The leadership team has maintained the good quality of education in the school since the last inspection. You know the school well. Together with other leaders, you have created a caring school where pupils are happy, feel safe and achieve well. You provide strong leadership by setting high expectations and ensuring that pupils have a well-rounded education. The school’s distinctive ethos and strong values underpin your day-to-day work and provide the school community with a strong moral purpose. All leaders and staff share your vision. They work in unison to drive improvements with a strong sense of teamwork. Staff feel motivated and respected. They spoke positively about how your leadership has helped to move the school forward. At the previous inspection you were asked to improve the teaching, ensuring that all pupils were sufficiently challenged and activities were well matched to their abilities. Since then you have provided staff with relevant training and purchased resources to support pupils’ learning. During the inspection we saw pupils enjoying their learning. They cooperate well together and are keen to answer questions in class. Pupils said that their teachers make learning fun and they get help in class when they need it. Nevertheless, middle- and higher-ability pupils in key stage 2 do not make enough progress from their starting points. Teachers throughout the school do not use all the available information about the starting points of groups of pupils effectively to check they make good progress. Children in the early years achieve well, with a greater number of pupils than previously leaving the Reception class in 2017 ready for Year 1. Pupils’ attainment in the phonics screening check in Year 1 has also been high. Pupils make good progress during key stage 1. They achieve standards at the end of Year 2 that are broadly in line with national averages in reading, writing and mathematics. By the end of key stage 2, pupils typically reach standards above the national average in writing. In 2017, their attainment was also above the national average in reading and mathematics. Pupils, parents and carers are extremely proud of the school. They said you lead and manage the school well. This is reflected in very positive feedback from parents. They spoke emphatically about the community that you and the school’s other leaders have created. They feel valued and an integral part of their child’s education. As one parent commented, ‘The school shares our family views and I could not wish for my child to attend a better school.’ Pupils spoke confidently about what makes their school special. They talked fondly of the relationships that are a key feature of this nurturing school. ‘It’s only a little school but it’s good because we all get along with each other,’ said one pupil. Older pupils establish strong relationships with younger ones. They look after each other throughout the school day. For example, at lunchtime, older and younger pupils sit side by side helping and supporting each other with manners and social skills. Pupils are polite and welcoming to visitors. Teachers encourage pupils to make choices and understand right from wrong. Pupils develop resilience and challenge themselves in their work. You strive to ensure that the school promotes a purposeful and positive learning environment. Vibrant displays show pupils’ work in classrooms and around the school. Staff work hard to ensure that the curriculum is both broad and balanced. They ensure that pupils have a wide range of opportunities to develop their creative and sporting skills. Pupils also enjoy the many trips and visits that support their learning and provide them with a wider view of the world. Pupils in the choir regularly perform away from the school and recently performed at Newark’s theatre and at a local holiday park. Pupils choose which sporting clubs they would like to participate in and you try to support these requests, in liaison with your partnership secondary schools. You recognise the challenges of being a small, rural school and are determined to ensure that pupils are well prepared for life in modern Britain. To this end, you provide opportunities for pupils to learn about and understand other communities. For example, pupils visited the ‘Living Faiths’ project in Leicester. Governors are highly committed to the school and work with you to nurture and protect its special ethos. The governing body has a good understanding of the school’s strengths and weaknesses. Governors know how well the school is doing compared to other schools nationally. Their understanding of how well different groups of pupils are doing is not as strong. Leaders and other staff know individual pupils extremely well, but do not provide the governing body with a detailed overview of how well different groups are doing.