Joydens Wood Junior School

What Ofsted said

From the inspection on 28 January 2025

Pupils are happy and feel safe in school. They enjoy school and the learning opportunities across the curriculum. Since the last inspection, the school has taken swift action to make significant changes to the curriculum. However, in some subjects these developments are still in their infancy. Pupils have gaps in their learning which is impacting on their achievement. School values are at the heart of school life. Pupils know these values well and are proud to demonstrate them. For example, understanding that we are all different and appreciating other people's beliefs and opinions. Pupils demonstrate their confidence to speak out and share ideas. For instance, in Year 4 computing, pupils engaged in a discussion about artificial intelligence. Behaviour across the school is positive, pupils focus on their learning and work well together. If pupils have any worries or concerns, they know adults will listen to them and provide support. Pupils are extremely proud of their contributions to the school community. They relish the opportunity to apply for the wide range of leadership roles. Pupil parliamentarians share the range of initiatives they have helped to implement. For instance, the organisation of a larger library at the heart of the school. Eco leaders encourage pupils to take care of the school environment and consider the impact of how they travel to school.

What the school should improve

• The curriculum is not fully supporting some pupils to develop handwriting skills, particularly with correct letter formation. As a result, their learning in other subjects, where writing is integral, is not as successful as it could be. The school should review and strengthen its approach to developing these foundational skills so that pupils develop accurate and fluent handwriting.
• In some foundation subjects, assessment is not used precisely to check what pupils learn and remember. In these instances, pupils do not consistently develop the same depth of knowledge and understanding as they do in other subjects. The school should ensure that staff consistently identify misconceptions and gaps in pupils' learning and use this information to inform their teaching.
• The design of tasks does not enable pupils to fully achieve the aims of the foundation curriculum. As a result, pupils' written work in these subjects is not as strong as it should be. The school should carefully develop pupils' writing skills across the curriculum so they can demonstrate the depth of their subject knowledge.

Read the full Ofsted report (opens in a new tab)