Chaucer Infant School

Inspection of Chaucer Infant School Cantelupe Road, Ilkeston, Derbyshire DE7 5LN

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Inspection dates: 24 and 25 September 2024

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The quality of education Requires improvement Behaviour and attitudes Requires improvement Personal development Good Leadership and management Requires improvement Early years provision Requires improvement

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Previous inspection grade Not previously inspected under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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The head of school is Daisy Dawley. This school is part of the Embark Multi Academy Trust which means other people in the trust also have responsibility for running the school. The trust is run by the chief executive officer (CEO), Matthew Crawford, and overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by David King. There is also an executive headteacher, Melanie Lawson, who is responsible for this school. 24 and 25 September 2024

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What is it like to attend this school?

This is a caring and welcoming school where relationships are positive. Pupils are happy and safe.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school is ambitious for all pupils to achieve well. In the core subjects of reading and mathematics, pupils are typically successful. However, this is not the case in many other subjects, or in the early years. In these areas, pupils often struggle to remember what they have been taught. Pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), do not achieve as well as they should.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Many pupils play together happily. They enjoy social times and understand that respect is important for good friendships. However, some pupils' conduct falls short of the school's expectations. These pupils do not always respond promptly to reminders about how to behave well.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school promotes pupils' personal development effectively through its ‘BEAR’ values (belong, enjoy, aim high and respect). Pupils understand how these values make the school a special place to learn. They enjoy eating a healthy breakfast together each morning. This helps them to get ready to learn. Pupils like celebrating each other’s success in a range of different activities and interests through the ‘Embark’ awards.

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

The school’s curriculum has been reorganised. In each subject, it is clear what pupils need to learn and in what order. For example, pupils learn about familiar local places in geography before they compare these to other places in the wider world. However, these changes to the curriculum are only recent. In some subjects, pupils still have gaps in their knowledge and understanding that teachers have not identified or plugged.

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

Teachers have a secure understanding of the subjects they teach. In some subjects, including early reading and mathematics, they present information well and select appropriate activities to engage pupils. However, teachers do not always make good- enough use of their checks of what pupils understand to inform future learning. Similarly, in the early years, it is not always clear what children need to learn next. Teachers sometimes move on too quickly before pupils' knowledge is secure and their misconceptions are resolved.

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

The school has prioritised reading. Books are linked closely to curriculum subjects. Pupils enjoy reading. They are eager to join in routines that teachers use to teach phonics. Staff ensure that reading books are matched accurately to the sounds that pupils are learning. Additional catch-up time is usually used well to help pupils who need more support with their reading. However, staff do not check what pupils understand closely enough. Pupils, including children in the early years, do not always have a secure knowledge of the letters or sounds they are practising before staff introduce new ones. 24 and 25 September 2024

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The school wants pupils with SEND to achieve well. Strategies to identify and meet the needs of these pupils have improved. However, targets to help these pupils are not always clear enough. The way the curriculum is taught does not always help pupils with SEND secure new knowledge. They are not as successful as they should be.

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Staff often remind pupils about the school’s values and how they are expected to behave. Some staff are skilled at helping pupils to concentrate on their learning. However, strategies used to help pupils behave well are not always consistent or effective. Pupils' learning is often interrupted by low-level disruption.

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Attendance is a key priority. The school works well with families to help pupils come to school more frequently.

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Assemblies teach pupils about life in modern Britain. Pupils have an age-appropriate understanding of British values. They know that these rules make Britain a good place to live. Pupils understand that their school welcomes everybody. They know how to keep themselves safe online. Pupils learn that healthy food choices are important. They enjoy having a job with responsibilities, such as being a fruit monitor. Pupils’ learning experiences are enriched by purposeful visits, including to a toy museum and to places of worship.

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The school knows what needs to improve. However, many staff are new to the school or to their leadership roles. Their actions to make the changes necessary are quite recent. Trustees and local governors understand their legal responsibilities. Staff value the high- quality training and support provided by the trust, including staff at the early stages of their career. Staff appreciate the school’s consideration of their workload. Many parents and carers are positive about how the school is improving. They welcome being invited into school for coffee mornings and other events.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Teachers do not use assessment strategies well enough to check what pupils understand or can remember. This means that gaps in pupils’ knowledge and misconceptions are not always resolved. Teachers do not always plan suitable next learning steps as a result. The school should ensure that teachers respond appropriately and swiftly to their checks of learning so that all pupils secure their knowledge.  The curriculum for pupils with SEND is not always appropriate. Targets for these pupils sometimes lack precision. Planned learning does not always meet these pupils’ needs. Pupils with SEND do not achieve as well as they could. The school should ensure that 24 and 25 September 2024

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the curriculum for pupils with SEND is suitably ambitious and effectively implemented, so that these pupils achieve well.  Strategies used to manage pupils’ behaviour are inconsistent. This means that some pupils’ behaviour falls short of the school’s expectations and learning is often disrupted. The school should ensure that staff manage pupils’ behaviour consistently so that pupils can learn without interruption.  Some leaders are new to post. They are still developing the knowledge and skills they need to fulfil their roles and responsibilities. As a result, while the school’s key improvement priorities have been identified, some of them have not been acted on. The school must ensure that leaders have the knowledge, skills and support they need to carry out their roles effectively.

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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). 24 and 25 September 2024

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School details

Headteacher Daisy Dawley (Head of school)

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School details

Website www.chaucer-inf.derbyshire.sch.uk

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School details

Date of previous inspection Not previously inspected

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Information about this school

 Chaucer Infant School converted to become an academy in May 2020 when it joined the Embark Multi Academy Trust. When its predecessor school was last inspected by Ofsted, it was judged to require improvement.  The school does not make use of any alternative provision.  The school runs its own before-school club for pupils. The club is overseen by the governance of the trust.  The head of school and the executive headteacher have both been in post since September 2023. A large proportion of the teaching staff have joined the school in the last two years.

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Information about this inspection

The inspectors carried out this graded inspection under section 5 of the Education Act 2005. During a graded inspection, we grade the school for each of our key judgements (quality of education; behaviour and attitudes; personal development; and leadership and management) and for any relevant provision judgement (early years and/or sixth form 24 and 25 September 2024

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provision). Schools receiving a graded inspection from September 2024, will not be given an overall effectiveness grade.

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 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. Inspectors discussed the impact of the pandemic with the school and has taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  Inspectors met with senior leaders from the school and the trust. The lead inspector met with local governors and trustees. She also spoke with the CEO of the trust.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in reading, mathematics, geography and history. For each deep dive, inspectors held discussions about the curriculum, visited a sample of lessons, spoke with teachers, spoke with some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work. The lead inspector listened to some pupils read.  Inspectors also considered the curriculum in some other subjects and the support provided for pupils with SEND.

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 Inspectors discussed pupils’ attendance and behaviour with school leaders.  Inspectors considered the views of parents who responded to Ofsted Parent View. They also spoke with some parents at the school gate.  Inspectors reviewed the responses to Ofsted’s survey for staff. They also held discussions with staff and pupils.  Inspectors reviewed a wide range of evidence, including documents published on the school’s website.  To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding, inspectors: 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

Donna Moulds, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector

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Inspection team

Ben O'Connell Ofsted Inspector 24 and 25 September 2024

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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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