Alderman Pounder Infant and Nursery School

Overview

Alderman Pounder Infant and Nursery School continues to be a good school. Pupils are described as “curious, caring and polite,” feeling safe and proud of their environment. Leaders have high ambitions for all pupils, designing a well-sequenced curriculum that ensures key knowledge is precisely identified and revisited across subjects.

Strengths

• The curriculum is “well sequenced from the early years to Year 2,” with systems established to check what pupils can remember.
• Teachers receive positive professional support from the Flying High Trust, helping them maintain secure knowledge of their subjects.
• Relationships are strong, with behaviour dealt with in a “calm, consistent and fair” way, and pupils understanding how to regulate themselves.
• Pupils enjoy reading, developing a love for it through rhymes, songs, and stories from the start in Nursery.
• Leaders ensure inclusivity, adapting lessons to help pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities gain the same knowledge as their peers.

Areas to improve

• Some disadvantaged pupils do not learn to read or develop vocabulary quickly enough, hindering their progress.
• Adults do not sufficiently check how well pupils have understood key vocabulary, limiting access to the curriculum.
• Some early readers need more opportunities to apply phonics knowledge to make it “second nature.”

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective, with leaders working closely with external agencies and ensuring staff understand their roles to spot pupils at risk.