Stalham Infant School and Nursery

Inspection of a good school: Stalham Infant School and Nursery Old Yarmouth Rd, Stalham Green, Stalham, Norwich, Norfolk NR12 9PS

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Outcome

Stalham Infant School and Nursery continues to be a good school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils love attending school. They are appropriately supported by the adults who care for them. They know how to stay safe. Pupils are kind to each other. If there are any small fallouts, adults quickly intervene and make sure that everyone gets along.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are supported to achieve highly in lessons. They generally behave very well. They pay attention to the teacher and work sensibly. Pupils who need more assistance to focus are helped by adults to manage their emotions. During social time, pupils play in a well- equipped outside area. They enjoy being active and make use of the large variety of games and equipment that is on offer.

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What is it like to attend this school?

There are a wide range of trips and activities that pupils enjoy being involved in. Pupils speak animatedly about taking part in interesting museum visits and sports clubs.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils receive a good start to their education. In early years, they benefit from a well- designed physical environment. Children love developing their physical skills through a range of activities such as using pedal toys and gardening. They are supported to develop their imagination and curiosity. They play happily with their peers.

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

Leaders have designed a well-planned curriculum that supports pupils to succeed. Leaders have largely identified the different skills and knowledge that pupils need to acquire to achieve well. They regularly review the curriculum to ensure that the small steps that pupils need to learn are planned in sufficient detail. This allows teachers to accurately carry out checks that identify any gaps that pupils may have in their understanding. Teachers use the information to then adapt their teaching where needed to support pupils to achieve.

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

In the best subjects, adults are skilled at supporting pupils to learn the content of the curriculum. Pupils can remember what they have been taught and are confident about 6 July 2023

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how well they are doing. For example, in Year 2, pupils received questions based on a book extract. The questions gradually got harder. They had been taught effective strategies for how to work out the answers and were able to do well. In some subjects, leaders have not ensured that teachers and support staff have received enough training to consistently implement the curriculum effectively. This means that adults do not always use the most effective methods or resources to ensure that all pupils do as well as they should.

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In Nursery, adults are confident in delivering a curriculum that is designed effectively to meet children’s developmental needs. Children are well cared for and happy. Adults have a good understanding of how to support children to develop across different areas, including physically and socially. There are a wide range of activities that children like to use, either independently or with adult guidance. They are well prepared for Reception.

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Leaders ensure that reading is prioritised from the early years. In Nursery, children happily listen to stories and practise sounds. From Reception, children learn phonics. There is a well-designed programme in place to ensure pupils become confident readers. Teachers quickly identify any pupils who are struggling. Any pupil who falls behind then receives additional support to keep up. Pupils are very positive about reading. They enthusiastically discuss the books they enjoy, and they read regularly at home and school. There is some inconsistency in how adults support weaker readers. For a small minority of pupils, this slows down their progress towards reading fluency.

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Adults are confident in how to identify and support pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities. They ensure that pupils are helped to access the curriculum along with their peers. Pupils who require a higher level of adult support are equally well provided for. This may include working in small groups, or adaptations to lessons. This means they do well.

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Adults set clear expectations which are understood by all pupils. This ensures that pupils’ behaviour is good in lessons and social time. Pupils love learning and are keen to succeed.

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Leaders have carefully planned a curriculum for pupils’ wider development. The ‘Stalham Sixty’ programme includes a range of experiences that all pupils will benefit from before they leave. Pupils are highly complimentary about this offer and how the activities develop their interests and skills. Leaders have ensured that pupils have an age- appropriate understanding of similarities and differences between each other. This has helped to ensure that pupils show good levels of acceptance and tolerance.

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Those responsible for governance are ambitious for the school. They have ensured that they have secure processes in place to challenge and support leaders. Parents and staff are overwhelmingly positive about the school.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective. 6 July 2023

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Leaders have robust procedures in place to ensure that pupils who may be at risk of harm are given the support they need. They keep accurate records of actions that they have taken. If communication with external agencies and families is needed, this happens promptly.

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Staff are well trained and confident in raising any safeguarding concerns.

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Leaders have ensured that the appropriate checks are carried out for adults who work with children.

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Pupils talk confidently, at a level that is appropriate for their age, about how to stay safe online and offline.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Sometimes adults do not use the most effective methods to ensure all pupils learn as well as they should. This includes for a small number of pupils who find reading difficult. As a result, a minority of pupils are making slower progress through the curriculum and not doing as well as they should. Leaders should ensure that all adults know how to support all pupils to learn well in every subject.

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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 predecessor school, Stalham Community Infant and Pre-school, to be good in March 2013.

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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. 6 July 2023

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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. 6 July 2023

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School details

Inspection number 10286284 Type of school Primary

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School details

Date of previous inspection Not previously inspected

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Information about this school

 The school provides provision for children from two years old.  The school does not currently use any alternative providers.

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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 carried out deep dives in early reading, mathematics and geography. For each deep dive, inspectors discussed the curriculum with subject leaders, visited a sample of lessons, spoke with teachers, spoke with some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work.  Inspectors also scrutinised pupils’ books from a range of different subjects.  Inspectors met with staff responsible for the administration of the single central record of recruitment and vetting checks. They also met with the designated safeguarding leads to discuss the arrangements that are in place to safeguard pupils. Inspectors 6 July 2023

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scrutinised the school’s safeguarding records and spoke to trustees regarding safeguarding.  Inspectors met with pupils to discuss their experience of school, including clubs, behaviour and bullying.  Inspectors reviewed the school’s curriculum plans for pupils’ personal development and early years.  Inspectors met with trustees and scrutinised a range of documents relating to school improvement.  Inspectors considered 21 responses to Ofsted’s online pupil survey. Inspectors took account of 82 responses to Ofsted Parent View, including 50 free-text responses. Inspectors also considered 29 responses to Ofsted’s staff survey.

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Inspection team

Bessie Owen, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Chris Stainsby His Majesty’s Inspector 6 July 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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