Harbour Primary and Nursery School

Inspection of a school judged good for overall effectiveness before September 2024: Harbour Primary and Nursery School Church Hill, Newhaven, East Sussex BN9 9LX

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Outcome

Harbour Primary and Nursery School has taken effective action to maintain the standards identified at the previous inspection.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils learn to be bold and polite at this caring and vibrant school. The school motto of ‘always be curious’ is evident in pupils’ eagerness to know and do more. Pupils are respectful of the school rules so that everyone can feel included and learn well. Staff have high expectations of what pupils should achieve. This helps pupils take responsibility for their learning, knowing that mistakes are an important part of learning. Pupils show kindness in the way they demonstrate good manners to all members of their community. They feel safe because nurturing staff provide effective support.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school’s values, such as respect, are evident in the way that pupils talk about people with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Pupils learn about the important contributions that disabled role models make to life. Pupils with SEND make a tangible contribution to school life. The school ensures that pupils with SEND have important representation on the school council. They influence important decisions such as making sure there are inclusive quiet spaces at breaktime for pupils to enjoy.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils get a good deal. Dedicated staff ensure that pupils’ needs are well met, ensuring they are well prepared for their next steps.

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

The school has a clear understanding of the needs of pupils and their families. They welcome professional challenge to ensure that decisions have a positive impact on pupils’ education and well-being. Leaders and governors use accurate information to assure 11 and 12 March 2025

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themselves about the effectiveness of their work. Strategic and deliberate design drives school improvement.

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Pupils learn a broad and ambitious curriculum. The school has improved the design and teaching of the phonics, English and mathematics curriculums, resulting in increased pupil achievements. Pupils who need support with their numeracy and literacy skills receive regular and effective help. The school ensures that pupils’ knowledge builds over time in an orderly way. The curriculum revisits key ideas regularly to help pupils remember what they have learned.

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Helping pupils to read well is a priority. Staff ensure pupils read widely and often using a range of engaging texts. The school provides effective, additional daily reading opportunities for pupils who need extra support. This helps these pupils read with fluency and confidence.

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Staff use their strong subject knowledge to explain new learning clearly and precisely. They help pupils recall important steps when solving problems, such as adding fractions. Pupils use accurate vocabulary when talking about their learning. However, teachers’ checks on pupils’ learning is variable. At times, pupils move on to new learning before they are ready. This means teachers are occasionally unaware of gaps in pupils’ learning, which go unaddressed. At times, pupils do not sufficiently practise or apply what they have learned in new and more complex ways. This means some pupils do not learn as well as they could.

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Staff identify pupils with SEND quickly and accurately. The school adapts provision very effectively to meet the pastoral needs of pupils with SEND. These pupils receive targeted support to work towards achieving personal and academic goals swiftly.

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The school prepares pupils with the skills they need for life effectively. This begins when children start in early years. Through play, they negotiate the rules of the imaginative games that they invent with friends. As pupils get older, they learn about keeping themselves safe online and taking care of their health in detail. ‘Truly Trusted’ pupils carry out important responsibilities diligently, such as distributing breakfast to their peers. The school fosters pupils’ understanding of fundamental British values such as respect and tolerance effectively. Pupils learn about discrimination and its impact on society. A wealth of clubs and visits enrich pupils social and cultural experiences. Pupils show deep pride in themselves and their many achievements.

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Pupils enjoy school and many attend well. The school has successfully reduced the number of pupils who are persistently absent. Staff work with parents and carers to identify and remove barriers to good attendance swiftly. The school recognises the impact of poor attendance on pupils’ achievements and well-being. They engage with professionals regularly to gain expert support for families that need it.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective. 11 and 12 March 2025

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 There is some inconsistency in how effectively staff check that pupils have a secure understanding of the important knowledge and skills that they need. For some pupils, gaps in learning are not addressed swiftly, meaning they do not learn as well as could. The school should ensure that staff use with the school’s assessment strategies efficiently to identify and address gaps in pupils learning consistently.  In some lessons, teachers do not adapt learning to help pupils deepen and extend their knowledge and skills. As a result, some pupils do not achieve as well as they could. The school should ensure that teachers design learning with greater precision to enable pupils to achieve more highly across the curriculum.

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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 school to be good for overall effectiveness in May 2016

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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. 11 and 12 March 2025

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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). 11 and 12 March 2025

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Dates of previous inspection 5 and 6 November 2019

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Information about this school

 The school has on-site Nursery provision for two- to four-year-old children.  The school does not use any alternative provision.  There has been a change of headteacher since the school was last inspected.

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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 lead inspector discussed the impact of the pandemic with the school and has taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  The lead inspector met with senior leaders, staff and pupils. They also met with representatives from the board of governors, including the chair of governors. They also had a telephone call with a representative from the local authority. 11 and 12 March 2025

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 The lead inspector visited a sample of lessons, spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work. The lead inspector also listened to pupils reading to a familiar adult.  The lead inspector considered the responses to the Ofsted’s online parent questionnaire, Ofsted Parent View, including the free-text comments. They also took account of the responses to the confidential staff survey and gathered the views of both staff and pupils throughout the inspection.  The lead inspector scrutinised a range of documentation, including leaders’ plans for improving the school, minutes of governing body meetings and records of attendance and behaviour incidents.  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

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safeguarding that puts pupils’ interests first.

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Inspection team

Michelle Payne, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector 11 and 12 March 2025

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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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