St James' Church of England First School and Nursery, Alderholt

Overview

St James’ Church of England First School and Nursery, Alderholt continues to be a good school. The inspection confirms that leaders are ambitious for all pupils, fostering a strong sense of community rooted in Christian values and high behavioural expectations. While reading and mathematics are taught effectively, the report highlights that curriculum delivery and assessment in foundation subjects require further development to ensure pupils build knowledge as well as they could.

Strengths

• Pupils are respectful, enjoy social times, and demonstrate self-control through the school’s mantra to ‘make great choices, be our best’.
• Leaders prioritise reading with ‘clear and precise’ teaching, enabling pupils to develop fluency from the Nursery upwards.
• Mathematics curriculum is well-designed, with leaders using assessment to adapt learning to each pupil’s next steps.
• Staff support for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities is thoughtful, with tailored approaches for those finding reading difficult.
• Governors plan strategically for the long-term future, and staff are supported with appropriate training and well-being initiatives.

Areas to improve

• Assessment in foundation subjects is not yet effective; teachers are unsure how well pupils remember content, preventing them from closing knowledge gaps.
• Middle leaders do not yet monitor curriculum effectiveness sufficiently, and some important aspects of curriculum knowledge have not been identified.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective, with staff appropriately trained to report concerns and pupils taught to understand healthy relationships and stay safe online.