullying is rare and that if it does happen teachers deal with it quickly.

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What is it like to attend this school?

There are close links between the junior school, infant school and specialist resource base (The Beacon) which share a site. Key stage 2 pupils often support pupils in the infant school. Infant pupils take part in opportunities at the junior school to support their transition to ‘big school’.

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

The curriculum is sequenced well and is broad and balanced. This means that pupils build their knowledge gradually and can explain their learning easily. In some subjects, it is not always clear what is the most important information pupils should be learning. The approach to learning is not always consistent between teachers and the impact of assessment is not always effective.

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

The reading programme is well planned. Leaders work closely with the infant school to identify those pupils who need extra support. Leaders prioritise reading and have invested 14 March 2023

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in a wide variety of books, including fiction, non-fiction and poetry. Pupils enjoy reading and most are confident to read to each other and to adults. Most pupils read regularly in school and at home, although older readers read less often in school. In Year 3, pupils can read confidently to one another and explain in detail what they are reading.

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Pupils can usually learn well because their behaviour is excellent. Lessons are calm. Teachers and pupils have a positive relationship. This means that pupils ask and respond to questions.

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The school is ambitious for all pupils. Pupils with SEND are well supported by the school. There are good relationships and regular contact between the school and parents. Support for pupils with SEND in lessons enables them to make strong progress. For those with very significant needs, specialised intervention is available which helps them to attend and thrive in mainstream classes.

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Pupils say there are a wide variety of activities available to them. While the pandemic reduced the number of opportunities, pupils are still able to enjoy day trips and residential visits. Pupils benefit from weekly enrichment sessions in addition to after-school clubs. The school provides a high-quality programme for personal, social and health education. External experts provide support to this programme. Pupils can speak about this in detail and were able to describe their current homelessness topic and the impact this had had on them.

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Staff speak positively about the leadership team. Leaders take their responsibility towards staff seriously. Teachers and support staff take part in regular planned training and do not feel their workload is excessive. The federation to which the school belongs provides a range of training opportunities. These are designed to promote staff skills, pupil learning and support well-being.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Pupils feel safe in school. They know how to raise a concern and are confident it will be dealt with quickly. Pupils are taught to protect themselves online through a well-planned teaching programme. Leaders ensure that effective safer recruitment systems are in place and that all staff are trained appropriately to identify and respond to concerns. Pupils who are at risk are identified quickly. The school works effectively with the local authority to support these pupils. Governors work closely with school leaders to promote a culture of safeguarding. They challenge and support leaders to prioritise pupils’ welfare.

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 In some foundation subjects, leaders do not clarify their expectations of the fundamental knowledge they intend pupils to learn. This means that not all pupils secure a sufficient breadth of subject knowledge. Leaders should review the curriculum to ensure fundamental knowledge is prioritised.  Assessment in the foundation subjects is not closely linked to the key knowledge that leaders intend pupils to learn. As a result, it is not possible to accurately assess pupils’ progress and make focused adaptations where needed. Leaders need to ensure that assessment activities closely match subject content.

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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/outstanding. 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 March 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.

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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. 14 March 2023

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School details

Inspection number 10241551 Type of school Junior

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provision

Appropriate authority The governing body

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provision

Chair of governing body Steve Lunniss/Mike Blake

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provision

Date of previous inspection 22 March 2017, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The school is part of the Coastal Together Federation.  The school shares a site with Mundesley Infant School, and The Beacon; a base for pupils with additional needs.

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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 has taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  The inspector met with the head of schools and other staff. Inspectors also met the Executive Headteacher and spoke with a representative from the local authority.  The inspector carried out deep dives in these subjects: early reading, mathematics and geography. For each deep dive, the inspector met with subject leaders, looked at 14 March 2023

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curriculum planning, visited a sample of lessons, spoke to teachers, spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work.  To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding, inspectors spoke with staff and pupils. The lead inspector met with the designated safeguarding lead to review their knowledge, records and actions. The inspectors also looked at safeguarding records and actions and reviewed information about the safer recruitment of staff.  Pupils were met from different year groups were met with to talk about their learning and experiences at school.  The inspectors reviewed a wide range of documentation provided by the school. This included the school improvement plan, curriculum documentation and school policies.  There were 14 responses to Ofsted’s online questionnaire Parent View, and 13 free-text comments from parents.

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Inspection team

Jonathan Rockey, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Craig Avieson Ofsted Inspector 14 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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