The Spalding Monkshouse Primary School

Age group 3–11 Inspection date(s) 3–4 November 2011 Inspection number 380017 The Spalding Monkshouse Primary School Inspection report

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Unique Reference Number 120425 Local Authority Lincolnshire Inspection number 380017 Inspection dates 3–4 November 2011 Reporting inspector Angela Kirk

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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 355 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Simon Lilley Headteacher Sue Goodsell Date of previous school inspection 9 October 2008 School address Pennygate Spalding PE11 1LG Telephone number 01775 722006 Fax number 01775 766300 Email address enquiries@monkshouse.lincs.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

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Introduction

This inspection was carried out by three additional inspectors. They visited 27 lessons taught by 16 teachers. Meeting were held with groups of pupils, a representative of the governing body and staff. Inspectors observed the school’s work, and scrutinised pupils’ books, monitoring and assessment information, policies, safeguarding documents and teachers’ planning. They also analysed questionnaires from staff and pupils, as well as 51 received from parents and carers.

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Introduction

The inspection team reviewed many aspects of the school’s work. It looked in detail at a number of key areas.

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Introduction

 Achievement in Key Stage 1 and for different groups of pupils, including those who speak English as an additional language and pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities.  The impact of initiatives to improve reading in Key Stage 1 and writing in Key Stage 2.  How well teachers match tasks to the ability and needs of pupils, especially those who are most able.  The extent to which leaders and managers, including the governing body, play key roles in initiatives to improve pupils’ outcomes.

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Information about the school

Spalding Monkshouse is larger than the average primary school. The large majority of pupils are White British, but about 17% are from other White backgrounds, and many of these pupils are in the early stages of learning English as an additional language. Fewer pupils than average are known to be eligible for free school meals. The percentage of pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities is broadly average, but the proportion with a statement of special educational needs is high. This is because the school provides specially resourced provision currently for seven pupils with speech and language difficulties, which is managed by the governing body. The school has had four headteachers in the past 12 months. The school has achieved the Foundation Level International Award and the Leading Parent Partnership Award.

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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

Spalding Monkshouse Primary School provides a satisfactory education. Pupils make satisfactory progress in response to satisfactory teaching and leave Year 6 with average attainment overall. Provision in mathematics is better than in English, leading to better achievement in the subject.

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Main findings

Children in the Early Years Foundation Stage settle well into school and make satisfactory progress. There are strong elements within pastoral care, especially for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities and those whose circumstances make them particularly vulnerable. As a result, pupils feel safe and are well cared for by all staff. Many of the pupils in the speech and language unit make good progress as a result of highly personalised interventions, although those with more complex learning needs only make satisfactory progress.

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Main findings

The quality of teaching is satisfactory and is improving. Some teaching is good or outstanding, but at times the pace in lessons slows, valuable learning time is lost and pupils’ interest wavers, reducing progress. This was a particular feature of the phonics and reading lessons seen in Key Stage 1. New initiatives to improve teaching, such as improvements in the feedback pupils receive and the accuracy of teachers’ assessments, are beginning to have an impact. However, although training has taken place to improve the teaching of writing, this is still in the early stages and consequently achievement in writing, especially in Key Stage 2, is still below the levels expected nationally. Furthermore, the curriculum does not offer sufficient opportunities for pupils to develop their writing skills across the full range of genres.

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Main findings

The school has gone through a period of change in the last 12 months due to staffing turbulence, including at headteacher level. However, with support from the local authority, underpinned by the governing body, it has overcome a number of challenges and has improved. The new permanent headteacher has already had a significant impact on the quality of teaching and monitoring within the school as well as raising morale through an explicit vision of high expectations and decisive leadership. Self-evaluation is very accurate and leadership is distributed well, ensuring that senior leaders have grown in strength and confidence, although the governing body and senior and middle leaders have not yet been sufficiently trained to carry out all planned monitoring arrangements. All staff are working towards the same goals and tracking is well developed, ensuring that the school has the necessary information to evaluate the impact of its interventions and the

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Main findings

performance of different groups of pupils. The school’s capacity for sustained

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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

improvement is not yet better than satisfactory because the impact of strategies to improve the quality of provision is yet to be reflected fully in the outcomes for all pupils.

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

Up to 40% of the schools whose overall effectiveness is judged satisfactory may receive a monitoring visit by an Ofsted inspector before their next section 5 inspection.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Accelerate progress in reading in Key Stage 1 by improving the teaching of phonics and of structured reading opportunities.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve attainment in writing for pupils in Key Stage 2 by teaching extended writing skills systematically across all genres and extending writing across the curriculum.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve teaching and learning so that by July 2012, at least 80% is good or better by:  sharing existing good practice  keeping the pace of lessons brisk to maintain pupils’ interest and felicitate learning  making lesson objectives sharp, concise and structured to meet the needs of all learners  ensuring work is always challenging, especially for the most able pupils.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Train senior and middle leaders and the governing body to carry out planned monitoring effectively.

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Outcomes for individuals and groups of pupils 3

Pupils’ attainment is broadly average throughout the school. In English, attainment is lower in reading for younger pupils and writing for older pupils, but achievement is satisfactory. In mathematics, the school groups older pupils by ability so that work is matched well to their abilities and their needs are well met. Recent school assessment information indicates that accelerated progress over the past year in both English and mathematics has resulted in pupils catching up from previous underachievement. Phonic lessons are very short, so insufficient time is spent helping younger pupils to acquire the skills they need to make them independent readers. In contrast, pupils in a Year 5 extended writing lesson were able to make outstanding progress in planning an adventure story and in using high-level connectives as a result of very short film clips to engage pupils being linked to very specific expectations in each short section. Useful displays of high-level connectives grouped

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Outcomes for individuals and groups of pupils 3

for different purposes aided pupils’ learning. Some lessons observed were satisfactory rather than good or better, because the learning or recording was not structured sufficiently well to enable pupils to make good progress. For example,

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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 in a mathematics lesson focusing on patterns when doubling odd and even numbers were slow to spot these because their recording was not well organised or systematic.

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

The progress made by pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities is tracked very closely, and resulting interventions are well directed. Some pupils who speak English as an additional language make good progress and are supported effectively, often through bilingual support. However, teaching for these pupils who join the school during Key Stage 1 or 2 is not yet sufficiently well focused, for example in the development of basic reading and writing skills, to ensure that they make rapid progress.

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

Lessons are calm and enjoyable. Pupils say that there is no bullying and that they know who to turn to, should they have any difficulties. Pupils are polite, behave appropriately and understand what is expected of them in lessons and around the school. They take up the many and varied sporting and out-of-school club opportunities offered to them to help them to be healthy. The curriculum also supports pupils’ good health understanding well, for example children in a Reception dance lesson were able to explain why exercise helps their heart to be healthy. Attendance is broadly average and the school is tackling persistent absence and holidays in term-time increasingly effectively. Pupils’ skills in mathematics are developed well, but their weaker basic reading and writing skills mean that the preparation for their future is no better than satisfactory. Multicultural awareness is strong, reflected in the school’s Foundation Level International Award. Pupils

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

embrace new experiences which broaden their understanding of the world by taking part in theatre visits, trips to sacred buildings and arts weeks. All pupils have the opportunity to learn a musical instrument.

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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

Taking into account: Pupils’ attainment 1 The quality of pupils’ learning and their progress The quality of learning for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities and their progress

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The extent to which pupils develop workplace and other skills that will 3

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

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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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contribute to their future economic well-being

Taking into account: Pupils’ attendance 1

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How effective is the provision?

Teachers have worked to improve the quality of their teaching and to embed new initiatives in the past 12 months. They take account of the different learning styles of pupils and employ effective questioning techniques. In the best lessons objectives are clear, there is challenge for pupils of all abilities and the criteria for success are used well to support pupils in their learning. However, the good practice in the school has not been shared sufficiently well and in the less successful lessons, learning intentions are not always crisp and focused enough to support planning to meet the needs of all learners, and specific challenge for the most able is not always explicit. A scrutiny of pupils’ work revealed effective diagnostic marking but assessment information is not always sufficiently accurate in identifying what pupils already know to ensure that activities are structured to help them achieve their best.

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How effective is the provision?

The curriculum extends to interesting trips and visits to inspire pupils’ interest in new topics and themes. Cross-curricular provision is effective in information and communication technology, but more limited in developing pupils’ literacy and numeracy skills across the full range of subjects. A good and varied range of extra- curricular opportunities have a high take-up across the school. The well-organised arrangements for the care of all pupils contribute to their well-being. The school has helped individual pupils to overcome significant barriers to their education, for example pupils who are supported in the school’s speech and language unit, as a result of good quality targeted support and teaching.

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How effective is the provision?

These are the grades for the quality of provision

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The quality of teaching

Taking into account: The use of assessment to support learning

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How effective are leadership and management?

The senior leadership team and middle leaders are motivated to improve the school and have proved their ability to lead new initiatives which have resulted in improved achievement. For example, improvements in teaching methods, policies and resources for mathematics have ensured that all teachers are now teaching the correct calculation methods, so that the pupils’ skills progression has improved.

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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

Parents and carers have been engaged effectively through workshops to explain teaching methods and through the sharing of pupils’ targets in reading, writing and mathematics twice a year. The school has listened to feedback from parents and carers on a range of issues and has taken action to make improvements as a result. The school has achieved the Leading Parent Partnership Award and there is good evidence of family learning having a good impact on pupils’ outcomes, especially for those who are new to learning English.

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

Safeguarding procedures are suitably robust, and parents and carers are happy with the way their children are kept safe at school. The governing body has previously been over-reliant on senior leaders for the supply of relevant information regarding pupils’ achievement, which was not in the past always sufficiently accurate to prompt its members to challenge the school effectively. It has since improved its monitoring programme, including visits to school to start to ‘drill down’ into the effectiveness of interventions and new initiatives. As a result of this and its reorganisation it now knows the strengths and weaknesses of the school and is directly involved in setting appropriate priorities for improvement.

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

There is no evidence of any discrimination, pupils get on very well together and the school is a very harmonious community. Gaps in achievement between different groups of pupils are closing in mathematics, although some remain in English. The school’s links with Africa have resulted in pupils having a good understanding of the challenges faced by Ugandan schoolchildren and taking on initiatives to send aid and raise money to improve their opportunities and lives.

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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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driving improvement

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

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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 enter the Nursery with skills that are at the expected levels for their age. They make satisfactory progress as a result of satisfactory teaching and achieve average standards by the time they enter Year 1. In both the Nursery and Reception classes, most adult-led learning is effective, but sometimes opportunities are missed to develop children’s independent learning skills by exploring, experimenting and challenging their understanding, especially outside. Adults intervene in children’s independent learning well. For example, one child who had successfully demonstrated the ability to design a two-colour pattern was successfully challenged to achieve the same with three colours. Sometimes good links are made between activities. For example, children made good progress in retelling the story of Rama and Sita in their work on Diwali because, after listening to the story, they had the opportunity to act it out in a small group using face masks before sequencing the

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

main events and individually retelling the story using the pictures as prompts. However, at times, activities are not sufficiently well linked to learning themes to enable children to make connections between the different areas of learning.

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

Children know how to stay safe by following the rules and they enjoy taking part in a wide range of activities across all areas of learning, including those to develop their physical and creative abilities. They are encouraged well to become independent. Assessments clearly outline the specific learning achieved and are used to inform future planning, which is suitably detailed for adult-led activities, but lacks specific foci or challenges for independent activities. The new leader has analysed outcomes and made appropriate changes to the curriculum to tackle the existing weaknesses. There are good induction arrangements and relationships with parents and carers are good.

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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

Taking into account: Outcomes for children in the Early Years Foundation Stage The quality of provision in the Early Years Foundation Stage The effectiveness of leadership and management of the Early Years Foundation Stage

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Views of parents and carers

The proportion of parents and carers who responded to the questionnaire was much smaller than usual, and so the results should be treated with caution. The large majority of those who did respond were positive about the school. The main concerns raised understandably related to how much progress their child was making and the quality of teaching and of leadership and management, given the recent staffing turbulence in the school. The inspection team judged these areas to be satisfactory and improving, and links with parents and carers to be improving in response to focused initiatives.

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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 The Spalding Monkshouse 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. The inspection team received 51 completed questionnaires by the end of the on-site inspection. In total, there are 355 pupils registered at the school.

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Total % Total % Total % Total %

My child enjoys school 32 63 18 35 1 2 0 0 The school keeps my child safe 32 63 19 37 0 0 0 0 The school informs me about my child’s progress 23 45 22 43 6 12 0 0 My child is making enough progress at this school 23 45 17 33 10 20 0 0 The teaching is good at this school 22 43 20 39 8 16 0 0 The school helps me to support my child’s learning 20 39 23 45 8 16 0 0 The school helps my child to have a healthy lifestyle 24 47 24 47 3 6 0 0 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) 23 45 18 35 7 14 1 2

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Total % Total % Total % Total %

The school meets my child’s particular needs 21 41 23 45 7 14 0 0 The school deals effectively with unacceptable behaviour 22 43 25 49 3 6 0 0 The school takes account of my suggestions and concerns 19 37 22 43 9 18 0 0

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Total % Total % Total % Total %

The school is led and managed effectively 22 43 17 33 7 14 1 2 Overall, I am happy with my child’s experience at this school 24 47 21 41 6 12 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. 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 43 47 10 0 Primary schools 6 46 42 6 Secondary schools 14 36 41 9

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Type of school Outstanding Good Satisfactory Inadequate

Sixth forms 15 42 41 3 Special schools 30 48 19 3 Pupil referral units 14 50 31 5

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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 8 April 2011 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 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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1LG

Thank you for making us so welcome and answering our questions when we visited you recently. You told us that the staff take good care of you and that you feel safe in school. We were impressed by your knowledge of how to keep healthy and the amount of sport that many of you do to keep fit. Spalding Monkshouse is a satisfactory school, where you reach average levels of attainment and make satisfactory progress. Overall you achieve better in mathematics than you do in English. Your behaviour is appropriate in lessons and in the playground and you have a positive attitude towards other cultures and religions. The youngest children make a sound start in Nursery and Reception, making the best progress when adults lead their learning sessions.

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1LG

To improve your school further, we have asked your teachers to help the younger pupils to improve their reading and the older ones to improve their writing. In particular the focus will be on improving phonics lessons, by teaching writing skills systematically and by providing opportunities for the older pupils to use your literacy skills in other subjects. We have also asked the school to make sure that the learning intentions for each lesson are very clear and that the work provided for you is at just the right level to really challenge you, especially if you usually learn things quickly. We have asked senior teachers and the governing body to undertake further training so that they can monitor very carefully how well the school is doing.

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1LG

You can help too, by trying especially hard in English, or perhaps by trying hard to achieve your targets.

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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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