Lytham St Annes Mayfield Primary School

Lytham St Annes Mayfield Primary School Inspection report

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Age group 4–11 Inspection date(s) 7–8 November 2011 Inspection number 379769 Unique Reference Number 119284 Local authority Lancashire Inspection number 379769 Inspection dates 7–8 November 2011 Reporting inspector Ann Ashdown

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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 4–11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 316 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Pauline Mortensen Headteacher Suzanne Fish Date of previous school inspection 29 April 2009 School address St Leonard's Road East Lytham St Annes FY8 2HQ Telephone number 01253 723465 Fax number 01253 723541 Email address head@mayfield.lancs.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 rates council children's services, and inspects services for looked after

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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.

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

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Introduction

This inspection was carried out by three additional inspectors. They observed teaching and learning in 15 lessons and saw 12 teachers teach. They held meetings with members of the governing body, staff and pupils. They observed the school's work, and looked at pupils’ books, pupils’ progress data, safeguarding information and other documentation. They analysed 99 questionnaires from parents and carers and also those from pupils and staff.

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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

 The extent to which all pupils make the progress of which they are capable, particularly in mathematics.  How well work in lessons is matched to the needs of all groups of pupils.  The effectiveness of the school’s strategies to improve achievement, provision and leadership and management in the Early Years Foundation Stage.  To what extent the quality of care, guidance and support that pupils receive is a strength of the school.

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Information about the school

This is an above-average-sized primary school. An average proportion of pupils is from minority-ethnic groups and a similarly average proportion speak English as an additional language. An above-average proportion of pupils is known to be eligible for free school meals. The proportion of pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities is well below average but there is a larger percentage of pupils with a statement of special educational needs than usually seen. The school has a high proportion of pupils joining and leaving other than at the usual time. There has been considerable staffing turbulence in the last three years, including several changes to the senior leadership team. The school has gained Healthy School status and has a nationally-recognised basic skills award. The privately-run provision for childcare, ‘Mayfield Pre-school’ shares the school’s site. It is subject to a separate inspection and will receive its own inspection report

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Information about the school

which will be published on the Ofsted website.

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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

This satisfactory school is improving. The headteacher has been instrumental in reaching out to staff, parents and carers and pupils so they all feel valued and believe that their views matter. Consequently, morale is high. Mayfield Primary has strengths in the good care, guidance and support it provides, which contribute well to pupils’ good personal development. Pupils behave well, are punctual and their attendance is above average. They have a good understanding of how to stay safe and healthy and are keen to take responsibility and contribute to their community.

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Main findings

Since the previous inspection, staffing turbulence and several changes to the senior leadership and management team have contributed to variations in the quality of teaching and a decline in the progress that pupils make at Key Stage 2. However, the school is now improving again under the talented leadership of the recently appointed headteacher, who has identified appropriate priorities for development and has a firm focus on raising attainment. She has been particularly successful in bringing about improvements in the provision for children in the Early Years Foundation Stage. A more rigorous and accurate system to track pupils’ progress and a new thematic curriculum, which is beginning to make work more interesting and relevant for pupils, have been introduced. However, these initiatives are recent and it is too early to gauge their full impact on accelerating pupils’ progress. Self– evaluation is satisfactory, although the roles of middle managers and members of the

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Main findings

governing body in monitoring and evaluating the school’s work are not fully developed. The school has satisfactory capacity to improve.

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Main findings

Children settle quickly into the Reception classes and make good progress in their learning in the Early Years Foundation Stage. Progress slows as they move through the school but is satisfactory overall. Attainment in tests and assessments has been average at the end of Key stage 2 for the last two years although lower in mathematics than in English. Pupils make satisfactory progress as a result of the satisfactory teaching they receive. In the best lessons, the pace of learning is faster because work is challenging, questioning is used well to check pupils’ understanding and pupils have more time to work on their own. However, this good practice is not shared fully across the school, with the result that in other lessons work is not as challenging for all pupils and teachers talk for too long. Pupils, therefore, have fewer opportunities to learn independently. Up to 40% of the schools whose overall effectiveness is judged to be satisfactory

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Main findings

may receive a monitoring visit from an Ofsted inspector before their next section 5 inspection.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Raise attainment and accelerate pupils’ progress particularly at Key stage 2 and in mathematics, by:  sharing good practice in teaching more widely across the school  giving pupils more opportunities to develop their problem-solving skills in mathematics and to apply these skills across the curriculum  further developing pupils’ recall of basic mathematical facts.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve the quality of teaching so it is consistently good across the school by:  ensuring work is always appropriately challenging for all groups of pupils  giving pupils more opportunities to work independently and find out things for themselves  improving questioning so that it is used to check pupils’ learning more effectively.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Strengthen the quality of monitoring and evaluation by developing the roles of leaders and managers and members of the governing body in gauging the performance of the school and of their subject areas.

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Outcomes for individuals and groups of pupils 3

In lessons, all groups of pupils make at least satisfactory progress and in some lessons progress is good. Most pupils enjoy learning and their achievement is satisfactory. In a particularly successful English lesson, for example, Year 5 pupils confidently identified a wide range of persuasive language used in advertisements as they devised their own advertisements. Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities make the same progress as their peers because they receive increasingly- timely and sharply focused help and intervention in their learning from teachers and teaching assistants. Most children enter the Reception classes with skills broadly in line with those expected for their age and make satisfactory progress overall across the school, reaching average attainment by the end of Year 6. However, rates of progress do vary across the school. Data about pupils’ progress, the results of tests

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Outcomes for individuals and groups of pupils 3

and assessments and work seen in pupils’ books all highlight a legacy of slower progress in some year groups at Key Stage 2, and in mathematics. The school is now beginning to address this weakness and progress is accelerating.

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Outcomes for individuals and groups of pupils 3

Pupils treat each other, staff and visitors with kindness and respect. They are proud to take responsibility as prefects, mentors and members of the school council. During the inspection they were enthusiastically raising money for a range of varied organisations including the fire service and the air ambulance. They are particularly welcoming to the large numbers of children who join the school other than at the usual time. Pupils have sound basic skills, are punctual and polite and work well in teams. All of these qualities provide them with a suitable preparation for future life. These are the grades for pupils' outcomes

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3

Pupils' attainment 1 3 The quality of pupils' learning and their progress 3 The quality of learning for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities and their progress

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How effective is the provision?

The quality of teaching is satisfactory and in some lessons it is good. In the most successful lessons, teachers use interesting resources and set work which is challenging and well matched to the needs of all pupils. Pupils’ progress is slower in lessons where work is not as well matched to their needs and teachers are not as skilled in using questioning to check learning. In some mathematics lessons, pupils are encouraged to seek the most effective ways to solve problems but this is not consistent across the school. A new whole-school emphasis on rewarding pupils for recalling basic mathematical facts is improving their knowledge but its impact is not fully apparent. Assessment is satisfactory. Marking is regular and some examples of good practice were seen, where pupils were given clear indications of how to improve their work. However, this good assessment practice is not fully shared across the school.

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How effective is the provision?

The curriculum is broad and balanced and meets pupils’ needs satisfactorily. A newly-introduced thematic curriculum is beginning to make work more relevant and exciting for all pupils. Learning journals chart pupils’ progress across a range of subjects as they study interesting themes. Opportunities for pupils to use their mathematical skills across a range of curriculum areas are not fully developed. A range of enrichment activities makes a good contribution to pupils’ enjoyment of school. For example, Year 6 pupils speak very enthusiastically about all the outdoor activities they enjoyed on a recent residential visit.

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How effective is the provision?

Parents, carers and pupils are very appreciative of the good care, guidance and support the school provides. Effective support for pupils whose circumstances make them vulnerable ensures they receive the specialist help they need. Pupils who join the school mid-year are made particularly welcome and quickly settle into new routines. Transition arrangements are good and ensure that pupils move very smoothly from one stage of their education to the next.

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How effective is the provision?

1 The grades for attainment and attendance are: 1 is high; 2 is above average; 3 is broadly average; and 4 is low These are the grades for the quality of provision

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3

The use of assessment to support learning 3

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How effective are leadership and management?

The headteacher has a clear vision for future school improvement and has communicated this particularly well to all staff. The effectiveness of the school’s engagement with parents and carers is good. Many parents and carers comment on how welcome they feel in school and that they are well informed and able to help their children learn. Following an extended period of change of senior and middle leaders and managers, a more settled team is now almost complete. Monitoring and evaluation are becoming more robust, but members of the governing body and leaders and managers at all levels are not fully involved in this process. Governance is satisfactory. Governing body members are very supportive of the school but not fully involved in determining its strategic direction. The school promotes equal opportunities satisfactorily. All pupils are involved in all aspects of school life and previous gaps in the achievement of boys and girls are now beginning to narrow.

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How effective are leadership and management?

The school promotes good safeguarding practice, which enables pupils to feel safe, and parents and carers to have confidence in the schools safeguarding systems. Staff are well trained and fully aware of child protection and risk-assessment procedures. Community cohesion is promoted increasingly well within the local community but links with communities further afield are in the early stages of development.

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How effective are leadership and management?

These are the grades for the leadership and management

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3

The leadership and management of teaching and learning 3

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Early Years Foundation Stage

Provision for children in the Early Years Foundation Stage has improved since the previous inspection and is now a strength of the school. Although there are variations from year-to-year, most children enter the Early Years Foundation Stage with skills in line with those expected for their age. They make good progress from their individual starting points so their attainment is average and sometimes above average in some areas of their learning when they leave the Reception classes. The quality of teaching is consistently good and children experience a good balance of child-initiated and teacher-led activities both indoors and outside. They were seen to be particularly enjoying learning as they took part in activities as varied as searching for coins in the sand, playing with the new pirate ship and blending sounds together to make words so they could jump across an imaginary river. Children behave well

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Early Years Foundation Stage

and share and take turns sensibly. Welfare and safety requirements are fully met. Teachers and teaching assistants work closely together to plan future learning based on their observations of children’s progress. The leader has a strong sense of purpose and a vision that is well communicated to all staff. Parents and carers are kept fully involved in their children’s learning through home/school journals and regular communication with staff.

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Early Years Foundation Stage

These are the grades for the Early Years Foundation Stage

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2

Outcomes for children in the Early Years Foundation Stage 2 The quality of provision in the Early Years Foundation Stage 2 The effectiveness of leadership and management in the Early Years Foundation Stage

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Views of parents and carers

The overwhelming majority of parents and carers who filled in the questionnaire are entirely happy with the education the school provides. They are very appreciative of the way in which the headteacher leads the school, of how welcome they are made to feel in school and of the good care, guidance and support that their children receive. Inspection evidence entirely supports these views. A very few parents and carers feel that the school does not deal effectively with challenging behaviour. Inspectors examined this concern and judge behaviour to be good. Any minor incidents of challenging behaviour are well managed by staff.

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questionnaire

Ofsted invited all the registered parents and carers of pupils registered at Lytham St Annes Mayfield 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 99 completed questionnaires by the end of the on-site inspection. In total, there are 316 pupils registered at the school.

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Total % Total % Total % Total %

My child enjoys school 63 64 34 34 1 1 1 1 The school keeps my child safe 62 63 37 37 0 0 0 0 The school informs me about my child's progress 52 53 42 42 4 4 1 1 My child is making enough progress at this school 49 49 42 42 5 5 0 0 The teaching is good at this school 59 60 39 39 0 0 0 0 The school helps me to support my child's learning 52 53 44 44 2 2 0 0 The school helps my child to have a healthy lifestyle 54 55 42 42 2 2 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) 52 53 42 42 0 0 0 0

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Total % Total % Total % Total %

The school meets my child's particular needs 54 55 41 41 2 2 0 0 The school deals effectively with unacceptable behaviour 48 48 43 43 3 3 0 0

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Total % Total % Total % Total %

The school takes account of my suggestions and concerns 49 49 45 45 2 2 0 0

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Total % Total % Total % Total %

The school is led and managed effectively 61 62 36 36 1 1 1 1 Overall, I am happy with my child's experience at this school 61 62 35 35 0 0 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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Outstanding Good Satisfactory Inadequate

Nursery schools 43 47 10 0 Primary schools 6 46 42 6 Secondary schools 14 36 41 9 Sixth forms 15 42 41 3 Special schools 30 48 19 3 Pupil referral units 14 50 31 5 All schools 10 44 39 6

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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.

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Outstanding Good Satisfactory Inadequate

The data in the table above is for the period 1 September 2010 to 08 April 2011 and are consistent with the latest published official statistics about maintained school inspection outcomes (see www.ofsted.gov.uk ).

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Outstanding Good Satisfactory Inadequate

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.

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Outstanding Good Satisfactory Inadequate

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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to share with their children. It describes Ofsted's

main findings from the inspection of their school.

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FY8 2HQ

Thank you for the very warm welcome you gave us when we inspected your school. A particular thank you to those of you who spoke with us and told us with such enthusiasm about all the things you really enjoy doing at school. Please thank your parents and carers for filling in the questionnaire. These are some of the things we have said in our inspection report.

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FY8 2HQ

 Yours is a satisfactory school where you make satisfactory progress and reach average attainment.  Children in the Reception classes get a good start to their education.  The care, guidance and support you receive are good.  Your behaviour is good and you have a good knowledge of how to stay safe and healthy.  The teaching you receive, the leadership and management of your school and the curriculum you follow are all satisfactory.

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FY8 2HQ

This is what we have asked your school to do now.

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FY8 2HQ

 Help you to make even faster progress particularly at Key Stage 2 and in mathematics.  Make your lessons even better by making sure work is challenging for all of you and giving you more opportunities to work on your own.  Members of the governing body and teachers who are in charge of subjects should check even more regularly on how well you and your school are doing.

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FY8 2HQ

We wish you all the best for the future.

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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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