Ellistown Community Primary School

Ellistown Community Primary School Whitehill Road, Ellistown, Coalville, LE67 1EN

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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 and reach standards that are above average by the time they leave.  Children do well in the Early Years Foundation Stage and are well prepared for Key Stage 1.  Teaching is good. A small amount is outstanding.  Teachers and other adults assess and mark pupils’ work very thoroughly so that pupils know how well they are doing and how they can do even better.  Attendance is above average because there are very good systems in place to monitor it and encourage improvement.  Teachers and other adults know pupils very well. There is a wide range of help and support available if pupils have any difficulties with their learning.  Pupils enjoy school. They feel safe and behave well in lessons and around the school.  The headteacher and deputy headteacher are ambitious for the school and want it to do well. Improvements are being made rapidly.  Good leadership at all levels is making sure

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

that actions for improvement are applied consistently across that school.  Governors are very supportive of the school and are fully committed to its continuing development.

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It is not yet an outstanding school because

 The more-able pupils are not always given sufficiently hard work in lessons. Opportunities to extend more-able pupils earlier in lessons are sometimes missed so that their progress slows down.  Achievement in writing is not as strong as in other subjects. Although some pupils’ writing is good, this is not consistently found across the school. This is having an impact on progress by boys and those pupils in the early stages of Key Stage 2.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors observed 13 lessons, two of which were observed jointly with the headteacher and two of which were observed jointly with the deputy headteacher.  Meetings were held with pupils, representatives of the governing body and local authority, senior leaders and teachers in charge of areas of the school’s work.  Inspectors took account of the 22 responses on the online questionnaire (Parent View) and they spoke with parents and carers informally.  Inspectors observed the work of the school. They looked at a range of documentation, including information about pupils’ progress, and how the school sets targets for teachers to improve their work. They also looked at child protection and safeguarding procedures.  Inspectors considered the 19 responses to the staff questionnaire.

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Inspection team

Denise Newsome, Lead inspector Additional Inspector Kathleen Campbell Additional Inspector

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Information about this school

 Ellistown Community Primary School is smaller than the average-sized primary school.  A below-average proportion of pupils are eligible for the pupil premium, which provides additional funding for children in local authority care and pupils known to be eligible for free school meals.  The proportion of disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs who are supported at school action is below the national average, as is the proportion supported at school action plus or with a statement of special educational needs.  The proportion of pupils from minority ethnic backgrounds, including those who speak English as an additional language, is much lower than the national average.  All pupils are educated on site. The school does not use alternative provision to support any of its pupils.  The school meets the government’s current floor standards, which set the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress.

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Information about this school

 There have been a number of staffing changes since the last inspection, including the appointment of a new headteacher and deputy headteacher, both of whom took up their current posts in September 2012.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Raise pupils’ attainment by improving standards of writing so that it is consistently good or better, particularly at the start of Key Stage 2 and for boys, by: - sharing the existing good and better practice with all staff to drive up standards - consistently using themed work to enable pupils to further develop their writing skills - making sure that boys are engaged and excited by writing so that they are always focused on their writing tasks.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Increase the proportion of pupils reaching higher levels by: - making sure that the more-able pupils are consistently challenged to achieve their best - providing plenty of opportunities for pupils to do more challenging work in lessons, particularly early on, so that no time is wasted - setting more ambitious targets for the more-able pupils so that they aim even higher in the lesson.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Children start in the Reception classes with skills that are below those expected for this age. Early language and literacy skills are particularly weak. As a result of good progress, they move into Year 1 with understanding at the expected levels for their age. Recently, they have attained even higher levels as a result of improved teaching.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Pupils continue to make good progress in Key Stage 1 and through Key Stage 2 so that they leave school with levels of attainment that are above national averages in reading and mathematics.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 In mathematics, pupils achieve well and show a great enjoyment of the subject. At the end of Key Stage 2, they are starting to challenge themselves to do much harder mathematical work, with the result that they make good progress.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Writing is an area for development. There is some good practice in writing, especially in the way that themed learning is used to develop these skills. This is not consistent across the whole school, meaning that there is some slowing down of progress in writing, particularly at the start of Key Stage 2. Boys do not achieve as well as girls in writing by the end of Key Stage 2.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 All pupils have good awareness of phonics (the sounds that letters make) by the time they join Key Stage 1, and pupils achieved high scores in the 2012 Phonics screening test which checks their understanding at the end of Year 1.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Pupils read widely, and older pupils, particularly, show an enthusiasm for reading often. Many pupils report that they would rather read a book at home than watch television.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 The school keeps detailed checks on pupils’ progress and, if a pupil starts falling behind for any reason, teachers act quickly to put in extra help to enable them to catch up. Pupil premium money has been used effectively to establish some special groups to make sure that pupils who are eligible can make good progress. Historically, the attainment of pupils known to be eligible for free school meals has not been as high as other groups. However, this gap has been closed quickly because these pupils have been given extra support specific to their needs.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs do as well as their fellow pupils. This is because of the range of special help that the school provides to make sure that they do not fall behind and make as much progress as they should. This special help includes the use of other adults in the classroom to run small-group teaching.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teaching has improved since the previous inspection. Most of the teaching that was seen during the inspection was good, and one lesson outstanding, contributing to increased pupil progress.

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The quality of teaching is good

 The recent stability in staffing is starting to have an impact on the achievement of more-able pupils and boys’ writing. For example, in Year 2 work seen, expectations of writing are high for all pupils including the more-able. There is still some way to go before boys are doing as well as girls in writing and more-able pupils are all achieving as well as they should.  Teaching in the Early Years Foundation Stage is good because of the good-quality teamwork between the class teacher and the other adults in the classroom and the good balance of teacher-led and independent learning activities for the pupils.

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The quality of teaching is good

 In the good lessons, work is well planned and matched to pupils’ individual needs and abilities and there is a range of well-prepared activities available. These help generate an excitement in learning. For example, in a Year 5 mathematics lesson, pupils were enthusiastic about their learning and eagerly discussed estimates with their partner, showing good understanding of the concept.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teachers do not always provide harder work for the more-able pupils to help them make greater progress, particularly at the start of lessons.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Regular checks on pupils’ learning are a feature of the majority of lessons and teachers are skilled at adapting lessons to take account of times when pupils need a bit more time and help to understand something.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Good-quality marking and assessment are making sure that pupils make good progress, know what they have done well and know what they have to do to do even better.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Well-established routines in all classes mean that pupils know exactly what to expect and what they are expected to learn. They know that this is helping them do well.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 The vast majority of children work and play together very well. Playtimes and lunchtimes are good, harmonious, social occasions.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Behaviour in lessons is nearly always good and often outstanding. Pupils are keen and eager to learn and there are respectful and caring relationships between them, their teachers and other adults who work in classrooms.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 The well-established routines, good relationships and good use of praise in the Early Years Foundation Stage are producing confident, friendly children who respond immediately to instructions and are excited about their learning.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils are proud of their school and speak very positively about it. They care about each other and they are aiming high and want to succeed.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Incidents of bullying are very rare and pupils are confident that any bullying will be dealt with quickly and sorted out. They have good awareness of the different types of bullying, including cyber-bullying. There have been no incidents of racism in recent years. Pupils show a good awareness of how to stay safe, especially related to safe use of the internet.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Parents and carers value the school and its staff highly and are appreciative of the help and support they receive from the school. They are overwhelmingly positive about behaviour at the school.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Attendance is above average because of the tight and effective monitoring procedures that the school has put in place and because children enjoy coming to school.

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The leadership and management are good

 The newly appointed headteacher and deputy headteacher provide strong leadership. They have guided the school through a period of many staff changes impressively well. They are totally focused on raising attainment and have acted quickly to put strategies in place. It is clear that some of these strategies are already starting to have an impact.

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The leadership and management are good

 Leadership and management of the Early Years Foundation Stage are good and good teamwork, under the direct management of the deputy headteacher, has ensured improvement.

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The leadership and management are good

 Procedures to manage staff performance are very thorough and linked to the recently published Teacher Standards and school improvement priorities. The headteacher has acted decisively in tackling underperformance. Support provided by the school for newly qualified teachers is good.

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The leadership and management are good

 The checks carried out by senior leaders on the quality of teaching are accurate and thorough, and this helps them to decide the training that teachers need to further improve their practice.

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The leadership and management are good

 The school makes good provision for pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. There is a wide range of opportunities within the classroom and as part of extra activities, trips and residential visits which support pupils’ personal development.

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The leadership and management are good

 The way that subjects are organised into themed activities extends pupils’ literacy and numeracy skills well. Along with the well-established routines for the teaching of phonics and mathematics, these are also contributing to pupils’ personal development.

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The leadership and management are good

 Staff at the school involve parents in a variety of ways and the views of parents about the school are very positive.

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The leadership and management are good

 The local authority has provided good support. The school development adviser has visited the school each term to support the headteacher in her new role. A local authority review carried out in November 2012 was an accurate reflection of the school and its priorities for improvement.

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The leadership and management are good

 Safeguarding procedures meet government requirements. Policies on child protection and safeguarding, including the safer recruitment of staff, are all up to date and make sure that pupils are safe and cared for well.

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The leadership and management are good

 Pupils are all given opportunities to be successful, regardless of their particular circumstances. For example, pupil premium funding has enabled some children to have access to experiences such as theatre trips.

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The leadership and management are good

 The governance of the school:  The governing body has a number of relatively new members. Governors are very committed to the school, they know it well and are very supportive of the headteacher and her team. Governors have all been allocated an aspect of the school development plan which they are responsible for monitoring, and there have been regular visits by governors recently to check on the progress of identified actions. This enables governors to gather and share information about the quality of teaching and data about pupils’ progress. Governors’ support for the headteacher in asking searching questions about how teachers are rewarded for good performance and how underperformance is tackled have been important in securing improvements. Pupil premium funding has been spent wisely, on extra support and activities to help eligible pupils to catch up, and governors have approved all the expenditure.

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The leadership and management are good

Governors attend relevant training on, for example, headteacher performance management.

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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 119914 Local authority Leicestershire Inspection number 401885

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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 235 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Anne Saunders Headteacher Keily Stretton Date of previous school inspection 1 March 2010 Telephone number 01530 260301 Fax number 01530 262828 Email address adm13@ellistown.leics.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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