Oswaldtwistle St Paul's Church of England Primary SchoolOfsted inspection, 30 May 2012

Oswaldtwistle St Paul's Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School Inspection report

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Age group 4–11 Inspection date(s) 29–30 May 2012 Inspection number 385864 Unique Reference Number 119451 Local authority Lancashire Inspection number 385864 Inspection dates 29–30 May 2012 Lead inspector Jane Millward HMI

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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 131 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Rev John Holland Headteacher Joan Smith Date of previous school inspection 24 March 2011 School address Union Road Oswaldtwistle Accrington BB5 3DD Telephone number 01254 231026 Fax number 01254 395717 Email address bursar@st-pauls.lancs.sch.uk Inspection report: Oswaldtwistle St Paul's Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School, 29–30 May 2012 2 of 12

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T: 0300 123 4234 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk www.ofsted.gov.uk Inspection report: Oswaldtwistle St Paul's Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School, 29–30 May 2012 3 of 12

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Introduction

This inspection was carried out with two days' notice. Nine lessons were observed, taught by seven teachers. The inspector took account of the responses to the on-line questionnaire (Parent View) in planning the inspection. Meetings were held with groups of pupils, representatives from the governing body, and members of staff. The inspector observed the school’s work and looked at a range of documentation, including the school development plan, pupils’ work, progress data, minutes of governing body meetings, attendance data, and safeguarding records. She analysed 22 inspection questionnaires completed by parents and carers and others submitted by staff and pupils.

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Information about the school

Oswaldtwistle St Paul’s is smaller than most primary schools. The proportion of pupils known to be eligible for free school meals is higher than the national average. The proportion of pupils from minority ethnic backgrounds is higher than the national average, but the proportion of pupils who speak English as an additional language is lower than the national average. The proportion of pupils supported by school action plus or with a statement of special educational needs is below average. The school does not meet the current floor standard, which sets the government’s minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress. Since the last inspection, a new executive headteacher is leading the school and a new leadership team is in place. At the last inspection in March 2011, the school was given a notice to improve. Inspection report: Oswaldtwistle St Paul's Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School, 29–30 May

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Information about the school

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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Key Findings

 In accordance with section 13 (5) of the Education Act 2005, Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector is of the opinion that the school no longer requires significant improvement. Oswaldtwistle St Paul’s is a satisfactory school. It is not a good school because pupils’ achievement is not high enough and the quality of teaching is not consistent. The school has strengths in the care it provides for pupils, including those whose circumstances may make them vulnerable. Middle leaders are not yet fully effective in contributing to improvement. Attendance, although improving, is below average. Schools whose overall effectiveness is judged to be satisfactory may receive a monitoring visit by an Ofsted inspector before their next section 5 inspection.

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Key Findings

 Pupils enter school with the skill levels that are below those expected for their age. Attainment when they leave the school is below national expectations. However, pupils’ progress is now increasing, resulting in attainment which is closer to what is expected for pupils of their age.

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Key Findings

 The quality of teaching varies between classes. Some teachers challenge pupils effectively and positive relationships result in pupils’ good attitudes to learning. They use assessment information to match planned activities to pupils’ needs. Teaching assistants guide pupils’ learning well. However, those aspects are not applied across all classes and subjects consistently. In some lessons, opportunities are missed to challenge pupils.

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Key Findings

 Behaviour and safety are satisfactory. Some pupils feel behaviour has not been good enough in the past, but that it has improved recently. The majority of pupils are well behaved. They are polite and courteous and incidents of racist behaviour are rare. Pupils report that the school tackles poor behaviour well.

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Key Findings

 Improvements have been made in the quality of provision through a focus on training for staff. The headteacher and senior leaders have a drive and ambition to improve outcomes for all pupils, whilst maintaining a focus on pupils’ personal development and well being. Middle leaders are beginning to impact Inspection report: Oswaldtwistle St Paul's Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School, 29–30 May 2012 5 of 12

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Key Findings

on their subject areas and they are willing and enthusiastic about making improvements. The curriculum is undergoing a review to make sure it meets pupils’ interests better.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Raise attainment and rates of progress in reading, writing and mathematics by: - providing a creative curriculum, with opportunities to link subjects together - providing pupils with opportunities to develop skills which are built systematically upon to ensure progression in their learning.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve the quality and consistency of teaching and learning by: - ensuring all staff use agreed procedures and adopt the agreed approach to teaching - sharing the good-quality teaching provision in school - developing the use of questioning to enhance pupils’ learning - developing the use of information and communication technology

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve the leadership and management of middle leaders by: - ensuring monitoring is sharply focused and that findings are translated into appropriate actions - ensuring monitoring is focused sharply on pupils’ learning.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve rates of pupils’ attendance further by instilling in parents and carers and pupils the necessity to attend school regularly.

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Achievement of pupils

A focus on improving teaching and learning has resulted in pupils making better progress. In the past, not enough was done to increase levels of achievement and progress was not good enough. Through improving the quality of provision, progress is increasing and pupils are beginning to achieve levels of which they are capable. Children start school with skills typically below the levels expected. They make satisfactory and, in some cases, good progress in the Early Years Foundation Stage and children enjoy wide and varied activities. The activities encourage cooperation and independence. For example, children enjoyed creating their own Olympic games, creating courses to compete in and standing on the winner’s podium with medals. They, then, investigated how they could time each other in the competitions.

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Achievement of pupils

Pupils’ books, lesson observations, and the school’s own assessment information show that, throughout the school, pupils are now making securely satisfactory progress and, in some cases, accelerated progress. By the end of Year 6, attainment is now broadly average. There are no significant differences between groups of pupils and the school tracks and monitors groups with rigour. The headteacher and class teachers hold an accurate view of how all pupils are achieving. The school is narrowing the gaps for groups, most noticeably for pupils known to be eligible for Inspection report: Oswaldtwistle St Paul's Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School, 29–30 May 2012 6 of 12

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Achievement of pupils

free school meals. Disabled pupils and those with special educational needs make progress commensurate with their peers, due to better-targeted support, which is identified through improved tracking procedures. The procedures enable staff to know when pupils are beginning to fall behind and so they are better placed to help them catch up. Almost all of parents and carers who responded to the inspection questionnaire feel their children make good progress at school.

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Achievement of pupils

Gains have been made recently in pupils’ attainment in reading at Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2. Current data held by the school show attainment is now broadly in line with national expectations. The school has prioritised reading, which has resulted in better progress. Pupils say they enjoy reading and a programme to teach phonics (the sounds that letters make) is in place. Pupils show an awareness of how to segment and blend words. This is taught routinely in all English lessons. Younger pupils have a limited knowledge of authors, but enjoy the stories read by their teachers.

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Quality of teaching

Overall, the quality of teaching is satisfactory. Since the last inspection, teachers’ confidence has increased as they have developed skills and knowledge in aspects of practice, for example, lesson planning and the use of assessment. That is as a result of a programme of training which has been facilitated by the local authority. Furthermore, teachers’ performance management is linked to improving provision and is carried out rigorously. Teachers provide challenging activities which enable all pupils to make at least satisfactory progress; for example, using photographs of pupils taking part in Olympic sports to write information texts in Year 1. Teachers tell pupils what they are going to learn and provide success criteria so they all know exactly what is expected of them. Relationships in lessons are generally good, both between pupils and between pupils and adults. That contributes to pupils’ developing

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Quality of teaching

confidence and also supports their satisfactory spiritual, moral, social, and cultural development. Disabled pupils and those with special educational needs enjoy lessons, which are often supported by teaching assistants during group activities. Individual educational plans have been reviewed and are shared with parents and carers on a regular basis. Teaching assistants complete weekly assessment sheets on the pupils’ progress towards targets. Marking provides pupils with guidance on how to improve and, in the best cases, pupils respond to the teachers’ comments. However, these features are not consistent and school policy is not always adhered to closely by all staff. In some cases, too much teacher direction in lessons reduces the opportunities for investigative learning. The use of information and communication technology (ICT) is inconsistent and does not sufficiently enhance pupils’ learning. Some questioning techniques are not suitably tailored to individual

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Quality of teaching

pupils and do not probe understanding as well as they might.

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Quality of teaching

The school is highly inclusive. It welcomes all pupils and improving their personal development is a priority. The strong moral and social values held by the school of ‘working, learning, playing and worshipping together’ are at the heart of its endeavours. Most pupils agree that teaching is good at school and they appreciate the improvements in the curricular enrichment activities that the school offers, which enhance the quality of teaching. The large majority of parents and carers, also, feel Inspection report: Oswaldtwistle St Paul's Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School, 29–30 May 2012 7 of 12

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Quality of teaching

their children are taught well and that the school helps their children to develop skills in communication, reading, writing, and mathematics.

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Behaviour and safety of pupils

Almost all pupils say they feel safe in school and they know who to turn to if a problem arises. They show a good awareness of how to keep safe and demonstrate a mature awareness of cyber bullying. Through the curriculum, they are aware of risk and the hazards of dangerous situations. They have a shared and united view of important values and know the difference between right and wrong. They report that behaviour has improved recently since the arrival of the new executive headteacher. There is a focus throughout the school on reducing incidents of poor behaviour, for example, during anti-bullying week, pupils designed posters to alert their peers about how to deal with incidents of bullying. In most cases, behaviour is managed consistently, according to school policy. A minority of parents and carers voiced concerns about behaviour in school. However, the inspector found behaviour to be satisfactory overall. The large majority of parents and carers agree that the school

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Behaviour and safety of pupils

deals with any cases of bullying effectively.

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Behaviour and safety of pupils

Attendance in 2011 was below average. However, recent improvements are now evident and effective strategies which have been put into place are already paying dividends. Attendance is monitored rigorously by the headteacher and pupils enjoy the positive incentives to be the class with the best attendance each week. The school is aware that it needs to impress upon parents and carers and pupils further the need to attend school regularly.

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Leadership and management

The executive headteacher provides a strong sense of purpose for the school. The vision to raise levels of achievement for all groups of pupils while embracing families and the community is shared by staff. As a team, the staff work together to fulfill those goals and focus on agreed, ambitious aims. The executive headteacher has implemented effective systems to provide detailed information on the progress of individual and groups of pupils. As a result, there is a quicker identification of pupils who may fall behind in their work and interventions are accelerating progress. Teaching and learning is monitored through lesson observations carried out predominately by the headteacher. The quality of provision has improved since the last inspection due to rigorous training of staff. While strengths and weaknesses are identified, the good practice observed is not shared routinely to improve the quality of provision overall.

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Leadership and management

The governing body is supportive of the school and the executive headteacher. It has been strengthened by the appointment of additional governors and it meets its statutory duties. Recently developed committees are providing a useful way to hold the school to account for its actions. Middle leaders are enthusiastic and keen to have an impact on outcomes in their subject areas, but are not involved enough in monitoring and evaluating their subject area. Strategies are not sufficiently in place to ensure that their monitoring is focused on pupils’ learning and how this will lead to further improvement. Inspection report: Oswaldtwistle St Paul's Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School, 29–30 May 2012 8 of 12

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Leadership and management

The creative curriculum is in its early stages of development. Currently, insufficient relevance is given to what pupils wish to learn. There are clear plans to develop the curriculum further, including linking subjects together through a theme. Furthermore, pupils’ skills are not built on sufficiently through the curriculum. The school acknowledges more needs to be done to improve this area of work. Pupils appreciate the emphasis which is placed currently on enrichment activities, with visitors and educational visits to support pupils’ learning.

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Leadership and management

Pupils’ spiritual, moral, social, and cultural development is promoted satisfactorily. There are opportunities to engage in musical and sporting activities, for example, Year 4 and 5 pupils are all learning to play the guitar. Pupils show respect for cultural diversity and racist incidents are rare.

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Leadership and management

The school has focused on ways of developing links with parents and carers, including informative newsletters. Lines of communication have improved and parents and carers are encouraged to visit school through an ‘open door policy.’ As one parent stated, ‘the school has been brilliant in resolving any concerns.’

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Leadership and management

The school’s arrangements for safeguarding pupils meet statutory requirements and leaders promote equality and tackle discrimination. Pupils’ achievement is improving and the school is effectively closing the gaps in the attainment of all groups of pupils. Leaders ensure good provision for disabled pupils and those with special educational needs. The improvements made over time result in the school’s capacity to improve. Inspection report: Oswaldtwistle St Paul's Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School, 29–30 May 2012 9 of 12

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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 54 42 2 2 Primary schools 14 49 32 6 Secondary schools 20 39 34 7 Special schools 33 45 20 3 Pupil referral units 9 55 28 8 All schools 16 47 31 6

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Type of school Outstanding Good Satisfactory Inadequate

New school inspection arrangements have been introduced from 1 January 2012. This means that inspectors make judgements that were not made previously.

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Type of school Outstanding Good Satisfactory Inadequate

The data in the table above are for the period 1 September to 31 December 2011 and represent judgements that were made under the school inspection arrangements that were introduced on 1 September 2009. These data are consistent with the latest published official statistics about maintained school inspection outcomes (see www.ofsted.gov.uk ).

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Type of school 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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Type of school Outstanding Good Satisfactory Inadequate

Primary schools include primary academy converters. Secondary schools include secondary academy converters, sponsor-led academies and city technology colleges. Special schools include special academy converters and non-maintained special schools.

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Type of school Outstanding Good Satisfactory Inadequate

Percentages are rounded and do not always add exactly to 100. Inspection report: Oswaldtwistle St Paul's Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School, 29–30 May 2012 10 of 12

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Common terminology used by inspectors

Achievement: the progress and success of a pupil in their learning and development taking account of their attainment.

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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

Attendance the regular attendance of pupils at school and in lessons, taking into account the school's efforts to encourage good attendance.

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Common terminology used by inspectors

Behaviour how well pupils behave in lessons, with emphasis on their attitude to learning. Pupils' punctuality to lessons and their conduct around the school.

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Common terminology used by inspectors

Capacity to improve: the proven ability of the school to continue improving based on its self-evaluation and 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

Floor standards the national minimum expectation of attainment and progression measures

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Common terminology used by inspectors

Leadership and management: the contribution of all the staff with responsibilities, not just the governors and 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.

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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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Common terminology used by inspectors

Safety how safe pupils are in school, including in lessons; and their understanding of risks. Pupils' freedom from bullying and harassment. How well the school promotes safety, for example e-learning. Inspection report: Oswaldtwistle St Paul's Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School, 29–30 May 2012 11 of 12

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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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Primary School, Accrington, BB5 3DD

 I would like to thank you for the very friendly welcome you gave to me when I inspected your school recently. As you know, I came to see how well you were doing and what you said helped me with my findings.

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Primary School, Accrington, BB5 3DD

Oswaldtwistle St Paul’s is a satisfactory school and I could tell that you enjoy coming to school. From conversations with you, it is clear that most of you feel safe in school and you know who to turn to if you have a problem. I agree that your teachers take good care of you. Your achievement is satisfactory and you have good attitudes to learning. The headteacher, teachers, and governing body are committed to doing their best to make sure that the school keeps getting better.

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Primary School, Accrington, BB5 3DD

It is my job to find out how schools can do even better. I have asked your headteacher, teachers, and the governing body to work on three things in particular:  to raise attainment and improve your progress in reading, writing and mathematics  to improve the quality of teaching and learning  to improve leadership and management of middle leaders  to improve your attendance.

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Primary School, Accrington, BB5 3DD

I know that you will want to help in every way you can, so please continue to try hard in lessons and attend school regularly. I wish you every success in your education.

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Primary School, Accrington, BB5 3DD

Jane Millard Her Majesty's Inspector procedures set out in the guidance 'Complaining about inspections', which is available 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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