Churchfields Junior School

Inspection of Churchfields Junior School Churchfields, South Woodford, Redbridge, London E18 2RB

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The quality of education Outstanding Behaviour and attitudes Outstanding Personal development Outstanding Leadership and management Outstanding Previous inspection grade Outstanding

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Until November 2020, the school was exempt from routine inspection because it was judged as outstanding for overall effectiveness at its previous inspection under section 5 of the Education Act 2005. The school has not been inspected under section 5 of the Act since December 2014. Since September 2024, schools have not been awarded an overall effectiveness grade. 1and2 October 2024

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils who attend Churchfields Junior School truly enjoy coming to school. They are highly appreciated and exceptionally well cared for. Leaders have high expectations for pupils’ learning and behaviour. Pupils strive to meet these with great success.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school’s ‘Mr and Ms values’ of independence, appreciation, communication, determination, curiosity, collaboration, resilience are at the heart of everything pupils do. These awards motivate pupils to read regularly and widely.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are not only well-prepared academically, but they are thoroughly prepared for life. All pupils participate in leadership groups. This helps them to develop a sense of responsibility and social action, which supports their broader moral and social development.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The music offer is exceptional. Specialist teachers provide weekly instrumental tuition to every child. Weekly singing and listening assemblies provide an opportunity for pupils to sing together and appreciate the features of different types of world music.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The ambitious and well-designed curriculum is underpinned by a rich programme of outings. For example, pupils enjoyed sharing their experience of visiting the British Museum, the Barbican and The Ragged School Museum. Pupils benefit from a wide variety of extra-curricular opportunities, including cooking, gymnastics, choir and design technology club.

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

The school has developed a well-designed, broad and ambitious curriculum that is interesting and engaging. In all subjects, the content is well sequenced so that pupils build on what they have learned before. For example, in English, younger pupils learn to retrieve simple information. Older pupils build on this knowledge to make inferences about characters form more complex texts, using evidence to support their viewpoint. As a result, pupils develop a deep body of knowledge in different subjects. They produce work of high quality across the curriculum and achieve highly, including in published outcomes.

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

The school has ensured that reading is at the heart of pupils’ learning. Staff are well trained to deliver highly effective phonics and reading lessons. Pupils who struggle with reading are identified quickly. Books are well matched to the sounds that pupils know. This ensures that pupils get the support that they need to read confidently, fluently and accurately. Across the school, pupils are inspired to read widely because of the many ways reading is promoted. For example, ‘The Reading Express’, which is an adapted tube map and system, has been developed as a cornerstone of reading within the school. Each colour of the various tube lines correlates to a genre within literature.

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

Pupils work hard and engage very well in their learning. They talk about what they have learned with confidence and enthusiasm. Pupils are highly interested in learning because 1and2 October 2024

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teaching is engaging. The school ensures that staff are highly skilled to implement the curriculum to the highest standard. Any adaptations made to support pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are effective. This ensures, wherever possible, that pupils with SEND learn successfully alongside their peers.

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The school embeds social and moral education through the curriculum. For example, pupils explore the lives of historical and contemporary figures from diverse backgrounds. Visits to different places of worship and assemblies about religious festivals facilitate pupils’ spiritual understanding, helping them to recognise that the different faiths have many moral similarities.

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Pupils’ behaviour is impeccable in classrooms, around the school and in the playground. This is because the school’s system, ‘Going for Gold’, is well understood and consistently implemented. At social times, pupils enjoy the range of activities on offer to them. For example, they enjoy the bouldering equipment in the playground. Attendance is high. This is because the school has effective systems in place to support families to ensure that their children come to school regularly and on time.

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The school is very well led. All staff, including those at the start of their careers, appreciate the strategies that are in place to manage workload, promote well-being and support their professional development. Those responsible for governance are committed and demonstrate the same high ambitions as school leaders. Governors provide ongoing and effective support and challenge to maintain the high standard of education the school provides.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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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 1and2 October 2024

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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). 1and2 October 2024

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Dates of previous inspection 10 and 11 December 2014, under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 Leaders do not make use of any alternative provision for pupils.

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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 evaluationt about the quality of a school’s education provision. 1and2 October 2024

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 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.  Inspectors met with the headteacher and the deputy headteacher. They also met with members of the governing body, including the chair of governors, and spoke with a representative from the local authority.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: reading, mathematics, music and history. For each deep dive, inspectors held discussions about the curriculum with subject leaders, visited lessons and spoke with teachers. They also spoke with pupils about their learning and looked at samples of their work. Other subjects were also considered as part of this inspection.  Inspectors evaluated the effectiveness of safeguarding, reviewed the single central record, took account of the views of leaders, staff and pupils and considered the extent

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to which the school has created an open and positive culture around safeguarding that puts pupils’ interests first.  Inspectors gathered the views of pupils, parents and staff through discussions and their responses to Ofsted Parent View and the online surveys.

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Inspection team

Lisa Smith, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Abi Misselbrook-Lovejoy Ofsted Inspector

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Inspection team

Hayley McClenaghan Ofsted Inspector 1and2 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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