Durham Newton Hall Infants' School

Overview

The report describes a school where “everyone is welcome” and leaders foster a “culture of kindness.” Pupils feel “safe and happy,” supported by staff who know them as individuals, while older pupils act as positive role models. The school maintains high expectations for achievement and behaviour, with lessons proceeding without interruption and bullying being “very rare.”

Strengths

• The curriculum is “broad and balanced,” building knowledge in a “logical and progressive way,” particularly in mathematics where concepts are “developed well.”
• Reading and phonics are a “key priority,” with staff receiving ongoing training to ensure they “teach phonics well” and identify gaps in knowledge.
• Personal development is a “high priority,” with pupils learning about online safety, healthy lifestyles, and fundamental British values in an “age-appropriate way.”
• Leaders and governors provide “clear and consistent oversight,” maintaining a shared ambition for “equality of opportunity and outcomes for all.”
• Staff well-being is prioritised, ensuring workload is manageable and that all staff, including those early in their careers, “feel well supported.”

Areas to improve

• The school must ensure books for weaker readers are “closely matched to the sounds they are already familiar with” to help them catch up quickly.
• Writing tasks need to better match pupils’ spelling and grammar knowledge so they can write using sounds they know.
• Monitoring of the curriculum and catch-up programmes must be more “timely and focused” to provide an accurate view of strengths and weaknesses.

Safeguarding

The report states that “the arrangements for safeguarding are effective.”