Setting

Mr G D’Cruz The Headteacher Ashford Oaks Community Primary School Oak Tree Road Ashford Kent TN23 4QR

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Oaks Community Primary School

Thank you for the help which you and your staff gave when I inspected your school on 13 December 2011, for the time you gave to our telephone discussions and for the information which you provided before and during the inspection. Please thank your pupils, staff, chair of the governing body and representative from the local authority for talking to me about their work and for helping with the inspection. I particularly enjoyed listening to the children practising their songs for the Christmas assembly.

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Oaks Community Primary School

As a result of the inspection on 14 and 15 June 2010, the school was asked to address the most important areas for improvement which are set out in the annex to this letter.

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Oaks Community Primary School

Having considered all the evidence I am of the opinion that at this time the school has made good progress in making improvements and satisfactory progress in demonstrating a better capacity for sustained improvement.

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Oaks Community Primary School

Outcomes for pupils are rising. Children join the Early Years Foundation Stage with knowledge, skills and understanding that are lower than are typical for children of their age. Although the progress they make begins to close the gap with national averages, most children start Key Stage 1 below the expected levels, particularly in writing. Progress in Key Stage 1 has accelerated since the last inspection and standards have risen rapidly so that attainment in mathematics is close to average. Progress in reading and writing has been equally rapid, but attainment in writing is still below average. There is a strong rising trend in attainment at Key Stage 2, pupils’ progress is accelerating and the gaps with national averages are closing fast. Tribal 1-4 Portland Square BRISTOL BS2 8RR T 0300 123 1231 Text Phone: 0161 6188524 enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk www.ofsted.gov.uk Direct T 0845 123 6001 Direct F 0117 315 0430

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Oaks Community Primary School

Direct email : rebecca.jackson@tribalgroup.com Page 2 Pupils have good opportunities to use and apply their number skills in mathematics lessons and they are becoming increasingly confident in performing calculations. For example, older pupils confidently switched between fractions, decimals and percentages when solving probability problems.

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Oaks Community Primary School

Rigorous monitoring of teaching and learning has been used to identify strengths and areas for development in teaching. Teachers have been supported and challenged to improve their practice and consequently the profile of teaching has improved significantly since the last inspection. Well-focused school-based training and coaching have helped improve the use of assessment to support learning. Teachers’ planning takes account of the needs and interests of the different groups of pupils. Pupils who are at the early stages of learning English and those who have special educational needs and/or disabilities are given specialist support to ensure that they also make rapid progress. The school is very inclusive and the small minority of children who have complex additional needs are fully included in lessons. Pupils understand their challenging targets and they value the school’s rewards system that incentivises good achievement. The impact of the work of the family

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Oaks Community Primary School

liaison officers can be seen in pupils’ improving attendance and their positive attitudes to learning

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Oaks Community Primary School

Leaders and managers at all levels are actively involved in monitoring the school’s work and have made further progress in developing leadership capacity at all levels. Regular joint evaluation meetings ensure that members of the governing body, senior leaders and a representative from the local authority evaluate the progress that the school is making and adjust priorities to maintain good progress in raising attainment.

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Oaks Community Primary School

I hope that you have found the inspection helpful in promoting improvement in your school. This letter will be posted on the Ofsted website.

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place in June 2010

 Improve attainment in all subjects across the school, particularly for mathematics by the end of Key Stage 2, so that all pupils reach or exceed age related expectations by: - ensuring greater consistency in the quality of teaching through building on recently established practice in monitoring - embed pupils’ calculation skills.  Improve the quality of teaching to ensure all groups make good or better progress by: - better use of assessment and target setting to ensure to inform planning so that tasks are closely matched to pupils’ individual ability levels and help them to move forward more rapidly.

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