Beeches Infant School

Perry Beeches Infant School Beeches Road, Birmingham, B42 2PY

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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.  Standards have risen since the previous inspection due to significant improvement to the quality of teaching. This is now good across the school and some is outstanding.  Pupils’ exemplary attitudes to learning make a significant contribution to their good learning and achievement.  Pupils’ involvement in planning what they will learn makes them want to practise their reading, writing, mathematics and computer skills in other subjects.  Pupils’ astute understanding of what being a good friend involves results in good behaviour and pupils feeling safe and enjoying school.  All staff, pupils, governors and parents share the headteacher’s high expectations. Everyone is determined to do what is necessary to meet every child’s needs.  All staff attend training to help them do their job effectively. They meet often to share what is going well and to find ways to improve what is not.

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It is not yet an outstanding school because

 Teachers do not always check pupils’ learning early enough in lessons to make changes when they find pupils working on their own are struggling to complete tasks or finding them too easy.   Information about the progress made by different groups of pupils is not always used rigorously to make sure they learn at a fast enough rate.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors observed 25 lessons taught by nine teachers. In addition, inspectors made a number of short visits to lessons and heard some pupils read.  The inspectors met with small groups of pupils to talk about their learning and to find out what they thought of the school. Inspectors also met with staff, and with representatives of the governing body and the local authority.  Inspectors observed the school’s work and looked at past and current information about pupils’ progress, pupils’ work in books and on display, and documents relating to behaviour, safeguarding, the school’s checks about what is going well, and school improvement planning.  The inspectors talked to parents informally at the start of the day and took into account 12 responses shown in the online questionnaire (Parent View), and the school’s own parent survey.

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Inspection team

Georgina Beasley, Lead inspector Additional Inspector Shannon Moore Additional Inspector Jonathan Sutcliffe Additional Inspector

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Information about this school

 Perry Beeches Infant School is larger than the average-sized infant school.  The background of pupils is diverse. White British is the largest group followed by Pakistani, Bangladeshi and Indian pupils. The remainder of pupils are from a number of different minority ethnic backgrounds.  An average proportion of pupils speak English as an additional language.  The proportion of disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs supported through school action is above average. The proportion supported at school action plus and with a statement of special educational needs is also above average, and is mostly for moderate learning difficulties, speech, language and communication needs and behaviour difficulties.  An above-average proportion of the pupils are known to be eligible for the pupil premium, which provides additional funding for children in local authority care, pupils known to be eligible for

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Information about this school

free school meals and those who have a parent in the armed services.  The school does not make use of alternative provision off site.  The onsite breakfast club and after-school club are not managed by the governing body and are inspected separately.  The headteacher is new since the previous inspection. The deputy headteacher is acting.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Move teaching to outstanding by making sure that all teachers make changes to their teaching or to activities when they find tasks are too easy or too difficult for pupils to complete when working on their own

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Use the information that the school has about pupils’ progress to focus checks on whether steps to speed up the progress of all groups, especially pupils known to be eligible for free school meals, are working well enough.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 All pupils across the school make good progress from starting points which are below those expected for their age when they start school. Most are learning at the levels they should by the end of the Reception year. Most pupils reach average standards in reading, writing and mathematics at the end of Year 2.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 The number of Year 2 pupils reaching above-average standards is rising steadily, especially in mathematics. Pupils refer to activities in mathematics as challenges and so grow up with and like the idea that they are being challenged when solving number or money problems or exploring shapes.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Pupils read in school every day. The proportion of Year 1 pupils who reached the expected level in last year’s phonics check was below average last year. Inspection evidence indicates that pupils currently have good skills in using sounds to work out unfamiliar words.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Across the school, pupils enjoy writing and are proud to share their stories, rhymes and poems. Year 2 pupils check their writing carefully to make sure that they have included what they should and to make it interesting. ‘I have used alliteration and words that are hard to say to make my tongue twister challenging,’ one Year 2 pupil said.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Pupils who have not previously achieved the standards they should in reading and mathematics are predominantly less-able pupils who are known to be eligible for free school meals and who receive pupil premium funding. Nearly all of these pupils have achieved as well as their classmates in writing for the last three years but the support they received for learning in reading and mathematics was less successful last year.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Extra funding for the pupil premium is also used to support pupils’ attendance in a nurture room. The good support for their social and emotional development helps them to focus on learning when back in the classroom. As a result, pupils in local authority care make good progress in their learning and especially in their personal development. The school’s records show that they reach average and sometimes above-average levels of attainment.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs make good progress from their starting points. Focused support helps them to overcome their difficulties and many reach average and sometimes above-average levels of attainment. Boys and girls and pupils from different ethnic backgrounds including those who speak English as an additional language make equally good progress and achieve well.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teachers and teaching assistants use the information they have about pupils’ learning well to adjust teaching when sitting working with individuals and groups of pupils. They ask questions that help pupils to think for themselves how to complete tasks and activities. When solving division problems in mathematics, more-able pupils in Year 2 were guided, through questioning, to think where they had gone wrong and what they needed to do to get the answer right. As a result, they were able to solve subsequent problems on their own.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teachers use the information they have about pupils’ learning well to plan activities and tasks that meet the range of different abilities in lessons, and that interest and engage pupils well in their learning. However, teachers do not always check early enough in lessons pupils’ understanding when they are working on their own on tasks and activities. They do not therefore always make changes early enough when some pupils are struggling or finding the work too easy.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Pupils are fully involved in planning and checking their learning and deciding what they need to do to improve it. Teachers often start lessons reviewing learning from the day before to remind pupils what they already know and can do.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Lessons include a varied range of methods and resources that support pupils’ learning well. Teaching assistants make a strong contribution to the learning of disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs giving relevant additional support or presenting the learning in a different way so that some are able to complete the same tasks as their classmates.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teaching is good in the Reception classes when children work with an adult on a particular activity. Adults sometimes miss the opportunity to check what and how well the children are extending their learning when they are learning through their own play.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Highly positive relationships with all adults who work in the school and each other mean that pupils are confident to seek help if they need it. Pupils feel safe and know how to stay safe in school. Pupils know that they can use only those websites chosen by their teachers when using the internet to find information. Pupils have high self-esteem supported through weekly ‘star of the week’ celebrations for good deeds and special achievements.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Special lessons to develop pupils’ thinking build their understanding about their emotions and feelings well. Pupils indicate at the start of every day whether they feel happy, sad, angry or scared. Their responses are always followed up by staff. Pupils talk positively about how giving themselves a hug (‘doing turtle’) helps them to manage their own anger and behaviour.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils have a good voice in school life through daily assemblies, class meetings, school council and eco-warriors. They know that their views are valued and think carefully about what they like and what they would like to see improved.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Behaviour is good. Pupils enjoy playtimes and especially lunchtimes when they have toys and equipment to play with their friends. Pupils get on well together. Pupils understand what bullying is and cannot recall it ever happening. Incidents of name-calling of a racist nature are extremely rare. Pupils accept that occasionally they fall out with their friends but that they always make up again afterwards.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Most families get their children to school on time every day. As a result, attendance is good. Pupils know the attendance target and look forward each week to seeing if their class has won the cup for the best attendance. The school works closely with the small number of families whose children do not come to school often enough. The attendance of these children has improved well.

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The leadership and management are good

 The headteacher made a quick and accurate evaluation of the school’s performance on her appointment and took immediate measures to improve teaching. Her drive for improvement is supported well by the acting deputy, all staff, governors and pupils. Everyone is involved in finding out what the school does well and what can be improved. The school responds positively to pupils’ and parents’ views.

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The leadership and management are good

 Leaders check every term the progress of individual pupils and different groups including disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs, pupils from minority ethnic backgrounds, boys and girls and those known to be eligible for free school meals. When subsequently checking learning in lessons and books, they do not always use the information to focus specifically on those groups of pupils whose progress needs to be faster for them to reach nationally expected levels, such as less-able pupils known to be eligible for free school meals.

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The leadership and management are good

 Teachers and teaching assistants are keen to undertake relevant training and support to help them improve their teaching. Decisions about pay awards are based securely on whether precise performance targets are met.

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The leadership and management are good

 The way subjects and topics are taught meets the needs of pupils well. Boys and girls achieve equally well because everyone is interested and keen to learn more about the topics they have chosen. Visits, visitors, clubs and extra activities enrich learning well. The school promotes equal opportunities well, and makes sure everybody is included. Discrimination is not tolerated in any form.

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The leadership and management are good

 The school develops pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural understanding well. A United Nations children’s project (UNICEF) has supported pupils’ learning about people who live in different parts of the world, particularly Africa. Resources reflect pupils’ different backgrounds and play a large part in promoting the school’s cohesive community.

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The leadership and management are good

 Over the last year, the local authority has made sure that teachers can access the training requested and the school makes use of advice and support services. Prior to this, the local authority gave too little support to the governing body in checking that pupils were making enough progress.

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The leadership and management are good

 The governance of the school:  Governors are fully involved in checking what is going well and deciding what the school needs to do next to improve. They attend relevant training and so understand the information they are given about the progress of individuals and groups of pupils compared with all schools nationally. As a result, they ask searching questions if they suspect that progress is starting to slow. Due to regular visits and meetings with the headteacher, they understand why the quality of teaching is good and not outstanding. They have subsequently developed a clear training and appraisal plan with staff to support improvements and to set relevant and challenging school and staff performance targets. They visit regularly to check that arrangements for keeping pupils safe are met and that other policies are being followed. Governors check closely that planned spending is making the expected difference to pupils’ progress, especially the progress of

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The leadership and management are good

disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs. Checks into whether the extra money for the pupil premium is making enough difference to the progress of pupils known to be eligible for free school meals have not been rigorous enough until this year.

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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 103164 Local authority Birmingham Inspection number 400592

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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 Infant School category Community Age range of pupils 4–7 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 268 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Maureen Bowyer Headteacher Vicky Colley Date of previous school inspection 3 December 2009 Telephone number 0121 3604222 Fax number 0121 3666361 Email address enquiry@ perrybeeches-inf.bham.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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