Manor Farm Community Infant School

Age group 4−7 Inspection date(s) 22–23 June 2011 Inspection number 363762 Manor Farm Community Infant School Inspection report

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Unique Reference Number 110297 Local Authority Buckinghamshire Inspection number 363762 Inspection dates 22–23 June 2011 Reporting inspector Bogusia Matusiak-Varley

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This inspection was carried out under section 8 of the Education Act 2005 under pilot arrangements; it was also deemed a section 5 inspection under the same Act .

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Type of school Infant School category Community Age range of pupils 4–7 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 211 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Peter Major Headteacher Thomas Dunbar Date of previous school inspection 11 December 2007 School address Rose Avenue Hazlemere High Wycombe Buckinghamshire HP15 7PH Telephone number 01494 814281 Fax number 01494 814281 Email address admin@manorfarm-inf.bucks.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’. Royal Exchange Buildings St Ann's Square Manchester M2 7LA

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

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Introduction

This pilot inspection was carried out by three additional inspectors who observed 22 lessons led by eight teachers. Meetings were held with pupils, staff, parents and carers and members of the governing body. They observed the school’s work, and looked at the school’s procedures for self-evaluation, the headteacher’s monitoring of teaching and learning, teachers’ planning and assessment of pupils’ learning, pupils’ work in books, all safeguarding procedures, including those of the after-school club, and a wide range of other information. They evaluated 93 questionnaires submitted by parents and carers and 22 questionnaires completed by staff.

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Information about the school

This average-sized infant school is attended by pupils from a wide variety of backgrounds. The proportion of pupils known to be eligible for free school meals is below average. A below average proportion – 10% – of pupils have special educational needs and/or disabilities relating to speech and language difficulties. Five per cent of pupils are of Pakistani heritage; none is at the early stages of acquiring English as an additional language. The governing body has recently taken over an after-school club which runs daily and is attended by 112 children.

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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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Behaviour and safety 1

Does the school adequately promote the pupils’ well-being? Yes Does the school adequately promote community cohesion? Yes Does the school provide value for money? Yes

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Key findings

This is a good school with several areas of notable strength which include:

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Key findings

 high levels of achievement by all groups in speaking and listening and reading  consistently high quality teaching of reading, especially guided reading  the very effective care, guidance and support given to pupils and their outstanding knowledge of keeping safe  outstanding behaviour of all groups of pupils  pupils’ excellent relationships with teachers  the rapid progress made by pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities  pupils’ strong spiritual, moral, social and cultural development  excellent partnerships with parents and carers.

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Key findings

The school is well led and managed by the headteacher and senior staff, who have ensured good progress since the previous inspection. Governance is good and the governing body knows the school’s strengths and areas for development ensuring that the school provides value for money. Pupils’ achievement is good overall, as is progress in writing and mathematics. Teaching is good, but not all teachers use assessment information thoroughly in lessons to challenge more-capable pupils. In addition, whilst marking is generally effective, it does not always identify for pupils the next steps of learning. The school effectively promotes community cohesion and has good capacity for sustained improvement.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Ensure that all teachers use assessment information more precisely in lesson planning in writing and in mathematics to challenge more capable pupils

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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

Identify the next steps in learning more clearly and consistently when marking pupils’ written work.

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Main report

Pupils love coming to school, as demonstrated by above average levels of attendance and comments from delighted parents and carers such as, ‘This is a great school, our children are safe and they are learning lots of new things on a daily basis’ and ‘The staff are just fantastic, they know our children well.’

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Main report

‘Children are individuals and it is our job to develop them to reach their full potential and more,’ said the headteacher, talking about the school with the inspectors, and evidence indicates that the school is successful in achieving this aim. Pupils leave the school being well prepared for their next stages in education. They are exceptionally well behaved, polite and curious about learning. Their good progress starts in the Reception class, where they get off to a good start in developing a love of learning. Children have knowledge and skills typical for their age on entry and make good progress in all areas of learning and make exceptional progress in personal, social and emotional development, reading and speaking and listening. They exceed the expectations for their age in all areas of learning. Attainment overall by the end of Year 2 is above average.

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Main report

In writing and mathematics, progress is good but occasionally more-capable pupils are not stretched as they spend too long consolidating learning. ‘I do wish teachers would give us some more difficult work,’ said one more-capable pupil when asked to share his views on school life with the inspectors. The quality of teaching is good and is characterised by teachers having secure subject knowledge and deploying the experienced teaching assistants well to ensure each child has the support needed to make good progress in learning. A key feature in the good teaching is the modelling of writing for pupils. In a good Year 1 lesson on writing tongue twisters, the class teacher produced a tightly structured writing frame to ensure that pupils included all the necessary words. This ensured the good progress of all groups of pupils. The teaching of reading is excellent in this school because staff expertly teach the sounds

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Main report

which letters make and use assessment information exceptionally well in guided reading. Staff are excellent role models for the pupils. They share this passion for teaching with the pupils.

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Main report

Parents and carers have been very well trained as reading partners and their contribution to hearing their children read in school has been invaluable. By the age of six, the vast majority of pupils read fluently, they can predict what will happen in stories, they tackle unfamiliar words with ease and have excellent skills of comprehension. Attainment in this area of learning is above average and progress consistently very rapid because of the highly structured approach to teaching letters and sounds and organisation of guided reading.

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Main report

Teachers know pupils’ ‘stumbling blocks’ to learning and ensure that they offer tailor-

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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

made support. However, there are times when there are missed opportunities in lessons to push the more-capable pupils even more in writing and mathematics, by ensuring that tasks set build upon their previously acquired skills and knowledge. The progress of pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities is outstanding. Learning for this group of pupils is characterised by repetition of key skills and perseverance, as pupils are confident that support from teachers will be there if needed. Classroom teachers take on board recommendations from the special educational needs coordinator and external agencies. Generally, learning of other groups of pupils is characterised by ample opportunities to work in groups and use information and communication technology and by their confidence and competence in offering explanations of what they have just learnt.

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

Behaviour is outstanding because pupils are enthusiastic about learning through an exciting curriculum which contributes to their excellent spiritual, moral, social and cultural development and their extremely positive attitudes to learning. Learning about pirates, the natural world, especially butterflies, space and circuses ensures good achievement for all groups of pupils.

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

Pupils have extensive knowledge of how different cultures celebrate festivals. They are very knowledgeable about places of worship and the ways of life of different nationalities. Pupils are very well behaved in the after-school club and enjoy attending because of all the fun things that they do.

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

Care, guidance and support of pupils are of consistently good quality and all safeguarding requirements are met in full. Regular risk assessments are carried out, with every precaution taken to ensure pupils’ safety. Pupils say that they feel very safe within the school and that they know whom to go to if they have any problems.

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

Parents are very pleased with the school; a very small minority are concerned about behaviour but inspectors found pupils’ behaviour, in and around the school, exemplary.

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

Improvement since the previous inspection has been good in all but the marking of pupils’ work. Marking is satisfactory as it is regular but the next steps of learning are not always identified clearly enough. The school’s good capacity for improvement is evident in the excellent achievement of all groups of pupils in speaking and listening and reading. This, coupled with well-coordinated appraisal of staff performance, focused lesson observations and accurate identification of improvement needed on the school development plan, has been instrumental in raising standards. The headteacher, senior leadership team and governing body are committed to equality of opportunity and inclusion. The school analyses its information about pupils’ progress thoroughly and has successfully narrowed the gap in boys’ achievement through a ‘boy friendly’ approach with regard to the choice of reading books.

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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 Manor Farm Community Infant 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. The inspection team received 93 completed questionnaires by the end of the on-site inspection. In total, there are 211 pupils registered at the school.

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Total % Total % Total % Total %

Q1 My child is happy at school 69 74 22 24 2 2 0 0

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Total % Total % Total % Total %

Q2 My child feels safe at school 74 80 19 20 0 0 0 0

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Total % Total % Total % Total %

Q3 The school helps my child to achieve as well as they can 59 63 31 33 2 2 1 1

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Total % Total % Total % Total %

Q4 The school meets my child’s particular needs 53 57 37 40 3 3 0 0

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Total % Total % Total % Total %

Q5 The school ensures my child is well looked after 66 71 25 27 2 2 0 0

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Total % Total % Total % Total %

Q6 Teaching at this school is good 63 68 28 30 2 2 0 0

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Total % Total % Total % Total %

Q7 There is a good standard of behaviour at this school 53 57 40 43 0 0 0 0

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Total % Total % Total % Total %

Q8 Lessons are not disrupted by bad behaviour 39 42 46 49 5 5 0 0

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Total % Total % Total % Total %

Q9 The school deals with any cases of bullying well 48 52 32 34 0 0 0 0

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Total % Total % Total % Total %

Q10 The school helps me to support my child’s learning 53 57 40 43 0 0 0 0

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Total % Total % Total % Total %

Q11 The school responds to my concerns and keeps me well informed 48 52 42 45 2 2 1 1

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Total % Total % Total % Total %

Q12 The school is well led and managed 42 45 46 49 2 2 1 1

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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. 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 48 6 0 Primary schools 6 47 40 7 Secondary schools 12 39 38 11

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Type of school Outstanding Good Satisfactory Inadequate

Sixth forms 13 42 41 3 Special schools 28 49 19 4 Pupil referral units 14 45 31 10

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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:  The achievement of all pupils.  Behaviour and safety.  The quality of teaching.  The effectiveness of leadership and management. and taking into consideration  how well the school promotes pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development.

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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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7PH

Thank you for making us feel so welcome in your school. You attend a good school and you are exceptionally well looked after by a very caring headteacher and staff. Here are some of the really good things that we found out about your school.

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7PH

 Your behaviour is excellent, you are very courteous and polite and you look after one another very well.  You make outstanding progress in reading: well done!  Your progress in mathematics and writing is good.  You have excellent attitudes to learning because of the interesting topics that you follow.  You have excellent knowledge of staying safe, both in and out of school.  You learn a lot about festivals in different countries and other people’s ways of life and this contributes to your outstanding spiritual, moral, social and cultural development.  You have very good knowledge of nature and we were very impressed with all that you know about butterflies.

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7PH

We have asked your headteacher to help you learn even faster by making sure that your teachers give you pointers for development in your exercise books and challenging those of you who find learning easy in writing and mathematics by building upon what you have learned previously. You can help by telling your teachers when work is too easy and asking them to give you pointers for improvement when they mark your work.

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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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