Marchwood Junior School

Inspection of an outstanding school: Marchwood Junior School Main Road, Marchwood, Southampton, Hampshire SO40 4ZH

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Outcome

Marchwood Junior School continues to be an outstanding school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are enthusiastic about learning and enjoy coming to school. They work hard in their lessons and achieve highly. Pupils are ‘inspired to dream’ because of the ambitious curriculum that enthrals them. The annual, whole school ‘read aloud’ competition includes every single pupil in the school. No one is left behind, and so all achieve success.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils become confident and increasingly independent over their time at school. They are happy and safe. They value the warm and trusting relationships they build with the adults in school. As a result, they are keen to be nominated by their peers for ‘treasure’, additional time with adults playing games or enjoying craft.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils’ behaviour is exceptional. They are polite and well-mannered both in their lessons and during the fun-packed breaktimes. Pupils and staff live out the MJS ‘family values’ of Caring, Respectful, Aspirational, Brave (CRAB). New pupils are warmly welcomed into the inclusive school community. As one pupil commented, ‘You don’t have to be afraid to be yourself here, you get to do you here.’

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils relish the wide range of sporting opportunities available to them. They are particularly proud to represent their school in competitions across the local area.

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

The school has designed a highly ambitious curriculum for all pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). The school has identified and organised the key knowledge and skills that pupils need to learn over time. Nothing is left to chance.

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

Pupils achieve exceptionally well because they develop secure knowledge in all subjects. Teaching breaks learning down into manageable and memorable chunks and tasks. Time is then allowed for pupils to practise and to master key skills and knowledge. Skilful questioning helps teachers to understand whether important learning has been fully 4 and 5 June 2024

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grasped. Teachers identify those in need of additional help quickly and provide carefully tailored support to ensure that pupils’ needs are met fully. In the 2023 end of key stage 2 national tests, pupils reached high standards in reading, writing and mathematics. However, pupils’ progress in reading and writing was not as exceptional as that in mathematics. Pupils are now progressing much better in reading and writing.

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Reading is at the heart of the curriculum and a key part of every lesson. The school has planned the reading curriculum very carefully to make sure children become highly confident and fluent readers. From the early morning book clubs to the class story time, pupils are introduced to a range of fascinating and diverse texts. These spark pupils’ imagination. Recent changes to the way that the school teaches reading have strengthened the approach to early reading. Pupils who arrive not yet able to read, are well supported to catch up quickly. Pupils love to read and are inspired by regular author visits and webinars. Pupil librarians are passionate advocates for reading and enthuse the many pupils who visit during lunchtimes. Pupils are confident in their reading abilities and are excited when discussing books that they have enjoyed. There is an exceptional focus on vocabulary in all subjects. This means that all pupils develop confidence to use

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increasingly complex words in their work and conversations.

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The strong academic curriculum is complemented by an exceptional focus on character development. The school has a carefully mapped and monitored approach. This means that all pupils benefit from the wide range of trips, visits, debates and discussions. Pupils aspire to be part of the ‘Junior Leadership Team’. They learn about democracy through the rigorous hustings and whole school elections for these posts.

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Pupils are proud of their school. They know what it means to be part of a community and why working together is important. Pupils learn how to look after their physical and mental health through the innovative and ever-changing ‘Lunchtime Enrichment’ programme. During one week, pupils could be learning how to finger knit and the next be building dens in the forest area. Pupils work hard over a sustained period, both in and out of school, to achieve the bespoke ‘Marchwood Mole Award’.

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Staff are proud to work at the school. They know pupils well and use these strong relationships to promote and secure good attendance. Staff value the school’s commitment to their well-being and the training that they receive to develop professionally.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective. 4 and 5 June 2024

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Background

When we have judged a school to be outstanding we will then normally go into the school about once every four years to confirm that the school remains outstanding. 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 first ungraded inspection since we the school to be outstanding on 31 October and 1 November 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 ’ 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). 4 and 5 June 2024

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Dates of previous inspection 31 October and 1 November 2018, under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The school does not currently use any alternative provision.

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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 the evaluation of the school.  The inspector met with a range of senior leaders about their roles, including the school’s headteacher. The inspector also met with representatives of the governing body and spoke on the telephone to the local authority.  The inspector carried out deep dives in early reading, mathematics, and religious education. 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. The inspector explored other curriculum subjects through curriculum plans, discussions with leaders and sampling pupils’ work.

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 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.  The inspector considered responses to the online survey, Ofsted Parent View, parents’ free-text comments and spoke with parents at the start of the school day.  The inspector considered responses to the confidential staff and pupil surveys. The inspector spoke to groups of staff and pupils to gather their views of the school.

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Inspection team

Lizzie Jeanes, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector 4 and 5 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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