Lent Rise School

Inspection of a good school: Lent Rise School Coulson Way, Burnham, Slough, Buckinghamshire SL1 7NP

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Outcome

Lent Rise School continues to be a good school. The headteacher of this school is Jillian Watson. This school is part of the Lent Rise Academy Trust which means other people in the trust also have responsibility for running the school. The trust is overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by Maggie Young.

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What is it like to attend this school?

This is a welcoming and inclusive school where staff’s best intentions for pupils’ achievement and well-being are clear. A well-structured curriculum is in place, which is ambitious for all pupils. Pupils, staff, and trustees all keenly embody the school’s values: ‘Learn, Reach, Shine!’ From the early years up, pupils work hard and listen carefully in lessons. As a result, pupils achieve well.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils, including children in the early years, value the strong relationships that they form with supportive staff. This helps the school be a calm place where pupils are valued and treated equally. As a result, pupils feel safe and happy in school. There is very little disruption to lessons or day-to-day school life. Bullying is rare, and pupils are confident that staff will swiftly resolve any concerns that they may have.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The wider development of pupils is a strength. Staff are united in their determination to broaden pupils’ life experiences by providing a broad range of clubs, trips, and experiences. For example, the school runs an ‘intergenerational project’ where pupils visit a local care home to write poetry with older members of the local community. This helps pupils to learn the value of citizenship.

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

The school’s ambitious curriculum demonstrates its commitment to high standards. In each subject, staff have clearly outlined the key content they expect pupils to learn and have organised it carefully so that knowledge builds over time. This supports teachers to know precisely what to teach and when.

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

Teachers have strong subject knowledge. They explain and model new concepts clearly to pupils. They use a variety of engaging activities and resources that help pupils understand 11–12 June 2024

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new learning. Questioning is used well to check pupils’ knowledge and identify misconceptions. Regular use of ‘flashback’ and ‘recall’ exercises helps pupils to remember what they have been taught. In a few subjects, the school is still developing its use of assessment. In these subjects, teachers do not always have the information they need to identify and address gaps in pupils’ knowledge as quickly as they could.

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Pupils’ special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are identified accurately. Leaders work closely with external agencies and provide helpful training to staff around how to meet these needs successfully. As a result, most pupils receive timely support to access the planned curriculum. However, there are instances where this could be done even better. Furthermore, some pupils who are ready to move on to more ambitious content do not always get the opportunity to do so. Leaders are alert to these minor variations and are actively working to improve consistency in the quality of teaching to ensure all pupils are supported to achieve the ambitions clearly laid out in the schools’ curriculum.

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Learning to read is prioritised. In the nursery, children learn letter sounds, which supports them to make a flying start to phonics in Reception. Staff are well trained and deliver the programme consistently well. Pupils read books that are matched to the sounds that they know. Those who struggle get extra help. As they progress through the school, pupils enjoy a progressive and carefully curated curriculum of books, which exposes them to different authors and genres. As a result, they become confident and fluent readers and develop a love for books.

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The programme for pupils’ wider development is exceptional. It is carefully designed to ensure pupils understand important concepts such as democracy, equity and injustice. Pupils are given opportunities to deepen their spiritual understanding through a programme of visits and speakers to enhance their appreciation of different faiths and cultures. Pupils readily take on additional responsibilities and embrace opportunities to raise money for charity.

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Pupils behave respectfully to each other and staff. The school’s values and high expectations for behaviour are commonly understood by staff and pupils. Pupils are aspirational and embrace challenges. Low-level disruption to learning is rare. Pupils appreciate the rewards and recognition they receive for working hard. Effective systems are in place to manage pupils’ attendance. Staff sensitively offer support and challenge to families to improve pupils’ attendance when needed. As a result, there has been a significant reduction in the number of pupils who are persistently absent.

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The school is well led. Those responsible for governance have received appropriate training and have a secure understanding of their statutory duties. Staff appreciate initiatives that have supported workload and well-being. As a result, they enjoy working at the school and are proud to do so.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective. 11–12 June 2024

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Assessment in some subjects is not as effective as it could be. This means teachers do not always have a clear picture of what pupils know and can do. Consequently, learning sometimes does not build precisely enough on what they already know. The school needs to ensure that a consistently effective approach to assessment routinely informs teaching across the curriculum so that pupils’ learning develops securely 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, Lent Rise Combined School, to be good in February 2015.

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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). 11–12 June 2024

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School details

Date(s) of previous inspection October 2018

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Information about this school

 At the time of the inspection, the school used one registered alternative provision.

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Information about this inspection

The inspector(s) carried out this graded inspection under section 5 of the Education Act 2005.

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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 the school and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  Inspections are a point-in-time judgement about the quality of a school's education provision.  Inspectors met and spoke with leaders, staff, pupils, parents, trustees and a local authority representative. 11–12 June 2024

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 The inspection team conducted deep dives into early reading, mathematics, and history. They discussed the curriculum with subject leaders, teachers, and pupils, visited lessons, and examined samples of pupils’ work.  Inspectors considered 86 responses to the Ofsted Parent View questionnaire. They also considered the responses to the confidential staff survey and the views of pupils gathered throughout the inspection.  To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding, the inspectors reviewed the single central record, considered 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.  Inspectors met with the school’s special educational needs and/or disabilities co- ordinator (SENCo).

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Inspection team

James Stuart, lead inspector His Majesty's Inspector 11–12 June 2024

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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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