The leadership team has maintained the good quality of education in the school since the previous inspection. Governors and staff share your aim for pupils to fulfil their potential in all respects. You have created a curriculum that supports pupils’ academic and personal development very well. As a result, pupils enjoy school and strive to meet the school motto to smile, believe, persevere and succeed. They feel that learning is challenging and say teachers make learning ‘interesting and fun’. Pupils welcome opportunities to participate in the wide range of trips, clubs and sporting activities that enhance their learning and allow them to pursue their interests. For example, during the inspection, some pupils from key stage 1 and 2 were participating in a cross-country competition and others were attending a music festival. Pupils are polite, well mannered, confident and friendly. They have a mature appreciation of equality and understand why it is important that they learn about and respect the beliefs and cultures of others. As one pupil said, ‘Everyone is different but should be treated the same.’ Parents are highly supportive of the school. Almost all parents who responded to Parent View would recommend the school. There were numerous comments that reflected the caring and nurturing ethos of the school, such as, ‘Not only do they offer a good balanced education, but their pastoral care is also excellent.’ You know what the school does well and what you want to be even better. Governors work with you and other leaders to set priorities for improvement and check that your actions are making a difference. They provide an appropriate balance of support and challenge. Working with governors, you have addressed the areas for improvement identified at the previous inspection. For example, pupils confidently apply and use their skills in writing and mathematics in their geography and science work. Subject leaders have an accurate view of the strengths and areas for development in the areas for which they are responsible. They know how their improvement plans contribute to achieving whole-school priorities. Staff feel wellsupported, valued and are proud to work at the school. Safeguarding is effective. Pupils feel safe at South Benfleet Primary School and adults give the highest priority to keeping pupils safe. Pupils learn about staying safe from a variety of risks through their lessons, assemblies and visits from outside speakers. Pupils are very knowledgeable about how to stay safe when working online and gave examples of how a visiting speaker had alerted them to potential risks of taking part in ‘trick or treat’ during Halloween. Pupils have a thorough understanding of bullying in its different forms and of the harm that it can cause. They say that bullying does not happen often and that, in almost all cases, problems are resolved quickly. This reflects the responses on Parent View, Ofsted’s online questionnaire, and from staff. Leaders have ensured that the school’s safeguarding arrangements are fit for purpose. You complete all the necessary checks to ensure that adults are suitable to work with pupils thoroughly. The record of these checks is accurately maintained. Adults receive appropriate and regular training on how to keep pupils safe. You and governors ensure that you update policies and procedures to reflect the latest guidance. You have an excellent understanding of your role as designated safeguarding lead. You are ably supported by three other knowledgeable and appropriately trained leaders who can take on the role in your absence. When necessary, you make referrals to external agencies promptly, so that pupils and their families quickly receive any help that they need. When vulnerable pupils move to new schools, you ensure that all relevant information and records are transferred to the new school to reduce the risk of any pupils ‘falling through the net’. Inspection findings To check whether the school remains good I followed several lines of enquiry. The first was to explore how effective your actions have been to improve the quality of teaching, learning and assessment and share the best practice in the school. This was an area for improvement identified at the previous inspection. Teaching, learning and assessment are consistently effective across the school. You have made good use of a system that allows teachers to observe colleagues and share ideas. Staff appreciate the training and development opportunities that you provide. For example, training in support for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) has strengthened provision for these pupils.