Denham Village School

Denham Village Infant School Cheapside Lane, Denham, Uxbridge UB9 5AE

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Overall effectiveness

Previous inspection: Satisfactory 3 This inspection: Requires improvement 3 Achievement of pupils Requires improvement 3 Quality of teaching Requires improvement 3 Behaviour and safety of pupils Good 2 Leadership and management Requires improvement 3

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This is a school that requires improvement. It is not good because

 While achievement is improving following a dip shortly after the last inspection, progress is not quick enough in some lessons.  Teachers do not always ensure that pupils are clear about what they are to learn, provide them with work that is just right for them, or make sure that they do their best and work quickly.  Children in Reception do not improve their mathematics quickly enough. The activities the teacher puts out for them to choose do not always focus enough on these skills.  The plans the school makes for improvement do not take enough account of what leaders know about its teaching and the pupils’ progress, so plans are not precise enough to help the school improve rapidly.

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The school has the following strengths

 Children in the Early Years Foundation Stage make good progress in their personal development because members of staff provide good role models for behaviour.  Good provision for pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development and a calm and friendly atmosphere help pupils to behave well, feel safe and become considerate and helpful.  Teaching assistants make a valuable contribution towards supporting pupils’ learning.  Most parents and carers are pleased that their children come to this school and they have good opportunities to support their children through homework.  Leaders, including the proactive governing body, have an accurate view of the main areas requiring development and teaching and pupils’ progress are improving.

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Information about this inspection

 The inspector observed nine lessons, of which five were joint observations with the headteacher.  Meetings were held with senior leaders and teachers, pupils, members of the governing body and a representative from the local authority.  The inspection took into account 12 responses to Parent View and informal disussions with a sample of parents and carers.  The inspector considered the views raised in five staff questionnaires.  A range of information supplied by the school was scrutinised, including the school’s own assessment data, planning and monitoring documents, the school development plan, records relating to behaviour and attendance and safeguarding documents.

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Inspection team

Alison Cartlidge, Lead inspector Additional Inspector

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Information about this school

 Denham Village is a much smaller than average-sized infant school.  Eleven per cent of pupils are supported through school action. Six per cent are supported through school action plus or have a statement of special educational needs, which is average.  The proportion of pupils known to be eligible for the pupil premium (additional money given to schools by the government) is below average, at eight per cent.  Pupils are taught in three small classes in the morning and in two classes in the afternoon.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Ensure teaching enables pupils to make rapid progress in all lessons by:  making clear to pupils what they are to learn  ensuring that work is at the right level of difficulty for differing abilities and fully engages them  encouraging pupils to always try their best and to work quickly.  Increase the children’s progress in mathematics in the Early Years Foundation Stage by ensuring that they have enough opportunity to develop their mathematics when working independently.  Make sure that leaders analyse information collected from monitoring teaching and pupils’ achievement quickly so that school development planning can be specific about next steps and the curriculum adapted to enable pupils to make good progress.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 Most children are working within the levels expected for their age when they start school in the Reception class. They make the expected progress in most areas, and attainment is broadly average when they enter Year 1. Progress requires improvement as not all children do well enough in mathematics. This is because there are too few opportunities for them to develop mathematics skills when working independently indoors and outside.  Attainment has risen this year and is broadly average by the end of Year 2 in reading, writing and mathematics. Writing is improving but progress lags behind that in reading because teachers do not always expect pupils to work quickly in lessons and to improve the quality and quantity of work. Nevertheless, there have been some good additional activities to increase progress, such as the individualised spelling tests, and pupils are starting to use their knowledge of phonics (sounds that letters make) to help with their reading and spelling. The proportion of

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

pupils making the expected progress is improving and is broadly average because over the past year the school has increased its rigour in tracking pupils’ progress. One pupil told the inspector, ‘Everyday you do something harder’. Pupils’ progress is not yet good because it is not consistently rapid enough in lessons.  The school promotes equal opportunities and is tackling social discrimination effectively. However, while most disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs make the expected progress, a few make slower progress in mathematics. This is because while pupils receive some valuable one-to-one support, teachers are not always ensuring that they understand the calculations they are making before moving them on to harder work.  Pupils supported through the pupil premium make the expected progress because funding is used to augment staffing and to provide extra activities as required.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 While there are strengths in teaching, there are some weaknesses that mean pupils are not making consistently good progress.  Work is not always adjusted well enough to enable all pupils to learn quickly and teachers do not consistently expect pupils to improve their work during each lesson. When this happens, pupils’ first attempt is accepted without immediate guidance on how to make it better, and so pupils do not always have to try their best.  Sometimes teachers do not make clear what pupils are to learn rather than what they are to do and, as a result, the specific purpose of a task can be lost. For example, on some occasions, pupils complete a writing task but are unable to talk about what they are learning that is new.  Clear routines are established in the Reception Year and members of staff assess learning as children work. Marking is improving in Years 1 and 2. Pupils understand the symbols used by

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

teachers and find them to be helpful. Marking tends to be more helpful at identifying next steps in literacy than in numeracy.  Teachers and teaching assistants work together well and are good at promoting new vocabulary. They ask some good questions to help pupils to think about their learning. For example, in the Reception class, children learnt new words such as ‘stirring’ and ‘juicy’ when making dough and exploring the properties of fruits, and in Year 2, the teacher asked, ‘What happens to the animals when trees are cut down in the rainforest?’  Resources are used well to make learning interesting. For example, pupils in Year 1 enjoyed retelling the story of ‘Handa’s Surprise’ by using props from a story sack.  Home/school diaries are used well to provide advice to parents and carers about how they can support their children at home.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils say that they feel safe and happy at school and that most pupils behave well. They are proud to report that Year 2 pupils ‘behave better because they are older and much more sensible’. All the parents and carers who responded to Parent View agree that their children enjoy school, and attendance has risen to above average this year.  Pupils behave well most of the time and there have been no recent instances of poor behaviour. They have good attitudes towards learning and are enthusiastic about taking part in a variety of activities. For example, children in the Reception Year concentrated well when cutting out fruit for ‘Handa’s basket’ and enjoyed making their own cards at the writing table. Occasionally, pupils in Years 1 and 2 lose concentration when activities in lessons are not sufficiently engaging. Nevertheless, they are pleased with their work, especially when they have taken care

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

over it.  Members of staff model good behaviour successfully because they listen to the pupils’ views and respect and value their achievements. Pupils’ social development flourishes in this safe environment and they are confident that any concerns they may have will be dealt with straight away. They know what to do if they are worried for any reason and make comments such as ‘You talk to friends and teachers if you have any concerns’, and ‘Just don’t feel worried because the teachers are always there to help you.’  Pupils demonstrate good manners and cooperate well with each other in lessons. For example, in Year 1, a group of four pupils helped each other to put the alphabet into the right order. Pupils are keen to look after each other and the world around them. For example, pupils in Year 2 wrote thoughtful harvest prayers such as ‘help us to share food with others’ and ‘help us to remember to be helpful’. Older pupils know that they can be good friends by letting others ‘join

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The leadership and management requires improvement

 An improved system for tracking pupils’ progress has enabled leaders to identify what works well and what still requires improvement. There is accurate self-evaluation and members of staff are keen to move the school forward. Nevertheless, leadership and management require improvement because planning for improvement has some weaknesses.  The right areas for improvement are included in the school development plan, but some aspects lack precision because recent information about teaching and pupils’ achievement has not been analysed swiftly enough to be included. This means the school cannot respond rapidly by amending the curriculum if required.  Performance management identifies areas for staff development, and suitable training opportunities are provided. Positive links have been made with other schools with a proven strong track record. For example, training for members of staff in the Early Years Foundation

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The leadership and management requires improvement

Stage has led to a better understanding of the early years curriculum and, as a result, provision is improving well.  The school has strong links with parents and carers who are pleased with their involvement in their children’s learning and the pastoral care their children receive from the school. One parent summed it up by saying, ‘it’s a small school with a warm personality’.  The curriculum ensures that pupils make the expected progress in reading, writing and mathematics and promotes good behaviour and spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. For example, there are close links with the village church, pupils are pleased that they ‘get to learn about nature’ and they show their appreciation of the arts by singing enthusiastically and making interesting pictures in the style of famous artists.  Safeguarding arrangements meet requirements and the pupils’ safety and welfare are high on

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The leadership and management requires improvement

the agenda at the school. For example, in Year 1, a story was used well to reassure pupils that even when Baby Bear had been naughty, he was still loved.  The local authority has provided the right level of support and guidance for the school over the past year, enabling it to improve. The school also ‘buys in’ additional training support that is helping to improve teaching and learning.  The governance of the school:  governance has improved dramatically since the last inspection, when it was judged to be inadequate  governors are greatly respected by members of staff who appreciate their good support and challenge  detailed reports following focused visits demonstrate the governors’ good understanding of the school and full involvement in its development.

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Grade Judgement Description

Grade 1 Outstanding An outstanding school is highly effective in delivering outcomes that provide exceptionally well for all its pupils’ needs. This ensures that pupils are very well equipped for the next stage of their education, training or employment. Grade 2 Good A good school is effective in delivering outcomes that provide well for all its pupils’ needs. Pupils are well prepared for the next stage of their education, training or employment. Grade 3 Requires improvement A school that requires improvement is not yet a good school, but it is not inadequate. This school will receive a full inspection within 24 months from the date of this inspection. Grade 4 Inadequate A school that has serious weaknesses is inadequate overall and requires significant improvement but leadership and management are judged to be Grade 3 or better. This school will receive regular monitoring by Ofsted inspectors. A school that requires special measures is one where the school is

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Grade Judgement Description

failing to give its pupils an acceptable standard of education and the school’s leaders, managers or governors have not demonstrated that they have the capacity to secure the necessary improvement in the school. This school will receive regular monitoring by Ofsted inspectors.

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School details

Unique reference number 110219 Local authority Buckinghamshire Inspection number 405273

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School details

This inspection of the school was carried out under section 5 of the Education Act 2005.

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School details

Type of school Infant School category Community Age range of pupils 4–7 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 45 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Daphne Dru Headteacher Catherine Simpson Date of previous school inspection 9–10 December 2010 Telephone number 01895 832768 Fax number 01895 832768 Email address admin@denhamvillage.bucks.sch.uk guidance ‘raising concerns and making complaints about Ofsted’, 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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School details

You can use Parent View to give Ofsted your opinion on your child’s school. Ofsted will use the information parents and carers provide when deciding which schools to inspect and when and as part of the inspection.

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School details

You can also use Parent View to find out what other parents and carers think about schools in England. You can visit www.parentview.ofsted.gov.uk, or look for the link on the main Ofsted website: www.ofsted.gov.uk

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School details

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 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

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School details

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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School details

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

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