Ashburnham Community School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy coming to school, playing with their friends and learning.

Pupils are taught to respect each other and demonstrate the school's values in their interactions. Beginning in early years, children are taught to check in on their emotions so they can be ready to learn. As a result, pupils behave well.

Pupils are taught to stay safe and know who their trusted adults are. The school prioritises the pastoral care that children receive. Pupils are kept safe in their school community.

Pupils benefit from the wide extra-curricular offer at the school. All pupils can develop their confidence and teamwork through the clubs available, including taekwondo, circ...us skills, fencing and table tennis. They enhance their leadership skills through a range of roles as class monitors, buddies and school councillors.

Pupils contribute to the local community through different fundraising initiatives alongside their teachers.Leaders have high expectations for pupils. They, in turn, are keen to rise to these.

Over their time at school, pupils achieve in line with their peers nationally, supporting them to be ready for the next stage of their education.

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

Beginning in early years, the school has planned an ambitious and broad curriculum. This is sequenced so that pupils return to and embed key ideas.

For example, in art and design, children in the Nursery experiment with mark making using different materials. Older pupils build on this foundation knowledge by creating different lines and patterns using a greater range of tools. By the end of Year 6, pupils are able to create their own portraits in the style of the Renaissance using precise line, form and shape.

Reading is a high priority. Staff are well trained to deliver the school's chosen phonics programme. Books are well matched to the sounds that pupils know.

Pupils who need more help with their reading receive effective support to keep up and catch up with their peers. Leaders work closely with parents and carers, including those new to the school and who speak English as an additional language, to further encourage a positive reading culture. Beginning in early years, language and vocabulary are prioritised.

For example, children sing familiar songs as they begin each day and as they transition between activities. This helps newer children to be inducted into routines and for key vocabulary to be emphasised.

While the curriculum is designed to revisit key ideas, at times, pupils struggle to apply their learning to more complex tasks.

This is because they have not had sufficient practice in the foundations before being moved on. In some subjects, assessment is not used as consistently to check that concepts and vocabulary are secure before pupils are asked to apply these to the next stage in their learning. This means that pupils are not connecting ideas to larger concepts and deepening their understanding across the curriculum as well as they might.

Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), including in early years, are cared for in a nurturing environment. Staff identify pupils' needs appropriately and provide the necessary support. Leaders engage positively with parents and external agencies.

Where needed, additional interventions are put in place and reviewed carefully. As a result, pupils with SEND achieve well from their different starting points.

Pupils behave well, and lessons are rarely disrupted.

Pupils typically focus on their learning. When needed, pupils are supported to adjust their behaviour. Some pupils are being helped to develop their resilience further through a range of approaches in class and a programme of wider pastoral support.

Pupils are aware of what bullying is, and incidents are rare. Currently, not enough pupils attend school well enough. This means that they do not benefit from the opportunities the school provides.

The school is working closely with pupils and their families to identify the barriers to effective attendance. This work is contributing to improving rates of attendance.

Pupils' wider personal development is carefully considered through the school's 'hidden curriculum'.

Pupils are taught how to stay physically and mentally healthy through lessons and assemblies. For example, children in early years have daily teeth brushing sessions, which helps to reinforce important lifelong habits. This is further supported with relevant themed experiences for older pupils, with visits from specialists such as dentists and gardeners to help pupils develop their understanding of nutrition.

Staff are very proud to work at the school. Teachers, including those at the earlier stages of their careers, are supported by leaders to develop professionally. For example, the school supports newer teachers to shadow and be mentored by leaders across the federation so that they can develop their skills in different subjects and year groups.

Governors fulfil their statutory duties well and share teachers' high ambitions for pupils.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• In some subjects, assessment is not used as effectively to check what pupils know, identify misconceptions and inform the next steps of teaching.

As a result, some pupils are not given sufficient time to practise and embed ideas before they apply them to more complex concepts. This means, at times, pupils struggle to connect their learning to larger ideas. The school should ensure that assessment routines and information are used consistently to adapt teaching and to help pupils deepen their knowledge across the curriculum.