Napton School

Strengths

• Creates a calm, caring and welcoming environment where pupils feel safe and valued.
• Builds positive, trusting relationships that help pupils re-engage with education.
• Supports pupils' social and emotional development and emotional regulation effectively.
• Provides strong pastoral care and therapeutic support that reduces barriers to learning.
• Maintains calm and positive behaviour with clear expectations and consistent staff responses.
• Teaches phonics effectively, especially for pupils at the earliest stages of reading.
• Uses thoughtful, flexible approaches to improve attendance and re-engage pupils.
• Offers a well-considered personal development programme with enrichment and pupil voice.
• Develops pupils' confidence, resilience, independence and preparation for next steps.
• Works extremely well with families, local authorities and the virtual school.
• Uses additional funding thoughtfully and responds to pupil voice.
• Provides suitable support and challenge through governance.
• Prioritises staff professional learning and wellbeing, including Kedleston Group collaboration.
• Meets all independent school standards and safeguarding standards.
• Parents and carers are highly positive about the school.

Areas for Improvement

• Pupils' individual starting points are not always identified precisely enough.
• The curriculum is not yet fully refined to reflect the current stage of learning for all pupils.
• Activities are occasionally too easy or too challenging, limiting progress.
• Use of assessment information varies between lessons and subjects.
• Assessment is not consistently used to identify what pupils need to learn next.
• Curriculum implementation is not monitored closely enough to ensure pupils' needs are met consistently.
• Knowledge does not always build securely and consistently across the curriculum.

• Primary Schools
• Secondary Schools