All Saints Church of England (Aided) Primary School

Age group 3–11 Inspection date(s) 15–16 March 2012 Error! Reference source not found.Error! Reference source not found. Inspection number 380624 All Saints Church of England (Aided) Primary School Inspection report

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Unique reference number 123228 Local authority Oxfordshire Inspection number 380624 Inspection dates 15–16 March 2012 Lead inspector Keith Sadler

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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 Voluntary aided Age range of pupils 3–11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 393 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Jill Meadows Headteacher John Myers Date of previous school inspection 15–16 September 2008 School address Tamar Way Didcot OX11 7QH Telephone number 01235 819143 Fax number 01235 819200 Email address 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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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. Inspectors observed 23 lessons led by 18 different teachers or practitioners. The inspectors held meetings with members of the governing body, staff, parents and carers, and groups of pupils. Inspectors 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 documentation. This included: the school’s analysis of pupils’ progress; teachers’ lesson plans; the school development plan; leaders’ monitoring records; and pupils’ work. Questionnaires completed by 166 parents and carers, together with others from staff and pupils, were analysed and their responses taken into account.

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Information about the school

All Saints is above average in size for a primary school. Most pupils live within the vicinity though a small minority come from other parts of Didcot. Most pupils are White British, with a small minority from other ethnic backgrounds. The proportion of pupils known to be eligible for free school meals is about half the national average. The proportion of disabled pupils and those with special educational needs is below average. The school meets the government’s current floor standards, which set the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress.

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Information about the school

The Early Years Foundation Stage consists of a 26 place Nursery provision, which children attend on a part-time basis, and two Reception classes. There is an attached Children’s Centre which is subject to a separate inspection. The school has a breakfast and after-school club that is managed by the governing body and is included in this report. The school has Healthy School (enhanced) status and has been awarded the Sports Activemark. 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 good school. Parents and carers’ positive views, particularly in saying that the school provides a good all-round education for their children, are confirmed by inspection findings. The school is good rather than outstanding because although pupils’ achievement has strengthened and is now good, the quality of teaching is not yet sufficiently strong to promote consistently outstanding progress in learning.

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Key findings

 Pupils make good progress so that their attainment at the end of Year 6 is above average in writing and mathematics and is high in reading. Previous underachievement by the most able pupils has been successfully addressed and all groups now achieve well. Staff ensure that pupils of all abilities are successfully catered for and they generally ensure that activities are well- planned and engaging.

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Key findings

 Almost all teaching is of good quality. Teachers create a positive and inclusive atmosphere and they ensure that lessons are conducted at a brisk pace. Pupils say that they enjoy learning because teachers make lessons fun, and work is almost always matched well to the learning needs of all groups of pupils.

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Key findings

 Pupils behave well because they know the rules and understand the impact of their actions on others. They feel safe because they know that the staff care for them.

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Key findings

 Leadership and management are good. Close attention is given to monitoring teaching and tracking pupils’ progress. This, in conjunction with the effective procedures for the management of performance, ensures that professional development is targeted well to the most important areas. Well-founded improvement projects have shown positive impact on achievement. The staff work closely as a team because they know their suggestions are valued. Parents and carers are almost unanimous in their support and the school’s partnership with them is outstanding. 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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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Lift the overall quality of teaching and learning from good to outstanding by:  improving the quality of provision across the Early Years Foundation Stage so that it is consistently good or better in all three classes.  By September 2012, ensuring that the teaching of letters and sounds for pupils in Year 1 and 2 consistently challenges the more able pupils  removing inconsistencies in the setting of targets in mathematics for pupils in Years 3 to 6.

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Achievement of pupils

Inspection findings confirm the parents’ and carers’ almost unanimous view that their children make good progress. Pupils are motivated and enthusiastic to learn new skills and concepts and all groups of pupils achieve well. The high quality displays of pupils’ work and that in their books clearly shows the good progress they make in most curriculum areas. They confidently use their reading, writing, communication and mathematics skills in a range of other subjects. Pupils achieve particularly well when they discuss and share their ideas with each other. For instance, pupils in Year 4 successfully developed a play script of Macbeth from their story boards. They confidently discussed and reviewed their work together, making perceptive suggestions as to how they could improve their scripts.

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Achievement of pupils

The proportion of pupils gaining the higher National Curriculum levels at the end of Year 6 has been small in the past, particularly in writing. This is being successfully addressed by improvements in the quality of teaching and the gap is being successfully closed. Teachers make good use of the wide range of good quality data which tracks pupils’ progress. This ensures that work is usually matched well to pupils’ learning needs including providing more challenge for the most able pupils.

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Achievement of pupils

Across the school, pupils are benefiting from a consistent and structured approach to strengthening learning. They make good use of their various literacy targets such as those relating to vocabulary, connectives, and punctuation. They are confident in explaining how their targets help them to develop their skills when they are writing independently. In mathematics, targets are used well in most year groups though there are inconsistencies. This slows progress because some pupils are not clear about how to improve their work. As a result of accelerated progress, a majority of the current Year 5 pupils are already reaching the level typically expected of pupils at the end of Year 6 in reading, writing and mathematics, with some attaining the higher level, particularly in reading. Furthermore, a large majority of Year 6 pupils are already attaining the higher level in reading, with a third attaining the higher

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Achievement of pupils

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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Achievement of pupils

When children start in the Nursery, their skills and abilities are in line with those typically found. Good quality provision ensures that they make good strides in their learning. However, in the Reception classes, provision is not as effective. Teaching here is generally satisfactory because the activities provided are not as rich as those in the Nursery class. This results in progress being slowed. In consequence pupils’ attainment on entry to Year 1 is broadly in line with expectations. Pupils make good progress in Years 1 and 2 and currently Year 2 pupils are on course to attain standards that are above average in writing and mathematics. In reading, although overall standards are above average by the end of Year 2, the school is keenly aware that the progress of more able pupils is hampered because the teaching of letters and sounds for these pupils is not sufficiently challenging. Even so, by the time that

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Achievement of pupils

they reach Year 6, reading standards are high and pupils are sophisticated readers who thoroughly enjoy discussing their reading. They are able to compare and contrast the styles of their favourite authors such as J K Rowling and Michael Morpurgo. The school plays close attention to the progress of pupils who are disabled or have special educational needs. These pupils achieve well because their needs are identified early and good quality individual programmes are implemented.

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Quality of teaching

Inspection findings confirm the parents’ and carers’ almost unanimous views that teaching is good. Almost all teaching is of good or better quality. Teachers’ high expectations for pupils’ progress and behaviour foster secure relationships and also effectively promote the pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. Their moral development was supported well, for example, in a successful Year 5 lesson in which pupils were discussing survivors of the Titanic. Some were upset when they realised that almost all survivors were first class passengers. The curriculum provides an effective framework for teachers’ planning. The quality of pupils’ writing in their science, history and geography work is notable because teachers cleverly link the focus of their literacy development to the topic themes. Year 6 pupils, for example, produced high quality writing in their topic on Victorian England. This included a wide

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Quality of teaching

range of genres, such as writing Queen Victoria’s diary on a trip to India and report writing about the royal residencies. Lessons are typically characterised by brisk pace with teachers providing a good range of activities that captures the pupils’ interest well. Teachers are adept at ensuring that pupils are clear about what is to be learned. As one Year 6 pupil remarked, ‘Our teachers listen to our questions and they won’t stop until we understand.’ They make a point of including disabled pupils and those that have special educational needs in their questioning, and one pupil beamed with pride when she found the solution to a tricky letters and sounds question.

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Behaviour and safety of pupils

Pupils’ good attitudes to learning and hardworking approach are important factors in their enjoyment of school and their good achievement. The large majority of pupils concentrate well and support each other in the many group tasks provided. Pupils 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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Behaviour and safety of pupils

say that behaviour is good and that they feel safe in school and this is reflected in the parents’ and carers’ unanimous view that their children feel safe. Pupils who have concerns are confident that all the adults will help them. They say that any rare incidences of bullying of any kind are dealt with well by staff. Pupils are aware of the various risks they face in and out of school, such as when using the internet or when walking and cycling, and they know how to respond to these. Pupils are well aware of different types of bullying, including cyber bullying, and know how to deal with these. There is sensitive support for pupils and families whose challenging circumstances may make them vulnerable. A number of parents and carers made appreciative comments about how the school has helped them through times of difficulty. As well as positive comments being made about the close working partnership that exists between the school and the children’s centre, others said how

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Behaviour and safety of pupils

much they appreciated the good quality of the breakfast and after-school club. Inspection findings confirm that this provision is of good quality.

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Leadership and management

Parents and carers are fulsome in their comments about the quality of leadership and management in the school. They praise the headteacher and senior staff for their accessibility, the improvements that they have brought about and the concern they show for the needs of each individual pupil. As one carer wrote, ‘Our three children are shining examples of what can be achieved with the right environment, personnel, teaching ethos and home-school partnerships’. Partnership with parents and carers is outstanding and is further promoted by good quality communications, strong provision to support families and also the wide range of workshops and opportunities for parents and carers to understand the school’s approaches to learning.

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Leadership and management

Senior leaders are ambitious for the school and have worked energetically to secure strong improvement, particularly in the quality of teaching and learning. Since the last inspection, they have raised pupils’ achievement and ensured that most pupils achieve increasingly challenging targets and, most of all, have lifted standards from previous average levels to the current above average and high levels. There has been the successful implementation of a range of measures to reduce the previous disparity in achievement between middle and higher ability pupils. Such gaps in achievement between groups of pupils are now small and closing because the school maintains an increasingly successful focus on promoting equalities and tackling potential discrimination. There is close monitoring of pupils’ progress and the quality of the school’s provision, and this leads to the good quality development plan which

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Leadership and management

is an effective tool for improvement. The curriculum has been adapted well to meet the needs of all pupils and to equip them with a range of useful transferable skills. In addition, the school successfully promotes pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development.

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Leadership and management

Governance is good. Governors are now much more involved in the life of the school than previously and they are no longer reliant on the headteacher for information about the school as they seek this for themselves. They also ensure that all child protection and safeguarding regulations are met in full. The improvements in 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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Leadership and management

teaching and pupils’ achievement and the strong teamwork and high staff morale demonstrate the school’s good capacity to secure further 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 outs tanding 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 All Saints C of E Primary School, Didcot, OX11 7QH

Thank you for making us so welcome when we came to inspect your school. We enjoyed hearing about the many things that you enjoy. Thank you to those who completed questionnaires.

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Inspection of All Saints C of E Primary School, Didcot, OX11 7QH

Yours is a good school. Your teachers work hard to make lessons interesting and they plan lots of exciting activities for you to do. This helps you to make good progress in your learning. Those of you who find learning hard make good progress because the teaching assistants support you well.

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Inspection of All Saints C of E Primary School, Didcot, OX11 7QH

You told us that your school is a happy place and that the adults look after. We agree with you and so do your parents/carers. We were impressed by how well you get on together. Your behaviour is good and you feel safe in school. We think that your headteacher does a good job and he is greatly helped by all the staff. They are always checking on how well you are doing because they want you to do as well as you can.

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Inspection of All Saints C of E Primary School, Didcot, OX11 7QH

Even in a good school like yours, there are things to improve. We have asked the staff in the Early Years Foundation Stage to make sure that the children in the Reception year benefit as well as those in the Nursery class from good quality provision. We have also asked your teachers to help more pupils reach the higher levels in reading at the end of Year 2 by making sure that those of you who find learning easy are given more challenging activities in letters and sounds lessons. Finally, for pupils in Years 3 to 6, we have asked your teachers to make sure that the targets that they set for you are as good in numeracy as they are in literacy.

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Inspection of All Saints C of E Primary School, Didcot, OX11 7QH

You can help by working hard to reach your targets. Thank you for taking time to talk to us and we hope that you continue to enjoy your education.

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Inspection of All Saints C of E Primary School, Didcot, OX11 7QH

Keith Sadler 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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