Martham Academy and Nursery

Inspection of a good school: Martham Academy and Nursery Black Street, Martham, Great Yarmouth, Norfolk NR29 4PR

p.1

Outcome

Martham Academy and Nursery continues to be a good school.

p.1

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils work hard and participate collaboratively in lessons. They achieve well in a wide range of subjects by the end of Year 6. This supports them to be well prepared for the next stage of their education.

p.1

What is it like to attend this school?

There are high expectations for pupils’ conduct and behaviour. Pupils successfully live up to these. They are courteous and polite. Pupils know that it is important to share concerns with adults if they are worried. Bullying is rare and pupils trust adults to sort out any bullying if it occurs.

p.1

What is it like to attend this school?

The school grounds have been developed to complement the curriculum and support pupils’ personal development. Pupils are encouraged to assess risks and use their imagination and creativity to play and learn. Playtimes and lunchtimes are sociable, happy occasions with many interesting activities for pupils to enjoy.

p.1

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy a varied range of clubs and extracurricular activities. They play sports and compete nationally, which contributes towards their personal development, being active and knowing how to be healthy.

p.1

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are well looked after. They learn to independently manage and talk about how they feel. This supports their well-being and helps them to be prepared to learn successfully.

p.1

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

Leaders have high expectations for pupils to achieve well. They have reviewed the curriculum and designed clear curriculum plans. These plans detail the specific knowledge and skills that pupils need to know. This helps pupils to learn and remember more.

p.1

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

Teachers have secure subject knowledge. They regularly check what pupils remember and can do through skilful questioning. Teachers use this information to adapt lessons and deal with any misunderstandings pupils may have. Staff make use of pupils’ contributions 19 and 20 April 2023

p.1

2

in lessons to build pupils’ thinking and boost confidence. Pupils show that they understand increasingly complex ideas and can use what they know in a range of contexts.

p.2

2

Reading is a priority. Leaders have recently adopted a new scheme to teach phonics. This is improving how pupils learn to read. Children in the early years have a solid foundation in phonics, which is built on in key stage 1. Pupils who are struggling to read are quickly identified and given support to catch up. Pupils in the earliest stages of learning to read use books that match the sounds and words they know. This helps to build their confidence and ability to read fluently. While the reading curriculum supports pupils to learn to read throughout the school, a love of reading is not as well promoted in key stage 2. For some pupils, these inconsistencies lead to a lack of engagement in reading for pleasure, especially among older readers.

p.2

2

In early years, activities are curriculum-focused to give children an opportunity to learn and practise the skills they need to access the curriculum successfully later in their school life. The learning environment is well set up to promote enjoyment and engagement in these activities. This helps children develop a love of learning and, consequently, be well prepared for their next steps in key stage 1.

p.2

2

Leaders provide effective support for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). They work alongside staff to ensure that activities are suitably adapted and that pupils understand how to be successful at a task. This includes pupils with more complex behavioural needs. Pupils value the additional support they receive. They use the strategies staff teach them to overcome any difficulties with learning. As a result, pupils with SEND become increasingly independent and successful learners, accessing the same curriculum as their peers.

p.2

2

There are high expectations for behaviour throughout the school. Staff and pupils follow the behaviour policy. Staff appreciate the support they are offered by leaders to maintain good behaviour in lessons and around school. Where there is more challenging behaviour, staff follow the school’s procedures, and leaders’ expectations are met. This causes little disruption to learning.

p.2

2

Leaders have considered the curriculum content that ensures pupils’ personal development is a priority. There are opportunities for pupils to learn beyond the classroom. However, the experiences that pupils receive are not always planned to routinely enrich and develop their personal development as well as they could.

p.2

2

Staff share leaders’ vision. They are proud to be part of the Broad Horizons Trust. Staff give examples of how leaders ensure that they have a manageable workload.

p.2

2

Governors are knowledgeable about the school’s strengths and priorities for improvement. They use the information provided by the headteacher to carry out checks for themselves on how school priorities are progressing. This holds leaders to account effectively. 19 and 20 April 2023

p.2

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

p.3

Safeguarding

Leaders maintain safeguarding records carefully and ensure that meticulous checks are made on all new members of staff. Regular and effective training ensures that all staff keep up to date with local and national safeguarding issues. Staff look for signs of potential harm and act swiftly when concerns arise. They understand the system for reporting concerns, and leaders are quick to respond to these. Leaders work hard to ensure that pupils receive the support they need.

p.3

Safeguarding

Pupils have trusting relationships with staff and are taught how to keep themselves safe. They learn about the risks when they are online and how to report any concerns to adults.

p.3

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 While the reading curriculum supports pupils to learn to read throughout the school, a love of reading is not always as well promoted in key stage 2. These inconsistencies lead to a lack of engagement in reading for pleasure for some pupils. Leaders should review how they promote a love of reading and continue to develop strategies to promote reading throughout the school.  There are many opportunities for pupils to broaden their wider development, but the experiences that pupils receive are not always planned to routinely enrich and develop pupils’ personal development as well as they could. Leaders should develop and formalise the planned experiences afforded to pupils so that they are more meaningfully connected to pupils’ learning, to fully reflect leaders’ ambition for pupils’ personal development journey through school.

p.3

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. 19 and 20 April 2023

p.3

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.

p.4

How can I feed back my views?

The Department for Education has further guidance on how to complain about a school.

p.4

Further information

You can search for published performance information about the school.

p.4

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. 19 and 20 April 2023

p.4

School details

Inspection number 10268468 Type of school Primary

p.5

School details

Date of previous inspection 18 and 19 October 2017, under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

p.5

Information about this school

 Martham Academy and Nursery is part of the Broad Horizons Education Trust.  Leaders use one registered alternative provider.  The school has provision for two-year-olds.

p.5

Information about this inspection

 The inspector carried out deep dives in these subjects: early reading, mathematics and geography. For each deep dive, the inspector 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.  The inspector met with representatives of the governing body. Meetings were held with several representatives from the trust, including the chief executive officer, the vice chair of trustees and the executive director of education (leadership and management).  The inspector took account of the 78 responses and free-text comments to the online survey, Ofsted Parent View. The 28 responses to Ofsted’s staff survey were also considered. The inspector spoke to groups of pupils about their experiences of school 19 and 20 April 2023

p.5

6

life and their learning in lessons, to understand what it is like to be a pupil in their school.  A wide range of documentation was reviewed, including curriculum plans, school development plans, policies, and documentation for behaviour and attendance. The inspector spoke with pupils and staff to gather information about the culture of safeguarding at the school.  To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding, the inspector conducted meetings with leaders to discuss the safeguarding of pupils. This included scrutinising the school’s single central record of recruitment and vetting checks.

p.6

Inspection team

Bridget Harrison, lead inspector His Majesty's Inspector 19 and 20 April 2023

p.6

7

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.

p.7

7

If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk .

p.7

7

You may reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/ , write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk .

p.7

7

Interested in our work? You can subscribe to our monthly newsletter for more information and updates: http://eepurl.com/iTrDn .

p.7

7

T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/ofsted

p.7