Hartland Primary School

Hartland Primary School North Road, Hartland, Bideford, EX39 6BP

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Overall effectiveness

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

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This is a good school

 Senior leaders have brought about significant improvements since the last inspection.  Pupils achieve well. They make especially good progress during the Reception Year, and in reading and writing throughout the school. Attainment at the end of Year 6 is above average. All groups of pupils, including those who are disabled, have special educational needs or who qualify for the pupil premium, make equally good progress.  Teaching is consistently good. Teaching of letters and sounds in Reception and Years 1 and 2 is especially effective. Teachers have high expectations of pupils and use questioning and other forms of assessment very effectively.  Pupils behave well because teachers’ high expectations of their behaviour are made clear from an early stage in Reception. There is little bullying and any which occurs is dealt with effectively. Pupils have a good understanding of personal safety.  Leaders and managers have ambitious,

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This is a good school

achievable plans for the future development of the school. Monitoring and evaluation, including of teachers’ performance, are accurate and are used effectively to drive improvement. The governing body has a good understanding of its role in challenging school leaders to improve.The curriculum is exciting, varied and makes good use of the local environment.

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It is not yet an outstanding school because

 In mathematics the quality of teaching, and hence pupils’ achievement, is not as good as it is in reading and writing.  While there have been improvements in attendance, this remains below average, as non-medical absence is authorised too readily.

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Information about this inspection

 The inspector observed eight lessons taught by five teachers. He met with staff, the Chair of the Governing Body and a group of pupils. He analysed documents, including those concerning pupils’ attainment and progress, their safety, and the school’s evaluation of its own performance.  Twenty parents and carers expressed their views of the school on the Parent View website and one parent wrote to the inspector, who took all these views into account.

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Inspection team

Paul Sadler, Lead inspector Additional inspector

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Information about this school

 The school is much smaller than the average-sized primary school.  Twenty-two per cent of pupils, who are disabled or have special educational needs, are supported through school action and a further five per cent are supported through school action plus. These proportions are broadly in line with national averages. Most of these pupils have speech and language difficulties.  Almost all pupils are of White British ethnicity. The school educates a small number of pupils from the Traveller community. In 2011 some pupils previously educated at a school which closed were admitted.  The proportion of pupils known to be eligible for the pupil premium is close to the national average.  The school shares its site with a pre-school which is not managed by the governing body, although plans for the governing body to take on its management from January 2013 are at an advanced stage.  The governing body is actively exploring the option of becoming a founder member of a

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Information about this school

cooperative trust of local schools.  The school meets the government’s current floor standards, which set the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve teaching and hence pupils’ achievement in mathematics so that both aspects are at least as good, as is the case in reading and writing, by: – ensuring that all staff are well trained and are confident when teaching or supporting learning in the subject – providing more opportunities for pupils to use their mathematical skills to solve problems, and to improve their understanding of the importance of these skills in everyday life.  Improve pupils’ attendance so that it exceeds the national average, by working with parents and carers to ensure a better shared understanding of the importance of good attendance.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Children start school with communication skills below those expected and make excellent progress in learning to read. All pupils attain the expected levels in reading by the end of Year 2, and by the end of Year 6 their attainment is above average. Pupils are reading widely and fluently by this stage.  Pupils also learn to write accurately in a range of styles. Following their excursion to Lundy Island on the previous day, those in Years 3 and 4 wrote accurate descriptive sentences about what they had observed, while those in Years 5 and 6 wrote fluent poetry in the style of a poem entitled ‘The Beachcomber’.  While pupils make the expected progress in mathematics, their attainment at the end of Year 6 is lower than in reading and writing. This is because they have too few opportunities to apply their skills to solving everyday problems. Scrutiny of the school’s records shows that the progress in mathematics of current pupils is improving.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Children in Reception make good progress in all their areas of learning. For example, in creative work they applied themselves well when illustrating their Dinosaur Island, and gave the teacher useful help in building a volcano.  All groups of pupils make equally good progress. This includes disabled pupils and those with special educational needs, and those known to be eligible for the pupil premium. Pupils making slower progress are quickly identified and given extra help, which often is only needed for a short time.  Skills pupils will need in later life, such as using information and communication technology (ICT) or working independently or in teams, are developed well.  Pupils enjoy and make good progress in a range of subjects including art, music and physical education.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teaching of letters and sounds (phonics) to pupils in Reception and Years 1 and 2 is precise and is conducted at a good pace, so that pupils learn quickly.  Teaching of children in Reception encourages their independence and social skills, such as when they searched in the school grounds for laminated cards having the picture and name of a classmate, who they then had to identify. This was a very effective task for children who had been at school for less than two weeks.  Teachers are effective in identifying any slow progress and quickly put in place a range of programmes to enhance pupils’ rate of learning. The approach is popular with parents and carers, who recognise their child’s accelerated progress, and with pupils who enjoy programmes such as Magic Maths.  In English, teachers use pupils’ interests well to give them motivating tasks, such as those following the trip to Lundy Island by pupils in Years 3 to 6. In mathematics, such opportunities

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The quality of teaching is good

are used less effectively.  Teaching assistants are used well, especially when helping pupils to develop their skills of reading and writing. As school leaders have identified, and are addressing, some teaching assistants lack confidence when helping pupils to learn mathematics.  Marking and other feedback are used effectively in showing pupils how to improve their work.  Teachers are good at adapting their lessons when a planned task is less effective than expected. This was seen in Year 2 when the teacher adapted a word memory game to make it more accessible to lower-attaining pupils.  Teachers use resources well, for example in Year 1 when the teacher used an ICT program for quick revision of known letters and sounds before moving on to new work.  Teachers’ very clear and consistent expectations of pupils’ good behaviour create a climate in which lessons are not disrupted by misbehaviour, and learning proceeds at a good pace.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Many lessons give opportunities for pupils’ spiritual development, such as when reflecting on coastal sounds with eyes closed.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils behave well in lessons and around the school. They are polite and considerate towards each other and towards adults. They agree that behaviour is good, and this is confirmed by the school’s records and the lack of exclusions over a considerable number of years.  Pupils play safely in the extensive and well-maintained grounds; older pupils take care of younger ones.  Pupils say there is very little bullying and that any that occurs is dealt with effectively. They have a limited understanding of forms of bullying they may encounter, but the inspection occurred early in the school year and work to address this point is planned shortly.  Pupils understand how to stay safe in their rural and coastal environment. For example, they are taught to swim during Years 1 and 2, with later opportunities to practise further if they are not yet competent.  Pupils are punctual to school and to lessons. Attendance, although improving, remains below

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

the national average. Policies for the authorisation of non-medical absence are insufficiently rigorous.

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The leadership and management are good

 School leaders show drive and ambition to improve. An example is the well-advanced plan to take on management of the pre-school in order to ensure greater coherence in the learning of children in the Early Years Foundation Stage.  Monitoring and evaluation are accurate and have led to significant improvements since the last inspection, especially in pupils’ achievement in reading and writing and in the quality of teaching.  School leaders have identified, and are tackling, current weaknesses such as those present in mathematics. Whilst a good range of strategies has been devised, there has not yet been time for these to raise pupils’ achievement in the subject to the levels seen in reading and writing.  Teachers’ and teaching assistants’ performance is managed effectively and training programmes are designed specifically to improve areas of weakness, for example for the newly appointed mathematics leader and to improve the confidence of teaching assistants in the

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The leadership and management are good

subject.  Pupils’ progress is monitored well. For example, the progress of pupils who are disabled, have special educational needs, or who are known to be eligible for the pupil premium is monitored separately, so that the impact of additional funding on the progress of the pupils for whom it is intended can be evaluated. The progress of Traveller children and those admitted from a school that closed is also monitored carefully to ensure they are making equally good progress or making up lost ground.  While school leaders have worked tirelessly to improve pupils’ attendance, they have yet to convince all parents and carers of the importance of avoiding unnecessary absence.  The curriculum is stimulating and varied. Pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural understanding is developed well, for example through activities such as dance and drama and a visit to London’s Imperial War Museum. Pupils take part in competitive sport in collaboration

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The leadership and management are good

with other local schools.  The equally good achievement of all pupils and the lack of bullying demonstrate the school’s success in promoting equality and tackling discrimination.  The school communicates well with parents and carers through regular newsletters and its website. The views of parents and carers concerning the school are mostly positive.  Arrangements to safeguard pupils meet all requirements. For example, good attention has been given to the safety of pupils when using a small woodland area in the grounds.  The local authority has provided an appropriate level of support that has contributed to improvements in the quality of teaching.  The governance of the school: – The governing body has a good understanding of its role in challenging senior leaders and supporting action to bring this about. This includes issues such as the performance of staff and the use of pupil premium funding.

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The leadership and management are good

– The governing body is rightly taking on ambitious projects such as the management of the pre-school and the possible establishment of a cooperative trust of local schools. – Much of the work of the governing body is undertaken by a small core group of members.

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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 113152 Local authority Devon Inspection number 401346

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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 Primary School category Community Age range of pupils 4–11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 99 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Robert Cunliffe Headteacher Kathy Tape Date of previous school inspection 4–5 November 2009 Telephone number 01237 441258 Fax number 01237 441258 Email address admin@hartland.devon.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,

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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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