Mari Powell, NSIN 143

 Clanfield School is a good church school that is well led and effectively serves its local community.

 Focus for development

• To ensure that the Christian character of the school is made explicit, for example, in all school documentation.
• To keep records of the elements of worship that have been particularly effective.
• To continue to challenge the community to evaluate the effectiveness of how the school realises its vision.

 The school makes good provision for the needs of all its learners

The school has a strong value system that reflects well its Christian foundation. The pupils’ individual strengths are developed and celebrated within a well defined, secure family ethos. Parents recognise and value the way the school cares for the children and provides good opportunities for their personal growth and well-being. Pupils undertake a wide range of responsibilities, for example, in contributing to decisions about their immediate environment. Supported by local sponsorship they have created a beautiful wild flower area of which they are justly proud and which reflects very well on the way the school encourages its pupils to respect and enjoy the natural world. On being shown around by two boys, the visitor was moved by their delight in it and their desire for the local community to share it. The school can now be more confident about the value of the experiences offered to pupils and be more explicit about their potential for further developing the spiritual element. Learning in religious education includes opportunities for pupils to learn how people of different faiths and cultures live and worship. It makes a good contribution to pupils’ broader understanding. This is well complemented by various strands of learning explored, for example, through art, music and literature. Activities linked to Christian Aid and Fair Trade represent an important aspect of the school’s sense of mission. These activities are very well promoted and supported by the school staff who create this inclusive and outward looking ethos. The school intends now to review some aspects of its signing and also the consistency with which its Anglican character is reflected in its documentation.

 Collective worship makes a good impact on the school community

Collective worship is carefully planned to meet the needs of pupils of different ages. The whole staff, with valuable contributions from local clergy, are involved in the planning. All staff lead worship in turn and, therefore, have a sense of ownership of it. Local clergy take turns each week and provide a refreshing ingredient valued by the pupils. From discussion with staff and pupils and the observations of two foundation governors, worship represents an important element of the school day. Pupils celebrate major festivals in two of the local churches, thereby gaining a valuable understanding of various traditions. The school benefits from the support received in organising and carrying out worship. As part of the religious education curriculum the clergy have enabled the pupils to gain an understanding of the significance of baptism and the symbolism of different features of the local churches and their traditions of worship. That the pupils enjoy their experiences of worship was evident in discussion with the School Council. Pupils value being together, enjoy opportunities to contribute prayers and are proud of the Golden Book containing a collection of their own prayers. They also like to look at the “assembly board” which reminds them of the weekly theme. Pupils behave well during periods of worship but on the occasion seen there was no reflective focus to signal the start of worship. That pupils are taught to reflect quietly was, however, very visible in photographs of the two minutes silence held at the local war memorial. Worship is recognised as a special time of day but this fact is not fully reflected in its naming as “assembly”. Over a school year, powerful themes for worship are supported by some imaginative activities. However, although worship is regularly discussed no formal record is currently kept of activities that have been particularly effective. This was an issue raised at the last inspection and which the school intends to address at the impending triennial review.

 The leadership of the headteacher, well supported by the governors is good.

The headteacher and governors have a coherent vision of the school’s identity as a church school. This is successfully shared with all the staff who contribute well because the constructive relationships between the members of the partnership promote the well-being of all members of the school. Consultation processes are regular so that staff feel they play a significant part in realising the school’s aims. This impacts well upon the pupils who participate enthusiastically in the exciting activities organised for them and which broaden their experiences. They recognise that justice and fair play lie at the heart of all that is promoted in the school. The very strong community link developed through the headteacher, staff, parents and governors plays an important part in helping to develop qualities of good citizenship. The leadership and drive of school leaders have inspired the Eco and Healthy Schools projects in which pupils have achieved marked success. The school, while justly proud of its achievement, recognises the need to keep all aspects of its successes under review. It is also exploring ways of encouraging all members of the partnership to further challenge the way it realises its vision as a church school.