Shadsworth Infant School

Overview

Pupils are described as “happy and settled” at this “vibrant infant school,” where they “enjoy their learning” and feel cared for by staff. The school is “aspirational” for academic achievement and social development, with pupils typically achieving well across a range of subjects. Inspectors found that the curriculum is generally “broad and balanced,” though refinements are needed in specific areas to ensure consistent knowledge acquisition.

Strengths

• The provision for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) is a “strength,” with early identification of needs and effective support ensuring pupils are “ready to learn.”
• Reading is a clear priority; staff foster a “love of reading” through engaging activities like library clubs and reading to the school’s guinea pigs, helping most pupils become “confident and fluent readers.”
• Pupils benefit from enriching experiences, including trips to museums and farms, and visitors such as firefighters, which “enhance pupils’ learning.”
• Staff work in a “supportive culture” with strong teamwork, and the governing body provides “effective challenge and support.”

Areas to improve

• The school must refine curriculum thinking in some subjects and early years areas where “knowledge is not as clearly determined,” ensuring staff select appropriate activities so pupils “know and remember more.”
• The school needs to address persistent absence, as “too many pupils do not attend school regularly enough,” causing them to miss out on important learning and wider experiences.

Safeguarding

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