Pocklington Community Junior School

Pocklington Community Junior School Inspection report

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Age group 7–11 Inspection date(s) 13–14 February 2012 Inspection number 379486 Unique Reference Number 117863 Local authority East Riding of Yorkshire Inspection number 379486 Inspection dates 13–14 February 2012 Lead inspector Lesley Clark

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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 7–11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 212 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Ann Hodgson Headteacher Carole Fulstow Date of previous school inspection 22 October 2008 School address 65 Kirkland Street Pocklington York YO42 2BX Telephone number 01759 302224 Fax number 01759 301460 Email address pcjs@eastriding.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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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 after children, safeguarding and child protection.

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T: 0300 123 4234 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk www.ofsted.gov.uk

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Introduction

Lesley Clark Kathryn Dodd Additional inspector Additional inspector

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Introduction

This inspection was carried out with two days' notice. The inspection team observed 15 lessons taught by seven teachers. Inspectors held meetings with four groups of pupils, governors and staff. They took account of the responses to the on-line questionnaire (Parent View) in planning the inspection. They observed the school's work and looked at a range of documentation including: the tracking and assessment of pupils’ progress, the school development plan, local authority reports, and documentation relating to safeguarding. Questionnaires returned from staff and pupils and 84 questionnaires from parents and carers were analysed.

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Information about the school

This school is similar in size to the average primary school. Most pupils are of White British heritage. A below average proportion is known to be eligible for free school meals. The proportion of pupils who have special educational needs is broadly average. Very few have a statement of special educational needs or are disabled. The school meets the current floor standard. The school has undergone staffing reductions and redundancies in the last three years.

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Information about the school

The school has Healthy School status and holds the Basic Skills award.

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Information about the school

The before- and after-school club, The Pop Club, was not part of this inspection. The report can be found on the Ofsted website. Inspection grades: 1 is outstanding, 2 is good, 3 is satisfactory and 4 is inadequate Please turn to the glossary for a description of the grades and inspection terms

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Key Findings

 This is a satisfactory school. The school’s main strengths are pupils’ high attendance and their keen enjoyment of reading, writing, music and art. The creative curriculum engages pupils’ interest and contributes to their lively, thoughtful writing. Parents and carers have positive views of the education their children receive. The school is not yet good because, although pupils read fluently and write well, they make slower progress in mathematics, especially in Years 3 and 4.

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Key Findings

 Pupils achieve satisfactorily from broadly average starting points. Fewer more-able pupils reach the higher levels in mathematics compared to English. Pupils with special educational needs and disabled pupils make satisfactory progress overall but their progress varies from class to class depending on the level of support they receive to help them to learn.

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Key Findings

 Teaching encourages pupils to listen attentively and to say when they find something hard to understand. Pupils know the progress they are making because marking is effective and teachers use targets to help them check their learning. Sometimes the pace of pupils’ learning slows when teachers do not take sufficient account of what pupils know and can do already.

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Key Findings

 Pupils arrive promptly. Their behaviour contributes to a safe and orderly school environment. They know what to do to keep themselves safe, are aware of the different forms of bullying and the steps they should take should this occur. The school promotes their spiritual, moral, social and cultural development satisfactorily.

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Key Findings

 The school’s self-evaluation is accurate and thorough. It has led to greater consistency in teaching and considerable improvements to the curriculum since the last inspection. Leaders’ use of assessment to highlight where improvements are needed is a strength. Recent staffing changes have identified the need for middle leaders to develop their skills in checking pupils’ learning and progress in lessons. 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?

 Accelerate pupils’ progress in mathematics to a good rate, especially in Years 3 and 4, by: - giving pupils regular practice in using and applying calculation skills mentally and orally - ensuring that more-able pupils work on suitably challenging mathematical tasks that extend their learning - giving pupils more opportunities to learn through problem-solving and collaboration - ensuring teachers make good use of what they know about pupils’ progress to provide well paced learning activities.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Ensure that pupils with special educational needs make consistently good progress by: - ensuring that tasks are always closely matched to their specific needs - adjusting the provision of teaching assistance in lower Key Stage 2.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Develop the role of middle leaders in checking pupils’ learning and progress in lessons. 

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Achievement of pupils

Attainment in English and mathematics is broadly average. Parents and carers have an accurate view of their children’s progress. Pupils read a wide range of fiction and non-fiction and talk readily about favourite authors. They read fluently, tackle difficult words confidently and can quickly summarise what they have read when asked to do so. Daily ‘guided reading’ sessions give all pupils the opportunity to read independently and to discuss books in a group. Pupils learn to listen to each other and answer readily when adults check that they understand what they read. Those who need extra help benefit from individual support. Attainment in reading is average by the end of Year 6. Most pupils meet nationally expected levels.

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Achievement of pupils

The school has successfully closed the gap between pupils’ performance in reading and writing. Attainment in writing is currently above average, reflecting the rapid gains pupils have made over the last two years. Boys are enthusiastic writers. Year 6 boys explained, ‘We really like the words of the week – malevolent, inexplicable, obliterated, relentless – it helps us with our writing.’ Pupils are proud of writing at length and strive to include effective phrases and comparisons. They draw on their research into volcanoes and Pompeii, using the vocabulary to help them, describing Mount Vesuvius erupting, for example, as ‘a mutant, mysterious, mountain of mayhem.’ Pupils use a wide range of punctuation accurately and paragraph well. Flashes of humour and rhetorical questions enliven their writing.

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Achievement of pupils

Attainment is broadly average in mathematics. Pupils make relatively slow progress in Years 3 and 4 because they do not have regular practise in using and applying their calculation skills mentally and orally. This means that they do not use their times tables well enough or understand number patterns to help them multiply by 10, for example. Progress is more rapid in Years 5 and 6 because tasks are more closely matched to pupils’ ability levels. However, the pupils in these years have gaps in their knowledge and so relatively few of the more-able pupils exceed nationally expected levels.

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Achievement of pupils

The progress of pupils with special educational needs and those who are disabled varies according to the quality of support they receive in lessons. While older pupils tend to make good progress, a small minority of younger pupils struggle when tasks are too difficult or they need help with reading instructions.

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Quality of teaching

As a result of teaching that is largely satisfactory but with pockets of very effective teaching, pupils achieve satisfactorily over time. Parents and carers have an accurate view of teaching quality. Most lessons start with a brief introduction and demonstration by the teacher. Learning objectives are clear and teachers build in time to check pupils’ learning as the lesson proceeds. Marking is detailed and helpful. It encourages pupils but also makes clear what needs improving and why. The impact is seen in pupils’ writing where the use of targets successfully involves pupils in checking their learning. In one lesson, pupils were enthralled as they assiduously reviewed each other’s work against agreed success criteria. They noticed mistakes and made helpful suggestions for improvement. This practice is developing across the school.

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Quality of teaching

In satisfactory lessons, teachers tend to lead pupils through tasks. This limits the opportunities for pupils to work collaboratively. Sometimes teachers do not take full account of what pupils know already. Consequently, more-able pupils sometimes mark time. For example, some more-able Year 4 pupils had completed a two-step mathematical problem involving money, multiplication and subtraction in their heads before the teacher had finished a written demonstration to the whole class. Pupils with special educational needs sometimes flounder when they are left for too long to work on their own. In classes where pupils learn through working collaboratively to solve problems, their learning comes on apace. For example, pupils’ thinking skills were stretched to work out how to arrange 120 tiles round a square pond. In good lessons, teachers ensure that pupils build on what they know and understand. In a Year 6 lesson, for example, pupils decided whether they needed

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Quality of teaching

more practise in ordering fractions with different denominators or were ready to move on to solving problems involving fractions. The result was fast-paced learning.

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Quality of teaching

The planned curriculum enlivens both teaching and learning because it encourages creative approaches and responses. For example, as part of a topic entitled ‘Mysteries’ pupils reflected on the ‘Big Bang theory’, investigated day and night, and researched the Bermuda triangle. The impact is seen in pupils’ standard of reading, their written vocabulary and accomplished art work. Pupils are encouraged to reflect on important issues which impacts on their spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. When reflecting on ‘my perfect world’, for example, pupils agreed, ‘no-one should kill anyone’ and ‘more trees should be planted’.

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Behaviour and safety of pupils

Parents and carers have an accurate perspective on behaviour. They agree that the school deals with cases of all types of bullying effectively and that behaviour in lessons is generally good but that occasionally it is not. Pupils usually behave well in lessons. They are attentive and keen to succeed. They listen well to each other and make constructive comments when asked to check their own and other people’s work. Sometimes, when lessons are slow-paced or they have completed tasks quickly, pupils’ attention wanders and they talk among themselves, becoming restless and impatient. Outside, they play energetically and occasionally boisterously. However, pupils are also kind to each other, helping each other to sort out disputes or to find someone to play with.

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Behaviour and safety of pupils

Pupils say, ‘There is some bullying and name calling but not as much as there used to be.’ They know that racist and homophobic comments are wrong and report these when they occur. The school deals with these effectively. They are few in number. Pupils agree that the ‘debug’ system they follow is helpful in averting or dealing with trouble. They explained, ‘This means you ignore it, then say stop, and if it doesn’t stop then you tell an adult.’ Pupils’ behaviour over time shows significant improvement, with attendance at high levels for the past two years, hardly any unauthorised absence and fewer exclusions year on year. Consequently, pupils feel safe and their parents and carers strongly agree.

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Behaviour and safety of pupils

Extra-curricular activities and educational visits have a strong impact on pupils’ behaviour and attitudes. A night-time woodland walk in the grounds of a stately home, for example, necessitated excellent behaviour as pupils gathered impressions for the ghost stories they were going to write.

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Leadership and management

The headteacher uses rigorous assessment and stringent monitoring of teaching effectiveness as the main tools to drive improvement. Senior leaders have identified slower progress in Years 3 and 4 and are taking effective steps to deal with it. For example, year group staff work and plan together and this, together with targeted professional development, has brought greater consistency to teaching quality. Staff are held accountable for the progress of their pupils. This is checked regularly in pupil progress meetings. The school has identified a need to redistribute teaching assistance, as well as further training, in order to secure good progress in all lessons for pupils with special educational needs. Staffing reductions and redundancies have been managed sensitively and with minimal disruption to pupils’ progress. However, it has impacted on the role of middle leaders in terms of checking pupils’ learning and progress in lessons which is very

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Leadership and management

The school can demonstrate that it has improved pupils’ achievement, especially in English, where the gap between reading and writing performance has closed. It has also made learning more purposeful and exciting through a curriculum which effectively broadens pupils’ horizons and motivates them to learn. Leaders and managers at all levels promote equality and tackle discrimination effectively. The school challenges gender stereotyping and raises pupils’ aspirations effectively, ensuring boys and girls have good role models. As a result, a quarter of pupils learn to play a stringed instrument, boys describe themselves as writers and girls say they like mathematics. The school works well with parents and carers. The school is proactive at ensuring the majority attend termly progress evenings, issuing timely reminders and making alternative arrangements wherever possible. The governing body takes its responsibilities seriously and takes a keen interest in the school. It takes a

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Leadership and management

lead in a ‘Fit for Living’ community event to raise pupils’ and their parents’ and carers’ awareness of health and safety issues. The arrangements for safeguarding are secure. The school demonstrates a satisfactory capacity for continued improvement.

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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 mea ns that inspectors make judgements that were not made previously.

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Type of school Outstanding Good Satisfactory Inadequate

The data in the table above are for the period 1 September 2010 to 31 August 2011 and represent 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 ).

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Type of school Outstanding Good Satisfactory Inadequate

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.

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Type of school Outstanding Good Satisfactory Inadequate

Primary schools include primary academy converters. Secondary schools include secondary 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

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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to share with their children. It describes Ofsted's main

findings from the inspection of their school.

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Inspection of Pocklington Community Junior School, York, YO42 2BX

Thank you for your friendly welcome. A special ‘thank you’ goes to all of you who spent time talking to me and my colleague, showing us your work, reading to us and telling us about your school. You go to a satisfactory school. This means that it does some things well and has some things it needs to improve. We agree with you that you write well and it is delightful that so many boys see themselves as writers. You read fluently and reach the level expected of your age. Your attendance is high and you have some exciting learning opportunities. Thank you for sharing your topic books with us. Some of your art work is really good. I was impressed by your violin, viola, cello and double bass playing too.

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Inspection of Pocklington Community Junior School, York, YO42 2BX

Some of you are really good at mathematics and some of you struggle and have gaps in your knowledge. We have asked your teachers to make sure that everyone, especially in Years 3 and 4, learns mathematics at the right level for their ability so that those who find it easy do more challenging work. Those of you who find learning quite difficult do not always get enough help in lessons so we have asked your teachers to make sure you get all the help you need. More teachers need to see what happens in lessons, not just your headteacher. This will help you all to make good progress all the time.

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Inspection of Pocklington Community Junior School, York, YO42 2BX

You can help by working hard in lessons, saying when the work is too easy and asking for help when you need it. This will help your teachers to know what you need to learn next. You could all be really good at mathematics if you learnt your times tables and practised using them regularly.

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Inspection of Pocklington Community Junior School, York, YO42 2BX

Lesley Clark 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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