Bishopswood Junior School

Inspection of a good school: Bishopswood Junior School Barlows Road, Tadley, Hampshire RG26 3NA

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Outcome

Bishopswood Junior School continues to be a good school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy being part of the community at Bishopswood Junior School. They form positive and warm relationships. These are the hallmark of the school’s life, contributing towards pupils being happy and safe. Pupils behave well in lessons and listen carefully to their teachers. There are clear routines around behaviour, and teachers apply these consistently.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), respond well to staff’s high expectations of their work and behaviour. Pupils talk about how the values of the school help them. For example, ‘respect’ reminds them that they should take time and effort over their work.

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What is it like to attend this school?

At break and lunchtimes, pupils play together with their friends from across the federation on the tyre track and trim trail. Pupils enjoy the roles of responsibility they have in school. They are confident that adults listen to the opinions of pupil leaders to make the school even better. Reading ambassadors are proud of their role in selecting interesting books for the library.

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

The school has designed a broad and ambitious curriculum for all pupils, including those with SEND. Teachers set learning challenges that capture the imaginations of pupils and help them to make links between the subjects they are learning. Strong relationships between adults and pupils mean that classrooms are happy and positive working environments. As a result, low-level disruption is rare. Teachers have secure subject knowledge. Consequently, they are able to teach the curriculum with confidence. They regularly check and revisit what pupils should know. This helps pupils to remember what they have learned. Teachers adapt their teaching so that all pupils, including those with SEND, can access the curriculum. Staff are deployed effectively to support the needs of those with education, health and care plans. Teachers identify gaps and misconceptions swiftly and use their subject expertise to address these. In mathematics, teachers offer a

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rich and challenging curriculum. However, the teaching of number facts and timetables is not as consistently strong as it could be. This means that not all pupils become fluent in recalling these key pieces of information as quickly as they could.

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Pupils develop a love of reading because they learn that it is really important. The school uses every opportunity to promote reading, including ‘book cafes’ and the celebration of reading in weekly assemblies. Adults read to pupils regularly, and books are carefully selected to build vocabulary and interest. Those who are still at the early stages of learning to read receive daily phonics lessons from well-trained teachers. The books they read are matched to the sounds that they are learning. All pupils are encouraged to read at home and to staff in school. Pupils are also supported by well-trained volunteers, both in person and via online platforms. This means that all pupils read aloud regularly, which boosts their confidence and fluency.

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Pupils benefit from a broad range of opportunities that stretch and develop pupils’ talents and interests. For example, during their time at the school, all pupils receive specialist music tuition in three different instruments. They also benefit from a range of clubs and activities, ranging from sports to crafts. The school has planned and implemented a clear social, moral, spiritual and cultural (SMSC) curriculum. Pupils are confident that Bishopswood Junior School is a tolerant and inclusive community. However, leaders have not chosen the key content of some elements of the world’s faiths that they want pupils to remember. As a result, some pupils do not understand enough about different religions.

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Staff are proud to work at the school. They value the emphasis placed on their well-being and the support that they receive to develop professionally. Governors have an accurate understanding of the priorities of the school and challenge senior leaders well.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

During the inspection, it was found that there were some minor inconsistencies in the recording of concerns by staff. These were rectified before the end of the inspection.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 There are minor inconsistencies in the implementation of the agreed pedagogical approaches in mathematics. This means that not all pupils recall number facts as well as they could. The school should ensure that all staff get the support they need to deliver the intended curriculum.  The school has not chosen the most important content it wants pupils to recall in some areas of their work to enhance pupils SMSC development. This means that pupils do not understand enough about the selected world faiths. The school should ensure that 3 and 4 October 2023

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key content is identified and revisited so that pupils are more fully equipped for life in modern Britain.

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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 the school to be good in November 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). 3 and 4 October 2023

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Date of previous inspection 24 May 2018, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The school is federated with the adjacent infant school. It is in formal collaboration with three other schools. The executive headteacher leads all the schools.  The school does not currently use any alternative provision.  The governing body manages a before- and after-school club shared with the other school in the federation.

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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 executive headteacher, school leaders, staff and pupils.  The inspector met with four governors, including the chair of the governing body. 3 and 4 October 2023

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 The inspector held a telephone conversation with a representative from Hampshire local authority.  The inspector carried out deep dives in these subjects: early reading, mathematics and music. 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 explored the school’s safeguarding culture through considering safeguarding records and procedures, meeting with a range of pupils and staff, and talking to safeguarding leaders.  The inspector considered the 31 responses to the confidential staff survey and spoke to a range of staff about their views of the school.  The inspector took account of the 43 responses and 26 free-text responses to the Ofsted Parent View questionnaire. The inspector talked with some parents on the afternoon of the second day of the inspection.

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 The inspector considered 43 responses to the pupil survey. The inspector met with a range of pupils to discuss their views about the school and talked to pupils informally during social times and in lessons.

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Inspection team

Lizzie Jeanes, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector 3 and 4 October 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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