The leadership team has maintained the good quality of education in the school since the last inspection. During this academic year several staff are on leave. Some staff have recently returned and some staff are very new to the school. This turbulence in staffing has presented some challenges, especially around leadership. You have taken the opportunity to develop other leaders in school and have reorganised staffing to ensure that you maintain the good quality of education in your school. You have sought additional help from the local authority and have used this well. You have continued to drive school improvement and are tenacious in your approach because you want the very best for the children in your care. Governors know the context of the school well and acknowledge that this has been a challenging year. Even so, both they and you adopt a ‘no excuses’ culture. They describe your leadership as ‘steely determination’. You ensure that governors receive regular reports and input at meetings from school leaders. The chair of the governing body attends the school improvement board on a termly basis to check how the school is doing. As a result, governors have a good understanding of the school’s strengths and weaknesses and hold leaders firmly to account. However, they do not visit school regularly to see things first-hand for themselves. You work hard to engage parents and carers. In Reception and key stage 1, parents accompany their children into school and help them with some tasks and activities to start the day; for example, ‘Brain Breakfast’, which is a daily mathematics challenge. On ‘Workshop Wednesday’, parents can join their children in school for the morning and watch them learning. The school makes good use of the text service to communicate with parents and provides useful information on its website, especially about safeguarding. Most parents spoken to were positive about the school. They say their children are safe, happy and well looked after. They say teachers are friendly and approachable. Pupils enjoy their learning and say teachers expect them to work hard. In lessons, pupils behave well and focus on their work. They enjoy the opportunities they have to go on educational visits and several residentials. For example, to a Roman ruins and a space centre. They value the range of after-school activities they can take part in, such as cooking and archery. Year 6 pupils appreciate the extra groups they can go to after school to help them prepare for their tests later this year. Pupils talked about ‘The Dovecote’s Way’ and the ‘secrets of success’ where they are encouraged to try new things, push themselves and understand others. They say they welcome children new to the school by helping them and introducing them to new people. Since the last inspection, leaders have considered how to encourage the most able pupils to think for themselves and work independently, especially in mathematics. They have introduced the ‘Daily 10’ so that pupils can practise arithmetic skills by themselves. Pupils also complete short problem-solving and reasoning activities in ‘Brain Breakfast’ time at the beginning of the day. Teachers use assessment information at the beginning of a unit of work to identify the most able pupils in a particular aspect of mathematics. This helps them to provide challenge for the most able. Pupils are given a range of opportunities to develop their mathematics skills in fluency, reasoning and problem-solving. However, on occasion, the level of challenge is not high enough. You have ensured that the best practice in school is used to good effect to support and improve the quality of teaching overall. You have continued to do this even when there are temporary staff in school. English, mathematics and early years leaders, especially, support staff well in teaching, learning and assessment. They check teachers’ planning and pupils’ work; they observe teaching and work alongside staff to improve their practice. As a result, the quality of teaching continues to improve. You ensure that governors receive appropriate and helpful information about the progress that pupils make, including those who receive pupil premium funding. Your end-of-year evaluation of attainment and progress shows governors how effective their actions have been. You also provide a detailed overview and commentary of pupils’ progress and attainment on a termly basis. Governors talk about an increased drive and focus on targeted work since the last inspection, and additional help for pupils who need it to improve their progress and attainment. Governors are aware of how to measure pupils’ progress over time. They always look at where pupils were when they started and where they are when they leave.