Tadcaster East Community Primary School

Tadcaster East Community Primary School Grange Avenue, Tadcaster, North Yorkshire, LS24 8AN

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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 Requires improvement 3

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

 While children make fast progress in the Nursery and Reception classes, their progress is uneven between Year 1 and Year 6. By the time pupils leave the school therefore, some have not made as much progress as they should.  The quality of teaching varies too much from class to class. In some classes, pupils make good progress because they know exactly what they should do to make sure their work is of the highest quality. In other classes, teachers talk for too long or pupils are guided too much by teachers and teaching assistants so have less opportunity to work by themselves.  School leaders and subject leaders do not check on the school’s work and the quality of teaching well enough. This means that there are still some weaknesses in the quality of teaching.  School leaders do not use assessment information well enough to make sure pupils reach their targets over time or that pupils’ targets are adjusted regularly. Over time, this

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

means some pupils could be pushed to make more progress.  The governing body does not yet challenge the school well enough to make sure it progresses at a faster rate to become good overall.

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The school has the following strengths

 Children in the Nursery and Reception classes make good and sometimes outstanding progress from their starting points because of the high-quality teaching and support they receive.  Pupils behave well, have good manners and are considerate to each other and to adults both in lessons and during lunchtime and playtimes.  There are good opportunities for pupils to learn English and mathematics through other subjects, such as history and science.  Reading is a strength in the school and has improved since the last inspection. Pupils read widely and often because teachers give pupils opportunities to become enthusiastic about certain topics, such as science or nature.

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Information about this inspection

 The inspector observed five lessons of which two were joint observations with the headteacher. Additionally, pupils were heard reading.  The inspector spoke with subject leaders, pupils, a representative from the local authority and the Chair of the Governing Body.  The inspector took account of the 22 responses to the online questionnaire (Parent View) in planning the inspection. The lead inspector received one letter from a parent.  The inspector scrutinised a number of documents including school improvement plans, the tracking of pupils’ progress and records relating to behaviour, attendance and safeguarding.

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Inspection team

Robert Jones, Lead inspector Additional Inspector

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Information about this school

 This is smaller than the average-sized primary school.  A below average proportion of pupils is eligible for the pupil premium, which provides additional funding for pupils in local authority care, pupils known to be eligible for free school meals and for children from service families.  The proportion of pupils with special educational needs and supported through school action is average.  The proportion of pupils supported through school action plus or with a statement of special educational needs is average.  The majority of pupils are of White British heritage.  In 2012, the school met the government’s current floor standards, which set the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress in English and mathematics.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve the quality of teaching so that it is consistently good and that pupils make good progress in all subjects by:  ensuring teachers talk less in lessons and make sure that pupils are actively involved in learning through group work and discussions, with opportunities to talk and solve problems  giving pupils clear steps to success in lessons that focus on what they are going to learn rather than what they are going to do  using teaching assistants more flexibly so that they do not give too much help to pupils that prevents them from becoming confident learners who can work on their own  ensuring all teachers learn from the excellent examples of teaching that exist in the school.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 By May 2013, improve how leaders at all levels check on the school’s work and set challenging targets for pupils by:  reviewing the roles of senior leaders so each takes on the responsibility for improving the quality of teaching and setting targets for pupils  developing the skills of subject leaders so they can make checks on the quality of teaching more regularly and rigorously  improving the systems for setting and adjusting targets, tracking pupils’ progress between Year 1 and Year 6 and for checking that pupils make good progress over time.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Ensure that the governing body challenges and supports the school more rigorously on matters relating to pupils’ progress, how pupil premium funding is used and the management of teachers’ performance.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 An external review of governance should be undertaken in order to assess how this aspect of leadership and management may be improved.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 Children enter the Nursery class with skills that vary from year to year but which are generally below those expected of their age, particularly in communication, language and literacy.  During their time in Nursery and Reception they make good and sometimes outstanding progress. This is because their progress is carefully tracked and there are ample opportunities for children to practise their speaking skills as they learn through playing both indoors and outdoors.  Between Year 1 and Year 6, pupils’ progress slows down because, while pupils make good progress in some classes, their progress is slower in others. This means that their progress is uneven between Year 1 and Year 6.  Disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs make as much progress as their peers. In lessons they are sometimes too reliant on teaching assistants to solve problems for them, which lead to some not making as much progress as they should.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 The school has not made suitable checks on the progress of pupils who are eligible for the pupil premium over time. Inspection evidence shows that these pupils, including those known to be eligible for free school meals, make as much progress as their peers but that their attainment is below average, particularly in writing.  Pupils’ achievement in reading is good. This is because the school has put much effort into ensuring pupils become enthusiastic about reading. Moreover, rewards are linked to pupils’ reading such as the ‘reading raffle’ which encourage pupils to read.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 The quality of teaching varies too much across the school and some requires improvement. This is a key reason why the progress of pupils over time is uneven.  Where the quality of teaching is not yet good, teachers tend to talk too much in giving overly long instructions to pupils. This prevents pupils from being involved in their own learning through discussions and opportunities to talk with each other; to solve problems themselves and to work on their own.  Pupils are given a series of 'steps to success' that focus on what they are going to learn in a lesson. Where these are most effective, pupils know what they must do to make sure their work is successful. Where these steps are not effective they are a simple list of tasks to complete that do not improve pupils’ skills, knowledge or understanding.  In some classes, teaching assistants give too much help to pupils, especially those with special

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

educational needs. This prevents pupils from finding out things for themselves and becoming confident, independent learners.  In the Nursery and Reception classes, meticulous record keeping enables adults to precisely target children’s weaknesses so that they are able to make good and sometimes outstanding progress. Adults question children well so that they use full sentences to respond, improving their speech and language quickly during their two years in the setting.  There are pockets of inspirational teaching in the school which are not yet shared well enough across the school so teachers can learn from one another. In one lesson, a teacher had recreated the sounds and cramped conditions of an air raid shelter to inspire pupils to write creatively. The quality of work that followed was extremely high and pupils’ behaviour was impeccable.  The quality of feedback that pupils receive on their work is often good. Pupils read the helpful

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

comments their teachers write and respond to them.  Lessons which help pupils to make links between subjects and to consider the feelings of others help to develop their spiritual, moral, social and cultural awareness. During the inspection, an assembly helped pupils to consider what talents they might possess and how they should appreciate each other’s talents.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 In lessons and around the school, pupils are well mannered to adults and to each other. Most behaviour is good.  They are well aware of the harm that can be caused by bullying and say that there is always a caring adult to turn to if it occurs. However, pupils are sometimes a little vague about what they should do if faced with any instances of bullying from mobile phones or on social networking sites on the internet.  Some parents who responded to the online Parent View expressed concern about pupils’ behaviour in one class. This was thoroughly investigated by the inspector who found that, while there had been some poor behaviour, overall they were isolated incidents that had not adversely affected behaviour and learning in this class.  Where poor behaviour does occasionally happen, the school keeps a log of how these incidents have been dealt with and always works effectively with parents to ensure such incidents are kept

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

to a minimum.  In lessons, pupils apply themselves well to their work and concentrate hard.  Attendance is average overall and pupils are generally punctual to school in the morning.

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The leadership and management requires improvement

 Since the last inspection, subject leaders have had more involvement in checking the quality of teaching, although more remains to be done to improve their skills so that the impact of their checks results in better teaching right across the school.  Senior leaders do not share their workload and do not all take on a substantial responsibility for improving the quality of teaching and for setting targets for pupils across the school.  Target-setting and tracking systems are weak. As a result, school leaders are not able to ensure all pupils can make good progress. Pupils’ progress is only measured from one year to the next rather than over a longer period of time which means it is not as precise or detailed as it might be. This leads to targets sometimes being set that are not challenging enough or underachievement is not identified quickly enough so that rapid action can be taken to address it.

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The leadership and management requires improvement

 The curriculum is improving. In the Early Years Foundation Stage it is excellent because children’s interests are taken into account when planning activities and the outdoor area enhances children’s learning well.  There are an increasing number of visits and visitors to the school to inspire pupils to write. This is having a good impact on the quality of writing but this varies between classes.  Arrangements to improve the performance of teachers are in place but teachers’ targets are not always linked to improving the quality of their teaching as sharply as they could be.  The school has improved its links with parents. In the Early Years Foundation Stage, the very close links with parents and the way they contribute to children’s assessments are a significant factor in children making good and sometimes outstanding progress.  Procedures for child protection and the safeguarding of pupils meet current government

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The leadership and management requires improvement

requirements.  Equal opportunities are promoted by ensuring that no pupils are discriminated against and that any instances of bullying or harassment are tackled decisively. However, the school’s systems do not yet ensure the progress of different groups is checked well enough.  The local authority makes termly visits to the school to check on the quality of development plans and on the quality of teaching across the school.  The governance of the school:  The governing body receives regular updates on pupils’ progress. However, the quality of this information has not been sufficiently detailed to enable its members to challenge school leaders on the progress pupils make over time. Moreover, members have limited understanding of how data relate to the school’s performance. They have some understanding of the quality of teaching and how some teachers have been supported to improve their practice. The governing body does not yet make checks on the impact of pupil premium

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The leadership and management requires improvement

spending or on the management of teachers’ performance and how this is linked to rewards or their salary progression. The governing body has recently been successful in promoting better links with parents.

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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 121446 Local authority North Yorkshire Inspection number 406029

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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 3–11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 141 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Lindsay Britton Headteacher Donna Bedford Date of previous school inspection 8 December 2010 Telephone number 01937 833795 Fax number 01937 833404 Email address admin@tadcastereast.n-yorks.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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