Cardwell Primary School

Cardwell Primary School Inspection report

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Unique Reference Number 100155 Local Authority Greenwich Inspection number 363635 Inspection dates 13–14 June 2011 Reporting inspector Liz Duffy

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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 3–11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 475 Appropriate authority The local authority Headteacher Carol Smith Date of previous school inspection 7 November 2007 School address Frances Street London SE18 5LP Telephone number 020 8854 1051 Fax number 020 8854 6060 Email address sao@cardwell.greenwich.sch.uk

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Age group 3–11 Inspection dates 13–14 June 2011 Inspection number 363635 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 .

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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 documentation 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'. Royal Exchange Buildings St Ann's Square Manchester M2 7LA T: 0300 123 4234 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.ofsted.gov.uk

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Introduction

This inspection was carried out by four additional inspectors. They observed 18 lessons taught by 15 teachers. Meetings were held with the staff, members of the governing body and pupils. The inspectors looked at a wide range of data and documentation, including the school improvement plan, school policies, assessment data and minutes of governing body meetings. The responses to questionnaires completed by staff, pupils and 95 parents and carers were also analysed. The inspection team reviewed many aspects of the school's work. It looked in detail at a number of key areas.  The current levels of attainment and rates of progress of all pupils.  The quality of teaching and how well teachers use assessment and marking.  The extent to which leaders and managers are driving and securing improvement.

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Information about the school

Cardwell Primary School is a large, oversubscribed two-form entry primary school. The proportion of pupils known to be eligible for free school meals is higher than average. The proportion of pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities is higher than average. The school is ethnically diverse; pupils of Black African heritage form the largest ethnic group. Just over half of the pupil population speak English as an additional language. All pupils are fluent speakers of English. The Early Years Foundation Stage caters for children in the Nursery and Reception years. The school is a full service extended school, with a children's centre based on site which is managed by Pound Park Nursery and Children's Centre. This is reported on separately. The school coordinates a range of local services for children and families, including extended provision for adults. The school has several awards reflecting its commitment to

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Information about the school

promoting pupils' healthy lifestyles, provision for the arts and its work with partnerships and the community.

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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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Main findings

Cardwell Primary School provides an outstanding education for its pupils. It is truly holistic in its approach to looking after the needs of the whole child, the family and the local community. Parents know this and are overwhelmingly positive in their view of the school. One comment typified many: 'A wonderful school providing my children with skills needed in a fair and firm manner'. Pupils are highly considerate and very supportive of one another and this is due to their very strong moral, social and cultural development. Behaviour is outstanding in lessons and the atmosphere in the school is calm and friendly. Pupils' spiritual development is excellent. The exemplary care, guidance and support that is provided along with excellent relationships with parents, carers, and local services for children and their families help pupils to achieve high standards by the end of Year 6. Safeguarding practice is excellent

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Main findings

and pupils say they feel safe at school at all times. Results are well above the national average. Improvements in performance have been sustained over the past three years and results continue to rise. Progress is outstanding in Years 1 to 6. All groups of pupils are encouraged to fulfil their potential and this is equally true of pupils with special educational needs and/ disabilities. The robust systems for monitoring the quality of lessons, the tracking of assessment and the performance of pupils provide leaders with a wealth of information from which weaknesses are identified and tackled rigorously. Less secure is the use of assessment upon entry into the Early Years Foundation Stage. Senior leaders have accurately identified this as an area for improvement. Good progress is made by children in this stage. Performance in the area of calculation in the Early Years Foundation Stage is less strong.

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Main findings

Teaching is solidly good with a minority of lessons that are outstanding. Lessons are planned carefully to take account of pupils' different needs and abilities. Pupils benefit from a range of strategies to challenge them further, such as the flexible use of small teaching groups for extension and consolidation. Sometimes teachers' verbal questioning is not well matched to the abilities of the pupils. The excellent curriculum and rich variety of extra-curricular activities enable pupils to achieve in many different ways and to enjoy their time at school. Many take part in the wide range of sporting opportunities. Particularly successful is the way in which the school promotes healthy lifestyles, reflected in its status as a Healthy School. Pupils have an excellent understanding of the importance of diet and exercise. Members of the governing body share the vision for the school and are aware of their

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Main findings

duties and role in supporting as well as challenging the school. The involvement of governors in school evaluation procedures is satisfactory. The school's success with raising pupils' attainment, accelerating their progress in their all-round development, rising

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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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Inspection grades: 1 is outstanding, 2 is good, 3 is satisfactory, and 4 is inadequate

attendance, together with leaders' accurate self-evaluation of its effectiveness and priorities, show that it is very well placed to secure further improvement.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Raise attainment for children in the Early Years Foundation Stage by: sharper planning and delivery of calculation analysing assessment on entry to fully identify accurately children's starting points using information from assessment to challenge those who are more able.  Strengthen the involvement of governors in the school's self-evaluation procedures.

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Outcomes for individuals and groups of pupils 1

In the past three years pupils have made outstanding progress to leave with significantly above average standards at the end of Year 6 from starting points that have been below those seen nationally. Lower ability pupils attained significantly higher than expected in 2010 and higher ability pupils surpassed their predicted success rate. The profile of attainment on entry has changed in recent years and now most pupils start in line with what is expected of them. The high quality work currently completed demonstrates that this picture of high attainment is the same. For example, in a Year 5 literacy lesson during a descriptive writing task one boy wrote, '• the waves crashing against the rocks like a giant's heartbeat' and in a Year 3 science lesson, one girl was able to explain in detail the scientific process of a fair test. Compared to last year there has been a slight dip in the number of Year 6 pupils attaining Level 5 in mathematics. These are mainly pupils who

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Outcomes for individuals and groups of pupils 1

have recently joined the school and they are benefitting from extra support in lessons. Pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities continue to perform much better than their peers nationally. The pupils confirm that they feel safe in and around the school and there are very few incidents of bullying or racial harassment. This is due to the excellent understanding pupils have of their behaviour and how it affects others in the school community. They show high consideration for each other; for example, two girls invited another pupil who was not playing to skip with them even though she was from a different class and year group. There have been no exclusions at the school for the past three years. Key strengths are seen in pupils' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development, in pupils' appreciation of the different ethnic backgrounds represented in the community and their ability to embrace new experiences which broaden their understanding. Pupils'

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Outcomes for individuals and groups of pupils 1

contribution to the school and wider community is good. Pupils have taken part in community events such as the Greenwich Holocaust memorial. Opportunities for older pupils to support younger pupils are limited. School councillors are proud of their role in developing the fruit and vegetable garden which has raised awareness of ecology and healthy living. Pupils have an excellent understanding of what it means to be healthy and benefit from a variety of initiatives such as Fit to Succeed and Let's Get Cooking family classes. Pupils are well prepared for future life as demonstrated by the learning outcomes and pupil questionnaires where a very large majority agree that they are prepared for

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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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Inspection grades: 1 is outstanding, 2 is good, 3 is satisfactory, and 4 is inadequate

their next steps. Persistent absenteeism has reduced rapidly and overall attendance is above average.

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Inspection grades: 1 is outstanding, 2 is good, 3 is satisfactory, and 4 is inadequate

These are the grades for pupils' outcomes

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Pupils' achievement and the extent to which they enjoy their learning 1

Taking into account: Pupils' attainment¹

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Pupils' achievement and the extent to which they enjoy their learning 1

The quality of pupils' learning and their progress 1

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Pupils' achievement and the extent to which they enjoy their learning 1

The quality of learning for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities and their progress

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2

Taking into account: Pupils' attendance¹

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The extent of pupils' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development 1

1 The grades for attainment and attendance are: 1 is high; 2 is above average; 3 is broadly average; and 4

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How effective is the provision?

The progress of pupils in Years 1 to 6 is outstanding due to the excellent early support with learning, excellent care, guidance and support, an excellent curriculum and good teaching. Teaching is solidly good and is moving towards being outstanding. All lessons observed were at least good. This matches the school's own self-evaluation and mirrors the statistics of the school's monitoring of lessons. Teachers establish and maintain positive relationships with pupils, creating a learning environment that is highly nurturing and celebratory. A wide variety of activities and the use of new technologies make learning fun and pupils enthusiastically tackle problems. Paired talk is used widely to help pupils clarify ideas and to extend learning. Teachers deploy learning support assistants well and frequently the questions they pose help to deepen pupils' thinking. Marking is good with helpful comments given to pupils on how to

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How effective is the provision?

improve. However, at the end of some lessons pupils are not given sufficient opportunity to review progress or consider their next steps in learning. Care, guidance and support for pupils are outstanding, for example, the inclusion team works tirelessly with the other adults in the school to meet the many and varied needs of

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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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Inspection grades: 1 is outstanding, 2 is good, 3 is satisfactory, and 4 is inadequate

pupils and their families. Along with the teachers, the inclusion team is committed to overcoming all barriers to learning, and knows that by working with families and supporting the wider community, it is giving the best possible chances to pupils. Work experience provided through visiting local businesses and restaurants, and through some pupils being members of the construction crew for the 2012 Olympics, demonstrates the rich variety of curricular experience. The flexibility of provision, reinforcement of literacy and numeracy in the other subjects and the responsiveness to individuals' needs ensure that all pupils achieve highly and enjoy learning.

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Inspection grades: 1 is outstanding, 2 is good, 3 is satisfactory, and 4 is inadequate

These are the grades for the quality of provision

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The quality of teaching 2

Taking into account: The use of assessment to support learning

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How effective are leadership and management?

As the parents say, the 'amazing' headteacher, ably supported by outstanding leaders, 'makes a real difference' to the lives of the pupils in her care. Morale is high and staff share her ambitious vision for the school. The headteacher is an inspirational leader who has the ability to aim for and reach her goals, however challenging. The roles of middle leaders have been developed successfully. Through diversifying roles, investing in the professional development of staff and encouraging others to take on senior leader responsibilities, the school has continued to make great strides with the improvement of learning. A detailed monitoring schedule involves all leaders and the thoroughness of evaluation gives a comprehensive and accurate picture of performance. The introduction of progress meetings, in which teachers look at the performance of pupils alongside the school's tracking procedures, ensures a ready response to problems and issues. A close

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How effective are leadership and management?

focus on safeguarding and strong links with external agencies and with the children's centre result in exemplary practice in these areas. The school has a very clear understanding of its own religious heritage and cultural diversity within the local community. It makes a good contribution to community cohesion and good use of its community links. For example, the school has developed a link with a primary school in Scotland and has also fund raised with other local schools for the development of a school in Uganda. The school is in the process of developing its international links with schools abroad to broaden learning in the classroom. While the outstanding provision ensures equality of access to learning and discrimination is not tolerated, difficulties with recruiting and retaining governors have resulted in limited involvement in their monitoring of equalities and community cohesion. The strategic steer

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How effective are leadership and management?

from governors in these two areas is satisfactory. The lack of a formalised programme to link governors with teachers has also limited their monitoring role. The school provides excellent value for money, and has outstanding capacity for further improvement.

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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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Inspection grades: 1 is outstanding, 2 is good, 3 is satisfactory, and 4 is inadequate

These are the grades for leadership and management

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1

Taking into account: The leadership and management of teaching and learning

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Early Years Foundation Stage

Most children enter the Nursery with age-related knowledge and skills. Children make good progress in the Nursery and Reception classes because of the good range of learning experiences that teachers provide for them. They give the children a good balance of teacher-directed and self-chosen learning activities. Particular strengths are the development of social skills and literacy. Progress in calculation is not as strong. Children are happy in their learning. The focus on 'every child being a talker' has had a marked impact and children are confident talking to adults. They are polite and courteous to each other. The environment is safe and children are supervised at all times. Staff undertake thorough observations when children enter the Nursery, however, these observations are not analysed fully to inform children's starting points in all the required areas of learning. Assessments are regular and help inform planning but members of staff

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Early Years Foundation Stage

do not use the assessment information sufficiently to challenge the more able children. The leader and teachers have a good understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of provision and there are firm plans for improvement. Regular tracking and monitoring help with strategic planning.

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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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Inspection grades: 1 is outstanding, 2 is good, 3 is satisfactory, and 4 is inadequate

These are the grades for the Early Years Foundation Stage

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Overall effectiveness of the Early Years Foundation Stage 2

Taking into account: Outcomes for children in the Early Years Foundation Stage

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Overall effectiveness of the Early Years Foundation Stage 2

The quality of provision in the Early Years Foundation Stage 2

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Overall effectiveness of the Early Years Foundation Stage 2

The effectiveness of leadership and management of the Early Years Foundation Stage

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Views of parents and carers

Parents and carers are highly supportive of the school. A group of parents and carers spoke extensively about the excellent support they receive with their children. All who responded to the questionnaire agreed that their child felt safe at school, that their child enjoys school and that teaching is good. Inspectors found this to be the case. Overall, all parents and carers agree that they are happy with the experiences their child receives at the school. One parent commented: 'I like the way the teachers have time to talk about my child's day.' Very few parents commented on areas where they would like to see improvement.

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Responses from parents and carers to Ofsted's questionnaire

Ofsted invited all the registered parents and carers of pupils registered at Cardwell Primary School to complete a questionnaire about their views of the school. In the questionnaire, parents and carers were asked to record how strongly they agreed with 13 statements about the school.

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Responses from parents and carers to Ofsted's questionnaire

The inspection team received 95 completed questionnaires by the end of the on-site inspection. In total, there are 475 pupils registered at the school.

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Total % Total % Total % Total %

My child enjoys school 72 76 22 23 0 0 0 0 The school keeps my child safe 64 67 30 32 0 0 0 0

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Total % Total % Total % Total %

My school informs me about my child's progress 54 38 38 40 3 3 0 0

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Total % Total % Total % Total %

My child is making enough progress at this school 58 61 35 37 2 2 0 0

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Total % Total % Total % Total %

The teaching is good at this school 61 64 33 35 0 0 0 0

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Total % Total % Total % Total %

The school helps me to support my child's learning 53 56 39 41 2 2 0 0

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Total % Total % Total % Total %

The school helps my child to have a healthy lifestyle 46 48 43 45 3 3 0 0

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Total % Total % Total % Total %

The school makes sure that my child is well prepared for the future (for example changing year group, changing school, and for children who are finishing school, entering further or higher education, or entering employment) 46 48 39 41 2 2 0 0

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Total % Total % Total % Total %

The school meets my child's particular needs 42 44 47 49 1 1 1 1

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Total % Total % Total % Total %

The school deals effectively with unacceptable behaviour 54 57 36 38 3 3 0 0

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Total % Total % Total % Total %

The school takes account of my suggestions and concerns 45 47 42 44 3 3 1 1

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Total % Total % Total % Total %

The school is led and managed effectively 53 56 36 38 5 5 0 0

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Total % Total % Total % Total %

Overall, I am happy with my child's experience at this school 63 66 32 34 0 0 0 0

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Total % Total % Total % Total %

The table above summarises the responses that parents and carers made to each statement. The percentages indicate the proportion of parents and carers giving that response out of the total number of completed questionnaires. Where one or more parents and carers chose not to answer a particular question, the percentages will not add up to 100%.

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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.

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Grade Judgement Description

Grade 2 Good These are very positive features of a school. A school that is good is serving its pupils well.

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Grade Judgement Description

Grade 3 Satisfactory These features are of reasonable quality. A satisfactory school is providing adequately for its pupils.

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Grade Judgement Description

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

New school inspection arrangements were introduced on 1 September 2009. This means that inspectors now make some additional judgements that were not made previously. The data in the table above are for the period 1 September 2010 to 31 December 2010 and 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. Percentages are rounded and do not always add exactly to 100. Sixth form figures reflect the judgements made for the overall effectiveness of the sixth form in secondary schools, special schools and pupil referral units.

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Common terminology used by inspectors

Achievement: the progress and success of a pupil in their learning, development or training.

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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

Capacity to improve: the proven ability of the school to continue improving. Inspectors base this judgement on 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 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. The following judgements, in particular, influence what the overall effectiveness judgement will be.

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Common terminology used by inspectors

 The school's capacity for sustained improvement.  Outcomes for individuals and groups of pupils.  The quality of teaching.  The extent to which the curriculum meets pupils' needs, including, where relevant, through partnerships.  The effectiveness of care, guidance and support.

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

main findings from the inspection of their school.

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Inspection of Cardwell Primary School, Woolwich SE18 5LP

Thank you for making us welcome when we visited your school recently. We were incredibly impressed by your politeness to adults and your consideration for each other. We thought that your attitudes to learning were remarkable. You thoroughly enjoy learning and make the most of the excellent opportunities that are made available for you. The hard work of staff helps you to make the best possible progress and the way in which the school cares for you is among the best we have ever seen. It is a truly outstanding school. Even though your school is so exceptional there are two aspects which we feel governors and staff should do to make it even better.  Improve the standards that are reached in Nursery and Reception classes.  Involve governors more in helping staff to evaluate how well you are doing. I am sure you will continue to help your school be the best it can be. All of you can help by staying enthusiastic in your learning and by carrying on being kind to others.

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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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