St Thomas of Canterbury CofE Primary School

Age group 4–11 Inspection date(s) 17–18 January 2012 Inspection number 378662 Lapford Community Primary School Inspection report

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Unique reference number 137780 Local authority Devon Inspection number 393442 Inspection dates 17  18 January 2012 Lead inspector Laurie Lewin

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This inspection of the school was carried out under section 5 of the Education Act 2005.

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Type of school Primary School category Community Age range of pupils 4–11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 48 Appropriate authority The Directors of Chulmleigh Academy Trust Chair Gary Barlow Headteacher Michael Johnson Date of previous school inspection 23 December 2008 School address Eastington Road Lapford Crediton EX17 6QE Telephone number 01363 832292 Fax number 01363 83750 Email address admin@lapford-primary.devon.sch.uk achieve excellence in the care of children and young people, and in education and skills for learners of all ages. It regulates and inspects childcare and children's social care, and inspects the Children and Family Court Advisory Support Service (Cafcass), schools, colleges, initial teacher training, work-based learning and skills training, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It assesses council children’s services, and inspects services for looked

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after children, safeguarding and child protection. Further copies of this report are obtainable from the school. Under the Education Act 2005, the school must provide a copy of this report free of charge to certain categories of people. A charge not exceeding the full cost of reproduction may be made for any other copies supplied. If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 4234, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk . You may copy all or parts of this document for non-commercial educational purposes, as long as you give details of the source and date of publication and do not alter the information in any way. To receive regular email alerts about new publications, including survey reports and school inspection reports, please visit our website and go to ‘Subscribe’.

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T: 0300 123 4234 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.ofsted.gov.uk You can use Parent View to give Ofsted your opinion on your child’s school. Ofsted will use the information parents and carers provide when deciding which schools to inspect and when.

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You can also use Parent View to find out what other parents and carers think about schools in England. You can visit www.parentview.ofsted.gov.uk, or look for the link on the main Ofsted website: www.ofsted.gov.uk

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Introduction

This inspection was carried out with two days' notice. The inspector observed eight lessons including two teachers, held discussions with staff, the directors and groups of pupils, and listened to pupils read. The inspector took account of the responses to the on-line questionnaire (Parent View) in planning the inspection, observed the school’s work, and looked at a wide range of school documentation including the school improvement plan, the school’s self-evaluation document and the school’s assessments of pupils’ attainment and progress. The inspector reviewed 28 questionnaires submitted by parents and carers and 20 from pupils.

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Information about the school

This is a smaller-than-average primary school. It serves the local area, with a few pupils coming from further afield. The school currently has no disabled pupils on roll. The proportion of pupils who have special educational needs is above average. This varies considerably from cohort to cohort, with the current cohort of Year 6 pupils having two thirds of the pupils on the special educational needs register. The school’s register of special educational needs includes some pupils with behavioural difficulties, a few with social and emotional difficulties and a few with speech and language difficulties. The proportion of pupils known to be eligible for free school meals is below average. Most of the pupils are White British, with a small number coming from a range of other ethnic backgrounds. The school has two mixed-year classes; one of these is for pupils in Reception, Years 1 and 2; the other is for pupils

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Information about the school

in Years 3, 4, 5 and 6. The number on roll at the school has fallen recently and there has been some instability in staffing. The school holds several accreditations including the Eco Schools award and Healthy School status. The school meets the current government floor standard.

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Information about the school

Over the last year, the governing body entered into discussions with the Chulmleigh Academy Trust and, from January 1 2012, the school became part of the trust’s chain of schools. Including this school, the Chulmleigh Academy Trust chain comprises five schools run by a board of directors with an executive headteacher overseeing the leadership and management of the five schools. The trust has appointed a deputy executive headteacher and an acting assistant deputy headteacher to oversee the day-to-day running of this school.

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Key findings

 This is a satisfactory school. There are clear signs of recent improvement, and the move to make it part of the Chulmleigh Academy Trust chain of schools has significantly increased the resources and support available to support improvement in the future.  The progress of children in the Early Years Foundation Stage and pupils at Key Stage 1 has improved to a good level. While there has been evident improvement at Key Stage 2, it remains satisfactory. Progress in this part of the school has occurred at a slower rate than at Key Stage 1 due to instability in staffing.  Pupils’ attainment is broadly average by the time they leave the school. It is stronger in reading than in writing and mathematics. The school has improved attainment in Year 2 to an above average level.  Teaching is satisfactory and improving, but planning does not always make the best use of assessment information to ensure tasks match precisely with

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Key findings

individual needs.  Teaching is good for the Early Years Foundation Stage and Key Stage 1. It is satisfactory at Key Stage 2, but showing clear and rapid signs of improvement. Lapses in behaviour by a few pupils at Key Stage 2 occasionally disrupt the smooth flow of learning.  Target setting for pupils and marking their work are not routinely well developed to help individual pupils know how to improve effectively.  The school makes good provision for promoting pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. As a result, a caring and friendly atmosphere pervades the school. Pupils feel safe and happy at school and usually get on well with their friends.  Leadership and management are good. The directors, leaders and managers have implemented good plans for improvement with impact evident in much of the school’s work, including teaching.  There are too few opportunities for pupils to use their information and

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Key findings

communication technology (ICT) skills across the curriculum.

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Key findings

Schools whose overall effectiveness is judged satisfactory may receive a monitoring visit by an Ofsted inspector before their next section 5 inspection.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 By December 2012 improve the rate of progress for all pupils to a good or better level by ensuring that teachers:  always make full use of assessment information to provide activities in lessons that challenge different groups of pupils  provide all pupils with clear targets and mark their work rigorously so that all individuals have a full understanding about how to improve their work  make expectations of behaviour in lessons clearer.  By July 2013, raise standards in mathematics to an above average level by:  ensuring a focus on pupils acquiring rapid recall of number facts in both mental mathematics work and written calculations work  increase the range of opportunities for pupils to use and apply their mathematical skills in real-life problem-solving contexts across the curriculum.  By July 2013, improve pupils’ writing to an above average level by:  providing regular and frequent opportunities for pupils to complete

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

extended pieces of writing for different purposes and audiences  ensuring all pupils learn to write with fluent joined-up writing by the end of Year 6.  By July 2012, ensure pupils have a full range of planned opportunities to develop and make full use of their information and communication technology skills across the curriculum.

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Achievement of pupils

Pupils’ learning is satisfactory and this judgement accords with the views expressed by most parents and carers. Children make a strong start to school in the Early Years Foundation Stage. They interact well together, gain a good level of social awareness and acquire a confident approach towards working in groups or independently. With relatively small cohorts of children involved, the skills levels shown by individuals when they start school vary considerably from year to year. Nonetheless, they make good progress in relation to their starting points and generally attain above average standards by the start of Year 1. Children show a good knowledge of letter sounds, which is helping them make good progress with reading. They acquire a good grasp of basic number facts that enables them to carry out basic addition tasks.

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Achievement of pupils

The school has successfully improved pupils’ progress at Key Stage 1. It is now good, with pupils confidently building up their skills, knowledge and understanding in all areas of work. Pupils read well when dealing with class poems together or when reading individually and in groups. Most learn to write short sentences confidently and use a wide range of vocabulary when talking and writing. While pupils make good headway with mathematics, attainment and progress are not as strong as in English. The school has also promoted improvement in attainment and progress at Key Stage 2. Work in books and in lessons seen shows pupils making better progress this year than last year. Nonetheless, progress remains satisfactory overall and historically has not improved at the same pace as the rest of the school, although this is now changing. This is in part due to some staffing instability suffered by the school and in

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Achievement of pupils

part due to occasional disruption to learning caused by pupils with behavioural difficulties.

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Achievement of pupils

By the end of Year 6, pupils’ attainment is broadly in line with their peers nationally with pupils acquiring a sound range of skills to help them progress in the future. All groups of pupils, including those with special educational needs, make similarly satisfactory levels of progress since joining the school. Pupils acquire secure reading skills in Year 6, reaching the expected standards, and apply these skills confidently in carrying out their work. While being average overall, pupils’ attainment in mathematics and writing is weaker than in reading. Pupils write accurate short accounts, sometimes using interesting vocabulary. However, they do not have sufficient expertise or experience in writing extended pieces of work for different purposes and audiences and this hampers their achievement. Also, for some, the lack of ability to join their writing slows down the fluency of their work with written tasks.

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Achievement of pupils

In mathematics, pupils acquire a broad range of appropriate skills. However, they sometimes lack confidence and persistence in carrying out activities because their ability to calculate quickly, either mentally or with written problems, is not as rapid and sharp as it should be.

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Quality of teaching

Teaching for children in Reception and for pupils in Years 1 and 2 is effective. The curriculum is planned well for the Early Years Foundation Stage to ensure that children are involved in a wide range of lively and interesting activities both indoors and outdoors. Children’s learning is boosted well by the work of additional adults who ensure all individuals, including those with special educational needs, are well supported and become confident learners. These good features also extend to the provision for pupils in Years 1 and 2 where the work set for pupils usually matches their needs and interests well.

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Quality of teaching

As a result of staff instability last term, teaching for pupils in Key Stage 2 was less strong than teaching for the younger pupils but is currently improving rapidly. A good atmosphere is quickly being established that ensures that the pupils enjoy working together on interesting topics such as studying how the brain works. Parents, carers and pupils spoken to were very appreciative of the recent improvements. The school is working very well to ensure that teaching becomes consistently more effective. Teaching assistants work very effectively encouraging and guiding pupils. Also, direct support from the senior management team in working with groups or individuals is making a strong impact on improving the attitude and motivation of a few pupils who struggle with their behaviour. The school recognises there remains more to do, especially with establishing more consistently better use of assessment information

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Quality of teaching

to plan work that matches more precisely the needs of all individuals. Pupils do not currently have clear individual targets set, and similarly the marking of work does not always give them enough guidance on how to improve. Teachers regularly promote the spiritual, moral, social and cultural awareness of pupils well in lessons. For example, Key Stage 2 pupils were given good opportunities to discuss and reflect on current affairs when watching a news video clip in assembly.

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Quality of teaching

The planned curriculum supports teachers’ planning appropriately in most subjects, but does not provide sufficient opportunities for ICT and mathematics activities to be included in other subjects.

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Behaviour and safety of pupils

Pupils as a rule behave well in and around the school. Discussions with them indicate that this is the normal picture throughout the year. In lessons, pupils cooperate with each other and typically respond quickly to the teachers. The atmosphere is usually one in which they can learn. However, occasionally a few individuals in the Key Stage 2 class do not listen properly and distract others. Expectations for their classroom behaviour are not entirely clear for these individuals. Staff are strengthening systems and approaches in this respect and successfully making progress. For example, individuals withdrawn for support were noted coming back to class and working in a far more settled manner.

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Behaviour and safety of pupils

Pupils enjoy school and their attendance is above average. They show a caring approach and are sensitive to each others’ needs. As one pupil said, ‘School is a very friendly place and the staff are really nice and always help us.’ Parents’ and carers’, and pupils’ questionnaires reflect the feeling that the school is a safe place. Pupils feel confident that any rare occurrence of bullying of any sort would be handled quickly and efficiently by staff. They have a secure understanding about what it means to keep themselves safe.

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Leadership and management

A period of rapid change in the school’s status has been handled very impressively by the directors, executive headteacher and senior leaders. In a very short space of time they have:  organised an extensive range of resources and support to boost current work in the school  accurately evaluated the school’s current situation and developed clear actions for improvement  stabilised and boosted the staffing at Key Stage 2  implemented a range of staff training and meetings across the school  provided chances for modelling high-quality teaching  set ‘non-negotiable’ high expectations for teaching and learning within performance management systems.

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Leadership and management

Proactive work by the governing body, during the academic year 2010/2011, identified effectively that the school required considerable changes to bring about necessary developments. This decision, based on a desire to improve the school more rapidly, led to the school joining the Chulmleigh Academy Trust chain of schools. The senior leadership team and the directors indicate that there is a strong commitment to drive up the quality of educational provision in this school. They have a very incisive knowledge of the school’s current strengths and weaknesses. The morale among the staff in the school is now high. Parents and carers spoken to are very pleased with the school’s strengthening position and with the very good and frequent communication now established with them. All of the above factors, coupled with the fact that the school had already begun to bring about improvements in teaching and learning, and pupils’ achievement, especially at Key Stage 1, mean that

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Leadership and management

it is well placed to sustain improvement in the future.

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Leadership and management

Monitoring, evaluation and assessment systems are now rigorous across the school so that senior leaders have a good awareness of strengths and weaknesses. As a result, recent training has focused very precisely on improving teachers’ skills in areas such as the use of assessment information. Senior leaders ensure that no discrimination occurs and that all pupils are treated fairly and have equal chances to succeed. The school is rigorous in ensuring that all safeguarding procedures, including those for child protection, are in place.

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Leadership and management

The curriculum is satisfactory because, although it provides suitably for pupils’ needs and interests overall, school leaders have identified aspects of writing, mathematics and ICT as requiring improvement. The promotion of pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is strong across the school. It is underpinned by an ethos of friendship and care that pervades all activities. The school is successful in fostering pupils’ care and sensitivity to the world around them and helping them understand how people from other cultural backgrounds live.

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Grade Judgement Description

Grade 1 Outstanding These features are highly effective. An outstanding school provides exceptionally well for all its pupils’ needs. Grade 2 Good These are very positive features of a school. A school that is good is serving its pupils well. Grade 3 Satisfactory These features are of reasonable quality. A satisfactory school is providing adequately for its pupils. Grade 4 Inadequate These features are not of an acceptable standard. An inadequate school needs to make significant improvement in order to meet the needs of its pupils. Ofsted inspectors will make further visits until it improves.

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Type of school Outstanding Good Satisfactory Inadequate

Nursery schools 46 46 8 0 Primary schools 8 47 40 5 Secondary schools 14 38 40 8 Special schools 28 48 20 4 Pupil referral units 15 50 29 5 All schools 11 46 38 6

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Type of school Outstanding Good Satisfactory Inadequate

New school inspection arrangements have been introduced from 1 January 2012. This means that inspectors make judgements that were not made previously. The data in the table above are for the period 1 September 2010 to 31 August 2011 and represen t judgements that were made under the school inspection arrangements that were introduced on 1 September 2009. These data are consistent with the latest published official statistics about maintained school inspection outcomes (see www.ofsted.gov.uk). The sample of schools inspected during 2010/11 was not representative of all schools nationally, as weaker schools are inspected more frequently than good or outstanding schools. Primary schools include primary academy converters. Secondary schools include se condary academy converters, sponsor-led academies and city technology colleges. Special schools include special academy converters and non-maintained special schools.

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Type of school Outstanding Good Satisfactory Inadequate

Percentages are rounded and do not always add exactly to 100.

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Common terminology used by inspectors

Achievement: the progress and success of a pupil in their learning and development taking account of their attainment.

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Common terminology used by inspectors

Attainment: the standard of the pupils’ work shown by test and examination results and in lessons.

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Common terminology used by inspectors

Attendance the regular attendance of pupils at school and in lessons, taking into account the school’s efforts to encourage good attendance.

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Common terminology used by inspectors

Behaviour how well pupils behave in lessons, with emphasis on their attitude to learning. Pupils’ punctuality to lessons and their conduct around the school.

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Common terminology used by inspectors

Capacity to improve: the proven ability of the school to continue improving based on its self-evaluation and what the school has accomplished so far and on the quality of its systems to maintain improvement.

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Common terminology used by inspectors

Leadership and management: the contribution of all the staff with responsibilities, not just the governors and headteacher, to identifying priorities, directing and motivating staff and running the school.

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Common terminology used by inspectors

Learning: how well pupils acquire knowledge, develop their understanding, learn and practise skills and are developing their competence as learners.

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Common terminology used by inspectors

Overall effectiveness: inspectors form a judgement on a school’s overall effectiveness based on the findings from their inspection of the school.

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Common terminology used by inspectors

Progress: the rate at which pupils are learning in lessons and over longer periods of time. It is often measured by comparing the pupils’ attainment at the end of a key stage with their attainment when they started.

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Common terminology used by inspectors

Safety how safe pupils are in school, including in lessons; and their understanding of risks. Pupils’ freedom from bullying and harassment. How well the school promotes safety, for example e-learning.

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carers to share with their children. It describes Ofsted’s

main findings from the inspection of their school.

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Inspection of Lapford Community Primary School, Crediton EX17 6QE

Thank you for making me feel welcome when I visited your school. Through talking to you and through the survey that some of you completed, I know that there are many things that you like about your school. I have judged that your school is satisfactory.

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Inspection of Lapford Community Primary School, Crediton EX17 6QE

Here are some of the things that I found.  There is a welcoming atmosphere in your school and it is a friendly place. You enjoy school, your attendance is above average and you get on well with all of your friends and the staff.  Teaching overall is satisfactory and overall you make expected progress – it is better in Reception and in Year 1 and 2 where you achieve well, but is improving rapidly in Key Stage 2.  You all have a good understanding about how to stay safe. The adults in the school do a good job of taking care of you.  Your behaviour is sensible around the school and at break times, but occasionally in lessons at Key Stage 2 some pupils do not behave as well as they should and this disrupts the smooth flow of learning.  All of the people in charge of the school have worked hard to help the school improve and have made good plans to help it improve even more quickly in the future.

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Inspection of Lapford Community Primary School, Crediton EX17 6QE

This is what I have asked the school to do now.  Make sure work is always challenging enough for you, make sure targets and marking help you to know how to improve your work and you are always clear just how you should behave in lessons.  Help you all become quicker with recalling number facts in mathematics lessons and give you more opportunities to use your skills solving real-life problems.  Improve your writing by giving you more chances to write extended pieces of work and concentrate more on improving your handwriting.  Give you more chances to use ICT in all subjects.

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Inspection of Lapford Community Primary School, Crediton EX17 6QE

All of you can help the school to improve by working hard and behaving well in all lessons.

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Inspection of Lapford Community Primary School, Crediton EX17 6QE

Yours sincerely Laurie Lewin Lead inspector procedures set out in the guidance 'Complaining about inspections', which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.ofsted.gov.uk . If you would like Ofsted to send you a copy of the guidance, please telephone 0300 123 4234 , or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk .

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