Red Barn Community Primary School

Age group 4 – 11 Inspection date(s) 22 – 23 March 2012 Inspection number 379196 Red Barn Community Primary School Inspection report

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Unique reference number 116079 Local authority Hampshire Inspection number 379196 Inspection dates 22–23 March 2012 Lead inspector Michael Barron

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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 Maintained Age range of pupils 4–11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 178 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Rachael Hughes Headteacher Rena Randall Date of previous school inspection 1–2 July 2009 School address Linden Lea Portchester Hampshire PO16 8HJ Telephone number 01329 288011 Fax number 01329 822486 Email address adminoffice@redbarn.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. Inspectors observed 18 lessons taught by seven teachers. Three were joint observations with either the headteacher or one of the two assistant headteachers. Inspectors heard pupils from Year 1, Year 2 and Year 6 read and made observations of sessions on the teaching of phonics ( letter patterns and the sounds they represent ). They held meetings with the headteacher, senior leaders, staff, members of the governing body and pupils. The inspectors 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 documentation including: school policies, development planning, pupils’ work, and records of their learning and progress. They observed and discussed pupils’ behaviour and scrutinised the school’s safeguarding procedures. The inspectors analysed several completed questionnaires from staff and pupils as well as 91 from

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Information about the school

This is a smaller than average size primary school which was removed from a notice to improve and judged to provide pupils with a satisfactory education when it was last inspected in 2009. The proportion of pupils with disabilities or who have special educational needs is above average. Nearly all of this group have moderate learning difficulties. The proportion of pupils known to be eligible for free school meals is above average. Almost all pupils are of White British heritage, few are of minority ethnic heritage and none is at the early stages of learning English as an additional language. The school meets the government’s current floor standards, which set the minimum expectation for pupils’ attainment and progress. There is a privately run Nursery provision on the school site which is not managed by the governing body and was therefore not included as part of this inspection. Inspection grades: 1 is outstanding, 2 is good, 3 is satisfactory, and 4 is inadequate

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Information about the school

Please turn to the glossary for a description of the grades and inspection terms

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Key findings

 Red Barn is an outstanding school. Pupils, staff, and parents and carers fully appreciate the way it has improved rapidly since the appointment of the present headteacher. One parent summed up the views of many when writing: ‘This is a fantastic school. My daughter has made great progress over the past four years, which is a testament to the fantastic teaching staff.’ A typical comment from pupils was: ‘I would rather come to school to learn than stay at home in the holidays.’ One member of staff wrote: ‘I feel passionate about our school.’ Another simply commented that the headteacher was ‘inspirational and outstanding’.  Children make outstanding progress and achieve exceptionally well from below typical starting points in the Early Years Foundation Stage. Outstanding provision in Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2 ensures that all pupils build on this strong foundation extremely well. By Year 6, attainment is above average in

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Key findings

mathematics and English, including reading.  The curriculum is outstanding and meets pupils’ needs exceptionally well. Outstanding teaching ensures pupils are provided with activities very well matched to their varying abilities. The school is presently working to embed the practice of pupils being involved in planning the next steps in their learning.  Provision for pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural education is outstanding and this is reflected in their excellent behaviour, their politeness and consideration for others. Pupils feel very safe and enjoy school.  Leadership and management are outstanding, including the leadership of teaching and the management of the school’s performance. The headteacher is dedicated to ensuring that all pupils are given equal opportunities to succeed. She works closely with the senior leadership team and the very effective governing body to ensure that the school consistently scrutinises its

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Key findings

performance rigorously to make sure it continues to provide an outstanding education for 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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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Develop and embed the practice of pupils being involved in their next steps in learning by:  improving opportunities for pupils to independently plan the work they need to do to apply and improve the new skills they have learnt in lessons.

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Achievement of pupils

Parents and carers believe that their children are making outstanding progress and achievement, and inspection evidence supports this view.

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Achievement of pupils

Children enter the school’s Early Years Foundation Stage with skill levels well below those expected for their age, especially in relation to communication, language and numeracy. Children enjoy their time in the Reception Year because the classroom provides them with a well-resourced and stimulating environment in which to learn. There is a strong and successful focus on teaching phonics (sounds and letters) and exciting activities, linked to outstanding teaching, enable children to make rapid progress, particularly in their personal development and numeracy and language skills. As a result, children are very well behaved in lessons. They are keen to develop their writing skills and are able to carry out, for example, simple addition and subtraction tasks correctly.

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Achievement of pupils

This strong start is built on successfully in all other year groups. Outstanding teaching ensures that pupils continue to make exceptional progress throughout the school. By Year 6, attainment is above average overall, including in reading, and pupils have caught up and overtaken their peers nationally. Some groups of pupils, including the above average proportion entitled to free school meals, those with disabilities or who have special educational needs, and the very small number of pupils from minority ethnic backgrounds, are particularly successful and also outperform their peer groups nationally. Throughout the school, there is a strong focus on teaching literacy and mathematics, and this is always evident in lessons. It is also reflected in pupils’ present attainment and was very evident in 2011 when a significantly higher percentage of Year 6 pupils made better progress than all pupils nationally in English and mathematics combined in Key Stage 2, and put the school

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Achievement of pupils

in the top 4% of best-performing schools in Hampshire.

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Achievement of pupils

Pupils have excellent attitudes to learning. By Year 2, attainment in reading is comparable to the national average and pupils are able to use an increasing range of strategies successfully to decode words. Many read confidently and with expression. Their written work is enlivened by features such as the effective use of adjectives and connectives. They are also able to work confidently when solving practical 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

mathematical problems. Pupils enjoy challenges in lessons and this was evident during a typical practical numeracy session when nearly all pupils worked confidently when using metre sticks to accurately measure the distances they could throw bean bags. Several found the work difficult initially but persevered and completed their tasks well.

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Achievement of pupils

Older pupils are able to discuss their views and ideas clearly and confidently, and explain their points of view with clarity and reasoned argument. However, the school is aware that it needs to improve opportunities for pupils in all year groups to be able to independently plan the work they need to do in order to apply and improve the new skills they have learnt in lessons.

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Quality of teaching

An overwhelming majority of parents and carers correctly believe that their children benefit from outstanding teaching. Teachers have high expectations of what pupils are capable of achieving and plan lessons which not only stimulate pupils’ interests but also provide them with just the correct level of challenge. Typically, lessons are very well paced and pupils gain a real sense of achievement when they complete their work correctly. Very capable learning support assistants are deployed effectively to ensure that pupils requiring extra help with learning, including those with disabilities or who have special educational needs, are very well supported and so make the same outstanding progress as all other pupils.

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Quality of teaching

A scrutiny of pupils’ work confirmed that the school has developed a curriculum which combines subjects together very well in order to make learning interesting and enjoyable. Typical of the outstanding teaching seen was a Year 6 literacy lesson based around the story of ‘The War Horse’. The teacher ensured that the work pupils were asked to complete was very well matched to their different abilities. Pupils found learning about the use of cavalry horses during the First World War intriguing and this really engaged their imaginations. The very good quality of their writing reflected this.

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Quality of teaching

Teachers have excellent relationships with pupils, who say that teachers are friendly and always help them with their work if they have a problem. The quality of teachers’ marking is of a very high standard and their comments show pupils exactly how to improve their work. Teachers ensure that pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is promoted extremely well, for example by providing frequent opportunities for pupils to work together in pairs and small groups in order to develop a respect for themselves and others.

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Behaviour and safety of pupils

Pupils of all ages get on very well with each other and older pupils say they enjoy looking after the younger pupils during lunchtimes. Pupils have a very good 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

awareness of the need to stay safe and say they feel very safe in school. The large majority of the parents and carers who responded to the inspection questionnaire agreed that pupils feel very safe and that their behaviour is typically outstanding, and inspectors endorse their views. A very small minority expressed concerns about some aspects of pupils’ behaviour. However, pupils agree that behaviour has improved a lot since the last inspection. Pupils are well aware that a very small and decreasing minority of children still have difficulty in behaving well but say there is no misbehaviour in lessons because teachers always cope with any potential disruption very quickly and effectively. Pupils have a very good understanding of the different forms of bullying, including those related to racial bullying and to bullying pupils with disabilities, and are well aware of potential internet safety issues such as

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Behaviour and safety of pupils

cyberbullying. Many believe that no bullying of any kind occurs in the school and this was evident in their questionnaire returns. They are also confident that, should bullying of any sort occur, adults would deal with this very firmly.

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Behaviour and safety of pupils

Parents and carers correctly believe that their children are safe in school and pupils, including those whose circumstances may make them potentially vulnerable, agree with this view. Pupils are confident that adults always deal well with any problems that they may encounter. One pupil commented: ‘I have never had any problems but I know that, if I ever did, my teacher would sort it out straight away.’ Attendance continues to improve due to the effective measures adopted by the school, and pupils’ punctuality is good.

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Leadership and management

The headteacher is an inspirational leader, and displays the vision and ability to ensure that the school provides the very best education it can for all pupils. Working with her dedicated staff and governing body, she has ensured that the school has developed highly effective systems to regularly check on its performance. These are based on a rigorous analysis of the outcomes for pupils and also the quality of teaching and learning. Well-focused professional development for all staff, including teachers and learning support assistants, has ensured that the quality of teaching has improved markedly since the last inspection and continues to do so. As a result, the school has strongly improved pupils’ achievement since the last inspection. The governing body fulfils its role exceptionally well, including ensuring that equal opportunities are strongly promoted and discrimination tackled. Governors also

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Leadership and management

display the confidence and necessary expertise to ask searching questions about the school’s performance.

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Leadership and management

The school has built up excellent relationships with parents and carers who appreciate the way the school keeps them well informed and involved in their children’s learning. Parents and carers, including those who may find it difficult to work with schools, strongly believe that the school takes account of their views and listens to and acts on any concerns they may have.

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Leadership and management

The school’s resources are used very well to enhance learning. Links with outside 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

agencies are used very effectively to support pupils’ learning and well-being, and support the school’s strong focus on ensuring all pupils thrive and achieve exceptionally well. Safeguarding procedures meet all current statutory requirements. Staff and governors are very well aware of the importance of their role in protecting pupils and receive regular training about safeguarding issues.

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Leadership and management

The school’s excellent curriculum provides pupils with structured opportunities to develop new skills and use them successfully in different contexts. It also extremely successfully promotes pupils’ personal development, including their spiritual, moral, social and cultural development, and this is reflected in their attitudes to life and learning. Pupils say they enjoy the wide range of visitors to school and visits to interesting places which help widen their understanding of the world in which they live .

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Leadership and management

The school has been on a steady path of continuous improvement since coming out of a notice to improve in 2009. Improvements since the previous inspection in the overall effectiveness of the school, the quality of teaching, pupils’ achievement and the effectiveness of leadership and management provide a very clear indication that the school has the 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 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 Red Barn Community Primary School, Portchester PO16 8HJ

Thank you for making us so welcome when we visited your school. We enjoyed talking to you and seeing you all working hard in lessons. We also enjoyed watching your celebration assembly and listening to you singing so well. We are also sure that you are looking forward to the circus visiting the school in April.

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Inspection of Red Barn Community Primary School, Portchester PO16 8HJ

We think your school is outstanding and really lives up to its motto of ‘Small School – Large Family’. Here are some of the things we found out about your school.

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Inspection of Red Barn Community Primary School, Portchester PO16 8HJ

 You attend a happy and friendly school which gives you an excellent start to your education.  Teaching is outstanding and helps you to make outstanding progress.  You all really enjoy school and get on very well with each other.  You feel safe at school and your behaviour is outstanding.  Your teachers and governors are working very hard to make sure that the school continues to provide you with the best education it possibly can.

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Inspection of Red Barn Community Primary School, Portchester PO16 8HJ

To make your school even better, we have asked your teachers to give you more chances to decide for yourselves what you have to do to improve your work.

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Inspection of Red Barn Community Primary School, Portchester PO16 8HJ

Your school has improved a lot since the last time it was inspected. All of you can make sure it stays an outstanding school by attending as often as you can and by working hard.

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Inspection of Red Barn Community Primary School, Portchester PO16 8HJ

Michael Barron 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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