Bowmandale Primary School

Bowmandale Primary School Bowmandale, Barton-upon-Humber, DN18 5EE

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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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This is a good school because

 Pupils achieve well. They make good progress and reach just above average levels of attainment by the end of Year 6.  The school successfully supports those pupils in receipt of the pupil premium and, as a result, they make good progress and achieve as well as their classmates.  Teaching is typically good and there are some examples of outstanding teaching. Very positive relationships with pupils ensure that they want to please their teachers and they are keen to do well.  Teachers mark work to a high standard. This ensures that pupils know what they need to do to improve, and how to reach their targets.  Behaviour is good; pupils enjoy school and attend well.  The headteacher and all staff are ambitious for the school and want it to do well. Good teamwork is ensuring that improvements are being driven through.

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It is not yet an outstanding school because

 In the Early Years Foundation Stage, the outdoor area does not provide sufficient opportunity for children to learn a variety of skills. The way they are taught limits their independence.  The most-able learners are not always fully challenged in lessons.  Pupils do not always have enough opportunity to take responsibility for their own learning.  Achievement in writing is not as strong as in other subjects. Although some teaching of writing is excellent, this good practice is not yet shared across the school.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors observed 17 lessons or part lessons taught by teachers. The headteacher accompanied the lead inspector on visits to lessons.  Meetings were held with pupils, staff and one representative from the local authority, and a phone call was made to the Chair of the Governing Body.  Inspectors took account of the 22 responses to the online Parent View survey and to the school’s latest questionnaire for parents. They also took into account the 17 responses to the staff questionnaire.  Inspectors observed the school’s work and examined a range of documents, including the school’s own records of pupils’ progress and attainment, monitoring documents, records relating to the performance management of staff and those relating to behaviour, safeguarding and attendance.

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Inspection team

Glynis Bradley-Peat, Lead inspector Additional Inspector Jan Lomas Additional Inspector Mark Randall Additional Inspector

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Information about this school

 This is an average-sized primary school.  The proportion of pupils known to be eligible for the pupil premium , which is additional funding given for looked after children, pupils known to be eligible for free school meals and children of service families, is below the national average.  A below-average proportion of disabled pupils and those with special educational needs are supported through school action. The proportion of pupils supported through school action plus or with a statement of special educational needs is average.  Most pupils are White British. The proportions of pupils from minority ethnic groups or who speak English as an additional language are much lower than the national average.  The school meets the government’s current floor standards, which set the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress.  The registered childcare that shares the school site is managed privately and is inspected

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Information about this school

separately.  The school does not make use of any alternative provision for its pupils.  There is a new headteacher who joined the school in September 2012.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve the quality of the provision in the Early Years Foundation Stage by:  ensuring that the outdoor area promotes good progress in all areas of learning  providing well-structured tasks and activities which encourage children to become independent learners.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve the teaching of writing by sharing the excellent practice in the school with all staff to drive up standards.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve the quality of teaching so that a greater proportion becomes outstanding by ensuring that:  the most-able learners are consistently challenged to achieve their best through matching work exactly to their needs  pupils’ independence is fostered and they are encouraged to take more responsibility for their own learning.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Children start in the Early Years Foundation Stage with skills which are a little below those expected for their age. During their time in the Reception classes children make expected progress but not enough of them make good progress. This is because they do not have sufficient opportunity to develop independence or to learn and practise a variety of skills in the outdoor area. In addition, there are insufficient reading books available to ensure that children are always challenged at the right level.  Results at the end of Key Stage 1 are broadly average overall, although below average in writing. By the time pupils reach Year 6, standards are just above average. This represents good progress. Pupils do not achieve as well in writing as they do in reading and mathematics.  The school’s recent focus on strengthening staff’s confidence in teaching the links between letters and the sounds they make (phonics), is having a positive impact. Pupils confidently use

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The achievement of pupils is good

their skills to tackle unknown words and older pupils enjoy a range of books. Standards in writing are beginning to rise but there is still room for further improvement.  In a very well taught writing lesson in Year 2 pupils reached high standards. Pupils’ writing about ‘The Snowman’ was excellent. They used a variety of exciting adjectives, wrote well-constructed sentences and some were able to use similes effectively.  Sometimes some of the most-able pupils do not achieve quite as well as they could because the teaching does not always challenge them well enough. From time to time they repeat work they can already do rather than moving on to something more difficult. This restricts their progress towards the higher levels of attainment.  Pupil premium funding is spent effectively on one-to-one support and small group work which has a good impact on the achievement of this group. Gaps between their achievement and that

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The achievement of pupils is good

of other pupils are negligible.  Disabled pupils and those with special educational needs benefit from the good support provided by teaching assistants. Consequently, they make good progress and their attainment is better than similar pupils nationally.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teaching has improved since the previous inspection. Closer monitoring by the new headteacher has resulted in training which has built the confidence of staff. Pupils’ good progress is supported by a strong team of teachers and teaching assistants.  Teachers work hard to provide pupils with a variety of activities to motivate them in their learning. Lessons are well-planned and work is generally well matched to the needs of most pupils, although sometimes the most-able are not always provided with sufficiently difficult work.  Teachers’ subject knowledge is good and they are keen to pass this on to the pupils. Sometimes, however, teachers talk for too long in lessons and this tends to limit the amount of time pupils have to tackle work independently or to learn for themselves.  Pupils benefit from the different approaches used by their teachers to make lessons fun and enjoyable. Teaching in Year 6 mathematics promoted enjoyment through games, quick-fire

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The quality of teaching is good

competitive questioning and, in one class, good open-ended problem-solving. Pupils were made to think about the relevance of their work and how they could apply what they had learnt to new lines of enquiry.  Knowledgeable teaching assistants support pupils well and promote good achievement. Disabled pupils and those with special educational needs, including those with behavioural and emotional difficulties, benefit from the variety of approaches used to help them.  The systematic teaching of phonics has contributed well to the progress pupils make in their reading but occasionally, pupils who do not need to use phonics to read are left marking time. Similarly, the teaching of writing is not always strong enough to drive up standards rapidly.  Excellent marking and the effective use of success criteria ensure that pupils know what they need to do to achieve well.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils thoroughly enjoy school and behaviour is typically good. Pupils attend regularly and clearly delight in their learning. Attendance figures are above average. The school is a calm and orderly community where exclusions are rare.  Pupils universally say that they feel safe in school. They clearly state that teachers ‘make us feel safe’ and they feel that they ‘can go to any adults and know that they will help us’. Pupils have a very good understanding of e-safety and know the potential dangers of the internet.  Behaviour in almost all lessons observed was good. Pupils listen well to their teachers and to each other. Warm relationships between all staff and pupils and the effective use of praise serve to create a friendly working environment.  Clear rewards and sanctions recently introduced by the new headteacher have had a significant impact on improving behaviour. Pupils are clear about the behaviour system and enjoy being

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

part of the ‘headteacher’s tea party’ as a reward for good behaviour.  Information about behaviour is clear and detailed and shows that few pupils receive sanctions for poor behaviour. Record-keeping is detailed and includes evidence of the involvement of other agencies to support individuals to improve their behaviour. One boy spoke very positively about the way the school had helped him to improve his behaviour.  Pupils say that bullying is rare. If it does occur, pupils are unanimous that it is dealt with swiftly and effectively. They show a clear understanding of what constitutes bullying saying that it is ‘constantly hurting people emotionally or physically’. Procedures to investigate and address bullying are highly effective. Pupils talk freely about the school’s strategies to teach them about anti-bullying, including assemblies and creating posters for ‘anti-bullying week’.  Pupils are self-disciplined. Despite all the exciting parties and concerts happening in the school

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

at this time of the year, pupils continued to work hard and apply themselves.

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The leadership and management are good

 The new headteacher has set a clear direction for the further improvement of the school. She and her leadership team are already working together very effectively and have an accurate view of the priorities for improvement which form the basis of the school improvement plan. It is a useful and comprehensive document with clear success criteria, responsibilities and timeframes.  Already, the headteacher has worked successfully to improve practice in the Early Years Foundation Stage and her help and support has been valued. There is now a good understanding of how young children learn best and a focus on developing good basic skills. However, there has not yet been time for this to become embedded, particularly in relation to the use of the outdoors and the encouragement of children’s independence.  Teaching is good and improving because of the headteacher’s rapid and timely actions to eradicate inadequate teaching. She has established rigorous systems for checking the quality of

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The leadership and management are good

teaching. As a result of her monitoring this term, she has gained a very clear and accurate overview of the strengths and weaknesses in teaching across the school. She has already taken action to support teaching which has resulted in improved performance. Decisions about teachers’ pay are firmly based on an evaluation of the quality of their work.  The management of performance is rigorous. Staff are being held to account robustly for the progress their pupils make. Training for staff is effective and focused on the areas identified in the school development plan.  The analysis of the school data ensures that the progress of different groups of pupils is tracked effectively. Disabled pupils and those with special educational needs are supported well as a result. Those pupils in receipt of the pupil premium grant achieve well because the school ensures that their needs are well met.  Subject leaders have a clear understanding of the strengths and weaknesses in their areas and

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The leadership and management are good

have formulated clear action plans. The new literacy leader is a highly effective practitioner but the school has yet to exploit existing skills in the teaching of writing as a model for other teachers, to support additional improvements in this area.  The curriculum enables pupils to make good progress and contributes well to their spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. It is continually reviewed so that it can continue to evolve. Currently leaders are focusing on linking subjects together more closely to make it more flexible. Pupils have good opportunities to visit places of interest and to use the local area to develop expertise, for example in geography. A significant number of pupils play musical instruments and music is a strength of the curriculum.  The school is working well with the local authority and regular support and advice are assisting in promoting improvements in attainment and rates of progress, particularly in writing.

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The leadership and management are good

 The schools’ arrangements for safeguarding meet requirements.  The governance of the school:  The governing body has clear ambition and drive for school improvement and understands the focus of the headteacher’s work is, rightly, upon improving teaching and achievement. With the information they receive from the headteacher they are increasingly able to provide challenge and ask probing questions. Their understanding of performance data is improving and they know how the pupil premium money is spent and that it is having a positive impact on achievement. The governing body understands the link between teachers’ pay and performance. They manage resources and finances adequately.

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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 117812 Local authority North Lincolnshire Inspection number 405723

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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 4−11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 270 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Keith Robinson Headteacher Lorraine Bontoft Date of previous school inspection 12 October 2010 Telephone number 01652 633633 Fax number 01652 635539 Email address admin.bowmandale@northlincs.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.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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