The Holbeach William Stukeley Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School

The Holbeach William Stukeley Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School Spalding Road, Holbeach, Spalding, PE12 7HG

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Overall effectiveness

Previous inspection: Satisfactory 3 This inspection: Requires improvement 3 Achievement of pupils Requires improvement 3 Quality of teaching Requires improvement 3 Behaviour and safety of pupils Good 2 Leadership and management Good 2

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This is a school that requires improvement. It is not good because

 Pupils do not do as well as they should at Key Stage 2. The good progress they make at Key Stage 1 is not maintained and pupils leave the school at lower levels than those they are capable of.  Teaching in the recent past has not enabled pupils to do well enough at Key Stage 2. It has not ensured that more-able pupils, in particular, progress as quickly as they should.  The improvements being made have not yet been sustained for long enough for the school to be graded good.  Standards in mathematics are lower than those in English and are not as high as they should be, given pupils’ starting points.

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The school has the following strengths

 Pupils make good progress at Key Stage 1 in all areas.  Progress at Key Stage 2 is now improving.  The quality of teaching is improving and is now usually good.  The new headteacher, with the support of other leaders and governors, has been quick to assess the issues and put into place actions which are having a clear impact on improving teaching and pupils’ achievement.  The issues identified at the previous inspection have now been addressed successfully. 22–23 November 2012 2 of 10

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors observed teaching in all classes and visited 20 lessons and part lessons.  Discussions were held with pupils, the headteacher and other leaders and managers, the Chair of the Governing Body and a representative of the local authority.  The inspection team looked at a range of documents, including the school development plan, safeguarding arrangements and work in pupils’ books.  Parents and carers were asked for their views at the beginning and end of the school day and the views of 25 parents and carers who contributed to the Parent View survey and two who wrote letters were analysed.

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Inspection team

Simon Griffiths, Lead inspector Additional Inspector Patrick Walsh Additional Inspector Anne McAvan Additional Inspector 22–23 November 2012 3 of 10

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Information about this school

 This is an average-sized primary school.  There are fewer pupils from minority ethnic backgrounds than in most schools of this size. There are a small number of pupils who speak English as an additional language.  The proportion of pupils supported at school action is below the national average but the proportion supported at school action plus or with a statement of special educational needs is slightly above average.  The proportion of pupils eligible for pupil premium funding is in line with that found nationally.  The school does not meet the government’s current floor standards, which set the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress.  A new headteacher has been in post since January 2012.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Ensure all teaching is good and some outstanding by:  sharing existing good practice within the school  ensuring all lessons focus on the next steps pupils need to make in their learning  checking on learning in lessons more regularly, not only to ensure less-able pupils understand but to ensure more-able pupils are constantly challenged.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Raise attainment and particularly that of more-able pupils at Key Stage 2 by:  making clear at the start of the lesson what all groups of pupils and particularly the more-able are expected to learn  leaders checking that planning and teaching focus sharply on the learning gains made by more-able pupils and that the work is hard enough for them.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Raise attainment in mathematics by:  making sure all aspects of mathematics, including those taught in other subjects, are pitched at the right level  challenging more-able pupils by giving them harder open-ended work which enables them to think for themselves  checking the pupils’ progress in all aspects of mathematics  improving feedback and marking so that it is of the same quality as it is in English. 22–23 November 2012 4 of 10

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 Over the last few years, pupils at Key Stage 2 have not reached the levels of which they are capable. Attainment overall remains below average because too few pupils achieve the higher levels by the end of Key Stage 2.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 Children do not achieve as well as they could in the Early Years Foundation Stage in developing their communication skills, including writing. At Key Stage 2, spelling remains an area for improvement and in mathematics, pupils’ ability to use and apply their number skills to problems is not as good as it should be.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 Children make expected progress in other areas of learning in the Reception class and in some areas, such as personal development, they make good progress.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 Pupils at Key Stage 1 did not do quite as well in 2012 as the previous year but they are still reaching levels at least in line with, and often better, than those achieved nationally in reading, writing and mathematics. Given their starting points, this means they have made good progress.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 More pupils are now reaching the expected levels in both English and mathematics across Key Stage 2. In the recent past, pupils have done better in English than mathematics. This is still the case but the gap is closing.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 Reading is a strength of the school. Pupils learn how to link letters and sounds well and read with confidence and enthusiasm. Less-able readers at Key Stage 1 are taught the skills to tackle harder words and they are keen to take books home to read.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 Pupils of lower ability and disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs make expected and often better progress. Pupil premium funding is mainly used to help pupils to learn faster and grow in confidence by using more teaching assistants to help pupils in classrooms and small groups. These pupils are making faster progress than others and the gap between their results and other pupils is closing.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 Older pupils say that they are pleased that their work is now harder. They enjoy doing well and are confident that this is preparing them much better for the next stage in their education. The large majority of parents and carers believe their children make good progress.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 School data and work in books shows that pupils at Key Stage 2 are now making faster progress and the proportion making good progress in both English and mathematics is rising. Pupils’ writing is improving.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 Teaching has not enabled pupils to do as well as they should in the past at Key Stage 2. Too much teaching has required improvement and expectations of what pupils could achieve have been too low. Some classes have had too many changes of teachers. Teaching over time is not good because improvements are recent and need to be sustained in order that more pupils consistently reach and exceed expected levels.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 Expectations for more-able pupils are not made absolutely clear so these pupils make expected 22–23 November 2012 5 of 10

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

rather than good progress. The school has started to improve pupils’ problem-solving skills but opportunities are limited and often consist of puzzles rather than being a normal part of learning.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 Teaching is now improving quickly and there is a stable teaching team that is now helping pupils to make better progress. The good teamwork between teachers and teaching assistants is helping to raise attainment. Teaching assistants take an active role in all parts of lessons and also in teaching small groups for activities such as letters and sounds where pupils respond enthusiastically and enjoy learning.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 Teaching in the Early Years Foundation stage is improving. The outside area is well used to enable pupils to make choices. Children make good use of the ‘ literacy lodge’ where they often choose to write, for example lists of different cars. There is a clear focus on improving pupils’ writing skills and adults are skilled at engaging pupils in speaking and listening and encouraging them to write. Good use is made of observational notes in helping to plan activities but they are not yet well used to plan programmes of work for individual children.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 Relationships are strong and pupils respond well to the teaching and are confident to answer questions and offer explanations. There are frequent opportunities for pupils to share their learning together and use different resources. In one lesson, pupils were able to think of really exciting ‘describing words’ after watching a well-chosen video clip and then put them into very interesting sentences.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 Marking and feedback is of good quality but is better in English than mathematics. In the best lessons seen, pupils were given the time to look at the comments and think about them. Pupils, in the main, know their targets and what it is they need to improve on.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 A growing strength of the teaching is how work is matched to the needs of individuals. This is very much the case with less-able pupils but not as strong for more able.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 Disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs are benefiting from more effective use of teaching assistants, more group teaching and individual support programmes. Several parents and carers said how well the school meets the needs of their children. Communication between teachers, teaching assistants and the teacher responsible for special educational needs is particularly effective.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 Work seen in books shows that pupils are writing more and often at an age-appropriate level or better. Mathematics work shows that pupils have plenty of opportunities for developing calculation skills.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils get on well with each other and with the staff. There are very few occasions when learning is interrupted. Pupils respond well in lessons and are confident to offer answers and explanations. This is because adults encourage and praise them and pupils clearly enjoy their lessons.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils are cheerful and orderly around school and in the dining room. The headteacher sets the tone for this, often greeting pupils by name and showing an interest in them. The start of the day is calm. The headteacher has introduced new expectations for entering the school which are part of the overall process of raising expectations. 22–23 November 2012 6 of 10

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils report that behaviour is good and feel that it has improved since the new headteacher started. Pupils say they feel safe and that any bullying is rare and quickly dealt with. Although a small minority of parents and carers, responding to the online questionnaire, expressed some concern over bullying, most think behaviour is good.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Attendance is average. The headteacher has reviewed the attendance policy and introduced new procedures which are resulting in attendance improving.

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The leadership and management are good

 There is clear evidence that the school is improving strongly following the appointment of a new headteacher. Pupils’ attainment across Key Stage 2 is improving quickly so that more pupils are now reaching age-related expectations.

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The leadership and management are good

 The quality of teaching is improving and is now usually good. Teachers reflect on their practice. The headteacher works closely with other leaders and has been successful in creating a stable and effective teaching team. Teaching assistants are an important part of the team and are involved in all teaching activities. Inadequate teaching has been eradicated.

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The leadership and management are good

 The local authority has provided good support to the school and is now able to reduce its support as the school has good capacity to improve further.

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The leadership and management are good

 Self-evaluation is accurate and very clear about where further improvements are required. It is realistic and links clearly to school improvement priorities. The headteacher has been quick to identify the improvements required and is putting into place systems designed to provide consistency.

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The leadership and management are good

 A new policy for performance management is being developed which is clearly based on pupils’ progress and an organised approach to lesson observations linked to whole school targets. The headteacher and deputy headteacher make accurate judgements when checking the quality of teaching, though these do not focus enough on what different pupils learn. Records show that teachers act on the targets for improvement.

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The leadership and management are good

 The curriculum has been reviewed and is now providing more opportunities for all pupils, including those who are more able. Good examples of this are the ‘News 4 U’ school newspaper by the ‘Press Gang’ and opportunities such as challenge days with other schools. The new curriculum is improving the links made between different subjects and provides an organised approach to pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development through themes such as ‘respect’.

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The leadership and management are good

 The governance of the school: – Governors are very aware that the school went through a period where they did not challenge leaders effectively. They have learned from this and are now very involved. They are aware of the school’s strengths and weaknesses. They have been prepared to make difficult decisions and also take time to appoint the right headteacher. Governors have good knowledge of the quality of teaching because they visit classrooms and the Chair of the Governing Body meets regularly with the headteacher. They are developing a new policy for performance management and are very clear on the link between teachers’ pay and pupils’ performance. They have taken action to remove inadequate teaching and are 22–23 November 2012 7 of 10

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The leadership and management are good

challenging leaders to drive the school towards becoming outstanding. They are familiar with and make use of data to compare the school’s performance with other schools and challenge leaders on the use of pupil premium funding. They are taking steps to be even more effective by organised training with the local authority which has been of good quality and are also accessing training online. Governors ensure that safeguarding meets requirements and all checks are carried out. 22–23 November 2012 8 of 10

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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. 22–23 November 2012 9 of 10

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School details

Unique reference number 120596 Local authority Lincolnshire Inspection number 405948

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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 Aided Age range of pupils 4–11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 253 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Richard Nicholas Headteacher Tom Emery Date of previous school inspection 5 May 2011 Telephone number 01406 422102 Fax number 01406 426907 Email address tom.emery@williamstukeley.lincs.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

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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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