The leadership team has maintained the good quality of education in the school since the last inspection. Stanbridge Lower is an inclusive school where children and pupils thrive in the nurturing, happy and safe atmosphere. You, your governors and your staff are committed and passionate about ensuring that pupils achieve well, and develop into well-rounded young people. You have created a culture where all pupils are at the heart of everything you do. You are relentless in ensuring that pupils are well cared for and valued as individuals. You inspire staff, pupils and parents to work collaboratively. Only the very best will do for pupils at Stanbridge Lower School. Governors and staff all share this aspiration. Pupils enjoy being among their friends and sharing different experiences with each other. For example, in the whole-school assembly, pupils celebrated their work and confidently discussed the things that were special to them in their life. Pupils describe their school experience as ‘epic,’ ‘awesome,’ ‘exciting’ and ‘just perfect!’ Pupils say they love coming to school. One pupil said, ‘I wake up thinking, what exciting things am I going to be doing at school today. If I cannot be in school I feel sad and look forward to getting back to my friends.’ A focus on this inspection was looking at the context of your school in relation to the progress pupils make from their starting points. Although published information suggests that your pupils do not achieve well, this does not present an accurate picture of achievement in the school. The biggest issue for you is that you continually face significant challenges in securing consistently good attainment for pupils, in comparison to the national averages. This is because there are huge variations, on a daily basis, in pupil cohorts, and their attendance levels. Owing to these challenges, you ensure that your monitoring systems for pupils’ achievement in reading, writing and mathematics are rigorous and the planning of teaching takes into account the provision pupils require during, and after, periods of extended absence. Inspection evidence, and your current assessment information, shows that the actual progress all pupils make from where they start is good. Children in the Reception class are making good progress from their starting points and a higher proportion are on track to achieve a good level of development at the end of this year than was the case previously. You also clearly demonstrate that, for pupils who are in school on a regular basis, their attainment is similar to, or above, their peers nationally in reading, writing and mathematics. Members of your governing body are very committed to their roles, and have a very thorough understanding of the context, strengths and areas for improvement in the school’s provision. They provide a measured mix of rigorous challenge and support, and are increasingly confident in their strategic roles. Governors relentlessly focus on the attainment of all pupils. However, you rightly acknowledge that, while an eye should be kept on the attainment of all pupils, the focus on challenging pupils’ progress will give a fairer, more accurate, indication of the school’s performance. Parents are overwhelmingly supportive of the school’s work. They believe the school does a great job and think their children are lucky to attend a school that is so well led. One parent summarised the views of many when saying, ‘Stanbridge is a fantastic school. My children have been lucky enough to attend and benefit from the caring, nurturing environment that Stanbridge offers. All staff members are a credit to the school and I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend them to anyone. Children excel and obtain the best start to their education, thanks to being pupils here.’ Safeguarding is effective. The leadership team has ensured that all safeguarding arrangements are fit for purpose. A strong culture of safeguarding has been developed at the school. You possess a very good knowledge of those pupils in your care whose circumstances make them particularly vulnerable. All staff demonstrate that they know the needs of pupils and their families well. They are vigilant in identifying any evidence that a child may not be doing as well as they could. They swiftly pick up on this and proactively intervene. This ensures that all children and pupils are well cared for and safe. All appropriate and relevant checks are made on the suitability of adults working at the school. Concerns over pupils’ welfare are managed quickly and meticulously. Your record keeping is precise and very clear about what actions and monitoring are required to keep pupils free from any harm.