Windlehurst School

Overview

Windlehurst School provides a “calm and welcoming environment” where pupils benefit from “particularly strong relationships with staff.” The inspection found that leaders have designed a “broad and balanced curriculum” and managed the school effectively through the pandemic, ensuring pupils continue to access learning. Overall, the school is judged as “Good” across all key categories, with pupils achieving well and feeling safe.

Strengths

• Pupils are “happy in school and behave respectfully,” settling quickly due to “well-planned and regularly rehearsed routines.”
• Teachers use information from education, health and care plans well to support pupils, and staff “skilfully manage pupils’ behaviour” with very little disruption.
• The support for personal development is a strength, with pupils engaging in outdoor learning and the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award to learn about “voluntary work in the community.”
• Leaders have “effective systems in place to help teachers to understand pupils’ individual needs,” allowing for quick identification of special educational needs and disabilities.
• Parents and carers are “highly positive about the quality of education that their children receive.”

Areas to improve

• Leaders must use assessment information consistently to shape additional support for a small number of pupils falling behind in reading, ensuring they become “fluent and confident readers.”
• Leaders should use attendance and behaviour information more effectively to understand barriers and provide better support for pupils with irregular attendance or behavioural difficulties.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are “effective,” with robust systems to identify concerns and provide “prompt and timely support for pupils.”