Tividale Community Primary School

Tividale Community Primary School Dudley Road West, Tividale, Oldbury, B69 2HT

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Overall effectiveness

Previous inspection: Outstanding 1 This inspection: Outstanding 1 Achievement of pupils Outstanding 1 Quality of teaching Outstanding 1 Behaviour and safety of pupils Outstanding 1 Leadership and management Outstanding 1

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

This is an outstanding school.  All pupils make excellent progress as they move through the school. By the time they leave in Year 6, the standard of their work is above average.  Pupils who need help with learning English make rapid progress because of the excellent support they get from their teachers as well as adults who can speak more than one language.  Pupils who have special educational needs also make excellent progress because their teachers know them well and make sure that work in class is hard enough for them. If they need it, they get extra help.  The school uses extra government money (pupil premium) very well to support those pupils who need more help with their reading, writing or mathematics.  Teaching is consistently good throughout the school with much that is outstanding and this is why all pupils make such good progress.  Parents can be proud of the excellent behaviour of their children in lessons and in

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

the playground. Pupils learn to be kind, thoughtful and aware of their actions on others. One parent described the school as, ‘a caring environment with mutual respect’.  The headteacher and senior staff run the school very well. They are always checking that every pupil, teacher and other adult does their best. They reward them for their hard work. This is why the school has been doing such a good job for a number of years.  The governors are trained well to support and challenge the school and help the headteacher to check that standards remain high.

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Information about this inspection

 The inspectors visited 17 lessons and observed 16 teachers. They also observed 10 learning support practitioners and other adults such as those who were leading small groups of pupils at the time of the inspection.  Inspectors listened to nine pupils read from Year 3, Year 4 and Year 6 and looked at their work books.  Meetings were held with the headteacher and senior staff, members of the governing body, staff, pupils and a group of seven parents. The inspectors also met a group of outside professionals who regularly work with the school and a representative of the local authority who knows the school well.  Inspectors took account of the 15 responses to the on-line questionnaire (Parent View).  Questionnaires were analysed from 38 members of teaching and support staff.  Inspectors checked the arrangements and records kept to safeguard pupils.  Inspectors looked at the school ‘s raising achievement plan; the self-evaluation of its own

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Information about this inspection

effectiveness; the school’s own data that checks on the progress pupils are making; and the way the school checks and rewards teachers for the work they do and the impact they have.

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Inspection team

Clive Kempton HMI, Lead inspector Her Majesty’s Inspector Mary Maybank Additional Inspector Martin Finch Additional Inspector

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Information about this school

 This is a larger-than-average sized inner city primary school.  The Early Years Foundation Stage comprises a Nursery class for three year olds who attend part- time and two Reception classes for four year olds.  A high percentage of the pupils are from minority ethnic backgrounds with more than average in the early stages of learning to speak English when they start the school.  The proportion of pupils known to be eligible for the pupil premium is above average.  The proportion of disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs supported at school action plus or with a statement of special educational needs is above the national average.  The proportion of pupils supported through school action is below the national average. The main areas of additional need include moderate or specific learning difficulties, such as speech, language or communication.  The school meets the current government floor standards, which set the minimum expectations

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Develop the questioning skills of all teachers to ensure that they help pupils to share their ideas in lessons and give good, clear answers, encouraging them to use new words.

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The achievement of pupils is outstanding

 Pupils make excellent progress as they move through the school. They have low starting points when they start in the Nursery and above-average test marks when they leave the school. This is because of the excellent start they get in the Nursery and Reception year and the high quality of teaching throughout the school.

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The achievement of pupils is outstanding

 The teachers regularly check that every pupil, including disabled pupils or those who have special educational needs, is making progress. If they are not making progress, then pupils spend time with another adult to catch up with their reading, writing or mathematics. These catch-up sessions are very good use of the pupil premium funding.

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The achievement of pupils is outstanding

 Pupils can read well by the time they leave school. The younger children, especially those who speak another language at home, find reading hard to start with but the extra time the teachers, other adults and volunteers give to helping them sound out letters and read harder words every day, means that they get much better at reading as they get older.

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The achievement of pupils is outstanding

 There are lots of opportunities each day for the pupils to write. They are proud of their topic books which are full of neat writing and drawings. Parents are proud of this topic work too. Pupils learn how to look up information for their topics on their own and use computers and other new technology to present their work to others.

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The achievement of pupils is outstanding

 Pupils from Indian, Pakistani, Caribbean and other ethnic heritages make the same progress as their classmates.

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The achievement of pupils is outstanding

 Homework has helped pupils make quicker progress. Parents have become more involved in helping their child at home, for example in building model castles. This has made pupils proud of their work and has made them more excited to come to school.

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The quality of teaching is outstanding

 Teaching quality has improved since the last inspection. In a recent parent survey carried out by the school, almost all parents thought that teaching was at least good in the school. One said, ‘all teachers go above and beyond’. In the Parent View responses completed as part of this inspection, a similar proportion agrees.

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The quality of teaching is outstanding

 Teachers and all adults in the school work hard and look after the school buildings and outside areas. Classrooms look good with lots of wall displays of pupils’ work and objects to excite the pupils and get them talking. There are huge model aircraft hanging from the ceiling in two rooms where pupils are learning about Britain since the 1930s; cosy caves in another classroom and model castles in others. As a result, pupils are keen to learn.

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The quality of teaching is outstanding

 Pupils’ work books are all marked by the teachers. There are comments that praise hard work and comments that suggest what pupils could do to make their next piece of work even better. This helps every pupil learn from their mistakes and make progress.

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The quality of teaching is outstanding

 Teachers plan well for each lesson. They know every pupil well and plan work that is hard enough for everyone. They make sure that the pupils have time to talk about their work with others in the class and learn how to work well together and share ideas.  Adults give good examples to start pupils thinking and talking. In two outstanding Year 6 English lessons, one teacher wrote her own poem about the Titanic and read it to the pupils to give them an example. In another, the teacher skilfully challenged the pupils to use better words to create pictures in the readers’ mind. The teachers had set high expectations of what they wanted the pupils to do and they rose to the challenge. In the Nursery, the children thought about words to describe how the farmer felt when all his seeds were eaten by the birds and how they were chased away by Wobbly Bob the scarecrow.

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The quality of teaching is outstanding

 All the teachers teach at a brisk pace. There are lots of activities in lessons and this keeps pupils interested and well behaved. In an outstanding Year 2 literacy lesson, punctuation fans were used to help pupils add full stops, commas and speech marks. In another, puppets and masks were used so that pupils could pretend to be characters from the story and talk to each other in role.

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The quality of teaching is outstanding

 The teachers ask lots of questions and pupils are eager to put their hands up to answer. However, teachers do not make sure that all pupils answer at least one question in every lesson. There are some missed opportunities to encourage pupils to give longer answers to questions to improve their speaking skills and use new words.

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The quality of teaching is outstanding

 Qualified support staff and learning mentors are well used to help those pupils who find learning difficult and those with special educational needs to improve their reading, writing and mathematics skills.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are outstanding

 In lessons and around school pupils behave very well. There is a strong culture of respect and tolerance for different cultures and beliefs. Pupils are sensible in lessons and listen well. They enjoy working in pairs with another pupil or in a larger group and all contribute to discussions. The vast majority of parents think that behaviour is good in the school. Pupils’ excellent behaviour in lessons and the ‘good to be green’ programme help them make good progress in their learning.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are outstanding

 In the playground, pupils play well together. Games buddies have been well trained to work with younger children, play with them and teach them new games.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are outstanding

 Pupils enjoy being leaders. There are other opportunities for pupils to take on a leadership role in the school as members of the school council, the eco group and as peer mentors. For example, some of the school council have organised activities to raise large sums of money for charity, over £1000 last year. These roles develop their confidence and self-esteem and sense of community.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are outstanding

 There are hardly any behaviour, bullying or racist incidents recorded in the school. Any that occur are quickly dealt with. Pupils are aware of the different types of bullying that can occur but say that the worst that has occurred in the past at Tividale Primary is name calling.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are outstanding

 Pupils with specific behaviour problems are well supported. The learning mentors do a superb job in supporting individual pupils and their families when issues arise. These pupils learn how to manage their behaviour. There are examples in the school of pupils who have improved their behaviour and are now making good progress in their learning.  The school includes all pupils. No one is left out. For example, all of the older pupils learn to play a musical instrument: the violin in Year 3, the trumpet in Year 4, the keyboard in Year 5 and the guitar in Year 6. Learning an instrument provides pupils with a skill to master and a sense of achievement. There is an orchestra and a brass band to extend the more-able players. All pupils are invited to join the school choir. These activities provide opportunities for pupils to perform at public events, help them to behave well and value their own skills.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are outstanding

 Pupil attendance has improved and is now above average. The school has worked hard to improve attendance. Parents are more aware of the impact of poor attendance and now fewer families are taking holidays in term time. Parents are more involved in the life of the school and value what the school is doing for their child.

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The leadership and management are outstanding

 The headteacher and senior staff are respected by the community for the quality of their leadership. They are determined to improve the school and have high expectations. They know what they have got to do to make the school even better and are good at checking how much progress they are making.

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The leadership and management are outstanding

 The impact of this outstanding leadership is that staff are proud to work at the school, pupils are making more progress, and Tividale Primary is a happy school. One of the support staff commented, ‘This is the kind of school that I would like all children to attend, especially my own!’

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The leadership and management are outstanding

 The headteacher checks that all adults are doing their job properly. For example, those teachers who are in charge of English and mathematics or inclusion have a big job to do. They work with the deputy headteacher to make sure that pupils make progress in their subject and that they notice quickly those pupils who need extra help. They have to check up to see if the extra help has made a difference.

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The leadership and management are outstanding

 Because of all this checking of teachers and pupils, standards are improving and more pupils are developing the skills to help them succeed when they move to secondary school.

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The leadership and management are outstanding

 There are lots of opportunities for parents to come into school. More and more parents come to the parents’ workshops each term, often linked to one of the class topics. They learn about the project their child will be working on and what they can do to support them at home. The standard of pupils’ work is getting better as parents are helping their child at home with their homework.

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The leadership and management are outstanding

 There is a warm welcome from the business manager and office staff when visitors arrive in school. They are very helpful in dealing with parental questions and concerns.

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The leadership and management are outstanding

 Leaders at all levels are making sure that every pupil is progressing well. Meetings are held every term with each class teacher to check how pupils are doing. The progress of every pupil is carefully checked. These meetings have made sure that no child falls behind with their work.

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The leadership and management are outstanding

 The school makes a good contribution to pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. There is a respect for all faiths and beliefs and pupils get on with each other and know the difference between right and wrong. The wide range of school trips and projects makes sure that pupils develop good personal skills and helps them to become good citizens. The Year 3 classes performed confidently during an assembly for younger children to celebrate Eid.

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The leadership and management are outstanding

 The curriculum is rich. Pupils are taught a wide range of subjects. For example, the project work has become very popular with pupils and their parents. Each term, impressive topic books are completed which pupils can take home and keep. The musical instrument tuition and the range of out-of-school visits and after-school clubs have provided new experiences and challenges. Pupils work together in groups outside in the ‘Forest School’ and think about how it might feel to live in a forest at night. One pupil said, ‘I might be cold and scared, but having friends would make it better’. Pupils develop a wide range of valuable skills and interests.

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The leadership and management are outstanding

 The leadership of teaching is improving its quality. The deputy headteacher checks up on the quality of all teachers, organises training and works with individual staff to improve aspects of their teaching. They are encouraged to make suggestions to the headteacher for making the school better. This is valued by teachers and is improving the quality of teaching even more.

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The leadership and management are outstanding

 The local authority provides effective support and training for the school and keeps key staff up to date with new developments. The school improvement adviser is a regular visitor in school and challenges and supports the senior staff.

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The leadership and management are outstanding

 The governance of the school:  has improved a lot since the last inspection. Governors are well trained and are regular visitors in the school. They are committed and dedicated and represent all parts of the local community. The governors ask the headteacher challenging questions. They have made sure that the extra money the school gets to help pupils improve their reading, writing and maths is very well spent. They have employed five additional members of staff to work with individuals and small groups of pupils. These pupils make very good progress as a result and soon catch up with their classmates.

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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 133261 Local authority Sandwell Inspection number 395679

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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 3-11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 477 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Josephine Brown Headteacher Emma Burnell Date of previous school inspection 21 February 2008 Telephone number 0121 5571765 Fax number 0121 5576748 Email address sharon.lloyd@tividale-pri.sandwell.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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