South Kirkby Common Road Infant and Nursery School

Overview

The inspection found that South Kirkby Common Road Infant and Nursery School delivers education and care of a “strong standard” across achievement, curriculum, inclusion, leadership, and personal development. Safeguarding standards are met, ensuring pupils feel safe. While most aspects exceed expectations, attendance and early years writing foundations are rated at the “expected standard,” with specific actions required to embed recent improvements.

Strengths

• Pupils “consistently achieve well,” with many reaching higher levels, supported by strong phonics and reading provision.
• The curriculum is “astutely adapted” to meet individual needs, including effective support for pupils with special educational needs and disabilities.
• Leaders foster a culture of “high expectations” and professional development, resulting in staff who feel “extremely valued.”
• Pupils develop into “respectful and tolerant members of the community,” demonstrating high resilience and positive behaviour.
• Inclusion is driven by a “‘no ceiling’ approach,” ensuring disadvantaged pupils and those with vulnerabilities receive targeted, effective support.

Areas to improve

• Leaders must “embed the recent changes to the early years provision” to ensure a greater proportion of children are ready for Year 1 learning.
• Leaders should “build further on their close work with parents and carers to tackle the barriers that some pupils have to regular attendance,” as some pupils continue to have sporadic attendance.

Safeguarding

The report states that “safeguarding standards are met,” noting that leaders have established an open culture where concerns are actively identified and managed, ensuring pupils are made safer and feel safe.