Selside Endowed CofE Primary School

Selside Endowed CofE Primary School Inspection report

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Age group 4–11 Inspection date(s) 28–29 November 2011 Inspection number 378464 Unique Reference Number 112327 Local authority Cumbria Inspection number 378464 Inspection dates 28–29 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 Voluntary aided Age range of pupils 4–11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 64 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Janice Waine Headteacher Carrone Field Date of previous school inspection 19 June 2007 School address Selside Kendal LA8 9LB Telephone number 01539 823649 Fax number 01539 823649 Email address admin@selside.cumbria.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 two additional inspectors. They observed teaching and learning in eight lessons led by four teachers. 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 35 questionnaires from parents and carers and also others from pupils and staff. 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 features of the school which support its own self-evaluation that many aspects of its work are outstanding.  Whether the rapid progress made by pupils in previous years, as indicated by national data, has been maintained.  The effectiveness of the school’s strategies to promote pupils’ thinking, problem-solving and independent learning skills.

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Information about the school

This is a well below average-sized primary school. Pupils are taught in three mixed- age classes. All pupils are of White British heritage. No pupils are known to be eligible for free school meals. The proportion of pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities is average. The school has the Artsmark, the Activemark, and Woodland Trust Gold awards, and has Forest School accreditation.

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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 is an outstanding school. The school has built upon the good practice seen at the last inspection and has improved further. Pupils' attainment has risen and their progress has accelerated. The very distinctive nature of the school is underpinned by a philosophy of learning which is explicit and shared by all staff, parents and carers and pupils. The promotion of independent learning and thinking skills, making work entirely relevant to the pupils, and learning through the outdoors are all facets of the school’s work which contribute to its distinctive ethos and outstanding success. The governing body, leaders and managers have evaluated the school’s work very accurately and rightly identified that much of its work is outstanding. They have selected entirely appropriate areas for future development. Consequently, the school has excellent capacity for sustained improvement.

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Main findings

Children enter the Reception class with skills levels which are broadly typical for their age, although their communication, speech and language skills are sometimes less well developed than other areas of their learning. Children settle into school routines very quickly and make excellent progress in the Early Years Foundation Stage. Thie rapid progress continues as they move through the school and their attainment is high when they leave Year 6. Pupils achieve so very well because teaching and learning and the curriculum are all outstanding. Work in lessons is matched very closely to pupils’ needs, so learning becomes a personal journey for each individual child. Lessons are filled with exciting activities and personal challenges and pupils are engrossed in their learning. Pupils assess their own work continually and hold an continuous dialogue with their teachers about how to take the next steps in their

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Main findings

Pupils receive excellent care, guidance and support, which contributes to their outstanding personal development. Attendance is high and behaviour is exemplary. Pupils have an extremely thorough understanding of how to stay safe and healthy. The school’s excellent safeguarding arrangements ensure all pupils are kept completely safe at school. Pupils are very keen to contribute to their community and take responsibility for themselves and for others almost automatically. Those qualities, combined with their outstandingly well-developed spiritual, moral and social awareness, mean they have a superb preparation for the next stage of their education and for future life. The school promotes community cohesion well. Pupils have a good understanding of their own and contrasting national communities, but have fewer opportunities to engage with communities overseas. The school provides excellent value for money. It is led and managed extremely well

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Main findings

by the headteacher, who is ably supported in driving school improvement by a very talented staff team and a very committed governing body. Parents and carers are kept fully informed about their children’s progress and so are in an excellent position to support their learning. All pupils have equal opportunities to succeed. They and their parents and carers are, quite rightly, fulsome in their praise of the outstanding education that Selside primary provides.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

  Extend the school’s good promotion of community cohesion by providing more opportunities for pupils to engage with communities overseas which differ from their own. 

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Outcomes for individuals and groups of pupils 1

Achievement is outstanding. Pupils were seen to be working extremely hard in lessons and using their very well-developed independent learning skills to undertake research and solve problems. Year 2 pupils were able confidently to complete an inventory of a first aid box, compare modern nurses with those of the past, and act out how an injured person would be treated on admission to hospital in the time of Florence Nightingale. All groups of pupils make outstanding progress and their attainment in tests at the end of Year 6 has been significantly above average and rising steadily for the last five years. Attainment in national tests in both 2010 and 2011 was high. Work in pupils’ books, in projects and presentations they have completed, and that displayed on classroom walls all confirmed the rapid progress that pupils are making. Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities make equally as outstanding progress as their peers because they receive very timely and

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Outcomes for individuals and groups of pupils 1

sharply focused help from teachers and teaching assistants and also the invaluable support of their classmates.

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Outcomes for individuals and groups of pupils 1

Pupils excellent personal development is exemplified by the way they all show such great kindness and respect for each other, for staff and for visitors. They are confident and articulate young people with highly developed basic skills of literacy, numeracy and information and communication technology. Those, combined with outstanding independent learning skills which enable even the youngest children to ‘plan, do and review’ their work successfully, mean they are extremely well equipped for the world of work and for life as future citizens. 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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How effective is the provision?

Teachers plan lessons which present pupils with exciting opportunities to think critically, be creative and solve problems. Years 5 and 6, pupils were absorbed in an independent learning project, which began with them thinking very carefully and perceptively about exactly how to tackle research into the life and work of an artist. The project progressed then to them working in the adjacent woodland to produce large sculptures made of natural materials, in the style of the artist whose work they had researched. Lessons are invariably both exciting and challenging and, in mixed- age classes, teachers are particularly adept at matching work to the needs of the individual. Teachers give pupils continuous constructive feedback to enable them to improve their work. That, combined with pupils’ skills in reflecting on their own strengths and areas for development, contributes to the outstanding progress that

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How effective is the provision?

The outstanding and innovative curriculum provides pupils with a huge range of stimulating experiences which allow them to develop their basic skills fully, as well as their broader talents. The curriculum is very carefully planned and skilfully designed. It achieves its aim of developing pupils’ independent learning skills progressively and equipping them with the tools to become lifelong learners. The school makes the utmost of its rural location and uses its extensive, well-designed grounds to support its focus on outdoor learning. That adds greatly to pupils’ enjoyment of school. They speak with huge enthusiasm about their new football field, about studying science in the bog, the pond and the stream, about orienteering in the school grounds and about building dens and playing ‘hide and seek’ when the grass is tall.

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How effective is the provision?

Pupils and their parents and carers are hugely appreciative of the excellent care, guidance and support the school gives. All pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities, receive very personalised, timely and expert help when they need it. At Selside Primary, the emphasis on caring for each other is at the very heart of the schools’ work and this is evident in the great pride pupils

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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 take in being ‘best buddies’ in Year 2 and then graduating to being ‘blue buddies’ in Year 6. Transition arrangements are excellent and, consequently, pupils move very smoothly from one stage of their education to the next.

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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 experienced headteacher has communicated her vision for the school particularly effectively and this has been instrumental in improving outcomes for pupils. The work of the school is monitored rigorously and pupils’ progress is tracked very carefully. Governance is good. The governing body is very supportive of the school and has been active in improving the outdoor environment. It is increasingly involved in monitoring the school’s work and determining its strategic direction. Safeguarding procedures are of high quality. Staff and the governing body have an excellent awareness of child protection and risk assessment procedures and a realistic and proportionate approach to safety permeates school life. The school ensures all pupils are fully involved in all school activities and that they all have excellent, equal opportunities to succeed. Community cohesion is promoted well. For example, pupils

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How effective are leadership and management?

from an urban school in north east England, whose community is very different to that of Selside, enjoyed making new friends greatly, whilst camping in a Yurt on the school field. Opportunities for Selside pupils to find out about and engage with children from communities overseas are more limited.

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How effective are leadership and management?

These are the grades for the leadership and management

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driving improvement

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

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Early Years Foundation Stage

Children make rapid progress from their individual starting points and quickly become enthusiastic and independent learners. They take responsibility for themselves, organise activities, and cooperate exceptionally well with each other. They were observed making particularly good progress in their learning as they studied pictures of artists wearing hats, tried on hats themselves, designed their own self-portraits, and used computer technology to photograph their efforts. All staff have an excellent knowledge of child development and ensure that a very stimulating range of teacher- led and child-initiated activities, both in and out of doors, keep children interested and fully engaged in learning. Children talk with great enthusiasm about varied activities, including looking at the sheep and lambs that the farmer brought to school, observing the blue tits in their nest, and visiting the wood, the stream, the

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Early Years Foundation Stage

pond and the church. All safety and welfare requirements are met fully. The leadership and management of the Early Years Foundation Stage are excellent. Staff share a common philosophy and work seamlessly to plan learning, observe children’s progress, and ensure they achieve their very best.

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Early Years Foundation Stage

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 in the Early Years Foundation Stage

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Views of parents and carers

All of the high proportion of parents and carers who filled in the questionnaire are exceedingly happy with the education the school provides. They are particularly appreciative of the excellent care, guidance and support their children receive and of the school’s commitment to promoting both outdoor and independent learning. They are equally fulsome in their praise of the way in which the school is led and managed and of the inspiring teaching that ensures their children enjoy learning. Inspection evidence supports those views entirely.

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questionnaire

Ofsted invited all the registered parents and carers of pupils registered at Selside Endowed CofE 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 inspector received 35 completed questionnaires by the end of the on-site inspection. In total, there are 64 pupils registered at the school.

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Total % Total % Total % Total %

My child enjoys school 33 94 1 3 0 0 0 0 The school keeps my child safe 32 91 2 6 0 0 0 0 The school informs me about my child's progress 30 86 4 11 0 0 0 0 My child is making enough progress at this school 32 91 2 6 0 0 0 0 The teaching is good at this school 33 94 1 3 0 0 0 0 The school helps me to support my child's learning 32 91 2 6 0 0 0 0 The school helps my child to have a healthy lifestyle 31 89 3 9 0 0 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) 28 80 2 6 0 0 0 0

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Total % Total % Total % Total %

The school meets my child's particular needs 33 94 1 3 0 0 0 0 The school deals effectively with unacceptable behaviour 28 80 2 6 1 3 0 0

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Total % Total % Total % Total %

The school takes account of my suggestions and concerns 31 89 3 9 0 0 0 0

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Total % Total % Total % Total %

The school is led and managed effectively 34 97 0 0 0 0 0 0 Overall, I am happy with my child's experience at this school 34 97 0 0 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. 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 8 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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Inspection of Selside Endowed CofE Primary School, Kendal – LA8 9LB

Thank you for the very warm welcome you gave us when we inspected your school. A particular thank you to all those of you who spoke with us and told us with such enthusiasm about all the things you 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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Inspection of Selside Endowed CofE Primary School, Kendal – LA8 9LB

 Yours is an outstanding school where you make excellent progress and your attainment is high.  Children in the Reception class get a first-rate start to their education.  The teaching you receive, the care, guidance and support you are given, and the curriculum you follow are all outstanding.  The leadership and management of your school are outstanding.  Your behaviour is excellent and your attendance is high. You have an excellent knowledge of how to stay safe and healthy and take great care of yourselves and each other.

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Inspection of Selside Endowed CofE Primary School, Kendal – LA8 9LB

This is what we have asked your school to do now:  give you more opportunities to find out about communities in other countries which are different to your own.

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Inspection of Selside Endowed CofE Primary School, Kendal – LA8 9LB

You can all help your school to be even better by continuing to work with your teachers to achieve the very best you can.

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Inspection of Selside Endowed CofE Primary School, Kendal – LA8 9LB

Ann Ashdown Lead Inspector (on behalf of the inspection team)

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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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