St Lawrence CofE Aided Junior School, East Molesey

Inspection of a good school: St Lawrence C of E Aided Junior School, East Molesey Church Road, East Molesey, Surrey KT8 9DR

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Inspection dates: 14 and 15 November 2023

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Outcome

St Lawrence C of E Aided Junior School, East Molesey continues to be a good school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils behave exceptionally well in this aspirational school. They show great kindness and consideration to all. Pupils have a deep-rooted knowledge of the school’s values. They welcome visitors warmly to the school and show genuine concern for all pupils and adults. Pupils know the high expectations that teachers have and work very hard to fulfil them. They walk calmly through the school and play cooperatively. Pupils respond very positively to the rewards system and show great excitement when staff recognise their good conduct. Pupils feel safe and enjoy coming to school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils participate excitedly in lessons. They recall their number facts through ‘rolling numbers’ performances in mathematics and skilfully play the xylophone in music. Pupils share their learning in pairs or when answering challenging questions. They show high levels of concentration in their work. Pupils produce high-quality work and achieve well.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils have a strong understanding of concepts such as democracy and the rule of law. They visit the Royal Courts of Justice and plan campaigns to become ‘headteacher for the day’. Pupils aspire to hold the varied leadership roles on offer and show great pride in the positions they hold. They know that leaders listen to them and that they can affect change in the school.

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

The school has carefully designed its ambitious curriculum. Pupils enjoy a full range of subjects and work towards their teachers’ very high expectations. They have a deep understanding of the subjects that they learn. Pupils recall number facts fluently and use vocabulary accurately when describing their responses to pieces of music. Staff question pupils skilfully to check their understanding. Gaps in learning are quickly identified and pupils receive support to ensure that these gaps do not widen. However, in some subjects, teachers do not use assessment well enough to ensure that pupils remember what they have previously learned. As a result, pupils do not always recall important knowledge in the long term consistently well. 14 and 15 November 2023

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All pupils, including pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities, write extensively, using vocabulary accurately to express their views and further their learning. Pupils’ work shows that they become increasingly sophisticated in the ideas that they have. Pupils thrive in the rich reading culture of the school. Staff model strategies to help pupils become fluent and confident readers. Pupils talk passionately about the stories that they read. Those who fall behind in their reading quickly receive effective support from knowledgeable staff.

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Staff explain learning and activities clearly. They demonstrate useful solutions for common misconceptions in mathematics and strategies to develop fluency in reading. Teachers check pupils’ prior knowledge thoroughly and build on this with complex questions. All pupils respond enthusiastically to these questions.

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Pupils show incredibly positive attitudes to learning. They listen attentively to instructions and respond quickly and purposefully. Pupils show great independence in organising themselves. For example, they quickly tidy away equipment in the music room ready for the next class. Pupils attend frequently, and staff speak regularly to parents, offering a wide range of support to improve attendance for all groups of pupils.

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The school has clear aspirations for pupils to become confident and independent. The ‘12 by 12’ programme gives pupils a rich range of activities beyond the curriculum. All pupils perform on stage or build their resilience on challenging residentials. Pupils participate in complex moral discussions, confidently and appropriately challenging others’ views. Pupils develop their skills and talents through a large number of clubs, including times tables and futsal clubs, and some are proud to represent the school in these activities.

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Parents are very positive about the school. They know that the high expectations and rich range of activities prepare pupils well for their next steps. Staff develop their knowledge and leadership skills through a variety of high-quality training. They feel very well supported by leaders and know that leaders value their views and act on them. The school makes meaningful changes to working practices to manage staff workloads.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 In some subjects, teachers’ assessment does not support pupils to remember as much as they could over time. As a result, pupils occasionally do not retain key aspects of their learning. Leaders should ensure that assessment in these subjects supports pupils in retaining and recalling more of the knowledge and skills that they have previously learned. 14 and 15 November 2023

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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 November 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.

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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). 14 and 15 November 2023

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Website www.stlawrence-junior.surrey.sch.uk

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School details

Date of previous inspection 2 May 2018, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 St Lawrence Church of England Aided Junior School is a Church of England voluntary- aided school. The school’s most recent section 48 Statutory Inspection of Anglican and Methodist Schools took place in December 2016. The next section 48 inspection should take place before December 2024.  The school currently uses one unregistered alternative provision.  The school provides breakfast and after-school clubs for pupils.

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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 deputy headteacher. The inspector met with other leaders and staff. The inspector also held telephone conversations with representatives of the local authority and the diocese. 14 and 15 November 2023

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 The inspector carried out deep dives in the following subjects: reading, mathematics and music. The inspector also sampled pupils’ work in history and geography. For each deep dive, the inspector held discussions about the curriculum, visited a sample of lessons, spoke to teachers, spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work.  To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding, the inspector: reviewed the single central record; took account of the views of leaders, staff and pupils; and considered the extent to which the school has created an open and positive culture around safeguarding that puts pupils’ interests first.

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Inspection team

Gavin Thomas, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector 14 and 15 November 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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