Stockbridge Primary & Pre-School

Age group 4–11 Inspection date(s) 23–24 February 2012 Inspection number 379174 Stockbridge Primary School Inspection report

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Unique reference number 115949 Local authority Hampshire Inspection number 379174 Inspection dates 23–24 February 2012 Lead inspector Stephen Lake

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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 70 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Dane Oliver Headteacher Emma Jefferies Date of previous school inspection 15–16 June 2009 School address London Road Stockbridge Hampshire SO20 6EJ Telephone number 01264 810550 Fax number 01264 811612 Email address adminoffice@stockbridge.hants.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. A variety of classroom observation techniques were used, most in partnership with the headteacher. A total of nine lessons or parts of lessons were observed, with a further three short, focused visits to classrooms. Four teachers were observed. Meetings were held with groups of pupils, members of the governing body, and staff. 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 the school development plan, and samples of pupils’ work. Other documents looked at included curriculum planning, documents relating to safeguarding and child protection, records of pupil attainment and progress, and records relating to the monitoring of teaching. Some parents and carers were spoken to at the start of school. The responses to questionnaires from pupils and 45 parents and carers were analysed.

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Information about the school

This school is much smaller than most primary schools and the number on roll has dropped since the previous inspection. The vast majority of pupils are White British, with very few from other ethnic groups. No pupils speak English as an additional language. The proportion of pupils known to be eligible for free school meals is below average. An average percentage of pupils have special educational needs. These include pupils with behavioural, social and emotional difficulties, moderate learning difficulties, and autism. A larger than average proportion of pupils has a statement of special educational needs. The headteacher and most of the teachers have joined the school since September 2011, some in January 2012. The school meets the government’s current floor standard, which sets the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress. The school holds Healthy Schools, Activemark and Eco-school Silver awards. A children’s centre and a pre-school are

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Information about the school

located on the school site and are subject to a separate inspection. 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. It has improved significantly recently and the pace of improvement is accelerating following the appointment of the new headteacher. A decline in standards over several years has been reversed. It is not a good school because the quality of teaching is satisfactory rather than good and the roles of staff as middle managers are insufficiently developed.  Achievement is satisfactory at the end of Year 6 and pupils attain broadly average standards. Achievement in writing is a little lower than in mathematics and reading because the attainment of boys, especially those who are more able, is lower than that of girls.  The quality of teaching is satisfactory and improving. A few inconsistencies remain. In some lessons, assessment information is not used well enough to match tasks closely enough to the needs of all pupils to ensure good progress. Learning objectives are not always detailed enough and too few opportunities

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Key findings

are provided for extended writing.  Behaviour and safety are satisfactory. Although there have been concerns about behaviour disrupting some lessons, largely in the past, robust action has tackled the issues and behaviour is continuing to improve rapidly. The school recognises that more work needs to be done to sustain this improvement. Pupils feel very safe in the school.  Leadership and management are satisfactory. The improvements are due to the strong and effective leadership of the new headteacher. Clear roles have been defined for the new middle managers, but they are just developing their roles in monitoring and evaluating the work of the school. The governing body provides strong support and is appropriately involved in evaluating the work of the school. School self-evaluation is accurate and the information gained is used effectively in the good-quality, revised school improvement plan. The clear

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Key findings

improvements in the quality of teaching result from the new headteacher’s management of performance. This is informed by thorough and effective systems for checking on the quality of teaching and learning.

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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?

 Raise boys’ achievement in writing across the school by July 2013 to match that in reading through:  ensuring that learning objectives are more precise with clear, short-term success criteria shared consistently with pupils  embedding and monitoring the changes to the curriculum to allow more opportunities for pupils, especially more-able boys, to write at length.  Improve the quality of teaching by September 2012, so that a large majority is good or better by:  ensuring all lessons move at a brisk pace and challenge all pupils  monitoring the implementation of the new behaviour policy to ensure that no lessons are disrupted by the behaviour of a few challenging pupils.  Develop the roles of the new middle managers by December 2012, so that:  they are fully engaged in robust monitoring and evaluation  the impact of their work can be seen in further improvements in provision and outcomes.

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Achievement of pupils

The large majority of parents and carers are happy with the progress that their children are making. A small minority expressed concern that their children do not appear to make enough progress. Inspection evidence shows that this was correct until recently, but attainment is now broadly average and progress is satisfactory and improving.

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Achievement of pupils

Children get off to a sound start in the Early Years Foundation Stage. The very small cohorts mean that attainment on entry varies considerably from year to year, but, typically, skills levels are broadly those expected for their age, both on entry to school and at the start of Year 1. Children’s satisfactory progress in communication, language and literacy is accelerating due to the way children are now taught the sounds and letters in a systematic manner. Regular daily sessions in different groups, matched to what children already know and can do, are enabling the children to develop early reading and writing skills more securely. This is supplemented by a language-rich environment indoors and out. For example, in a mathematics session, children developed their language skills as they discussed how to compare weights by making a see-saw balance. Pupils in Year 2 are on track to make good progress

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Achievement of pupils

this year and pupils in Year 6 are on track to make good progress in reading. Disabled pupils and those with special educational needs are identified early and good support is provided by capable teaching assistants to enable them to make the same progress as other pupils. For those with behavioural, emotional and social difficulties, the introduction of an afternoon ‘Nurture group’ is providing good opportunities to develop learning skills such as concentration and collaboration.

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Achievement of pupils

The school is good at teaching pupils to read. The strong and consistent attention given to developing pupils’ understanding of letters and sounds is enabling pupils to make good progress in their reading. Attainment in reading has improved greatly over the last 15 months, reversing the decline that occurred for a while after the previous inspection. Attainment in reading is now above average by the end of Year 2 and the end of Year 6 because of the greater consistency with which reading is taught and the improved systems for involving parents and carers in supporting their children through reading with them at home. Achievement in mathematics is satisfactory, but writing remains a comparative weakness, although still satisfactory overall. Activities that promote the interest of boys and make them want to write are already starting to improve the situation. In a good lesson that was observed with pupils in Years 2, 3 and 4, boys were motivated by writing about animals that

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Achievement of pupils

interest them. They were challenged well to include similes such as ‘Skuas dart like ....’ or ‘Chicks huddle like....’ and this enabled pupils to improve their writing by the end of the lesson. A large majority of lessons now make effective use of strategies such as ‘talk partners’ to enable pupils to develop suitable vocabulary before starting their writing. This is proving particularly effective at ensuring that boys contribute to discussions and develop vocabulary that supports them in their writing.

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Quality of teaching

A large majority of parents and carers and pupils agree that the teaching is good. Inspection evidence shows that teaching is satisfactory, but improving rapidly as a result of the robust actions taken in the past year to improve teaching. Recently appointed members of staff are strengthening the quality of teaching further. For example, in a good lesson that was observed in Years 5 and 6, pupils improved their problem-solving skills through stimulating and challenging mathematical activities that required them to develop their own strategy to solve two- and three-step problems. However, such practice has not been in the school long enough for the impact of this to be seen in national assessments. A revised system of sharing the learning objectives of a lesson with pupils is in place, but not yet fully embedded. Inconsistencies still remain; although a clear learning objective is shared at the start

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Quality of teaching

of all lessons, the precise detail of what teachers expect pupils to learn by the end of the lesson is not always sharp enough. This slows the pace of learning in those lessons. In too many lessons, further improvement to achievement is limited because lessons do not proceed at a brisk pace. Some teachers talk for too long at the beginning of lessons and do not always take enough account of the differing abilities of pupils. Pupils appreciate the way teachers talk to them about the work they have done and how to make it better. The new marking system based on colours - ‘tickled pink’ and ‘green for growth’ - is well understood. Pupils say it is very helpful and makes it clear how they can improve their work.

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Quality of teaching

Teaching assistants say a recent and welcome improvement is the way that they now work in close partnership with teachers. They feel that all adults now work together much more closely, especially as they implement the new behaviour policy. All adults now share a more-consistent view of how to help pupils learn effectively. This is particularly true of the way in which behaviour is managed. High expectations of how pupils treat each other and respect each other’s views ensure friendly and orderly lessons in which the vast majority of pupils work together in a cohesive manner. The broad, balanced curriculum is being revised to increase opportunities to link learning across subjects. Central to this is the shared commitment of all teachers to foster an ethos of challenge and high expectation founded on high self-esteem, and respect and understanding of others’ cultures and beliefs. Pupils’ spiritual, moral,

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Quality of teaching

social, and cultural development is central to many of the themes studied. For example, Year 5 and 6 pupils particularly enjoyed a good lesson on biodiversity as they discussed the moral and social issues around this theme. Boys, especially, were stimulated to write in this lesson and made good use of dictionaries to extend their vocabulary when writing. The revisions to the curriculum support improvements in writing, especially that of boys. Nevertheless, there is still some inconsistency in the provision of opportunities to use writing across the curriculum. Visitors to the school and residential visits enhance learning and provide further stimulation for writing.

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Behaviour and safety of pupils

The large majority of parents, carers, and pupils agree that the school keeps their children safe and think that behaviour is good. Nevertheless, a small minority do not agree and believe that too many lessons are disrupted by poor behaviour. Some parents and carers raised concerns over this in written comments and when speaking to the inspector. Inspection evidence confirms that, until recently, a small minority of challenging pupils, especially in one class, were not managed well enough. Evidence shows that behaviour has improved significantly over the last year. There are still a few instances of disruptive behaviour from a very small group of pupils. The new behaviour policy is dealing with this effectively, but is not yet fully embedded. Pupils say that behaviour is much better now. A few very challenging pupils whose behaviour gives cause for concern are supported well by additional adults. Robust

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Behaviour and safety of pupils

systems to support those with behavioural, emotional, and social difficulties have improved the behaviour of this group significantly. Their behaviour is now much improved and they are learning more effectively. Pupils say they feel very safe and that there is almost no bullying of any kind. They said specifically that there is no cyber-bullying and they are all taught how to use the internet safely to avoid this. They trust adults, especially the headteacher, to deal quickly and effectively with any poor behaviour.

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Behaviour and safety of pupils

The large majority of pupils show respect to others during discussions in lessons; this was a key feature of all of the good learning observed. They demonstrate mature and thoughtful behaviour during break and lunchtimes that contributes greatly to the calm and orderly atmosphere in the school. Pupils’ behaviour in lessons and attitudes to learning are almost all positive with the large majority of pupils showing a real enthusiasm for learning. Attendance is average and improving and reflects the progress being made.

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Leadership and management

The effective governing body has a clear understanding of the strengths and areas for development. With strong support from the local authority over the last 15 months, it has helped drive school improvement and close the gap between the performance in this school and schools nationally. The support has now decreased considerably because the new headteacher has brought about significant change in the quality of teaching and the behaviour of pupils. She has correctly identified that, although teaching is sometimes good, there is not enough consistently good teaching to ensure pupils make good progress and overcome a legacy of underachievement. Good-quality professional development and modelling from the headteacher is tackling this effectively. Through strong leadership, the headteacher has brought together existing and new staff into an enthusiastic and cohesive team, with an ambitious vision of how the school can improve further. A good start has been made

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Leadership and management

allocating revised roles for middle leaders, but the recent changes of staff mean that it is too early to see the impact of this. The broad, balanced curriculum ensures a creative environment and contributes well to pupils’ spiritual, moral, social, and cultural development. The whole-school themes, such as ‘respect’ or ‘collaboration’, are reflected in all aspects of the work and are contributing well to the improvements in behaviour. Procedures for safeguarding, especially those for child protection, are robust. Training for staff and the governing body is up to date and good-quality policies are embedded.

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Leadership and management

The school takes great care to ensure equality of opportunity and prevent discrimination. The progress of all groups, especially those whose circumstances make them potentially vulnerable, is monitored regularly and frequently. The information gained is increasingly used effectively to tackle any underachievement. Robust systems for recording and analysing data ensure that all leaders and managers, including the governing body, have accurate information on school performance. Achievement and most elements of provision have returned to the levels seen at the previous inspection and are continuing to improve. The improvements over the last 15 months, especially in achievement and behaviour, indicate a satisfactory capacity for 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 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 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). 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 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

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 Stockbridge Primary School, Stockbridge SO20 6EJ

Thank you for making me welcome when I came to visit your school. I enjoyed talking with you about all the things that you think have improved. Yours is a satisfactory school and you attain standards similar to those in most schools. I agree with you than your school has improved recently after a period when you were not learning as well as you could. Here a few of the things that I liked about your school.

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Inspection of Stockbridge Primary School, Stockbridge SO20 6EJ

 The school is good at teaching you to read and your attainment in reading is better than in most schools.  You feel safe in school and adults care for you well.  Your new headteacher has a very accurate view of what is working well in school and where improvements are needed. In partnership with new teachers and the governing body, she is using this information effectively to help improve the school.  Your behaviour has improved a lot in the last year and is now satisfactory because of the way everyone works to help you all know what behaviour is expected.

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Inspection of Stockbridge Primary School, Stockbridge SO20 6EJ

To help you learn even more effectively and raise your achievement further, I have asked the school to:  help you improve your writing by making sure that teachers plan lessons with clear details of what you should learn by the end of the lesson and provide even more opportunities for you to write at length; you can help by always trying to make your writing more interesting  ensure that the large majority of teaching is good or better by making sure that lessons proceed at a brisk pace and are not interrupted by the few of you who find behaving in lessons difficult  develop the management role of the new teachers so that they help to continue the improvements taking place.

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Inspection of Stockbridge Primary School, Stockbridge SO20 6EJ

Stephen Lake 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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