Little Eaton Primary School

Little Eaton Primary School Alfreton Road, Little Eaton, Derby, DE21 5AB

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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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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

This is a good school.  Pupils achieve well. The attainment of pupils in Years 5 and 6 has risen since the previous inspection. The progress made by pupils in most other year groups is steadily improving.  Most teaching is good and a few lessons are outstanding. Overall, teachers’ planning has improved and work is now set at the right level for pupils. Teachers are making good use of assessment and pupils’ targets, to involve pupils more fully in their learning.  Training has been used successfully to improve the quality of teaching.  Pupils get on well with each other and the staff. They are very happy in school, are considerate of each other and behave well. They enjoy learning. They feel safe and are well aware of how to avoid unnecessary risks. Their spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is good. Their attendance is consistently well above average.  The better ways in which leaders, including

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

governors, now check on how well the school and its pupils are performing have helped to drive improvement.

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It is not yet an outstanding school because

 The excellent features which exist in some teaching are not fully shared across the school. In a few lessons the work pupils carry out on their own is not planned carefully enough to make sure they work hard. These inconsistencies in teaching hold back pupils’ achievement.  Teachers do not provide pupils with enough good, short writing opportunities to help them benefit fully from teachers’ informative marking.  The impact of one-to-one and small-group teaching programmes has not yet been sharply analysed by leaders to ensure that they promote outstanding achievement for pupils.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors observed teaching in 15 lessons taught by 10 teachers. One of these lessons was observed together with the headteacher.  Samples of pupils’ work in a range of subjects, including English and mathematics, were analysed. An inspector listened to some Year 2 pupils reading.  Meetings were held with school staff, a group of pupils, the Chair and Vice-Chair of the governing body and a school improvement adviser from the local authority.  Inspectors took account of the 13 questionnaires completed by staff and the 47 responses to the online questionnaire (Parent View). Parents also communicated their views on the school to the inspection team by e-mail and through telephone calls. Parents’ responses to the school’s recent surveys were considered. An inspector spoke to a few parents on the school playground.  Inspectors looked at a range of evidence including: the work in pupils’ books; monitoring

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Information about this inspection

records; the school’s own data on pupils’ progress; minutes of governing body meetings; and policies, procedures and records relating to safeguarding, behaviour and attendance.

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Inspection team

Derek Aitken, Lead inspector Additional Inspector Amanda Simpson Additional Inspector

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Information about this school

 Little Eaton is an average-sized primary school. Most pupils live in the village, but some pupils live further away from the school.  Nearly all pupils are White British.  A well below average proportion of pupils is supported by the pupil premium which provides extra funding for certain groups of pupils, including those pupils known to be eligible for free school meals.  The proportion of disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs supported through school action is well below average. The proportion supported through school action plus or with a statement of special educational needs is also well below average  Children in the Early Years Foundation Stage are taught in two mixed-age classes along with some Year 1 pupils.  The school does not use alternative provision (lessons that take place regularly away from the school site).  The school meets the current government floor standards, which set the minimum expectations

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Information about this school

for pupils’ attainment and progress in English and mathematics.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Increase the proportion of outstanding teaching by making sure: – that all staff have good opportunities to observe and learn from the excellent practice which already exists in the school – that the work which pupils carry out on their own is always carefully planned so that the pace of learning does not drop and pupils work hard throughout the lesson.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Further improve pupils’ achievement by making sure:  that teachers provide pupils with good, short writing opportunities to enable pupils to respond immediately to teachers’ written comments and to build improvements into their next pieces of work  that leaders carefully analyse the impact of, and make any suitable adjustments to, support teaching programmes.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 The levels of skills and knowledge of children on entry to Reception vary. This year, for most children they are in line with those typically expected for their age. By the end of Year 2, pupils’ attainment is nearly always a little above average.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 In Key Stage 2, pupils do particularly well. The proportions of pupils who are working at the higher levels in reading, writing and mathematics are above average in each year-group. By Year 6, as is the case this year, pupils’ attainment is often well above average.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Pupils practise their speaking, listening and thinking skills well. More-able Reception children have original ideas which they are encouraged to share and this helps to drive learning for their class-mates.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Pupils acquire over time a secure grounding in phonics (the sounds that letters make). Year 2 pupils spell quickly and accurately. They understand the correct methods for sounding out tricky words. Most less-able pupils in this year group read confidently and use picture clues sensibly to explain the content of texts.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Pupils’ ability to solve complex mathematical problems has improved since the previous inspection. This is helping talented mathematicians to aim at and achieve Level 6 in the Year 6 national tests.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 There are no significant differences between the achievements of boys and girls. Disabled pupils and those pupils with special educational needs achieve well. The number of pupils known to be eligible for free school meals is small and they achieve as well as their class-mates. Their attainment in the Year 6 national tests in both 2011 and 2012 was considerably higher than that of similar pupils in other schools.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Most teaching is good and there are a few lessons with outstanding features. In these lessons teachers aim high, ask questions which make pupils think hard and check regularly and thoroughly on how well pupils understand the task or new idea.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teachers’ planning and use of assessment have improved since the previous inspection. Teachers explain clearly what pupils are expected to learn and often plan creative starter activities which capture pupils’ imagination and encourage a lively response. Teachers question pupils effectively and respond to pupils’ answers skilfully to extend their understanding.

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The quality of teaching is good

 In nearly all lessons teachers set work at the right level of difficulty for different groups of pupils. They make good use of oral assessment activities to engage pupils in their learning by helping them to analyse how well they are doing and to decide how they can improve their work.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teachers manage pupils well. Good relationships and pupils’ eagerness to learn make sure that in most lessons little time is wasted.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Staff quickly identify pupils who are at risk of falling behind or who could be stretched further in their learning. Various teaching programmes, including small-group work, meet their needs effectively.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Literacy and numeracy skills are taught well. Younger pupils enjoy using their phonics knowledge to read Egyptian place-names and to read questions to the ‘Pharaoh’. Older pupils enjoy researching new topics and write carefully constructed, interesting accounts about life in Victorian times. Year 4 pupils develop their thinking skills in mathematics well.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs learn well, because teaching assistants provide them with just the right amount of help to enable them to understand new ideas or solve problems. This was shown, for example in a Year 1 /2 lesson where these pupils discussed sequences and patterns to create different sound signals for King Lazybones’ servants.

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The quality of teaching is good

 In a few lessons, teachers do not capitalise on good starter activities by planning carefully enough for the tasks which pupils carry out on their own. This slows pupils’ progress and some pupils lose concentration.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teachers mark pupils’ work regularly and some marking and use of pupils’ targets in Years 5 and 6 are outstanding. However, pupils are not given enough short, focused opportunities to enable them to respond to their teachers’ advice and to build improvements into their next pieces of work.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Nearly all Reception children have settled well into the routines of the school and have developed good working relationships with staff and each other. Many pupils have well developed speaking skills and a broad general knowledge, and share information confidently and politely with adults, including visitors.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils have lively minds and respond eagerly when their imagination is fired by creative teaching approaches or when they have good opportunities in pair- or group-work to discuss new ideas. Older pupils show initiative, persevere when faced with demanding tasks and work hard, without having to be directly supervised by the teacher. On a few occasions, when pupils are less inspired by the teaching, their interest wanes and low-level chatter among some pupils slows learning.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils feel safe in school. They have a good awareness of how to stay safe, as they showed by walking and playing carefully in the playground during wintry weather. School councillors have researched road safety for the school’s travel plan. Leaders have identified the need to make pupils more aware of how to stay safe on the internet.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils show consideration for each other while moving through confined spaces in corridors and classrooms. This respectful behaviour and out-of-school activities, including clubs and the residential visit to Cornwall, foster warm relationships and pupils’ self-confidence and sense of well-being. School logs show that incidents of all forms of bullying and exclusions are rare.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils trust the adults with whom they work, and are very cooperative. Pupils know that staff listen to them and deal with any concerns they post anonymously to the ‘Safety Bear’. Older pupils have good opportunities to develop leadership skills through organising play sessions and selling fruit at break-times.  Pupils’ rates of attendance are consistently well above average.

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The leadership and management are good

 Leaders direct the work of the school successfully. Priority areas identified at the previous inspection have been tackled well.

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The leadership and management are good

 The school benefits from stable and experienced staff. Clear targets for teachers to improve their work make sure staff are accountable for pupils’ progress and set firm expectations for the development of teaching and leadership expertise. These targets are linked closely to whole- school priorities.

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The leadership and management are good

 Training and links with other schools have been used well to help teachers improve their skills, for example in lesson planning, the use of assessment and creative approaches to teaching. Staff receive constructive feedback from lesson observations. However, there are not enough good opportunities for other staff to improve their teaching by observing and learning from the excellent practice of their colleagues.

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The leadership and management are good

 A well organised tracking system and thorough monitoring procedures are now established. This has allowed leaders to keep a close eye on how well individual pupils and groups are doing. They have used this information to guide teaching and this is helping to speed up pupils’ progress.

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The leadership and management are good

 The extra support which pupils receive is generally effective in narrowing gaps, including for those pupils eligible for the pupil premium. This has not yet been monitored precisely by leaders or governors to make sure it has a full impact on pupils’ achievement.

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The leadership and management are good

 The way subjects are taught is well planned. Teachers teach lessons imaginatively and foster pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development successfully. This contributes considerably to pupils’ good achievement and, overall, promotes equal opportunities well.

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The leadership and management are good

 The local authority has worked effectively with the school to raise the quality of teaching.

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The leadership and management are good

 Statutory requirements for safeguarding are met.

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The leadership and management are good

 The governance of the school:  This has improved and is now good. Governors know through their committees and developing skills, how well the school is doing. They monitor teaching and learning accurately through visits to classes and sampling pupils’ work. They analyse pupil performance data competently and use this information effectively to challenge senior leaders. They are directly involved in setting targets for staff and have helped to ensure that the school’s overall effectiveness has improved since the previous inspection.

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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 112580 Local authority Derbyshire Inspection number 405403

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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 229 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Tom Parr Headteacher Richard Bateman Date of previous school inspection 2 February 2011 Telephone number 01332 831471 Fax number 01332 830546 Email address enquiries@littleeaton.derbyshire.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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