Micheldever CofE Primary School

Micheldever C of E Primary School Church Street, Micheldever, Hampshire, SO21 3DB

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Inspection dates 31 January – 1 February 2013

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Overall effectiveness

Previous inspection: Good 2 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.  School leaders, including governors, have created a culture of high expectations for staff and pupils. Pupils work hard and reach standards that are above average in English and mathematics by the end of Year 6.  Pupils achieve well, regardless of their starting points, reflecting the strong inclusive ethos of the school.  Teaching is consistently good with an increasing proportion that is outstanding. Teaching is usually lively with imaginative activities that meet the needs of pupils.  Pupils behave well and they feel safe in school. This is because they are confident that adults deal quickly with any incidents that may occasionally arise.  Pupils have positive attitudes towards school. They enjoy working and playing alongside each other and show respect and understanding towards those from backgrounds different from their own.  The curriculum effectively promotes pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

development by offering an extensive range of experiences both in school and outside school.  Teamwork among all staff is good and morale is high. School leaders and governors have successfully addressed the issues from the previous inspection demonstrating that they have the capacity to improve further.

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It is not yet an outstanding school because:

 Most teaching is good rather than outstanding. This is because there are too few planned opportunities for pupils to learn independently.  Teachers do not make enough use of visual resources or books to support pupils’ learning in the classroom.  Occasionally, teachers do not provide opportunities for pupils to respond to their marking.

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Information about this inspection

 The inspector observed eight lessons or parts of lessons, most of which were observed jointly with senior leaders. She looked at work in pupils’ books and listened to them read.  Meetings were held with senior leaders, governors and pupils. A discussion was held by telephone with a representative from the local authority.  The inspector looked at a number of documents including school development plans, minutes from governors’ meetings, pupils’ assessment and tracking information and arrangements for safeguarding pupils.  The views of parents and carers were considered through the 26 responses to the online Parent View questionnaire.

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Inspection team

Joy Considine, Lead inspector Additional inspector

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Information about this school

 The school is smaller than most primary schools and pupils are taught in mixed-age classes.  Most pupils are of White British heritage. Very few pupils speak English as an additional language.  The proportion of pupils eligible for pupil premium funding is lower than usual and in the last academic year there was none in Year 6. This is additional funding to support those pupils who are eligible for free school meals, are in local authority care or who are from service families.  The proportion of disabled pupils or those who have special educational needs supported through school action is broadly average. The proportion of pupils who are supported at school action plus or with a statement of special educational needs is broadly average.  The school meets the government’s floor standards, which set out the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress.  The school does not use any additional provision to support its pupils.

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Information about this school

 There have been several changes to the staff team since the previous inspection, including the headteacher who joined the school in September 2008.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve the quality of teaching so that a higher proportion is outstanding by: – providing pupils with more opportunities to learn and record their work independently – making better use of good quality books and visual images to support pupils’ learning and understanding – ensuring that all pupils consistently respond to teachers’ comments by improving and correcting their work.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Pupils work hard and make good progress so that by the end of Year 6, their attainment in English and mathematics is above average.  Disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs make good progress because teachers use assessment information, including the Year 1 phonics screening check, to identify their needs. Skilled teaching assistants and teachers work with these pupils using specific programmes to help them overcome their difficulties. Pupils known to be eligible for pupil premium funding make good progress, achieving average points scores (awarded for test results) that are in line with those of their classmates. This is shown in the latest assessment information held by the school and in the sample of pupils’ books seen during the inspection.  The structured approach to teaching letters and sounds (phonics) helps pupils to read unfamiliar words. By the end of Year 2, many read independently and comment on their favourite parts of

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The achievement of pupils is good

a story. Older pupils discussed their favourite authors enthusiastically and said they enjoyed reading because ‘it inspires your imagination’. By the end of Year 6 they read widely both for pleasure and to find information.  Pupils write fluently and legibly using a wide range of vocabulary to interest and engage the reader. This was demonstrated by some particularly thoughtful writing about Nelson Mandela, reflecting the school’s good provision for their spiritual, moral, social and cultural development.  Pupils make good progress in mathematics because their lessons are usually lively and challenging. In a Year 5/6 lesson, pupils made excellent progress in applying their understanding of a range of numbers, including decimal numbers, to solve complicated number sequences. Effective questioning by the teacher enabled all pupils to identify properties of numbers, including those that are square, prime or negative, to decide where they fitted in to the number

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The achievement of pupils is good

sequence.  Children make good progress in the Early Years Foundation Stage in their learning and development. They get on very well together, share and take turns and listen carefully to adults and each other. Many confidently use coins to make totals up to 10 and beyond. They enjoy books and read and write simple sentences accurately owing to the effective teaching of phonics.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teaching is consistently good across the school. Pupils say that teachers make learning fun and this fosters good relationships between staff and pupils. In many lessons, teachers provide opportunities for pupils to share their ideas and opinions with each other and this helps them to consolidate their learning.  Disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs are taught well because teachers identify their specific learning needs and provide tailored programmes to help them. Pupils eligible for pupil premium funding make good progress because support, such as extra reading sessions, is provided, often on a one-to-one basis.  Most teachers have good subject knowledge that they use well to ask pupils questions that challenge their thinking and probe their understanding. This allows them to judge how well pupils have understood the lesson and to adjust their lesson accordingly. Teachers mark pupils’

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The quality of teaching is good

work and they provide guidance about what they have done well and what they need to learn next. However, not all teachers consistently provide pupils with time to improve and correct their work.  Most teachers use imaginative methods to capture pupils’ interest. In a Year 3/4 lesson, the teacher dressed up and acted the part of an historical character to inspire pupils to write an imagined newspaper article on the finding of Tutankhamen’s tomb. However, teachers do not consistently make enough use of visual resources such as books, illustrations and graphic computer programs to support pupils’ learning and understanding. Therefore opportunities to reinforce pupils’ learning are occasionally missed.  Learning activities planned for pupils match their needs well. In some lessons there is a high level of challenge to meet the needs of more-able pupils. In a Year 1/2 lesson, pupils created their own stories based on the characters in Little Red Riding Hood. They enjoyed this

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The quality of teaching is good

demanding task calling for resilience and perseverance. However, there are too few occasions when pupils learn independently through research and by making choices about how they record their work and this sometimes limits the progress that they can make.  Teaching in the Early Years Foundation Stage is good. Adults record children’s achievement and use this information to plan learning experiences matched to their developmental needs. There is a good balance of activities that children select for themselves and those that are led by adults. Just occasionally, a few children spend too long on activities with little adult intervention and this reduces the quality of their learning.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils are polite, helpful and friendly. They get on well together regardless of background and they show respect for the views and opinions of others. They are very proud of their school and say, ‘There is absolutely nothing we would want to change.’ Older pupils enjoy their responsibilities as mentors or playground leaders, helping to ensure that break times are happy for all pupils.  Pupils behave well in lessons and around the school. They say that lessons are rarely disrupted by poor behaviour although they understand that one or two pupils in school have difficulties in managing their behaviour. Very occasionally, when the pace of the lesson slows, a few pupils become fidgety and chat among themselves.  There is a calm, orderly atmosphere in school. Pupils say they feel safe in school because adults are always on hand to sort out minor incidents that may occasionally arise. They have a good

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

understanding of different types of bullying such as racist behaviour and internet bullying but they are adamant that it does not occur. Records kept by the school show no recent reported incidents of bullying or racist behaviour. Pupils know how to stay safe outside school. Support from agencies such as the police and the fire and rescue service has taught them about risks associated with substance and tobacco abuse and how to resist peer pressure.  Staff have successfully worked hard with parents and carers to improve attendance and to reduce persistent absence. Consequently most pupils attend regularly and on time.  Parents and carers who expressed a view feel that behaviour is typically good and that their children are safe.

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The leadership and management are good

 The headteacher provides strong leadership. Together with senior leaders she has established a culture of high expectations for staff and pupils. Rigorous self-evaluation provides leaders and governors with a clear picture of what the school does well and where further improvements are needed.  There is a relentless focus on improving the quality of teaching so that most is good with an increasing proportion that is outstanding. Senior leaders regularly check the work of teachers and set targets for improvement. Close links between performance management and professional development ensure that all staff have opportunities for career progression and these systems ensure that only the best teaching is rewarded.  There is an expectation that all pupils will succeed, reflecting the school’s commitment to equality of opportunity. Senior leaders frequently check pupils’ progress to identify those at risk

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The leadership and management are good

of falling behind so that intervention and support can be provided. Consequently there are very few gaps in the progress made by different groups of pupils. Discrimination on any grounds is not tolerated.  The broad, balanced curriculum meets the needs of pupils’ aptitudes and interests well. The strong focus on literacy and numeracy prepares them well for the next stage in their education. Pupils enjoy taking part in the wide range of out of school activities, including sports, music and art, and this promotes their spiritual, moral, social and cultural development well. Part of the pupil premium funding is used to support some pupils in learning to play a musical instrument and to take part in school journeys giving them similar opportunities to those of their classmates.  The school responds well to the low-level support provided by the local authority and will ‘buy in’ additional support as necessary.

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The leadership and management are good

 The governance of the school:  Governors have a good balance of professional skills that they use to monitor and challenge school leaders. They visit school regularly so they understand how well pupils achieve in comparison with other schools locally and nationally. Governors are well informed so that they can talk confidently about the quality of teaching and ensure that systems for performance management are robust, particularly in regard to the link between performance and teachers’ salary progression. They ensure that the pupil premium funding is spent to provide enrichment activities for those pupils as well as to support them to access the curriculum. Governors undertake relevant training to equip them for their roles. For example, training on child protection procedures has enabled them to ensure that the school complies with all requirements for safeguarding pupils.

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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 133292 Local authority Hampshire Inspection number 403649

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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 Voluntary controlled Age range of pupils 4–11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 102 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Amanda Forsey Headteacher Clare Beswick Date of previous school inspection 29 February 2008 Telephone number 01962 774213 Fax number 01962 774213 Email address karen.dwyer@micheldever.hants.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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