Odessa Infant School

Inspection of a school judged good for overall effectiveness before September 2024: Odessa Infant School Wellington Road, London E7 9BY

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Outcome

Evidence gathered during this ungraded (section 8) inspection suggests that the school's work may have improved significantly across all areas since the previous inspection. The school's next inspection will be a graded inspection.

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What is it like to attend this school?

This is a very happy, kind and nurturing school. Right from the Nursery Year, staff help children to feel safe, grow in confidence and develop a strong sense of curiosity for learning new things. Pupils enjoy all that the school has to offer. The school values their views. For example, they love using the gym equipment in the playground, which was installed at the suggestion of the pupils’ elected council.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school has extremely high aspirations for all pupils’ academic achievement. Much thought goes into ensuring that pupils’ different needs are identified and catered for. Well- considered adaptations and strategies are in place to ensure that disadvantaged pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), achieve their best. When pupils leave the school at the end of Year 2, they are very well prepared for their next stages of learning in Year 3.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils’ behaviour is excellent. Pupils socialise with good manners, behave maturely and engage enthusiastically in their lessons. Pupils enjoy finding out about each other’s cultures. They celebrate together important religious events across a range of faiths. This creates a harmonious and respectful community where all feel equal and can thrive. Pupils are very well prepared for life in modern Britain.

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

Since the previous inspection, the school has refined its curriculum. In the early years and across the subjects in key stage 1 it is highly ambitious. Teachers and support staff have the knowledge and skills that they need to deliver learning with great expertise. They keep a close eye on pupils’ learning. They give pupils helpful feedback to address any 29 and 30 April 2025

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misconceptions or gaps in their knowledge. Staff ensure that pupils gain new knowledge securely by revisiting and building on pupils’ prior learning. The school also broadens pupils’ learning through multiple enrichment activities. For example, children in the early years attended a workshop on the history of the local area. As part of the music curriculum, pupils visited the Royal Albert Hall. They listened to a music competition for teenage musicians playing their own compositions. This showed them what they too could aspire to do in the future. These rich experiences help pupils to achieve extremely well.

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The school aspires to ensure that pupils get the best possible start to their education. It has highly effective approaches for identifying and addressing the needs of pupils with SEND and others who need additional support. The school works very closely with parents and carers, and with therapists, to plan how to meet these pupils' needs. Staff make well- considered adaptations to their teaching to meet individual needs. There are also a range of specific activities designed to support identified groups of pupils. These include daily sessions to meet their physical and sensory needs and bespoke music lessons. As a result, disadvantaged pupils are supported well to be very successful in meeting their potential.

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From the early years, there is a very strong emphasis on developing pupils’ language and communication skills. Staff are very skilled at extending children’s vocabulary. They engage children in continuous dialogue and use well-chosen resources, such as pictorial aids, to help those at the very early stages of speaking. Over time, pupils become highly articulate. The very well-taught phonics programme ensures that pupils become confident and fluent readers. The school encourages Reception-Year parents to come in regularly to read with their children. Classes have story time every day. The school also takes pupils to the local library and pupils enter autumn and summer reading competitions. These opportunities help pupils to develop a love of reading.

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The school’s decisive and well-targeted actions to improve attendance have paid off. For example, members of staff collect pupils when, occasionally, families experience circumstances which make it difficult to take their children to school in the morning. Persistent absence has markedly reduced.

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The school’s provision for pupils’ wider development is exemplary. Pupils’ mental health is well supported. For example, they have weekly yoga sessions and are taught relaxation and mindfulness techniques. Visits to the seaside and the Year 2 overnight camping in a forest, where they learn to barbeque and climb trees, give pupils new experiences. Visits to a range of museums, art galleries and theatre, broaden pupils’ horizons and add to their cultural capital. Visitors such as authors, religious leaders and theatrical performance groups add to their broader knowledge and skills. Lessons from specialist teachers for ballet, street dance and gymnastics, support pupils’ physical health. The school teaches pupils, in an age-appropriate manner, about how to establish healthy relationships.

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The school is led with high ambition and decision-making that promote continued improvement. The governing body brings a range of expertise to inform their work. It challenges and supports leaders in ensuring the best possible provision for all pupils. 29 and 30 April 2025

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Staff morale is high. There is a very strong collaborative working environment in the school. Leaders seek and act on staff’s views, including on how to reduce workload.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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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.

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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 29 and 30 April 2025

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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). 29 and 30 April 2025

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Chair of governing body Enam Eyiah (co-chair) Erline Phillips (co-chair) Headteacher Clare Barber

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School details

Dates of previous inspection 10 and 11 March 2020, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 Since the previous inspection, the number of pupils on roll has decreased and there are new co-chairs of the governing body.  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 their evaluation of the school.  The inspector met with the headteacher, the deputy headteacher and other senior leaders.  The inspector met with a representative of the local authority. 29 and 30 April 2025

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 The inspector held discussions about the curriculum, visited a sample of lessons, spoke to teachers, spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at pupils’ work.  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 observed pupils’ behaviour in class and around the school site.  The inspector spoke with groups of pupils.  The inspector held discussions with staff and considered the responses to Ofsted’s questionnaire for staff.  The inspector took account of the responses to Ofsted’s Parent View, including the comments received by Ofsted’s free-text facility.

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Inspection team

David Radomsky, lead inspector His Majesty's Inspector 29 and 30 April 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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T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/ofsted

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