Oswaldtwistle Hippings Methodist Voluntary Controlled Primary School

Oswaldtwistle Hippings Methodist Voluntary Controlled Primary School Heron Way, Oswaldtwistle, Accrington, Lancashire, BB5 3BT

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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.  Achievement is good and has improved rapidly since the last inspection. The progress pupils make from their starting points is good.  Teaching is good. Positive relationships help and support pupils’ learning. Lessons are well organised and planned effectively with clear objectives.  Disabled pupils and those with special educational needs are well supported, which results in them making good progress. Some make outstanding progress.  The headteacher is effectively driving improvement and is relentlessly focussed on raising standards. Other leaders and governors have contributed significantly to improving pupils’ achievement and the quality of teaching.  Behaviour and safety are good. Pupils are respectful, polite and caring.  Attendance has improved and is now well above average.  All pupils supported by pupil premium make the same progress as other pupils in the school and nationally.

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It is not yet an outstanding school because

 Some pupils are capable of making even more progress in writing.  Occasionally, lessons fail to fully motivate pupils to learn.  Some plans for improvement lack focus. Inspection report: Oswaldtwistle Hippings Methodist Voluntary Controlled Primary School, 17–18 October 2012 2 of 9

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors observed 16 lessons. In addition, the inspection team made a number of short visits to lessons and observed small group sessions and listened to groups of children read.  Inspectors held meetings with groups of pupils, school staff, the Chair of the Governing Body and a local authority representative.  Inspectors took account of 38 responses to the on-line questionnaires (Parent View), 20 staff questionnaires and questionnaires and surveys carried out by the school.  A range of documents were looked at, including the school’s data on pupils’ progress, planning and monitoring documentation, records relating to behaviour, attendance and safeguarding.

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Inspection team

Jean Tarry, Lead inspector Additional Inspector Jennifer Platt Additional Inspector Inspection report: Oswaldtwistle Hippings Methodist Voluntary Controlled Primary School, 17–18 October 2012 3 of 9

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Information about this school

 This is an average-sized primary school.  Pupils are mainly from a White British background.  The proportion of pupils known to be eligible for the pupil premium is below average.  The proportions of pupils supported at school action and at school action plus or with a statement of special educational needs are below the national average.  The school meets the government’s current floor standards, which set the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress.  There are a number of new staff in Key Stage 2 including two newly qualified teachers.  The school provides a breakfast club.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Raise attainment in writing by:  providing more opportunities for pupils to write in other subjects  improving pupils’ handwriting, punctuation and grammar.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve the quality of teaching by:  ensuring all lessons are exciting and go at a brisk pace to capture pupils’ enthusiasm  challenging the more-able pupils to make the best possible progress in writing.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Further improve leadership and management by stating clearly in improvement plans the way in which pupils’ achievement will improve, especially in writing, as a result of actions to be taken. Inspection report: Oswaldtwistle Hippings Methodist Voluntary Controlled Primary School, 17–18 October 2012 4 of 9

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Children enter the Early Years Foundation Stage with skills that are slightly below the expected level. They make good progress during their time in the Reception class except in reading and writing in which their progress requires improvement. At the end of the Reception Year, children’s skills are generally slightly higher overall than expected nationally.  Pupils in Years 1 to 6 make good progress. By the end of Year 2 pupils’ overall attainment is above average and by the end of Year 6 it is well above average.  In both Key Stages 1 and 2, pupils’ achievement in reading and mathematics is strong. Some relative weaknesses in pupils’ handwriting and in their use of punctuation and grammar mean that their attainment and progress in writing requires some improvement. This particularly applies to the progress the more-able pupils make in this subject.  The effective support and well matched provision helps disabled pupils and those with special

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The achievement of pupils is good

educational needs make good progress, with some making outstanding progress.  Gaps in attainment between pupils in the school and pupils nationally have been eliminated, particularly in reading and mathematics. Pupils at the school are now doing better than similar pupils nationally. In lessons, pupils read extensively for meaning in a variety of texts. They are eager to read and confident to share their ideas about literature. They are confident with their mathematical skills and enjoy the challenge of problem solving.  Pupils understand their targets for improvement and confidently explain what they must do in order to progress to the higher levels.  The pupils who are known to be eligible for the pupil premium make at least similar progress to other pupils in the school.

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The quality of teaching is good

 The teaching in the Early Years Foundation Stage has a focus on practical activities and children choosing activities for themselves. The teaching assistants are particularly effective in helping and supporting the younger children. Provision is good for all the children in the setting.  In the best lessons in Key Stage 1 and 2, teachers have high expectations of what pupils should achieve and they use their good subject knowledge to promote effective learning across the different groups, particularly in reading and mathematics. In one lesson in Year 6, pupils learnt how to recognise three-dimensional shapes and shared their reasons for changing the shape of their net. Many instantly recognised the features that they needed to include and used the correct terminology when problem solving with cubes and cuboids. In this particular lesson, pupils made outstanding progress because of the exceptionally effective teaching which

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The quality of teaching is good

was very well matched to their needs.  The pace of pupils’ learning is not always brisk enough in all lessons. On occasion, teachers do not ensure that lessons motivate and engage all pupils. A few lessons fail to capture pupils’ imagination and their enthusiasm because the pace is too slow.  Consistently good relationships between pupils and adults contribute very well to pupils’ enjoyment of learning. When teachers effectively challenge pupils, especially the more able, learning progresses at a faster rate.  Teaching assistants effectively support groups and individuals across the school. There is good teaching and well-matched support.  Marking helps pupils improve their work. In a Year 4 lesson, pupils were asked to group ideas logically to help them construct and link paragraphs. Year 5 pupils were effectively reminded of the skills they needed to use to improve their work. Inspection report: Oswaldtwistle Hippings Methodist Voluntary Controlled Primary School, 17–18 October 2012 5 of 9

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Behaviour is generally good. Pupils’ behaviour and attitudes to learning make a really positive contribution to good learning in most lessons. There is some low-level misbehaviour when pupils are not motivated in lessons. However, pupils say they feel very safe in school and are proud of their Christian values. One pupil feels, ‘this guides our behaviour and helps us with our learning’. This is reflected in their positive attitudes towards each other and their generally enthusiastic approach to their learning.  There is a warm, welcoming, caring school ethos where the opinions of all are considered respectfully. Members of the school council work successfully to make a difference to their school.  Parents are very positive about behaviour and safety across the school.  There are no exclusions. Attendance is well above average. Pupils enjoy coming to school. Liaison between home and school is strong and supports pupils’ attendance. Pupils are proud

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

of their regular attendance and have responded very well to schemes introduced by the school to improve overall attendance.  There are some concerns about bullying expressed by pupils. However, pupils generally believe that staff address any issues very well and the inspectors agree.  Pupils are aware of dangers and understand how to keep themselves safe. They know how to use the internet safely.  Older pupils are very good role models for the younger children on the playground and in assemblies.

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The leadership and management are good

 The headteacher and senior leaders have successfully raised pupils’ attainment and accelerated their progress since the last inspection, especially in reading and mathematics.  There are high expectations of staff performance and this is reflected in pupils’ improved attainment especially in Key Stage 2. There are regular checks on the quality of teaching, with clear steps given for improvement. However, it is not clear from action plans what particular improvements are expected in pupils’ performance, especially in writing.  There are some new members of staff in Key Stage 2, including newly qualified teachers. The training they have received to promote better reading standards has had a significant impact. The recent middle leaders’ training on writing has yet to significantly enhance the quality of lessons, especially in making them more exciting for all the pupils.  The school’s view of its own performance is broadly accurate. Leaders and managers are highly

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The leadership and management are good

effective in communicating ambition and driving improvement. There is good capacity for further improvement.  Safeguarding procedures meet statutory requirements.  Pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is effectively promoted across the school. The values taught in assemblies and in lessons encourage pupils to reflect. One child said, ’It makes me realise that we are all very special.’  Equality of opportunity is well promoted and discrimination not tolerated. This is evident in the good overall achievement of all groups and the lack of harassment as a result of pupils’ backgrounds or characteristics.  The curriculum is broad, balanced and offers pupils a wide range of experiences. There is a good focus on music and singing. Singing is of a particularly high quality and during the inspection pupils were invited to audition for the Blackburn Cathedral Choir.  The local authority is supportive of the school, effective in providing training and helpful in

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The leadership and management are good

guiding staff in matters. Inspection report: Oswaldtwistle Hippings Methodist Voluntary Controlled Primary School, 17–18 October 2012 6 of 9

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The leadership and management are good

 The governance of the school:  The governing body has a very positive impact by challenging and supporting the headteacher over a period of time, especially with recent changes and staffing issues.  Under the strong leadership of the Chair of the Governing Body, the headteacher has been held to account for pupils’ achievement and raising attainment.  Governors ensure that the effective procedures in place to measure the performance of staff are monitored effectively and that staff are held to account for pupils’ progress.  The governing body ensures that the impact of the pupil premium funding is regularly checked. Inspection report: Oswaldtwistle Hippings Methodist Voluntary Controlled Primary School, 17–18 October 2012 7 of 9

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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. Inspection report: Oswaldtwistle Hippings Methodist Voluntary Controlled Primary School, 17–18 October 2012 8 of 9

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School details

Unique reference number 119398 Local authority Lancashire Inspection number 401840

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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 Voluntary controlled Age range of pupils 4–11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 215 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Mrs Tess Haydock Headteacher Mrs Janice Lewer Date of previous school inspection March 2010 Telephone number 01254 234089 Fax number 01254 254089 Email address head@hippings.lancs.sch.uk Inspection report: Oswaldtwistle Hippings Methodist Voluntary Controlled Primary School, 17–18 October 2012 9 of 9

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School details

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

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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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