Elmsleigh Infant & Nursery School

Inspection of Elmsleigh Infant & Nursery School Queen's Drive, Swadlincote, Derbyshire DE11 0EG

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Inspection dates: 22 and 23 October 2024

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

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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 Ellen Collins. This school is part of Esteem 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, Julian Scholefield, and overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by Mark Emly. There is also an executive headteacher, Nicola Price, who is responsible for this school and one other. 22 and 23 October 2024

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are happy at this welcoming school. The school’s vision, ‘Grow to be the best that we can be’, is embedded throughout the school. Pupils, including those that are disadvantaged, achieve well from their different starting points. The school has strong systems in place to identify and support pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Pupils who access the school’s SEND resource unit benefit from strong support and a well-adapted curriculum. The school prepares pupils well for the next stages of their education.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school is a calm and purposeful place to learn. In classrooms and on the playground, pupils behave well. Pupils strive to earn ‘golden certificates’ for trying their best. The school has high expectations of pupils’ achievement and behaviour. This includes pupils with SEND. Pupils live up to these expectations. They have highly positive attitudes to learning. Pupils are well-mannered, courteous, and respectful.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils take pride in their leadership roles. These include acting as ‘kindness captains’ and school councillors. Pupils appreciate their involvement in celebrations, such as the recent harvest festival, and raising money for charities. These endeavours contribute to pupils’ increasing understanding of what it means to be a positive and active citizen.

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

Pupils benefit from an ambitious and coherent curriculum that runs from the Nursery Year to Year 2. The school has identified the important knowledge that pupils must learn. Staff use their strong subject knowledge to design activities that help pupils learn the curriculum well. They provide appropriate support so that pupils with SEND learn the curriculum alongside their peers. Pupils in the school’s SEND resource unit follow bespoke programmes. This allows them to be successful in their learning.

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

In the main, staff routinely check what pupils know and remember. However, on occasion, staff do not identify or resolve promptly the gaps and misconceptions that pupils have in their learning. This means that some pupils are not able to remember what they have learned, so they move on to new curriculum content before they are ready.

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

The school has implemented an effective reading programme. Beginning in the Reception Year, children become competent early readers, and this continues into key stage 1. In Nursery, children love listening to stories, rhymes, and poems. Books that pupils read are chosen carefully to match the sounds that they know. Many pupils gain a secure knowledge of phonics. Staff support any pupils who struggle so that they can catch up quickly. Those pupils with SEND who attend the specialist resource unit get the help they need to improve their communication and language skills. Pupils speak of their love of reading and value the school and classroom libraries, as well as the outdoor reading sheds.

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

There is a calm and purposeful atmosphere around school. Staff have high expectations of pupils’ behaviour, right from the Nursery Year. Pupils respond positively to staff. They 22 and 23 October 2024

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behave well and are very respectful and understanding of each other’s individual needs. Pupils have opportunities to reflect on their own behaviour, building their resilience and independence.

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The school is relentless in ensuring that pupils attend school often. Pupils’ attendance is monitored closely. The school takes swift and decisive action to improve the attendance of pupils who miss out on learning when they are absent. As a result, pupils’ attendance is improving.

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Pastoral support is a strength of the school. Pupils model the school’s values, including ‘respect, resilience and responsibility’. They show a strong understanding of how to stay safe, including when they are online. Pupils develop a good understanding of healthy habits and how to manage their feelings and emotions. The school provides pupils with some experiences beyond the classroom. Visits to faith centres and the theatre are particular favourites and these enhance pupils’ thirst for learning. However, there are limited opportunities for pupils to develop their interests and talents.

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The school, its governors, and the trust work in harmony to ensure that every pupil achieves their best. Staff are exceptionally positive about the support they receive to manage their workload and well-being.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 In a small number of subjects, the school has not ensured that pupils’ misconceptions are identified and corrected in a timely manner. This means that some pupils do not develop an accurate body of knowledge as well as they could. The school should check that pupils’ misconceptions are identified and resolved quickly, so that all pupils achieve as well as they could.  The school does not have a carefully planned range of experiences to develop pupils’ talents and interests. Pupils’ wider curriculum experiences are limited. The school should develop a programme of wider curriculum activities that support pupils’ personal development and help pupils explore what they are good at and things they enjoy doing.

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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. 22 and 23 October 2024

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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). 22 and 23 October 2024

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School details

Headteacher Nicola Price (Executive headteacher) Ellen Collins (Head of school) Website www.elmsleighinfantschool.co.uk

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School details

Date of previous inspection Not previously inspected

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Information about this school

 The school is part of Esteem Multi-Academy Trust.  Elmsleigh Infant and Nursery School converted to become an academy in May 2020. When its predecessor school, Elmsleigh Infant and Nursery School, was last inspected by Ofsted, it was judged to be requires improvement for overall effectiveness.  The school has an enhanced SEND resource unit for up to 16 pupils, aged 4 to 7 years, who all have an education, health and care plan. This unit caters for pupils with autism, cognition and learning needs, and social and emotional needs. Most of these pupils are pre-verbal. The school also has an adapted teaching class for pupils who are largely verbal but who need specialist SEND and/or behaviour support. This class caters for up to 15 pupils, aged 4 to 7 years.  The school does not use any alternative provision.  The school runs a breakfast club.  The school appointed an executive headteacher in May 2024. The head of school has

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Information about this school

been in post since April 2024. 22 and 23 October 2024

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

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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. Inspectors discussed the impact of the pandemic with leaders and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  Inspectors held meetings with a range of leaders, including the executive headteacher, the head of school and senior leaders. They also met with representatives from the trust and the local governing body.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: early reading, mathematics, and physical education. For each deep dive, inspectors held discussions about the curriculum, visited a sample of lessons, spoke to teachers, spoke to some pupils about their learning and look at samples of pupils’ work. Inspectors also spoke to leaders and looked at samples of pupils’ work in art and computing.

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Information about this inspection

 To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding, the 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.  Inspectors scrutinised a range of documents, including leaders’ evaluation of the school and the school improvement plan.  Inspectors considered the views of parents through their responses to Ofsted’s online survey for parents, Ofsted Parent View. They also considered the views of staff through Ofsted’s online survey for staff. An inspector spoke to parents at the end of the school day.

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Inspection team

Kirsty Norbury, lead inspector His Majesty's Inspector

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Inspection team

Ceri Hathaway Ofsted Inspector 22 and 23 October 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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