James Peacock Infant and Nursery School

Overview

James Peacock Infant and Nursery School is described as a place where the school’s values of being ‘PROUD’ shine brightly, creating a supportive community where pupils feel safe and happy. The report highlights rapid improvements since the previous inspection, noting that pupils achieve well, enjoy learning, and benefit from a warm, caring environment.

Strengths

• Pupils are ‘ambitious’ learners who ‘speak enthusiastically’ about their knowledge and enjoy initiatives like ‘the reading suitcase’ and ‘bookflix’ presentations.
• Staff use ‘effective strategies’ to teach reading, ensuring pupils ‘quickly become accurate readers’ and receive timely support if at risk of falling behind.
• The curriculum is ‘broad and ambitious’, with staff adapting teaching so pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) can ‘learn alongside their peers’.
• Early years provision is praised for its ‘well-planned curriculum’ and adventurous outdoor activities, such as the forest school, where ‘curiosity is nurtured’.
• Personal, social, health and economic (PSHE) education is taught well, promoting respect for diversity and ensuring pupils ‘recognise themselves in the curriculum’.

Areas to improve

• The school must improve its approach to assessment in some subjects, as teachers do not always use it consistently to identify which aspects of knowledge need deepening.
• Consequently, some pupils ‘do not achieve the highest standards that they might’, requiring the school to ensure assessment helps all pupils achieve as well as they can.

Safeguarding

The report states that ‘the arrangements for safeguarding are effective’.