The leadership team has maintained the good quality of education in the school since the last inspection. Leaders’ commitment to securing pupils’ academic success is tangible. They ensure that teaching inspires pupils to work hard and aim high. As a result, pupils attain well, particularly in mathematics and key stage 1. As one pupil commented: ‘We do well in this school because teachers make sure we do our best.’ Parents and carers who responded to Parent View are supportive of the school’s work, praising its ‘welcoming’ and ‘friendly’ ethos. Leaders know the school’s strengths and areas that could be better. You and your deputy headteacher form a strong team. Well-focused plans for improvement reflect the culture of high expectations. For instance, leaders have taken effective steps to improve pupils’ progress in writing, following disappointing outcomes in the 2018 key stage 2 assessments. When leaders act, improvement follows swiftly. Current pupils are making good progress. However, some aspects of the teaching of writing need strengthening, for instance in relation to the development of pupils’ handwriting skills. You have a motivated team of staff, including middle leaders, who share your determination to ensure that pupils fulfil their potential. To achieve this aim, leaders and teachers keep a close eye on how well pupils learn. Through their use of highquality assessment information, teachers are quick to identify and support pupils who have fallen behind. The school’s approach in this area is a strength. Alongside this, leaders and staff work effectively with other schools within the multi-academy trust to learn from what is working well. Staff spoke highly of how this enables them to develop their teaching and leadership skills. Morale is good because staff feel well supported. They know that leaders’ decisions are shaped by appropriate consideration for their well-being as well as what is in pupils’ best interests. Your focus on academic rigour is matched with strong provision for pupils’ development as well-rounded individuals. The rich curriculum contributes well to this work. For instance, pupils told me how much they enjoy taking part in the extra-curricular activities on offer, including yoga and choir. Pupils also benefit from many opportunities to take on leadership roles such as house captains and peer mediators. These roles develop important skills such as team work, which pupils recognise will serve them well in the future. Pupils are proud of their school, as their considerate and sensible conduct shows. You have recently introduced a new approach to promoting high standards of behaviour, including training for staff. Pupils were positive about the difference this approach has made. They told me that staff deal with any incidents in ‘a fair and proportionate way’. Governors are closely involved in school life, providing leaders with well-targeted support and challenge. For instance, you and the governing body have found ways to maintain high standards in reading, writing and mathematics without compromising the provision for pastoral care or in other subjects, such as specialist teaching in modern foreign languages and music. Safeguarding is effective. The strong safeguarding culture is centred on adults’ in-depth knowledge of each pupil. Staff are knowledgeable about different risks, including peer-on-peer abuse and cyber bullying, and know what signs to look out for. You and your team are highly alert to changes in pupils’ behaviour or circumstances. Leaders consider carefully if these changes indicate pupils’ welfare is at risk. Close partnerships with parents mean that leaders acquire a full picture of pupils’ needs. Leaders are thorough in their work to make sure that pupils receive effective extra help when it is needed. They do not hesitate to challenge external agencies so that vulnerable pupils and families receive the right level of support at the right time. Strong pastoral care means pupils feel safe. Pupils told me that the school is ‘friendly’, ‘teachers are kind’ and that they ‘never feel lonely’. They appreciate how staff know them very well and are quick to help them if they feel unhappy. Pupils have suitable opportunities to learn how to stay safe, including when they use the internet. Through the school’s work with national safeguarding charities, pupils understand the importance of speaking out if they feel unsafe or worried. All parents who responded to the Parent View survey agreed that their children feel safe in school. Inspection findings The first area I considered was pupils’ writing outcomes in key stage 2. This was because the 2018 Year 6 cohort made considerably less progress in writing during key stage 2 compared to pupils in other schools.