Brockenhurst Church of England Primary School & Pre-School

Brockenhurst Church of England Primary School Sway Road, Brockenhurst, Hampshire, SO42 7RX

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Overall effectiveness

Previous inspection: Good 2 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 Requires improvement 3

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

 Pupils do not make rapid enough progress in Key Stage 1 because teaching is not consistently good enough.  Teachers do not always use questions carefully enough to develop the thinking skills of all pupils.  In lessons, teachers do not consistently check on the progress pupils are making.  Marking does not always tell pupils how to improve their work.  The school’s development plan does not clearly show how the actions planned to improve the school are to be checked.  Subject leaders in English and mathematics do not have enough opportunities to monitor the quality of teaching to check on its impact on pupils’ learning.  The governing body is not able to demonstrate fully how its support and challenge help the school to improve and pupils to achieve well.

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The school has the following strengths

 Pupils make a positive start in the Early Years Foundation Stage and make good progress in Key Stage 2.  The range of subjects that pupils learn about, other than English and mathematics, is well organised and gives pupils a wide breadth of experiences.  Pupils behave well and have good attitudes towards their learning.  The pastoral care of pupils, including the provision for spiritual, moral, social and cultural development, is a strength of the school.  The attendance of pupils has rapidly improved recently so that it is now above the national average.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors visited 14 lessons taught by eight different teachers, and held meetings with representative members of the governing body, the local authority, staff and groups of pupils.

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Information about this inspection

 They observed the school’s work, and looked at policies, planning documents, assessment data and pupils’ work.

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Information about this inspection

 There were 75 responses to Parent View (the Ofsted online questionnaire) during the inspection. These results were taken into account by inspectors in reaching judgements about the school.

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Inspection team

David Shears, Lead inspector Additional inspector Sarah Varnom Additional inspector

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Information about this school

 Brockenhurst Church of England Primary is smaller than the average-sized primary school.  The proportion of disabled pupils and those with special educational needs supported through school action or school action plus, or with a statement of special educational needs, is below average.  The proportions of pupils from minority ethnic groups and those who speak English as an additional language are both lower than national averages.  The proportion of pupils known to be eligible for the pupil premium is lower than the national average.  The school meets the government’s current floor standards, which set the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress.  There is no alternative provision.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve the quality of teaching at Key Stage 1 and accelerate pupils’ progress so that both are at least good by ensuring that:  assessment is rigorously used to inform teaching that meets the needs of all groups of pupils  clearly focused questions are used to develop all pupils’ thinking skills and enable them to become independent learners  teachers stop and check pupils’ learning during lessons and provide further support or challenge as needed  marking and feedback consistently tell pupils how they could improve  pupils are always given the opportunities to respond to teachers’ comments.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve the effectiveness of leadership and management by ensuring that:  school development planning clearly identifies how the impact of actions is to be checked  the role of subject leaders for English and mathematics is further developed so that they are able to accurately assess the quality of teaching and learning across the school  the governing body provides good support and challenge and is able to demonstrate the impact it is having on improving the school.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 Pupils in Key Stage 1 have not made enough progress across Years 1 and 2 over the past two years. This has resulted in too many of these pupils underachieving. However, as a result of staff changes the progress of pupils currently in Key Stage 1 is now improving so that it is at least in line with what is expected nationally.  Children begin in the Reception class with knowledge and skills that are broadly in line with age- related expectations. They make a positive start to their education because there are good links, both with pre-school groups and parents and carers, to ensure that children feel supported and confident in coming to school. Consequently they quickly start to make good progress. For example, in one lesson the teacher’s high expectations enabled children to focus well in sounding out letters and blending these to form words.  The pace of learning slows when pupils leave the Reception class. This is because assessments

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

at the end of the Reception Year have not been sufficiently built on in Years 1 and 2 and so pupils have not made enough progress, particularly in writing and mathematics.  Changes in staffing have meant that for the current year, the progress of pupils in Years 1 and 2 is beginning to improve and they are now on track to make at least adequate progress this year. Inspectors noted examples of some pupils making good progress in lessons. For example, in one lesson a group of pupils were demonstrating their good learning about positional language by following directions to jump in different directions on a large grid in the playground. This activity was clearly enjoyed by these pupils.  As pupils move through Key Stage 2 the pace of learning increases so that by the time they leave at the end of Year 6 they are making good progress and reach standards that are significantly above the national average. Pupils achieve particularly well in reading, although

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

progress is a little slower in writing.  Disabled pupils and those with special educational needs make at least expected progress and there are examples of individual pupils making good progress in some areas. Pupils with English as an additional language and those from minority ethnic groups make similar progress.  The school provides support groups for those who need extra help with their learning and this is partly supported by pupil premium funding. For example, a group of pupils who have behavioural, emotional and social development needs worked well in a nurture group where a series of games helped pupils to play together, building their confidence and self-esteem. Those eligible for support through the pupil premium make similar progress to other groups. There are no significant gaps in achievement between groups of pupils across the school.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 The quality of teaching varies too much to secure good achievement for all pupils. Where it is less effective it is because teachers are not using assessment information well enough to plan activities that will meet the learning needs of all groups of pupils. This limits the progress they make.  Questions are not always chosen carefully enough to target pupils of different abilities, to ensure that all are sufficiently challenged in developing their thinking skills and to promote their independent learning.  In all lessons there are good relationships between staff and pupils and teachers plan interesting activities to engage their pupils. Pupils are always told what they are going to learn about in lessons, and teachers use interactive whiteboards effectively to enhance both the quality of teaching and learning. Additional adults are often used well to support learning. For example, in one lesson they gave good support to disabled pupils and those with special educational needs

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

by giving them practical activities to support their understanding of subtraction.  During lessons teachers do not always stop and check on whether all groups of pupils are making good progress. Consequently, they are not able to give further support or greater challenge to those who need it.  The quality of marking and feedback is inconsistent across the school. It is more effective in Key Stage 2 than Key Stage 1 because Key Stage 2 teachers use positive comments to encourage pupils, as well as giving clear indications of how they could improve. However, in all classes there is little evidence of pupils having regular opportunities to respond to the teachers’ comments.  There are good opportunities for learning through subjects other than English and mathematics. For example, in one class pupils were making good progress in exploring why floods occurred and comparing the consequence of floods in England with those in Bangladesh. On one

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

afternoon each week all pupils have ‘golden time’ where they can explore a variety of creative activities to enhance their learning.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils behave well in lessons because they enjoy learning and have positive relationships with staff and each other. Sometimes, when teaching is less effective, a few younger pupils lose interest and are inattentive. However, for most of the time pupils’ good behaviour makes a positive contribution to their learning in lessons. They enjoy talking to each other about their learning and are content to be working independently.  Pupils behave well in the playground and noticeably get on well together. They are polite and courteous and care for each other. This stems from the school’s positive values that are explored well during collective worship.  Pupils say that behaviour is good at the school. They have a good understanding of what constitutes bullying, including the different forms of bullying, and say that there is none at the school. Both staff and parents and carers agree that pupils behave well. The few pupils who find

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

good behaviour difficult are supported well. All pupils feel safe in school. They have a good awareness of potential dangers.  The school has focused well on improving attendance which had declined so that it was broadly average. As a result of a renewed emphasis on attendance, through not authorising holidays during the school term, reporting to parents and carers when attendance is an issue, monitoring the attendance and linking this with the achievement of pupils, attendance has improved so that it is now above the national average. The proportion of pupils who are persistently absent has fallen so that it is now below the national average.

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The leadership and management require improvement

 Leadership and management require improvement because neither achievement nor teaching are good.  Leaders and managers have a clear understanding of the school’s strengths and areas for development and these are outlined in the school’s improvement plan. However, there is little indication of how actions to address the areas for development are to be monitored and evaluated for their effectiveness.  Since the previous inspection, the school has improved its systems for tracking pupils’ progress. Targets for pupils at all key stages are now suitably challenging. Any pupils at risk of underachieving are identified and given extra support to help them improve. However, this provision is not always monitored carefully enough to check that these pupils are making accelerated progress.  Senior leaders monitor the quality of teaching and learning, identifying strengths and giving teachers areas for development. Any teaching judged to be less than good is followed up. This

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The leadership and management require improvement

monitoring is used to inform the way in which teachers’ performance is managed. As a result of this strategy, leaders and managers have been effective in eradicating inadequate teaching at Key Stage 1.  The pastoral care of pupils is a strength of leadership, along with the promotion of their spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. This creates a happy, family atmosphere where the personal needs of pupils are met well.  The quality of the curriculum in subjects other than English and mathematics is a strong feature, with a good emphasis on the learning of new skills and knowledge in a wide variety of contexts. Pupils thoroughly enjoy exploring these.  The subject leaders of English and mathematics ensure that they scrutinise planning to check that all aspects of their subjects are covered. However, they do not have the opportunity to monitor sufficiently the quality of teaching and learning in these areas and so do not have a

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The leadership and management require improvement

clear understanding of how effective it is across the school.  The support from the local authority has not been sufficiently robust to support and challenge the school in making key improvements.  The governance of the school:  The governing body has a clear understanding of the school’s strengths and weaknesses. It is well organised and is becoming better informed about how well the school is working by looking at both school and national data. However, this good practice is not yet fully established, and governors are still developing their skills in being able to both support the school and provide a good level of challenge. Governors are receiving appropriate training for their role. While some monitoring is happening it is not focused enough, making it difficult for governors to evaluate the impact that they are having on helping the school to improve. The governing body manages the school’s budget well and, in particular, knows how the pupil

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The leadership and management require improvement

premium is being spent to ensure that it is appropriately targeted. However, given that achievement requires improvement, it has not ensured a close link between how well pupils do at school and teachers’ pay. The governing body ensures that both safeguarding procedures and the promotion of equal opportunities meet current statutory requirements. Both the governing body and school leaders promote positive relationships with parents and carers. The large majority are pleased with the school and would recommend it to other parents and carers.

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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 116276 Local authority Hampshire Inspection number 403292

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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 210 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Hilary Lyne Headteacher Trudie Cawthra Date of previous school inspection 30 October – 1November 2007 Telephone number 01590 623163 Fax number 01590 624395 Email address adminoffice@brockenhurst-primary.hants.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 whenand 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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