Race Leys Junior School

What Ofsted said

From the inspection on 16 July 2024

Pupils at this school benefit greatly from the 'Griffin Promise'. They learn the importance of the value of perseverance as they begin their journey to becoming lifelong learners. Pupils are proud to be members of their school and are motivated by an awe-inspiring environment which successfully ignites imagination and sparks interest in books and authors. This helps pupils to achieve well by the time they leave the school. Opportunities to 'widen pupils' horizons' come in many forms. Pupils enjoy a trip to London, where they visit theatres, museums and engage with pupils from a partner Griffin school. They listen with interest to eminent scientists who work in esteemed universities and learn about legendary leaders in assemblies linked to topics such a neurodiversity and equality. Being part of a caring community really matters to pupils. They are well looked after and form close relationships with the adults who support them. This helps many to feel safe and happy. Learning musical instruments, Spanish and experiencing new 'co-curricular' clubs all help to develop pupils' talents and interests. Developing pupil leadership skills is a key priority. Being a 'head Griffin' and becoming a member of the junior leadership team carries a responsibility to make improvements to the school. Many pupils feel their voice matters and leave the school wanting to make a difference and do well in future studies.

What the school should improve

• A minority of pupils do not behave as expected when learning and this is not consistently addressed by all staff. Some pupils report that their learning is disrupted and this can affect their understanding. The school should ensure that the expectations for addressing low-level disruption as outlined in the behaviour policy are followed by all staff.
• Despite the school's work to improve attendance, strategies are not working as well as they should for all pupils. As a result, a significant minority of pupils are absent for extended periods of learning and miss out on the opportunities to develop both academically and socially. The school should continue to develop further strategies to reduce persistent absence and low attendance.
• Not all pupils are consistently provided the opportunity to deepen their understanding in mathematics. This means that some pupils are not routinely applying the facts and calculation methods when problem-solving and this prevents them deepening their understanding. The school should ensure that there are regular opportunities for pupils to develop their reasoning skills in mathematics.

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