Moordown St John's Church of England Primary School

Inspection of a good school: Moordown St John’s Church of England Primary School Vicarage Road, Moordown, Bournemouth, Dorset BH9 2SA

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Outcome

Moordown St John’s Church of England Primary School continues to be a good school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy coming to Moordown St John’s Primary School. Pupils understand how teachers keep them safe and know they can talk to them if they have any worries. Pupils say that their teachers make learning fun. They are proud of the school’s values of kindness, patience and joy. They talk about having an important voice in the school. Parents and carers say that leaders create a ‘community spirit’ and ensure that their children thrive.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are well mannered and courteous. They treat each other well and understand what makes a good friend. Relationships between pupils and staff are warm and respectful. Pupils know if there are friendship issues, they can speak to a member of staff who will support them.

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What is it like to attend this school?

In most cases, teachers have high expectations of all pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Most pupils respond well to this and remain focused throughout lessons. Bullying is rare at Moordown St John’s. Pupils say that being a ‘courageous advocate’ helps them to be role models of good behaviour.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy trips, such as visits to the Winchester Science Centre, to learn about space and constellation stories. They enjoy their role as committee leaders for the school’s parliament and are proud of the projects they have organised.

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

Leaders have set out an ambitious curriculum. They have defined the key concepts and themes that pupils need to learn. Leaders create opportunities for pupils to deepen their understanding. As a result, pupils enjoy learning and feel well supported. For instance, pupils in Year 1 can talk about the impact of language in their reading lessons, which help them understand stories better. Pupils in Year 5 can talk about themes of empire and 11 and 12 July 2023

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kingdoms in history to learn how the Romans conquered the Ancient Greeks. Teachers use assessment to make sure that pupils receive the right support. In a few areas of the curriculum, assessment is less well developed. This means that teachers do not have precise information about how pupils can learn the whole curriculum.

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Leaders have prioritised reading in the school. Pupils say they love reading. They are looking forward to the opening of their new library. Phonics teaching begins in the early years. Staff are well trained in the phonics programme and ensure that the curriculum is taught well. Pupils can accurately decode and blend. As a result, pupils read with fluency and are able to read complex words. Staff ensure that pupils access the books they need to practise their phonics. They have invested in new books so that pupils can develop their love of reading. Pupils talk about inference in their reading sessions and how ‘secret messages’ can be found in stories to help them understand characters and plots.

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Leaders and teachers prioritise pupils who require additional support. Learning is adapted for pupils with SEND. This is a strength of the school. Parents appreciate the contributions they can make at regular review meetings. They feel that their children receive the support they need to learn well.

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Where teachers have high expectations of pupils’ attitudes to learning, pupils focus well. When teachers’ expectations are not high enough, pupils’ learning is sometimes disturbed. Pupils’ ideas are valued and they enjoy sharing their experiences. This usually creates a calm atmosphere for learning.

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Leaders provide pupils with a range of opportunities that support their personal development. Pupils are proud of their school parliament and how they have a real impact locally and internationally. For instance, they raise funds for charities to support children in Africa. Pupils enjoy their trips to the local area, where they study food chains and rivers. They say that it enhances their learning.

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The trust provides effective challenge for school leaders over the impact of the curriculum. It ensures that pupils and staff have the essential resources to support learning. Staff feel that school leaders give them time to develop their practice. Additionally, staff feel that their well-being and workload are well considered by leaders. Staff are proud to work at the school.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Leaders ensure that all staff have had the necessary checks and training to keep pupils safe. Safeguarding practices are robust and known by all staff. This approach creates a culture of support throughout the school. Leaders work swiftly with external agencies to ensure that vulnerable pupils and families have the support they need.

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Safeguarding

Pupils know how to explore online material safely. They talk about not sharing personal information and know not to search for inappropriate material. Pupils are knowledgeable about cyber-bullying and know to talk to a trusted adult if issues arise. 11 and 12 July 2023

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Teachers’ expectations of behaviour are not consistently high enough. As a result, pupils can sometimes become disruptive. This has an impact on learning for other pupils. Leaders need to ensure that expectations of behaviour are consistent, so that all pupils can learn well.  In a few curriculum subjects, teachers do not use assessment well enough. This limits the information they have about what pupils know and remember. Leaders should continue with their plans to improve assessment so that teachers design learning based on what pupils already know.

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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 second ungraded inspection since we judged the school to be good in January 2018.

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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. 11 and 12 July 2023

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School details

Local authority Bournemouth, Christchurch & Poole

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School details

Date of previous inspection 17 January 2018

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Information about this school

 Moordown St John’s is a Church of England school in the diocese of Winchester. At its most recent section 48 inspection, carried out in May 2022, the school was judged to be good.  The school is a single academy trust and is part of a partnership of schools in Bournemouth.  The school does not use any alternative provision.  The school has recently appointed a new headteacher to start in autumn 2023.  The school welcomes pupils from 12 different pre-school settings.

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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 his evaluation of the school.  The inspector met with the acting headteacher, the acting deputy headteacher, special educational needs leaders, subject leaders, a group of staff, representatives of the board of directors and the school’s improvement advisers. 11 and 12 July 2023

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 The inspector carried out deep dives in these subjects: early reading, mathematics and history. For each deep dive, the inspector met with subject leaders; visited lessons across the school, spoke to teachers; spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work.  A wide range of documents were scrutinised, including those relating to safeguarding, behaviour, school self-evaluation and curriculum documentation. The inspector also spoke with staff and pupils throughout the inspection about safeguarding and behaviour.  The inspector reviewed responses to Ofsted Parent View, Ofsted’s online survey, including the free-text responses. The inspector also spoke to some parents and carers and considered responses to staff and pupil surveys.

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Inspection team

Darren Preece, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector 11 and 12 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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