West Leigh Infant School

Inspection of a good school: West Leigh Infant School Ronald Hill Grove, Leigh-on-Sea, Essex SS9 2JB

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Outcome

West Leigh Infant School continues to be a good school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are very proud of their school. They know and understand the school values because adults remind them to be honest, kind, safe, resilient and good team members. Pupils respond by trying hard and behaving well.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils learn in a thoughtful and happy school. They play and learn very well together. Relationships are very calm and supportive. Pupils mix happily together at breaktimes in the very well resourced playground. They treat everyone fairly. If there are things that upset them, they know the adults in school will support them, help them and ensure it does not happen again. This helps pupils to feel safe. They enjoy coming to school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils have very positive attitudes to their learning. They are ambitious for each other and themselves. The school has high expectations of all pupils. As a result, everyone wants to learn and improve. Pupils enjoy learning and talking about the different people and times they learn about in lessons. They admire and celebrate others’ achievements.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils love the many clubs they can attend after school. These include football and choir. They want to be active and responsible members of their community.

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

The school has an effective, ambitious and interesting curriculum. Knowledge is well organised and sequenced in all subjects. Teachers plan lessons with each other. They ensure all pupils, including pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), learn the curriculum. Teachers teach important knowledge, including vocabulary, in the right order so that pupils build more complex knowledge over time. They check that pupils remember key knowledge in most subjects. However, in a small number of subjects these checks are still being developed. Therefore, pupils do not always make the progress in these subjects that leaders intend. 3 and 4 July 2024

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The curriculum for early reading is very effective and a strength of the school. Staff are well trained. They are experts in teaching pupils to read. Pupils learn to become confident readers quickly. Staff use the same routines, resources and reminders to help pupils apply the knowledge they have learned. The school provides effective, extra support if pupils need it to keep up. They ensure that reading books match the sounds pupils know. Pupils enjoy reading. Older pupils talk about a range of authors and books that they love. They use the school library to find books by new authors which they can take home to enjoy. As a result, there is a very positive culture of reading in the school.

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Children in the early years settle into school quickly. Staff have high expectations of what children can achieve. Children learn to listen and concentrate for long periods on their play and learning. They develop knowledge of early number well. Children learn to share and work independently. They have positive attitudes to their learning and are well prepared for Year 1.

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The school expects all pupils to behave well. Staff have consistent approaches to managing pupils’ behaviour. Pupils know the rules and follow them readily. They respond quickly to adult instructions, stay focused on their learning and treat everyone with respect. Pupils attend school well.

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Pupils with SEND receive the effective support they need to learn the curriculum very well. The school understands pupils’ individual needs. It identifies the small steps pupils need to learn to make progress against their individual targets. Staff keep careful checks on what pupils have already achieved. They plan future learning effectively. Pupils use additional resources and adult support within lessons well. They also have additional time to practise and embed their learning. Pupils with SEND make progress well.

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The school provides a strong programme for pupils’ personal development. It wants pupils to have a very wide range of experiences beyond the academic. It aims for pupils to become well rounded, happy learners. Pupils talk enthusiastically about the many after- school clubs, including baking and technology club. They find visitors to school who have overcome barriers in their life, such as Olympic athletes, inspirational. Pupils enjoy discussing different issues such as ‘Is it ok to play tricks on people?’ They know and respect that people are different.

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The school works effectively with high ambition for their pupils and a clear vision. Leaders and governors support staff to manage their workload. The local authority, school improvement partners and parents help the school to improve. Everyone is proud to be a member of this school community.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective. 3 and 4 July 2024

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 In a small number of subjects, assessment systems are in the early stages of development. The school does not yet identify the precise knowledge that pupils need to know and remember in these subjects. Therefore, staff are not clear about which is the most important knowledge pupils need for future learning. Pupils cannot then build well on their learning over time in these subjects. The school should ensure that the important knowledge that pupils should learn is identified precisely in all subjects. It should ensure that teachers use assessment effectively in all subjects, to understand what pupils know and can do before introducing new knowledge.

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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 October 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, 3 and 4 July 2024

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looked after children (children in local authority care) and/or children who left care through adoption or another formal route). 3 and 4 July 2024

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Date of previous inspection 18 October 2018, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 A new headteacher has been appointed since the last inspection.  The school does not use the services of 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 their evaluation of the school.  The inspector spoke with the headteacher, the senior leadership team and the subject teams with responsibility for the curriculum and personal development.  The inspector carried out deep dives in these subjects: early reading, mathematics and history. For each deep dive, the inspector held discussions about the curriculum, spoke to teachers, spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work. The inspector also discussed the curriculum in some other subjects. 3 and 4 July 2024

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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, parents and pupils; and considered the extent to which the school has created an open and positive culture that puts pupils’ interests first.  The inspector reviewed a wide range of documents, including the school’s self- evaluation, school improvement plans and information on the school’s website.  The inspector considered 133 responses to Ofsted Parent View, including parents’ free- text responses. The inspector also took account of 42 responses to Ofsted’s staff survey and 101 responses to the pupil survey.  Representatives from the local authority and the school’s improvement partner, as well as school governors, were spoken with.

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Inspection team

Debbie Rogan, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector 3 and 4 July 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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