Trafalgar Junior School

Trafalgar Junior School Elmsleigh Road, Twickenham, Middlesex, TW2 5EG

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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

 Since the previous inspection many aspects of the school have improved.  Leaders at all levels, including governors and in particular the headteacher, have rapidly transformed this school into a good one, with the capacity to improve still further.  As a result of effective teaching, pupils make good progress so that standards at the end of Key Stage 2 are above average in reading, writing and mathematics.  Attendance is above average.  Pupils’ behaviour and attitudes are good and this contributes strongly to the good learning in lessons. Pupils say they feel safe, behave well and are aware of the different types of bullying.  The stimulating range of subjects and activities outside of the classroom make a very significant contribution to pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development.  The school works well with the community and parents and carers hold the school in high regard.  School leaders and governors are ambitious

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This is a good school

that pupils should achieve well both in their studies and in their personal development. Much is expected of both staff and pupils.

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It is not yet an outstanding school because

 There is too little outstanding teaching so not enough pupils make the fastest possible progress.  Sometimes teachers’ marking does not show pupils clearly enough how to improve their work.  Not all middle leaders are fully involved in checking the quality of teaching. This hinders their drive to bring about further improvement.  There are too few opportunities for pupils to respond to searching questions and practise their literacy and numeracy skills across the different subjects.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors visited 18 lessons, most of which were observed jointly with senior leaders.  Informal discussions were held with groups of pupils. Inspectors also listened to pupils read.  Inspectors took account of the submissions to the online Parent View survey as well as 33 questionnaires returned by members of staff.  Meetings were held with the Chair of the Governing Body and a representative from the local authority, the headteacher, senior staff and middle leaders.  Inspectors evaluated documentation, including information on the pupils’ current progress, the curriculum and development plans, as well as procedures and records on safeguarding, behaviour and attendance.

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Inspection team

David Scott, Lead inspector Additional inspector Maura Docherty Additional inspector Kate Robertson Additional inspector

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Information about this school

 The school is larger than most primary schools.  The majority of pupils are of White British heritage. An above average proportion of pupils speak English as an additional language but few are at the early stages of learning English.  The proportion of disabled pupils and those with special educational needs who are supported at school action and at school action plus is below average, as is the proportion of those pupils with a statement of special educational needs.  The proportion of pupils known to be eligible for the pupil premium for whom the school receives additional income is below average.  The school meets the government’s current floor standards, which set the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress.  The school uses no alternative provision.  A daily breakfast club is provided.  The school was recently awarded the Geography Quality Mark.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve further the rate of pupils’ progress through increasing the proportion of outstanding teaching by:  ensuring that teachers’ marking consistently makes clear to pupils how they can improve their work  involving pupils more in lessons through providing opportunities to answer searching questions.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Strengthen the impact of leadership and management by:  developing further the skills of middle leaders so that they contribute fully to improving the quality of teaching  increasing opportunities for pupils to practise their literacy and numeracy skills in all subjects.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Pupils start school with a range of skills that are broadly average. Progress in reading, writing and mathematics has rapidly improved over the last two years, particularly so for the more able. By the end of Year 6 pupils’ attainment is well above average and they achieve well.  Standards of handwriting and presentation, which had been variable, are now good, especially in Years 5 and 6. This is because of a strong focus on teaching handwriting and the higher expectations of teachers than at the time of the previous inspection.  Pupils read widely and enthusiastically and develop a real love of reading so that by the end of Year 6 standards in reading are well above average. The school has been relentless in promoting ‘reading for pleasure’ which enables pupils to read with fluency, expression and to these standards.  Relationships between teachers and pupils are positive and make a strong contribution to pupils’

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The achievement of pupils is good

learning. For example, in a Year 5 literacy lesson the teacher drew upon her own personal experience of Christmas Day. Here the children were captivated by her storytelling skills that captured the magic and mystery of Christmas so well that a real ‘buzz’ was created in their discussion. This encouraged them to choose imaginative language to open sentences and catch the listeners’ interest.  Disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs, together with those few new to learning English, make good progress relative to their starting points. Some make outstanding progress. This is because these pupils are exceptionally well supported by effective teaching programmes delivered by well-trained staff. As a result, gaps between what they and others can do are closing fast.  Pupils enjoy mathematics, particularly when they have real-life problems to solve. This was observed in a Year 6 lesson where pupils were required to compile the invoices for the Trafalgar

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The achievement of pupils is good

Brick Company. Here pupils mentally calculated the number and cost of bricks required for certain building projects. As a result of the teacher’s careful planning pupils became fascinated by their mathematics task giving some highly imaginative responses.  Pupils supported by the additional funds derived from the pupil premium grant make more than expected progress. This is as a result of careful targeting of this additional resource towards improving performance in literacy and numeracy. In Year 6, the gap for this group narrowed at a faster rate, particularly for girls in numeracy, than that for their peers nationally.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teachers use imaginative methods to make lessons interesting and inspire pupils to work hard. For example, in a Year 6 gymnastics lesson pupils keenly choreographed a dance sequence. Building on their previous knowledge and working closely as a team they put together a highly imaginative sequence involving jumps, rolls and holding poses. Pupils reviewed each other’s performance and made astute suggestions for improvement, and as a result of the teacher’s skilled demonstrations and high expectations, achievement was excellent.  Teaching is not yet outstanding overall. Although teachers ask questions to check pupils’ understanding, they do not consistently enable pupils to answer searching questions. Also, pupils are occasionally unclear about what they are required to learn in some lessons.  Teachers use information on pupils’ progress increasingly well to plan lessons that meet the needs of all learners. As a result, pupils’ attitudes to learning are very positive and they behave

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The quality of teaching is good

well. Music, sport, art and drama are particular strengths.  Pupils’ work is generally well marked, with comments on how well they have done and what they need to improve. However, there are some examples where the action for improvement is not made clear.  Teachers review pupils’ learning to adapt the lesson to meet pupils’ learning needs. This means that most pupils, including disabled pupils, those with special educational needs and those new to learning English, make good progress with some making even faster progress.  Teachers are well supported by a strong and well-qualified team of teaching assistants who provide highly effective help for groups of pupils and individuals within classes.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils are friendly and polite to adults and each other and behave well in lessons because they are interested in what they are learning. In the playground they are similarly considerate and play well together.  The school has an effective behaviour policy which is consistently and fairly applied. As a result, relationships between adults and pupils are warm, supportive and based on mutual liking and respect.  The few pupils who find it hard to behave well are exceptionally well supported. For example, systems are well established to deal with isolated incidents of challenging behaviour in lessons without disrupting the learning of others.  Incidents of bullying are rare and are always dealt with swiftly and effectively. Pupils are aware of different forms of bullying, including cyber-bullying and extreme behaviour such as racism. They feel comfortable about confiding in adults when things go wrong and demonstrate a well-

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

developed understanding of what is right and wrong.  Pupils told inspectors that they enjoy coming to school and feel safe and well cared for. In the online questionnaire, parents and carers agree that their children are happy, well behaved and feel safe in school. This positive attitude is reflected in the continued improvement in attendance, which is currently above the national average.

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The leadership and management are good

 The vision of the headteacher and his determination to make the school a success is the driving force behind its improvement. School leaders have created a culture of high expectation and a relentless drive to accelerate pupils’ progress. Teamwork is strong and staff morale is high. This has been a key contributory factor to redressing securely a history of underachievement. Highly effective leadership has successfully and rapidly tackled past inadequacies in teaching and raised the standard of pupils’ achievement. Consequently, the school demonstrates a strong capacity to continue on its improvement journey.  There are high expectations for improving the quality of teaching. The school’s monitoring of the quality of teaching involves informal classroom visits and formal lesson observations. The senior team currently leads this process, but it does not involve all subject leaders.  As a result of robust arrangements for managing teachers’ performance, only those teachers

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The leadership and management are good

who meet the required high standards, as judged by senior leaders, are able to move up the salary scale. Weaknesses in teaching have been effectively addressed and senior leaders have not shied away from holding difficult conversations with teachers.  Basic skills are taught well in literacy and numeracy lessons. Nevertheless, opportunities to practise and consolidate these skills in other subject areas are less well developed.  The local authority provides effective and proportionate support, particularly since the school was judged satisfactory. Regular monitoring and specific training, for example in using and understanding information on pupils’ progress, have been planned carefully. This has reduced recently to reflect the growing ability of the school to operate without external help.  The school works exceptionally well with parents and carers and the local community. A particular strength is the effective way in which parents and carers have been encouraged to

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The leadership and management are good

become more interested in their children’s education. For example, strategies such as reading projects and guidance on how parents and carers can support their child’s learning have been developed to encourage closer home/school links.  There is strong provision for pupils to prepare for life in the United Kingdom and a global society, because leaders have an effective understanding of their own community and the different faiths, ethnicities and cultures within it. The school’s international links are expanding and promote positive awareness of global issues, for example through collecting Christmas boxes for children in Eastern Europe, and forming partnerships with schools in India and Spain.  Safeguarding procedures are securely in place, meet statutory requirements and are rigorously applied. Leaders effectively promote equality of opportunity for all members of the school and are proactive in tackling all forms of discrimination.

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The leadership and management are good

 The governance of the school:  The governing body provides good support and challenge for the headteacher who ensures that the performance and salary progression of staff are monitored effectively. Governors take well-considered action when interventions are necessary. They receive reports from the headteacher and the local authority’s adviser and ask probing questions so that they fully understand the issues facing the school, particularly information on pupils’ progress and how it compares with similar settings. Through visits and interviews with staff they are well informed about the quality of teaching. Members of the governing body have a good overview of the school’s resources to drive its priorities forward. This includes directing appropriate funds for pupils attracting the pupil premium to make sure that individual learners are supported and helped in lessons. Full regard is given to the well-being and safety of pupils. The Chair of the

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The leadership and management are good

Governing Body and seven members have undertaken safer recruitment training. The governing body has made available additional funds to support the ‘creative curriculum’ and was instrumental in the planning and execution of the highly successful ‘Cultural Olympiad’.

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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 102900 Local authority Richmond upon Thames Inspection number 404847

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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 337 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Dean Rogers Headteacher Neil Meehan Date of previous school inspection 5−6 May 2011 Telephone number 020 8894 1606 Fax number 020 8893 3042 Email address info@trafalgar-jun.richmond.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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