Selborne Primary School

Selborne Primary School Conway Crescent, Perivale, Greenford, UB6 8JD

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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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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

This is a good school.  Pupils make good progress as they move through the school. Progress is particularly strong in writing. Attainment has improved over the past two years and is now broadly average for all groups of pupils.  Teaching and learning are good because teachers have good relationships with pupils, high expectations and usually match the work provided in lessons to pupils’ needs and abilities.  Teaching in the Early Years Foundation Stage enables children to make good progress. As well as effective teaching of key skills, children are helped to think about what they are learning and to develop the skill of working by themselves.  Pupils are part of a harmonious community. They enjoy school, care for each other and have no concerns about bullying.  Leaders across the school want the best for their pupils. They use data to identify pupils who could be making better progress and provide them and the staff with support to

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

increase their rates of progress.  Governors use their thorough understanding of information about pupils’ progress and the school’s priorities to hold senior leaders to account about how well the school is doing.

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It is not yet an outstanding school because

 Learning in some lessons does not move at a brisk pace or make enough demands on the more-able pupils.  In Years 1 to 6, there are too few opportunities for pupils to work by themselves and teachers do not ask enough questions that help pupils think deeply about what they are learning.  Occasionally, teachers and leaders are not rigorous enough when making judgements about the quality of learning in lessons.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors observed 19 lessons. Six of these were joint observations with senior and middle leaders and included short vists across a number of lessons and observations of pupils receiving additional support. In addition, the inspection team examined pupils’ work in their books and listened to pupils read.  Meetings were held with a group of pupils, two governors, including the Chair of the Governing Body, senior and middle leaders and a representative from the local authority.  Inspectors took account of the 37 parents’ and carers’ responses to the on-line questionnaire (Parent View), discussions with parents and carers at the end of the school day and the views of staff in the 34 staff questionnaires returned to inspectors.  Inspectors observed the school’s work and looked at documentation including policies and improvement plans, and documenation relating to staff development, pupils’ achievement,

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Information about this inspection

teaching, the curriculum, behaviour, attendance and safeguarding.

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Inspection team

Mehar Brar, Lead inspector Additional Inspector Andrew Lyons Additional Inspector Jill Thewlis Additional Inspector

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Information about this school

 Selborne Primary is much larger than the average-sized primary school.  The proportion of girls in the school is slightly higher than average.  The proportion of pupils receiving the pupil premium, which is additional funding for children in local authority care and those known to be eligible for free school meals, is above average.  More than four fifths of the pupils, a much higher proportion than found nationally, are from minority ethnic groups. The majority of these pupils are from a White background other than British.  Two thirds of pupils are learning English as an additional language. This is much higher than found nationally.  The proportion of pupils supported by school action, school action plus or with a statement of special educational needs, is below average.  The number of pupils joining or leaving the school other than at the usual times is higher than average.  The school meets the current government floor standards, which set the minimum expectations

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Information about this school

for pupils’ attainment and progress.  The governing body manages a breakfast club and an after-school club.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve the quality of teaching to accelerate pupils’ progress, especially in Years 1 to 6 by:  ensuring all lessons proceed at a brisk pace, and provide sufficient challenge for more-able pupils  making sure teachers use more open questions to encourage pupils to think more deeply about the main ideas in lessons  ensuring teachers provide opportunities for pupils to develop the ability to work by themselves.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Ensure leaders check on the quality of teaching and learning more sharply and accurately by:  focusing more closely on what pupils are learning, rather than on what teachers are doing in lessons  making sure they have a clear understanding of what outstanding learning looks like.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Achievement is good across the school. Children enter the school in the Early Years Foundation Stage with skills that are below those expected for their age. By the end of Reception they are working at average levels. Their good progress is partly due to the opportunities provided for them to learn by exploring new ideas, the school’s clear focus on communication and number work and the effective use of information from teachers’ regular assessments to check on their progress.  Information on pupils’ achievement and an examination of pupils’ books confirm that this good progress continues throughout Years 1 to 6 in reading, writing and mathematics.  Pupils requiring extra support are identified early. They receive extra support in lessons and through one-to-one or small-group teaching to ensure that they make good progress. As a result, pupils who are eligible for pupil premium funding and those who speak English as an

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The achievement of pupils is good

additional language make consistently good progress.  There is now no difference between the progress made by boys and girls in English and mathematics because of the improved progress of boys in 2012. Pupils with special educational needs make good progress overall and do particularly well in writing. Those joining the school later than at the usual times catch up and make expected progress, due to well-targeted support and the good checks made on their learning.  Pupils make good progress in reading because there is a consistently strong focus on reading throughout the school. Most pupils enjoy reading, and the majority are able to read as necessary in lessons. Reading is promoted at home as well as at school. Parents and carers are more aware about how to help their children to read well because of the reading workshops organised by the school. A few weaker readers are able to read words but do not

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The achievement of pupils is good

always understand key vocabulary.  The school provides equal opportunities for all pupils to succeed by supporting them to make good progress. In a few lessons, more-able pupils who can make faster progress are not challenged enough.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Pupils, parents, carers and staff believe teaching to be good and inspectors support this view. Relationships between pupils and teachers are positive, classroom routines are well established to ensure behaviour is good and expectations are mostly high. As a result, almost all lessons proceed smoothly.  Most tasks are designed to match pupils’ abilities and needs. Pupils are engaged by good questioning which enables them to think about the ideas being learnt. Effective support is provided for pupils who need it. In a Year 6 class, pupils produced high-quality writing as part of a story because the teacher helped them think about how the story could develop.  Speaking and listening skills are developed well. In a Reception class, for example, children discussed at length how to bend straws to build a skeleton.  The teaching of reading and writing is systematic, well supported and pupils enjoy the

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The quality of teaching is good

activities designed to help develop these skills. As a result, pupils are able to communicate ideas effectively. For example, pupils in a Year 1 class were able to create the start, middle and end of a story over a series of lessons. This allowed them to understand each element of the story well, and to be clear about how they come together to form the whole story.  Teaching in the Early Years Foundation Stage enables children to investigate and explore new ideas and use what they have learnt to consider more probing questions. Teachers use children's own ideas to develop their learning further. As a result, children sustain their concentration and effort, enjoy learning and make good progress.  Pupils have fewer opportunities to contribute their own ideas to lessons in Years 1 to 6. In some lessons teachers spend too long talking when they introduce and explain ideas, and there are too few chances for pupils to work by themselves. This slows the progress of more-

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The quality of teaching is good

able pupils who can make faster progress by working at their own pace.  In all lessons pupils are keen to learn. They work hard to complete the activities set for them. Progress is sometimes slowed in a few lessons because pupils are unclear about what they are expected to learn. In these instances, the lesson focuses too much on the tasks set rather than on what pupils are expected to learn from them.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Staff in the school show pupils how to behave with courtesy and respect for others. They implement the school’s behaviour policy well. As a result, pupils demonstrate a clear understanding about how to behave so they can learn without distractions and enjoy their time in school.  Responses received from staff, pupils and parents and carers agree with inspectors that behaviour is good in the school. Pupils from a wide range of backgrounds and cultures learn and play together happily. Pupils are polite and respectful toward each other, to teachers and to visitors.  There is very little concern about bullying or name-calling, including bullying based on prejudice of any type. Whenever any tensions or concerns arise they are dealt with promptly and effectively by teachers. Records of behaviour incidents confirm that the school monitors behaviour closely and acts to keep any disruption to learning to an absolute minimum.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils do not interfere with each other’s learning. Occasionally, when teaching does not capture pupils’ interest, progress slows for a few pupils who become restless and inattentive. This is usually because they do not clearly understand what is expected of them, or because the teacher does not let them start work on their own soon enough.  Pupils feel safe in school because they are taught about how to keep themselves safe in a variety of situations. They know, for example, how to use the internet safely, how to report any type of bullying and how to use the roads safely. The school carries out thorough risk assessments for trips and activities.

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The leadership and management are good

 School leaders at all levels are ambitious for their pupils. The headteacher provides strong leadership. Her vision and high expectations are understood and shared across the school by a committed staff.  Leaders at all levels are involved in developing the quality of teaching. They help to improve teachers’ planning and analyse information on pupils’ progress in order to identify any pupils who may be falling behind and provide additional support for them. Leaders support and set targets for teachers related to pupils’ expected achievements.  These processes have helped to improve the quality of teaching and have increased the progress made by pupils. Over the past two years there has been a significant improvement in pupils’ attainment and progress. The school shows that it has a strong capacity to improve further.  The curriculum in the school provides pupils with a wide range of experiences that extend

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The leadership and management are good

their knowledge and understanding. It is made more interesting and enjoyable through the use of trips and events during the school year. It also makes a useful contribution to the pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural education. However, teachers do not do enough to bring learning alive by making connections with real-life situations and building upon pupils’ interests to support independent learning.  Parents and carers value the English and mathematics teaching workshops provided by the school, which show them how to help their children to continue learning at home. They feel that this is helping them work with teachers more closely to improve the progress their children make.  A recent review of the school by the local authority confirmed the school’s own evaluations of pupils’ achievement and the quality of leadership, although it gave no evaluation of teaching. An examination of the school’s records shows that, when school leaders observe and make

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The leadership and management are good

judgements about lessons, they focus more on what teachers are doing than on how well pupils are learning. They sometimes judge lessons to be outstanding, when there is not enough evidence to support this.  The governance of the school:  The governing body has ensured that pupil premium funding is used to provide extra small-group and one-to-one teaching for those pupils who need it.  Governors use information about pupils’ progress effectively to ask demanding questions of school leaders.  Governors visit the school regularly to gain a better first-hand understanding of how well the school is working. This helps to ensure that all staff maintain a tight focus on improving the quality of teaching and pupils’ progress.

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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 101886 Local authority Ealing Inspection number 404789

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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 474 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Mr Bharat Manya Headteacher Mrs Barbara Smith Date of previous school inspection 4 November 2010 Telephone number 020 8997 1947 Fax number 020 8810 7355 Email address admin@selborne.ealing.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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