The leadership team has maintained the good quality of education in the school since the previous inspection. You, your leaders, governors and staff exhibit a strong commitment to the school and the community. Together with parents and pupils, you have created an ethos of determination and resilience at the heart of your school. Consequently, pupils continue to experience a good standard of education, are happy, and look forward to coming to school. The school has grown, and continues to do so. You, ably supported by your deputy headteacher, have worked quickly and effectively to ensure that all your leaders work together to meet the needs of this expanding school. With the further school expansion of pupil class sizes imminent, the school has taken immediate, and effective, action to ensure that the existing school team has the capacity to meet the needs of the increasing pupil numbers they expect. This is ensuring that the growth of the school will not be detrimental to the good standard of education currently on offer. Brambles pre-school has integrated well since it joined your school. Your leader in the early years works closely with the pre-school to ensure that the team have a good understanding of the needs of individual children before they start their fulltime education. Older pupils also ‘buddy’ with the younger children. ‘Year 4 friends’ accompanied children in the pre-school on an autumn walk last term. Children regularly visit the main school to sing songs and share learning. This ensures that transition is not too daunting when the time comes for children to move into Reception. Consequently, children settle quickly and happily, and make good progress. Providing support and celebrating achievements are crucial aspects of your leadership monitoring, to further develop and improve teaching and learning. Leaders have created a culture of high expectations for staff and pupils. As a result, staff and pupils are keen to be successful, and aspire to do their best. You have maintained an ethos of care and commitment throughout the school. Your arrival in September 2015, and the restructuring of the leadership team, has ensured that professional development links very closely to any training needs that you identify in your monitoring. Staff are very positive about the quality of the guidance and support they receive, and the relentless focus that you have on achieving the best outcomes for the pupils. Parents are very positive about the school’s work. They believe that the school is well led and say that their children enjoy coming to school; the majority would recommend the school to others. One parent summarised the thoughts of many, saying: ‘I am very happy with the education children are receiving at Brampton. The school has a lovely atmosphere and the staff are very approachable and supportive. The school is a safe and happy environment, and I feel they are making good progress. Communication between parents and teachers is very good. The new headteacher has made a positive impact on the school.’ Another parent said, ‘We are proud to be a part of the school as it continues to get bigger.’ Safeguarding is effective. The school’s systems, approach and culture for safeguarding pupils are effective. Governors ensure that pupils and staff are safe through their monitoring work and discussions with staff and leaders. Nominated governors for safeguarding ensure that all policies and procedures are in place, and monitor the safeguarding of the school closely. The school business manager maintains an effective overview of the school’s single central record. She ensures that there are no gaps in the processes to check the suitability of adults to work with pupils. The detail and methodical approach provide in-depth information, so leaders can be secure that they are making sure pupils are safe. As an additional support and liaison between the school and families, the inclusion worker provides effective support to pupils. This enhances the secure practice already being carried out by leaders. As a result, families trust the school and feel able to share information that helps the school take good care of children and pupils. 2 Parents feel that their children attend a school that is safe, and pupils told inspectors that they feel safe in school. Pupils can describe the different types of bullying and know the difference between bullying and falling out with each other over a lunchtime disagreement. Pupils told inspectors that there are ‘listening boxes’ around the school, where they can post any worries they may have. Pupils feel very sure that any adult will help them and respond to their concerns, should the need arise. Inspection findings To determine that the school remained good, one of my key lines of enquiry was about leaders and their capacity to improve the school. You involve yourself completely in all aspects of the teaching and learning and have effectively disseminated your passion and vision throughout the leadership team. This has meant that all staff have clear responsibilities and fully accept accountability for pupils’ progress as an integral part of their role. Leaders have accurately identified how the school needs to improve. For example, leaders have strategically restructured the teaching team following each set of results since the previous inspection, to ensure that they can build on what is successful, and rapidly work on areas requiring improvement. This is already having a positive impact on pupils’ progress, particularly in reading, writing and mathematics. Leaders’ monitoring of the quality of teaching, learning and assessment continues to develop the quality of provision for pupils. An example of this is the work being undertaken by leaders to refine teachers’ advice and feedback to pupils. Teachers’ guidance to pupils is now specific and concise. Pupils use this well to improve their work and develop their understanding, especially in their writing across the curriculum. The school is relentlessly working on the areas for improvement from the previous inspection. One of my lines of enquiry was to look at the assessment of writing. Pupils’ current writing in books and the school’s progress information indicate that it is now becoming a strength within the school. Children are given the opportunity to explore writing in many different contexts throughout the curriculum, and in every key stage. For example, in geography, Year 6 pupils wrote an explanation about what a Biome is, and in Year 4, pupils applied their skills to write high-quality reports on the historical events of Pompeii. Another focus for the inspection was the progress that disadvantaged pupils are making. Unchecked, published information for 2016 suggests that disadvantaged pupils did not make the progress that they were capable of. However, leaders have recognised this, and acted quickly. The school’s meticulous monitoring and assessment information show that disadvantaged pupils are well supported. Teachers are very aware of the needs of the disadvantaged pupils in their class. As a result, teachers’ planning takes into account individual needs in order to support and challenge disadvantaged pupils, so they make good, and better, progress.