King's Furlong Infant School and Nursery

Inspection of King's Furlong Infant School and Nursery Upper Chestnut Drive, Basingstoke, Hampshire RG21 8YJ

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Overall effectiveness Requires improvement

The quality of education Requires improvement Behaviour and attitudes Good Personal development Good Leadership and management Requires improvement Early years provision Good Previous inspection grade Requires improvement 16 and 17 May 2023

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What is it like to attend this school?

Everyone is valued and welcome at this school. There is a real focus on inclusion and celebration of what makes each pupil unique. Pupils recognise this and know that no one is treated differently because of who they are. At playtimes, pupils are sociable. They enjoy using the wide variety of equipment available and understand the importance of taking turns.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are proud of the positions of responsibility they have in school. This includes taking care of the school guinea pigs, Cookie and Oreo. As lunchtime monitors, pupils help to maintain a calm atmosphere in the dining hall. Leaders have high expectations for pupils’ behaviour. Pupils talk proudly about moving their name up to the shooting star. Sometimes, pupils’ behaviour is not in line with what staff expect. When this happens, adults generally deal with it swiftly.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Weaknesses in the curriculum mean that pupils do not achieve as well as they could. The key things that pupils need to remember over time have not been identified precisely enough. Pupils do not learn to read as quickly as they should. This means that some pupils struggle to access the books they are given.

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better?

In the early years, children get off to a strong start. Expert teaching in Nursery means that children begin to learn the routines of school life. They happily explore the environment. Adults use careful questioning to deepen children’s understanding. For example, in one Reception class, inspectors saw staff using ‘shorter’ and ‘longer’ to help children to order objects. There is a strong focus on developing children’s communication and language. Leaders have identified the key skills and knowledge that children in the early years must know. Teachers design activities that are well matched to this.

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better?

The curriculum beyond the early years, however, does not identify what pupils should know precisely enough. It is not always clear what pupils need to learn. Teachers’ subject knowledge is variable. As such, tasks in lessons do not consistently help pupils to achieve well. Staff need more support to make sure that they are teaching the right things in the most effective way. The checks that they make during sessions do not always give a clear picture of what pupils know. Leaders have a sharp focus on identifying the needs of pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). They make sure that there are plans in place so these pupils can access learning. However, pupils with SEND do not learn as well as they could due to the weaknesses in the curriculum.

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better?

Pupils do not learn to read quickly enough. There is a scheme in place which has four coherent parts. Teachers use this structure but there is too much variability in how well they do this. As a result, a number of pupils become disengaged during phonics sessions. Teachers do not check the sounds that pupils have learned accurately enough. This means that pupils are being given books that they cannot 16 and 17 May 2023

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read as these are not matched to the sounds they know. The support that staff give to pupils during independent reading sessions does not always use the most effective strategies. This can be confusing for these pupils, many of whom are the most vulnerable learners.

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Leaders model high expectations for behaviour. Staff have had training to help them manage behaviour effectively. Pupils understand the shared strategies that are used throughout the school. There are positive relationships between staff and pupils. These begin in Nursery. Most staff use the behaviour policy well but there are times when it is not used consistently.

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Pupils’ personal development has the highest priority in school. The curriculum celebrates difference and raises cultural awareness. There is a focus on representing the culture of all pupils. This includes celebrating the different languages pupils speak and learning about festivals. Leaders choose trips and visitors to give pupils experiences that they would not otherwise have.

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Leaders’ vision for all pupils to achieve well is not being realised due to the current weaknesses within the curriculum. Until recently, there has been reduced capacity within the governing body. This has resulted in governors having an overly positive picture. They do provide challenge to leaders, but they do not have an accurate strategic oversight of the quality of education in the school. During the headteacher’s planned absence, turbulence in leadership and staffing resulted in a period of instability for the school.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Leaders have ensured that there is a culture of vigilance. Staff place great emphasis on understanding the needs of pupils. They are alert to the signs of potential abuse and share their concerns using the agreed systems. Leaders take appropriate actions to support pupils getting the help they need. A safeguarding focus during weekly briefing sessions ensures that safeguarding remains a priority for all staff. Governors understand their statutory duties around safeguarding and provide both support and challenge to leaders in this area.

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Safeguarding

Pupils understand how to stay safe. They give examples around road safety as well as how to use technology safely. 16 and 17 May 2023

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 There is variability in the teaching of early reading. Staff do not consistently support the weakest readers to learn to read quickly and fluently. Leaders need to ensure that all staff use the same agreed approach in teaching early reading, including matching the books pupils read to the sounds they know.  In some subjects, leaders have not yet identified and sequenced all of the key content that teachers need to teach. Teachers do not consistently plan tasks to build pupils’ knowledge systematically. Leaders need to continue to review and refine the curriculum and prioritise improving teachers’ subject knowledge so that pupils can achieve well across every subject.  Teachers checks on pupils’ learning in foundation subjects are not precise enough. This means that learning is not always tailored to what pupils already know. Leaders need to refine the assessment systems so that teachers can identify where any gaps are and adjust next steps accordingly.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 There has been limited capacity in the governing body. As a result, governors do not always have an accurate view of the quality of education. They need to ensure that their monitoring identifies key areas for improvement and the progress made towards these.

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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. 16 and 17 May 2023

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School details

Inspection number 10268284 Type of school Infant

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Chair of governing body Richard Lilleker

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School details

Website www.kingsfurlong-inf.hants.sch.uk

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School details

Date of previous inspection 12 to 13 September 2019, under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The school does not currently use any alternative provision.  The chair of governors took up the role in May 2023.  The headteacher has had a period of planned absence during this academic year.

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Information about this inspection

The inspector(s) 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, the deputy headteacher and the senior teacher. They also met with staff and pupils.  The lead inspector met with five governors, including the chair of the governing body. Inspectors also spoke with a representative from Hampshire local authority. 16 and 17 May 2023

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 The inspection team carried out deep dives in these subjects: early reading, mathematics, music and geography. 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 also reviewed curriculum plans and spoke to leaders about other subject areas.  To inspect safeguarding, inspectors checked the single central record of recruitment checks and talked to leaders responsible for safeguarding. Inspectors also talked to a range of staff and pupils informally.  The inspection team considered the responses to the confidential staff survey and spoke to a range of staff about their views of the school.  Inspectors took account of the 36 responses to the Ofsted Parent View questionnaire and the additional 20 free-text responses. An inspector talked with

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some parents on the second morning of the inspection.  The inspection team met with a range of pupils to discuss their views about the school and talked to pupils informally during social times and in lessons.  Inspectors reviewed a range of documentation, including the school professional development plan and pupil premium funding plan.

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Inspection team

Sara Staggs, lead inspector His Majesty's Inspector

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Inspection team

Toby Martlew His Majesty's Inspector 16 and 17 May 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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