Barnes Junior School

Barnes Junior School Mount Road, Barnes, Sunderland, SR4 7QF

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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

 Achievement has dipped in recent years. While most pupils make adequate progress it is not as good as it could be.  Teaching is improving, but requires further improvement so that it is consistently good or better. Assessment information is not used regularly enough to plan lessons in which tasks are matched to pupils’ needs and to set personal targets for improvement.  Pupils have limited opportunities to take on more responsibility for their own learning. Attendance is in line with national averages and improving.  School leaders have not done enough to secure sufficient improvement in the quality of teaching. As a result, not enough teaching is good and this holds back the progress of pupils. The impact of middle leaders in bringing about improvement has only had partial success.

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The school has the following strengths

 The school provides a rich and balanced curriculum. An imaginative approach to the curriculum promotes pupils’ good spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. Pupils benefit from access to a wide range of activities in addition to lessons.  Provision for disabled pupils and those with special educational needs, and for those in receipt of the pupil premium, is effective in ensuring that they achieve in line with their peers.  Pupils’ behaviour and safety are good. Pupils feel safe and enjoy coming to school.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors observed 20 part lessons and a reading intervention. Two observations were carried out jointly with school leaders.  Inspectors met with pupils, teachers, parents, some members of the governing body and school leaders.  Inspectors took account of seven responses to the on-line questionnaire (Parent View) and also met informally with parents at the start of the day.  Detailed scrutiny was undertaken of a sample of pupils’ work and inspectors listened to pupils read.  Inspectors examined the school’s self-evaluation, development plan, policies and analyses of pupils’ attainment and progress.

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Inspection team

Mick Hill, Lead inspector Additional Inspector Claire Johnson Additional Inspector Julia Bayes Additional Inspector

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Information about this school

 This a is a larger than-average sized junior school.  The proportion of pupils from a minority ethnic heritage is below average.  The proportion of pupils supported at school action, school action plus or with a statement of educational need is broadly average.  The school meets the government’s current floor standard, which sets the minimum expectations for pupils’ achievement and progress.  The proportion receiving the pupil premium is broadly average and has increased over the past three years.  The number of pupils transferring away from the school during Key Stage 2 has increased, as a result of the opening of a new school in the locality.  The school has achieved awards for Investor in People, International Schools and Quality in Study Support.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Ensure all teaching is good or better by:  planning lessons that make good use of the available assessment information to meet the pupils’ needs given their starting points and capabilities  ensuring that pupils are regularly given personal targets for improvement which are monitored so that pupils raise their achievement.  providing more opportunities for pupils to take responsibility for their own learning and to work independently.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Strengthen leadership and management by:  developing the effectiveness of middle leaders so that the quality of their monitoring and evaluating teaching leads to decisive actions that raise achievement.  developing further the performance management of teachers to give a sharper focus on raising pupils’ achievement against national standards.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 Pupils enter Year 3 with broadly average skills and understanding. Extensive testing carried out by the school on entry sets a useful baseline from which the progress of the vast majority of pupils, who remain in the school throughout Key Stage 2, is measured.  In the 2011 national tests at the end of Year 6, pupils’ attainment was below the national average, particularly in writing. The unvalidated 2012 tests show that writing has improved and now narrowly exceeds national figures. Results in reading and in mathematics are broadly average. The school’s own assessment information and inspection evidence indicate that this improvement is being sustained.  The progress of both boys and girls is satisfactory when compared to national expectations. Girls make better progress overall, but the progress of more-able boys in writing and in mathematics is greater than that made by girls.  There is little difference in the achievement between groups of pupils, including from all ethnic

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

heritages and from backgrounds of different social and economic advantage.  Pupils who receive the pupil premium are supported and the impact of this support is evaluated. As a result, the gap between their attainment and that of other groups is narrowing.  Disabled pupils and those with special educational needs also achieve satisfactorily. This is because their support is carefully mapped so that it matches their needs. The progress of these pupils is carefully tracked so that interventions can be made if needed and their impact assessed.  Pupils read a wide selection of fiction and non-fiction and say they enjoy reading for pleasure. Inspectors observed pupils reading confidently in lessons and also reading during breaks and lunchtimes.  Most parents responding to Parent View say their children are achieving well, although this view does not match the findings of the inspection. All would recommend the school to other

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

parents. This was also the view of those spoken to in the playground at the start of the day.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 Inspectors observed some good teaching in which pupils made good progress but some lessons lacked sufficient quality to do this. Where there are weaknesses in teaching, they are not particular to a year group or subject.  The best teaching has the most positive impact on learning because tasks are tailored to the specific needs of pupils given their starting points and capabilities. In such lessons teachers make use of assessment information to set challenging targets for pupils enabling them to make good progress.  Activities are paced well and engage pupils’ interests as a result of which pupils enjoy learning, as in a lesson on writing opening paragraphs for stories in which pupils worked as a class, in pairs and individually as they explored the use of adjectives and adverbs.  Where teaching requires improvement, too little use is made of the available assessment information to match tasks to pupils’ needs. Opportunities to give pupils responsibility for their

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

own learning and to work independently, rather than individually, are missed.  The marking of pupils’ work is often thorough, but frequently fails to identify precisely enough the next steps by setting clear and specific targets for improvement and following these through to completion.  Teaching assistants make a good contribution to pupils’ learning by providing additional support and challenge to pupils. Well-targeted interventions, including in reading, for disabled pupils or with special educational needs, and for those receiving the pupil premium, means that these pupils achieve in line with their peers.  All parents who responded to Parent View believe their child is taught well. A concern was raised over homework. Inspectors observed appropriate homework being set and marked.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils are well behaved in lessons. They are keen to learn and willing to engage in different activities, answer questions, and to earn house points for their contributions. They are polite and welcoming to visitors and cooperate well with their teachers and each other.  Pupils are ready to take more responsibility; inspectors observed the school council relishing the opportunity to consider ways to improve break times in wet weather.  The majority of respondents to Parent View and all who expressed a view directly to inspectors, consider behaviour to be good. All say their child feels safe in school, a view repeatedly expressed by the pupils themselves.  Behaviour is well managed. There has been one exclusion in the past year. Behaviour records are comprehensive and show that less serious incidents are dealt with effectively. Punctuality to lessons is exemplary, and the monitoring of lateness to school and follow up of incidences is

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

robust. Attendance is in line with national averages and improving.  There is a very clear set of consequences for unacceptable behaviour in the playground, widely displayed and understood by the pupils. Pupils are aware of bullying and the different forms bullying can take. Bullying is rare and is dealt with effectively when it does occur.  Pupils are aware of dangers to themselves, through visits from the fire service, for example, and know how to keep safe. The school is proactive in ensuring e-safety.

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The leadership and management requires improvement

 Senior leaders and managers understand that the teaching needs to improve so that it leads to better progress and higher attainment. Self-evaluation and improvement planning is thorough but insufficiently focused on the quality of teaching and pupils’ achievement and the actions required to ensure it is never less than good.  Teaching is improving as a result of better management of the performance of teachers through direct observation and the scrutiny of pupils’ work. The pace of improvement needs to be hastened to ensure that weaknesses are addressed quickly and effectively.  The middle management team, now entering its second year in post, is capable and keen to play a greater part in driving this improvement. The reduction in training available through the local authority requires the school to become more proactive in seeking good quality professional development for staff, linked to performance management.

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The leadership and management requires improvement

 Targets for literacy across the school are set, but are insufficiently focused on the needs of pupils working at different levels.  All pupils have equal access to all that the school offers. The school’s balanced and imaginative curriculum makes a significant contribution to pupils’ spiritual, moral and social development. There is a strong focus on the wider world, supported by the school’s international school status, which develops pupils’ understanding of other cultures.  The range and quality of the extra-curricular activities on offer are a considerable strength. Inspectors observed well-attended after-school classes in dance, karate and ‘Brazilian football’. School records indicate similarly high rates of attendance over time at the many other activities available.  Parents and parent governors who spoke with inspectors, many of whom had children who had been though the school and moved on to secondary school, were unanimous in saying that

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The leadership and management requires improvement

they greatly valued the approachability and openness of the school’s staff. This was readily observable in the playground and main entrance at the start and end of the school day.  The governance of the school:  is good because the governors, including the very experienced Chair of the Governing Body, understand the need for improvement and provide appropriate challenge to the school’s leaders  governors are knowledgeable about the performance of the school. They are presented with regular updates on pupils’ progress. This needs to be more clearly benchmarked against national standards  governors ensure the school’s arrangements for safeguarding pupils meet statutory requirements.  the school’s budget is managed efficiently  the spending of the Pupil Premium is particularly carefully accounted for and its impact measured.

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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

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Grade Judgement Description

is 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 108755 Local authority Sunderland Inspection number 401009

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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 Junior School category Community Age range of pupils 7-11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 289 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Mr Chris Small Headteacher Miss Hilary Cooper Date of previous school inspection 24-25 November 2009 Telephone number 0191 5535968 Fax number 0191 5535970 Email address Barnes.junior@schools.sunderland.gov.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,

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School details

please telephone 0300 123 4234, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk . You may copy all or parts of this document for non-commercial educational purposes, as long as you give details of the source and date of publication and do not alter the information in any way. To receive regular email alerts about new publications, including survey reports and school inspection reports, please visit our website and go to ‘Subscribe’.

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School details

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

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