South Walney Junior School

Amphitrite Street, Walney, Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria, LA14 3EG

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Overall effectiveness

Previous inspection: Good 2 This inspection: Good 2 Achievement of pupils Good 2 Quality of teaching Good 2 Behaviour and safety of pupils Outstanding 1 Leadership and management Good 2

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

This is a good school.  Pupils are taught well and make good progress in reading, writing and mathematics. By the time they leave in Year 6 they reach standards above and often significantly above the levels of pupils of the same age in other schools.  Teaching is of good quality and some is outstanding. Teachers have very good relationships with pupils and as a result pupils are keen to work hard.  Behaviour has improved since the previous inspection and is now outstanding. Pupils are courteous, kind and friendly. They have a very good understanding of how to keep themselves safe.  The headteacher and senior leaders have developed a highly effective team and are committed to improving the school. They regularly visit lessons and check how well pupils are improving in their work in order to ensure that teaching is at least good and improving.  The governing body is involved in school life and as a result is well-informed. It is very

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

supportive of the school’s leaders and plays an important part in regularly checking and challenging how well the school is doing.  Pupils enjoy the many and exciting clubs and visits that the school provides which help them to develop their skills and broaden their understanding of the wider world.

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It is not yet an outstanding school because

 Teachers do not plan enough opportunities for pupils to solve real-life problems when working in subjects other than mathematics.  In mathematics, pupils’ work is marked regularly and good praise is given but comments do not always make clear to pupils what they have to learn next nor do pupils always have time to think about this.  Pupils are not always sure of their targets in mathematics and they are not involved enough in checking how far they have to go to reach them.

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Information about this inspection

 The inspectors observed eight teachers and one teaching assistant and visited 11 lessons.  Discussions were held with the headteacher, members of the leadership team, English and mathematics subject leaders, the special educational needs co-ordinator, pupils, members of the governing body and a representative of the local authority.  The inspectors observed pupils’ work, listened to pupils read and looked at a wide range of documentation including the school’s self-evaluation, documents relating to monitoring and evaluation, systems for tracking pupils’ progress, documents regarding the safeguarding of pupils and key policies.  Inspectors took account of the eight responses to the on-line questionnaire (Parent View) and the school’s most recent questionnaires for parents.

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Inspection team

Sue Sharkey, Lead inspector Additional Inspector Sheila Mawer Additional Inspector

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Information about this school

 South Walney Junior School is smaller than the average size primary school.

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Information about this school

 The proportion of pupils from minority ethnic groups and those who speak English as an additional language is very low.  The proportion of pupils supported through school action is above average. The proportion of pupils supported at school action plus or with a statement of special educational needs is below the national average.  The proportion of pupils known to be eligible for the pupil premium is below average. In this school these pupils are those known to be eligible for free school meals and a few children whose parents are in the armed forces.  The headteacher has joined the school since the previous inspection.  The school meets the government floor standard, which sets the minimum expectations for attainment and progress in English and mathematics.  The school holds the Healthy School, Active Mark and Silver Eco-School awards.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve teaching to outstanding in order to raise pupils’ achievement in mathematics by: - providing more opportunities for pupils to carry out real-life problem-solving in different subjects - ensuring that marking gives consistent advice on how pupils can improve their work further and that pupils have time to think about this - making sure that pupils understand their targets and are always involved in checking how well they are progressing.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Pupils make good progress from where they start in Year 3 in English and mathematics. When they leave at the end of Year 6 their attainment is above and sometimes significantly above average.  The progress of different groups of pupils is good including those with special educational needs and those who are eligible for pupil premium support. Well-trained teaching assistants provide a high level of well-targeted group or individual support for pupils.  Since the previous inspection opportunities for pupils to discuss their ideas have greatly improved. There are now regular lesson times when pupils choose what they would like to talk about. As a result, pupils’ thinking as well as their speaking and listening skills have developed and pupils are confident speakers.  Pupils usually make better progress in English than they do in mathematics. The school has been using a number of plans to improve mathematics and the most recent assessments show

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The achievement of pupils is good

that attainment should rise in the 2013 Year 6 tests.  Pupils’ mathematics books show that they often learn and develop a good range of number and calculation skills in a practical way. However these skills are not used often enough to solve real-life problems in subjects other than mathematics.  Pupils say they enjoy reading both at school and at home. They have favourite authors some of whom they talk about passionately. The teaching of letter and sounds is very good and this can be seen in the quality of pupils’ reading. For example in Year 6 the vast majority of pupils read fluently and confidently. They use their voices well to highlight words and express sentences bringing the story to life. By the time these pupils leave school their reading is significantly above average.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Pupils benefit from teaching that is consistently good and sometimes outstanding. Teachers make sure that the way they organise their classrooms helps pupils to learn well. Classrooms are bright, cheerful and welcoming.  Throughout the school teachers provide pupils with work that gets the best out of them. This means that the work teachers plan helps pupils to learn well and encourages them to try hard.  Teachers have good knowledge of what they are teaching and they use this well to plan exciting activities that encourage pupils to learn. For example in a Year 5 lesson pupils were exploring triangles. As they discussed the different kinds the lights were turned down when it came to looking at ‘scary scalene’ triangles. This encouraged excellent discussion about sides and angles being different sizes and led swiftly into looking at how pupils identify other triangles.  Pupils throughout the school make good progress because teachers know the individual needs

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The quality of teaching is good

of different pupils so they plan work that takes into account what they already know and what they need to do next.  During lessons teachers check and question pupils well to find out if they have understood what they are learning and to make sure the work they are doing is helping them to improve further. Marking is particularly helpful in English books, where pupils are given advice on how to improve. However, marking in mathematics books does not regularly help pupils know how to get better in their work and pupils do not get enough opportunities to think about it.  Good opportunities are provided for pupils to work together in pairs or in small groups, sharing their thoughts and exploring ideas which lead to high-quality discussion.  Reading is taught extremely well partly through focused sessions three days a week. In a lively Year 4 lesson pupils were adding letters to words to create opposites, for example adding ‘un’

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The quality of teaching is good

to ‘helpful’ to make ‘unhelpful’. Pupils worked in pairs and listened to each other as they sounded the new words. They laughed when it sounded wrong and wrote their new word quickly when they were sure it was right. Good use of dictionaries helped pupils to check that the spellings were correct.  Pupils understand their targets in English and talk confidently about them. However, they do not fully understand their targets in mathematics nor are they as involved in testing how well they are doing towards reaching these targets.  Teaching assistants support pupils in their learning effectively both within the classroom and outside lessons in small groups or one-to-one activities. There is a good range of support activities to help pupils in both English and mathematics.

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The quality of teaching is good

 The behaviour and safety of pupils are outstanding  Pupils’ attitudes to learning and their behaviour are outstanding. Teachers expect pupils to behave extremely well in lessons and as a result they do. Behaviour around school is exemplary. Pupils are considerate to each other and very polite to adults.  Pupils say they feel extremely safe in school and they can talk to any adult if they have a problem. They say they are not aware of any bullying but are confident that if there was it would be dealt with quickly and with care by the headteacher and teachers. Pupils showed very good awareness of the various types of bullying, for example cyber-bullying.  Pupils on the school council are proud of the part they play in helping the school to improve. They talked with enthusiasm about asking the school to lower some of the outdoor adventure equipment in the playground so that pupils could get on more easily and not hurt themselves.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Pupils’ attendance is above average and has risen over the last 2 years. The school works closely with parents to remind them continually of the importance of their children attending school.  Pupils are happy to be responsible for many different jobs around school. At lunch and break times prefects help the staff by waiting at outdoor entrances in case pupils need help. They help to look after the library and check that all is well in the computer room. Pupils are keen to say that they all have jobs and they happily take turns and share them.

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The leadership and management are good

 The headteacher, leaders and governors make sure that this is a school where everyone is made to feel welcome and equal opportunities are at the heart of its work. There is real determination to succeed in making a difference to the lives of the pupils.  Strong-minded leadership by the headteacher has successfully welded a strong team of enthusiastic staff who support each other well. As a result, everyone is focused on continuing to improve the school. Through the regular checking of teaching, pupils’ progress and the curriculum, senior leaders, staff and governors know the school’s strengths and weaknesses well.  Performance management for teachers is effective and is focused on making sure that pupils’ progress continues to improve. This is linked to training for teachers to help them continually develop skills. Support from the local authority has been welcomed and has contributed to improvements in teaching, particularly in developing pupils’ speaking and listening skills. The

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The leadership and management are good

positive results can be seen in the improvements to teaching since the previous inspection as well the growing confidence pupils have towards their work and in the way they talk to each other. This has helped towards raising standards, particularly in English and some teachers have been rightly rewarded.  The curriculum is well-organised, it meets the needs of the pupils effectively and provides many opportunities to excite, interest and involve pupils. A strength of the curriculum is the wide range of experiences that take place outside the classroom. This includes the many clubs and activities after school, at lunch time and outside the school. Pupils say they thoroughly enjoy, for example maths on the computers at lunch time, and the film club. Visits beyond the school take pupils to Bolton or Manchester or more locally to Grizedale Forest.  The curriculum contributes extremely well to pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural

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The leadership and management are good

development as it provides considerable opportunities for pupils to be aware of the wider world. Pupils’ cultural development has improved since the previous inspection and pupils now have many more opportunities to be aware of people in different communities in Britain and across the world.  The governance of the school:  The governing body has a good knowledge of the school and uses this information well to challenge and support the headteacher to improve the school continually. Governors use pupil premium funding to ensure that pupils who are eligible to receive additional support are improving and make the same good progress as other pupils, particularly in reading. The governing body has made sure that there are secure procedures in place to ensure the safeguarding of pupils and staff.

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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 112211 Local authority Cumbria Inspection number 403171

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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 Junior School category Community Age range of pupils 7-11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 172 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Les Hall Headteacher Jackie Dower Date of previous school inspection 9 April 2008 Telephone number 01229 471447 Fax number 01229 471447 Email address admin@swalneyj.cumbria.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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