High Down Junior School

Inspection of a school judged good for overall effectiveness before September 2024: High Down Junior School Down Road, Portishead, Bristol, Somerset BS20 6DY

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Outcome

High Down Junior School has taken effective action to maintain the standards identified at the previous inspection.

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Outcome

The headteacher of this school is Andreya Cowan . This school is part of Lighthouse Schools Partnership, which means other people in the trust also have responsibility for running the school. The trust is run by the chief executive officer, Gary Lewis, and overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by Adele Haysom .

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are happy and enjoy their learning at this school. The excellent pastoral support team assists anyone who is having a tricky time. This helps pupils to be ready to learn in lessons. Staff have high expectations of pupils and have positive relationships with them. This helps the new arrivals in Year 3 settle quickly. By the time pupils leave, they achieve well in reading, writing and mathematics. As a result, they are well prepared for secondary school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils behave well in class. They listen closely to staff’s instructions. Pupils share their ideas in small groups respectfully. They are polite and courteous when speaking to visitors. Staff effectively support pupils who struggle to manage their behaviour. This includes those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). At social times, pupils play well together. Bullying is rare. The school swiftly addresses any incidents that occur.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school places a strong emphasis on pupils adopting leadership roles. These include school councillors, reading ambassadors and anti-bullying ambassadors. Pupils take these roles seriously. They help to make a tangible difference to the life of the school. For example, the school council helped to make improvements to the range of lunchtime activities. 5 and 6 November 2024

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

In 2024, key stage 2 outcomes in national curriculum tests were significantly above national averages. Nevertheless, the school is not complacent. It has continued to consider how pupils can learn even more. For example, it has made changes so that pupils regularly practise using ambitious vocabulary in their writing. Some wider subjects have also been revised to ensure pupils learn topics in sufficient depth. The school has supported staff well through this period to minimise the impact on workload. The trust has helped to make regular checks to ascertain the impact of the changes on pupils’ learning.

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

The school’s curriculum is ambitious. It is carefully arranged so that pupils learn new content in a logical order. The school has trained staff well to help them turn the aims of the curriculum into reality. Staff quickly identify pupils with SEND who need support. They help to make adaptations so that they learn the same curriculum as their peers.

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

Teachers explain new concepts clearly and precisely. They question pupils effectively to deepen their thinking further. The school ensures that pupils apply their writing skills frequently across the curriculum. Typically, pupils expand upon their thinking well and develop knowledge securely.

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

However, in a few wider subjects, the school has not developed systems to check whether pupils have retained knowledge in the long term. Consequently, some pupils’ gaps in knowledge go unaddressed. When this happens, pupils find it difficult to build upon their prior learning or make links between topics. Consequently, they do not develop a deep knowledge of some concepts.

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

The school prioritises reading from the moment pupils start. It promotes a love of reading through teachers sharing stories and a well-stocked library. The school helps to support effectively those pupils who have fallen behind. Staff provide targeted help so that pupils catch up to become confident, fluent readers. This includes pupils with SEND.

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

The school has a strong offer for pupils’ wider development. It has close links with the community, such as the choir singing at local events. This promotes pupils’ sense of pride in their locality. Pupils have a clear sense of right and wrong. They can discuss a range of age-appropriate issues. For example, they know about the dangers of smoking.

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

The school has continued to strengthen its systems for attendance since the last inspection. It checks pupils’ attendance regularly and quickly intervenes if it drops. The school works with families to remove any potential barriers so that pupils attend well.

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

With support from the trust, the local governing body keep a close eye on the school’s work. They challenge leaders when necessary. This helps to promote a strong culture of self-improvement.

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The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 In some wider subjects, the school does not check well enough what pupils have learned in the long term. This means the school does not know when pupils have gaps in what they know and can do. As a result, pupils find it difficult to build on their prior learning. The school needs to develop systems for checking how well pupils have built their knowledge over time so that staff can address any gaps in their learning and pupils can build on their prior knowledge securely.

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Background

Until September 2024, on a graded (section 5) inspection we gave schools an overall effectiveness grade, in addition to the key and provision judgements. Overall effectiveness grades given before September 2024 will continue to be visible on school inspection reports and on Ofsted's website. From September 2024 graded inspections will not include an overall effectiveness grade. This school was, before September 2024, judged to be good for its overall effectiveness.

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Background

We have now inspected the school to determine whether it has taken effective action to maintain the standards identified at that previous inspection. 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's work has improved significantly or that it may not be as strong as it was at the last inspection, then the next inspection will be a graded inspection. A graded inspection 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 predecessor school, High Down Junior School, to be good for overall effectiveness in December 2015.

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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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You can search for published performance information about the school.

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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). 5 and 6 November 2024

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School details

Date of previous inspection 8 May 2019, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The school is part of Lighthouse Schools Partnership.  The school does not use any alternative provision.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspections are a point-in-time evaluation 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 his evaluation of the school.  The inspector met with the headteacher and other senior leaders, groups of staff, the chair of the trust, members of the local governing body and the CEO.  The inspector visited a sample of lessons, spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work. 5 and 6 November 2024

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 The inspector observed pupils’ behaviour in lessons and around the school site.  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 the responses to the online survey for parents and carers, Ofsted Parent View, including free-text comments. The inspector also considered responses to the staff survey and responses to the survey for pupils.

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Inspection team

Jason Edge, lead inspector His Majesty's Inspector 5 and 6 November 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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