Fallings Park Primary School

Fallings Park Primary School Old Fallings Lane, Low Hill, Wolverhampton, WV10 8BN

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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.  Most pupils make good progress from their individual starting points.  Teaching and learning are good because the learning needs of most pupils are being met.  Children have a positive start in the Early Years Foundation Stage and make good progress.  Relationships between adults and children are caring.  Pupils’ positive attitudes towards school support their good learning in lessons. They behave well and feel safe.  Senior leaders check thoroughly the quality of teaching and learning, ensuring that pupils make good progress.  Governors are well informed and work closely with school leaders to ensure that development priorities are successfully implemented.

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It is not yet an outstanding school because

 A few teachers are not as skilful as others in setting demanding work, promoting independence in learning or giving pupils enough time to respond to their marking.  There are not enough opportunities for pupils to produce high-quality writing across a range of subjects.  Not all subject leaders have the skills to enable them to evaluate and improve teaching and learning.  The targets set by leaders could be even more ambitious.  While attendance has improved it remains average.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors observed 28 lessons taught by 20 different teachers of which four were joint observations with senior leaders. In addition inspectors made short visits to lessons and other teaching areas.  Meetings were held with two groups of pupils, with representative members of the governing body, the local authority, senior managers and other members of staff.  They observed the school’s work, and looked at policies, planning documents, the school’s own assessment data, records of attendance, behaviour and punctuality, information relating to safeguarding and pupils’ work.  Inspectors took account of the 26 responses to Parent View (the online questionnaire) and spoke to parents as they brought pupils to school.

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Inspection team

Adam Higgins, Lead inspector Additional Inspector David Shears Additional Inspector Karen Davies Additional Inspector

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Information about this school

 Fallings Park Primary is a larger than average-sized primary school.  The proportion of disabled pupils and those with special educational needs, including those supported at school action, school action plus and with a statement of special educational needs, is higher than the national average.  The proportion of pupils from minority ethnic groups is above the national average.  The proportion of pupils who speak English as an additional language is below the national average.  The proportion of pupils known to be eligible for pupil premium funding is significantly above the national average.  The school meets the government’s current floor standards, which set the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress.  The school provides a breakfast club for pupils that is managed by the governing body.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 By July 2014, raise standards throughout the school in reading, writing and mathematics so that they are above average, by ensuring that all pupils are fully challenged in lessons, particularly the more able.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Increase the quality of teaching so that it is at least consistently good with much that is outstanding, particularly in writing, by ensuring that:  there are planned opportunities for pupils to self-assess their own work  the marking and feedback of pupils’ work includes adequate time for them to respond to teachers’ comments  pupils are given opportunities to develop their independence in learning  there is a greater quality and range of opportunities for writing across a range of other subjects.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Strengthen further the quality of leadership and management by:  ensuring that leaders and managers at all levels set even more ambitious targets that improve the highest levels of achievement for all pupils over a sustained period of time  improving attendance to above the national average  empowering staff responsible for subjects other than English and mathematics to further develop their leadership skills in monitoring and evaluating the progress pupils make in these areas.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Children start school with skills and abilities that are typically well below those that would normally be expected, especially in social and emotional development and communication, language and literacy. Over the past three years, the good support that children have received has enabled them to make good progress. Many more pupils enter Year 1 working at the appropriate level. These skills are developed further during Years 1 and 2 so that by the time pupils enter Year 3 standards are around the national average.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 The proportion of pupils making, and exceeding expected progress in Years 3 to 6 in English and mathematics is above average. While standards in Year 6 are currently broadly average these are rising.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 School tracking systems show that nearly all pupils are making expected progress with the majority making good progress. The progress of groups of pupils, including those with English as an additional language and those from minority ethnic backgrounds, is similar.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Progress across most year groups is strong in reading and maths. Good examples of mathematics skills were seen in lessons, for example, where pupils were calculating the area and perimeter of buildings from computer images. In writing progress is less strong because pupils are not given enough opportunities to apply their skills in a range of subjects.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Pupils who benefit from funding through the pupil premium are achieving as well as their peers and nationally. The funding has been used well to ensure that adults have received training to support pupils with identified needs, to employ extra teachers so that pupils benefit from smaller teaching groups and to provide individual pupils with specialist support.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Disabled pupils and those with special educational needs make good progress and receive good support from teachers and teaching assistants. In one lesson a teaching assistant helped pupils to better use adjectives to describe objects hidden under a blanket.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Pupils, parents and carers and staff all believe that the good support given to pupils enables them to make good progress.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 The school uses effective strategies to enable pupils to develop good reading skills across a wide range of literature. Leaders identify when pupils are struggling to read and provide assistance to help them to become fluent readers.

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The quality of teaching is good

 In most lessons, teachers have high expectations of pupils and this enables all groups of pupils to make good or better progress. Where teaching is not as skilful, more-able pupils are not always given sufficiently challenging work to enable them to achieve well. For example, in a lesson about place value, the work given to more able pupils was too similar to that given to their peers.

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The quality of teaching is good

 There are very positive relationships in classrooms between pupils and adults resulting in pupils who are keen to learn.  Teachers have good knowledge of the subjects they teach. They use questions skilfully to assess pupils’ prior knowledge and to further develop their thinking skills. Teaching assistants are generally well deployed.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teachers are well equipped with specialist strategies aimed at disabled pupils and those with special educational needs. They get support from a range of organisations beyond the school to ensure that they are able to fully meet these pupils’ needs.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Marking of work in pupils’ books is detailed and clearly identifies what needs to be done to improve. However, there are not always enough opportunities for pupils to assess their own work and respond to the teacher’s marking.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teachers use ‘I can’ statements in pupils’ books to evaluate their learning. This helps them understand that these are the areas that they need to focus on to move further.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teachers make good use of classroom interactive whiteboards to provide stimulating introductions to lessons and to bring learning to life with video clips, interactive activities and photographs.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Planning for lessons is detailed. Adults work together to plan interesting and exciting opportunities to engage pupils and encourage parents and carers to participate in their children’s learning. In the Reception classes, staff worked together to plan a learning session with a mathematics focus, so that parents and carers could come into school and learn alongside their children. These sessions are very well attended.

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The quality of teaching is good

 There is a good curriculum that is having a positive impact on learning. Visits to local amenities and school-based workshops are used well as a stimulus for learning. Pupils enjoy the opportunity to learn beyond the classroom. Pupils are given good opportunities to use and apply the skills that they learn in reading and mathematics in other subjects. However, there is not enough focus on helping pupils to improve their writing in other subjects.

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The quality of teaching is good

 In a few lessons, teachers talk for too long and do not provide enough opportunities for pupils to discuss their learning. Pupils are not always given enough opportunities to work independently and to develop their thinking and learning skills without adult support.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils behave well and have positive attitudes towards their learning. They are courteous to each other in and around the school, holding doors open for adults and listening to each other respectfully.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils enjoy break and lunchtimes. They get on well with each other and enjoy the activities provided. On the few occasions when behaviour is not good, it is well managed by adults.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils know about bullying and have a good understanding of how to keep themselves safe, including when using computers and other technology. The school has responded well to concerns about cyber-bullying and has adopted a ‘no mobile phones’ policy.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils celebrate each other’s success and progress, for example by showing genuine pleasure when a pupil was moved from one set to another and was rewarded with a ‘pupil of the week’ medal.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 The school has been unrelenting in its work to improve attendance and reduce persistent absence. Clear strategies have ensured that attendance has risen over the last three years and is now broadly average. The ‘walking bus’, which collects pupils from their homes and walks them into school and a breakfast club has been well supported by parents and carers. Pupils enjoy these opportunities too. One pupil said, ‘I love coming to breakfast club. I get to play with my friends and it makes a good start to the day.’

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Responses on Parent View show that nearly all parents and carers believe that the school ensures that pupils are well behaved and both staff and pupils agree.

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The leadership and management are good

 Leaders show a determination to bring about rapid improvements based upon close monitoring of all aspects of the school’s work. The headteacher and deputy headteacher regularly evaluate and track the progress of each individual pupil to ensure swift action is taken where pupils are falling behind.

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The leadership and management are good

 Some subject leaders are new to their role but have been ably supported by others. The school plans well to replace those staff that are known to be leaving the school. For example, one teacher shadowed a phase leader to prepare them to take on that role two years later.

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The leadership and management are good

 The senior leaders delegate duties and responsibilities well. There is a strong team approach to curriculum development. However, there are not enough opportunities for subject leaders to develop their skills of monitoring and evaluating pupils’ progress in subjects other than English and mathematics.

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The leadership and management are good

 The senior leaders provide teachers with individualised training in order to improve. This training is planned during appraisal meetings and as a result of the monitoring of teaching. Staff performance is well managed, and the quality of teaching has risen as a result.

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The leadership and management are good

 The governance of the school:  Governors support and challenge leaders well to bring about improvements. They have a good understanding of the school’s strengths and weaknesses and hold leaders to account for the progress and attainment of pupils. Governors work well alongside leaders to look at planning and observe lessons in order to gain a better understanding of the quality of teaching. Governors ensure that safeguarding procedures meet current requirements. They evaluate the use of the pupil premium grant to ensure that it benefits pupils’ progress. They know about the management of staff performance and rigorously ensure that it is central to salary progression.

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The leadership and management are good

 The school engages very effectively with parents and carers in most areas, although not all are fully engaged in ensuring that their children consistently attend school.

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The leadership and management are good

 The enriched curriculum supports pupils’ personal development well, especially in their moral and social understanding, through the provision of regular planned opportunities for pupils to work with each other on a range of activities.  The school judges its own performance accurately, so that leaders understand what needs to be done to improve the school. The leaders hold each other to account for improvements through the use of detailed action plans. They set ambitious targets, although these are not quite as high as they could be.

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The leadership and management are good

 The local authority knows the school well and has worked intensively with leaders providing targeted support to evaluate the pace at which improvements have been made. The school now receives light touch support.

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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 104294 Local authority Wolverhampton Inspection number 400702

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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 443 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Sally Thompson Headteacher Jon Hopkins Date of previous school inspection 4 November 2009 Telephone number 01902 558375 Fax number 01902 558376 Email address fallingsparkprimaryschool@wolverhampton.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, 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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