Stamshaw Infant Academy

Inspection of a good school: Stamshaw Infant Academy North End Avenue, Portsmouth, Hampshire PO2 8NW

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Inspection dates: 19 and 20 September 2023

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Outcome

Stamshaw Infant Academy continues to be a good school.

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Outcome

The headteacher of this school is Jo Cooper. This school is part of University of Chichester Academy Trust, which means other people in the trust also have responsibility for running the school. The trust is run by the chief executive officer, Jennese Alozie, and overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by Jane Longmore.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils flourish at Stamshaw Infants. The tangible family ethos means that pupils love coming to school and feel safe. They appreciate the high levels of care staff provide them. The school values of ‘self-belief, respect, teamwork, creativity and success’ are evident in pupils’ everyday experiences.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils’ conduct is exemplary. They are rightly proud of their school and embody leaders’ high expectations of them. Children in the early years get off to a great start, settling quickly and learning school routines. Breaktimes are busy and pupils enjoy the range of equipment on the playground, which encourages them to be active. Incidents of unkindness are extremely rare. Pupils are kind and considerate of each other. They are quick to praise their peers and delight in the accomplishment of others.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school provides a variety of clubs that develop children’s interests, and these are well attended by all. Pupils enjoy their subjects, which they find stimulating and exciting. Visits, such as to Arundel Castle and Portsmouth Dockyard, help bring learning to life.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Parents are unanimously happy with the experiences their children are provided with. One parent, summing up the views of many, said this school was full of ‘ever smiling and welcoming teachers’.

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

The provision for pupils’ personal development is exceptional. In particular, the pastoral support is a strength. Leaders have developed effective partnerships with pupils and their families, to provide a ‘safe haven’ where pupils can flourish. The school’s curriculum provides pupils with a shared language to express how they are feeling. This helps them 19 and 20 September 2023

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speak up and seek help if they are worried. Pupils are encouraged to care for all members of their community. They are eager to help, for example, as playground pals or active participants on the school council. They also take care of the school’s guinea pigs, a special task that pupils love. These roles help establish a strong sense of belonging and collective responsibility. As a result, pupils develop as well-rounded individuals.

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Pupils love to read. This is because the school has prioritised early reading. Pupils learn phonics through a well-structured and consistent approach. In Reception, children delight in learning the sounds letters make and are soon reading words. If children fall behind, swift action is taken to ensure they are able to catch up. Throughout the school, pupils are immersed in rich experiences of literature. They enjoy trips to the local library and interacting with authors who visit the school. In addition, pupils particularly relish their daily story time, when their teachers bring the characters in stories to life.

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Pupils achieve well across the curriculum, including the early years. Teachers choose activities that deepen pupils’ understanding. They explain ideas and concepts in ways that help pupils learn complex ideas. For example, in the early years, teachers use pictures from home and large timelines to teach children about past and present. During lessons, teachers make useful checks on how well pupils are learning. In class, adults provide pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities, high-quality support and guidance.

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The school’s curriculum is highly ambitious and inclusive. Plans for learning prioritise developing pupils’ language and communication. In the early years, children’s knowledge is built progressively and their understanding develops, ensuring they are well prepared for Year 1. Assessment tracks pupils’ progress accurately across the curriculum. This enables leaders to quickly identify pupils’ additional needs. In many subjects, leaders have exactly identified the knowledge pupils are to learn. In these subjects, pupils routinely revisit key facts and their learning is secure. However, in a small number of subjects, the school has not yet identified precisely what is to be taught. Pupils are not routinely encouraged to make links with prior learning. In these subjects, pupils do not always achieve as well as they could.

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School leaders are highly ambitious for all. They have built strong links with the community they serve. Staff feel valued and well supported. They appreciate the opportunities to access high-quality training and leaders’ investment in their professional development. Throughout the school, there is a strong culture of mutual support and teamwork. One teacher, reflecting the view of many, stated the school is ‘a much-loved workplace’.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective. 19 and 20 September 2023

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 In a few foundation subjects, the school has not defined the most important knowledge that pupils must remember. As a result, pupils do not recall their prior learning as well as they could in these subjects. The school should ensure that pupils get sufficient chance to revisit vital learning, so that they retain and build on it over time.

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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 predecessor school, Stamshaw Infant School, to be good in December 2014.

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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’ is used to mean pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND); pupils who meet the definition of children in need of help and protection ; pupils receiving statutory local authority support from a social worker; and pupils who otherwise meet the criteria used for deciding the school’s pupil premium funding (this includes pupils claiming free school meals at any point in the last six years, looked after children (children in local authority care) and/or children who left care through adoption or another formal route). 19 and 20 September 2023

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School details

Date of previous inspection Not previously inspected

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Information about this school

 The school is part of the University of Chichester Academy Trust. The school converted to an academy in March 2019.  The school manages before- and after-school childcare provision.  Currently, the school does not use alternative providers.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspections are a point-in-time judgement about the quality of a school’s education provision.  This was the first routine inspection the school received since the COVID-19 pandemic began. The inspector discussed the impact of the pandemic with the school and has taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  The inspector met with the headteacher and other senior leaders. She also met with members of the governing body and representatives from trust.  The inspector carried out deep dives in these subjects: early reading, mathematics and history. For each deep dive, the inspector discussed the curriculum with subject 19 and 20 September 2023

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leaders, visited a sample of lessons, spoke to teachers, spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work.  During the inspection, the inspector met with a range of pupils to discuss their views about the school and talked to them informally during social times.  To inspect safeguarding, the inspector spoke to the safeguarding leader and scrutinised a wide range of information, including a selection of the school’s records. She also spoke to staff and pupils about safeguarding and looked at how pupils learn to keep safe.  The inspector met some parents to gain their views of the school. She reviewed the responses to Ofsted Parent View. The inspector also took account of staff responses to Ofsted’s online questionnaire.

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Inspection team

Laura James, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector 19 and 20 September 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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