Godalming Junior School

Godalming Junior School Hallam Road, Meadrow, Godalming, GU7 3HW

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Overall effectiveness

Previous inspection: Inadequate 4 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 now achieve well. Since the last inspection, standards have risen rapidly in English and mathematics.  Pupils enjoy being in school, they behave well and their attendance is above average.  Teaching has improved and is usually good. Teachers mark pupils’ work well and provide opportunities for pupils to respond to comments on how to improve their work; as a result, pupils make good progress.  The school provides many good opportunities for pupils’ spiritual, moral and social development. Consequently, the school is a calm and orderly place where discrimination is not tolerated and pupils play and learn together well.  The headteacher, together with an effective staff team and good governing body, has brought about rapid improvements to the school.

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It is not yet an outstanding school because

 Teaching is not consistently good or better. Intensive support and challenge are provided where teaching is weaker, but more is needed in some aspects for all teaching to be good.  In a few lessons teachers interrupt learning too often and do not give pupils sufficient opportunities to concentrate on their individual tasks. Similarly, teachers do not always use questioning effectively to test what pupils have understood.

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Information about this inspection

 The inspector observed 14 lessons,including nine joint observations conducted with an assistant headteacher. He also looked at pupils’ work and listened to pupils read.  He discussed with teachers and other staff their professional development, the management of their perfomance and the effectiveness of teaching and learning.  The inspector reviewed documents relating to governance, school improvement, pupil conduct, keeping pupils safe and the monitoring of teaching and learning. He considered reports produced by a local authority adviser and the school’s data for measuring pupils’ attainment and progress.  He held conversations with the Chair and Vice-Chair of the Governing Body, the school improvement adviser, a National Leader of Governance, groups of pupils, and school leaders and managers.  The inspector took account of 13 responses entered on Parent View and the results from a recent detailed questionnaire used by the school to obtain parents’ views.

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Inspection team

Robert Ellis, Lead inspector Her Majesty’s Inspector

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Full report

When Godalming Junior School was inspected in September 2011, it was judged to require special measures. Subsequently, the school was inspected on two occasions.

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Full report

In accordance with section 13(4) of the Education Act 2005, Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector is of the opinion that the school no longer requires special measures.

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Information about this school

 Godalming Junior School is a smaller-than-average primary school. Most pupils are White British and speak English as their first language.  The proportion of disabled pupils and those with special educational needs is above average. The proportion of pupils supported through school action plus and with a statement of special educational needs is also above average.  Around one in eight pupils, a below average proportion, is known to be eligible for the pupil premium. (The pupil premium is government funding targeted to support pupils entitled to free school meals, children in local authority care and children with a parent in the armed forces. additional funding from the government).  The school’s recent unvalidated Key Stage 2 test results met the government floor standard, which is the minimum level expected for pupils’ attainment and progress.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Eliminate the small proportion of teaching that is less than good by ensuring that:  teachers keep pupils actively involved in learning and do not slow the pace of learning with unnecessary interruptions  questions are always used effectively to check pupils’ understanding so that teachers know exactly when pupils are ready to move on in their learning or need extra help.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Unvalidated data from 2012 national test results show attainment in English had risen to be just above average and attainment in mathematics was above average. This represents good progress in relation to those pupils’ starting points and abilities.  Evidence from pupils’ work and the school’s data used to check progress indicate that pupils are currently making good progress in English and mathematics across all year groups. Many pupils have made faster progress than similar pupils nationally, particularly in mathematics.  The progress of disabled pupils, those with special educational needs and those who are eligible for the pupil premium is good and outstanding in some instances because of the high quality additional support and guidance that pupils receive. Average point scores for pupils eligible for the pupil premium have improved at a faster rate than the scores of other pupils.  A stronger focus on letters and sounds has resulted in improvements in reading, so that by Year

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The achievement of pupils is good

6 standards in reading are above average overall. For example, pupils in Year 3 and Year 4 read fluently and demonstrated a good understanding of what they had read.  Rapid improvements in pupils’ writing directly reflect the school’s focus on handwriting, spelling and punctuation and teachers’ higher expectations of what pupils can achieve.  Previous gaps in attainment between boys and girls have been addressed and gaps have closed, or are closing rapidly, in all year groups.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teaching has improved since the previous inspection and is now usually good, with some elements of outstanding practice. Some aspects require improvement in order for teaching to be consistently good.  Most tasks and activities are set at the right level. The majority of teachers use what they know about pupils to plan tasks that match pupils’ ability levels and build on what pupils already know and can do.  Teachers’ questioning is good. While questioning draws pupils into discussion and encourages them to think for themselves, it is not used consistently well enough in some lessons to gauge the extent of the pupils’ understanding, so that the teacher knows exactly when pupils are ready to move on to more challenging tasks or if they need further help and support.  Other adults provide skilled support in lessons. Adults in the classroom generally work productively together to ensure all pupils are supported to make good or better progress.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teachers sometimes interrupt the whole class to give advice when most pupils do not need it. Consequently, pupils do not get enough time to practise their skills and to work independently.  Teachers mark work in a way that helps pupils to improve by encouraging them to respond to the helpful comments and, where appropriate, to complete corrections or revisions to their work.  Pupils have good opportunities to work with teachers to devise success criteria for their various activities. They then use these to check if they have achieved the learning that was expected and to identify further improvements to their work.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Behaviour in lessons and around the school is generally good. In lessons, pupils usually concentrate on their work and most persevere in order to complete their individual tasks. Pupils have positive attitudes to learning and support each other well.  Pupils say that they feel very safe and that there is very little bullying. They are confident that staff will listen to any concerns they might raise and deal with any issues promptly.  It is evident that most pupils enjoy school. Pupils are keen to show visitors what they have done and to talk about their work. They arrive punctually at the start of the school day and their attendance is above average.  Pupils develop good social skills and have a clear understanding of right and wrong. They get on well together and respond positively to adults. Most pupils are becoming good listeners and confident speakers so they are able to contribute well in conversations with other pupils and

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

adults.  Pupils understand the risks they might face in everyday life and know about keeping themselves safe. Pupils demonstrated a good understanding of how to avoid or resolve conflict and how to stay safe when using the internet.

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The leadership and management are good

 Senior leaders have high expectations for the achievement of all pupils, which they communicate very clearly so that all staff share a common sense of purpose and a desire to support improvement. Leaders carry out regular and frequent checks on how well pupils are progressing and look in detail at how well teachers are working, giving them good advice and help to improve teaching further.  Arrangements for teachers’ performance management are vigorous and closely linked to salary progression. Senior leaders and governors scrutinise teaching particularly thoroughly and check the extent to which improvements in teaching are leading to improvements in the standards that pupils reach. All teachers have performance targets that are directly linked to accelerating pupils’ progress. Training and support are helping teachers to improve, particularly where teaching is weaker.  Pupils are taught a broad range of subjects. They have good opportunities to read and write in a

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The leadership and management are good

range of contexts and chances to extend and apply their mathematical skills. Pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is promoted well.  There has been a strong focus on improving spelling and handwriting, partly funded through the pupil premium, which has a beneficial impact on improving pupils’ writing and has helped more disadvantaged pupils catch up quickly.  Pupils are engaged in activities, trips and visits that provide memorable experiences. For example, pupils speak enthusiastically about the ‘living eggs’ project where they observed eggs hatching and then looked after the chicks.  The school has developed good and productive partnerships with other local schools, with local organisations and with education, care and health professionals to support pupils’ learning and personal development. Local authority consultants have been used well to test the view of the school of how well it is doing and to support the development of leadership and management.

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The leadership and management are good

 The views of parents are sought regularly. School and inspection evidence show that most have few, if any, concerns. The school works closely with parents, particularly through the home- school worker, to keep them informed and to help them to support their children’s learning. Parents say that their children are safe and cared for well.  The governance of the school:  Governors know what is happening in the school and ask challenging questions of the headteacher and senior leaders. They have been successful in ensuring that the issues highlighted in the last inspection report have been addressed and they check information about pupils’ progress and achievements thoroughly and made comparisons with performance in similar schools. The governing body keeps a close eye on school finances and ensures that pupil premium funding is spent wisely to make sure that individual pupils get the right support. Following training for governors and restructuring of the governing body, governors

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The leadership and management are good

are able to to challenge and support the school to improve further. The governing body fulfils its statutory responsibilities, including child protection and safeguarding.

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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 125044 Local authority Surrey Inspection number 397948

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School details

This inspection was carried out under section 8 of the Education Act 2005 which gives Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Education, Children’s Services and Skills (HMCI) the authority to cause any school to be inspected. The inspection was also deemed a section 5 inspection under the same Act.

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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 222 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Kate Cooney Headteacher Anthony White Date of previous school inspection September 2011 Telephone number 01483 421597 Fax number 01483 419605 Email address info@godalming-junior.surrey.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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