Charter Primary School

Charter Primary School Wood Lane, Chippenham, Wiltshire, SN15 3EA

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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:

 The quality of teaching in reading and mathematics, particularly in Year 2, in previous years, has not been good enough to ensure that pupils make rapid progress.  Achievement is not yet good despite some rapid improvements in writing.  Pupils are not achieving as well as they should in reading and mathematics although their progress has accelerated more recently in all year groups.  Pupils do not have enough opportunities to apply their mathematics knowledge across different subjects.  The work pupils receive does not always challenge them at the right level. For some pupils, it is too hard and for others, it is too easy.  A few leaders with specific subject responsibilities have not developed their roles sufficiently well to be able to make thorough checks on teaching and learning so that all groups of pupils make consistent progress.  Governors have not done enough until recently to hold the school’s leaders robustly to account

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

for pupils’ attainment and progress as they have lacked sufficient information.

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The school has the following strengths:

 Some of the pupils supported in the Autism Resource Base are integrated well within the school and have the right resources to support their learning.  Pupils get a good start in the Early Years Foundation Stage.  Marking consistently helps pupils improve, particularly in writing.  Pupils behave well and are extremely polite, hospitable and welcoming. They feel safe and are good at working together.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors observed 21 lessons taught by ten class teachers across a range of subjects, eight of which were observed jointly with senior leaders.  Inspectors listened to pupils read, looked at samples of work, attended assemblies, observed break times in both Key Stages 1 and 2 and observed the teaching of phonics (the linking of letters and the sounds they make).  Inspectors looked at the 48 responses to the online Parent View survey and an inspector spoke to a parent or carer during the course of the inspection.  Meetings were held with senior and middle leaders, members of the governing body, the school’s improvement adviser and groups of pupils from Years 1 to 6. Inspectors took account of the views of staff in 34 questionnaires.  Inspectors observed the school’s work and looked at a range of documents, including a raising achievement plan, a report to governors by the headteacher, the school’s self-evaluation

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Information about this inspection

document, information about the management of performance, data on pupils’ attainment and progress, safeguarding information, and records relating to behaviour, safety and attendance.

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Inspection team

Jameel Hassan, Lead inspector Additional inspector David McMahon Additional inspector

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Information about this school

 Charter Primary is smaller than the average-sized primary school. There are ten classes. It has one class in each year, except Year 2, where there are two. As well as a Year 3 class, there is a mixed-age Years 3 and 4 class, because of the small number of Year 4 pupils and a larger number of Year 3 pupils.  There is a specially resourced provision for 14 pupils with special educational needs (the Autism Resource Base). There are two classes within the provision and currently there are 14 pupils on roll.  The proportion of pupils known to be eligible for the pupil premium, which is additional funding for looked after children, pupils known to be eligible for free school meals and children of service families, is slightly above the national average.  Most pupils are from White British backgrounds, with a very small number of pupils from a range of minority ethnic backgrounds. Very few pupils speak English as an additional language.

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Information about this school

 The school meets the government’s current floor standards, which set the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress.  The proportion of disabled pupils and those with special educational needs supported through school action is average. The proportion of pupils supported through school action plus and with a statement of special educational needs is above average.  The school has a breakfast club for pupils each morning.  There have been a number of changes in staff and the local authority is supporting the school through the Wiltshire Improving Schools Programme at the request of the school’s leaders.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve teaching so that it is consistently good or better by:  reducing the amount of teacher talk at the beginning of lessons  ensuring that pupils’ needs are met in all lessons so they make good progress in all subjects  increasing the pace of lessons so that pupils complete their tasks  giving pupils more opportunities to improve their reading and mathematics skills through other subjects of the curriculum  making sure teachers use the technology resources available more effectively  ensuring pupils know what they need to achieve by the end of each academic year.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Accelerate the rate of pupils’ progress in reading, writing and in particular mathematics, so that pupils meet or exceed the national benchmarks for attainment at the end of Year 2 and Year 6.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Strengthen leadership and management by: – developing the ability of middle leaders to check the quality of teaching and learning across the school and hold them robustly to account for their responsibilities, especially in mathematics – ensuring that governors receive sufficient information to enable them to check the progress and attainment of all pupils systematically – reviewing the specific roles of staff governors to ensure that the governing body is able to fulfil its role of holding senior leaders to account for the school’s performance more effectively.

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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

 Pupils have not made consistently good progress during their time at school because of inconsistencies in the quality of teaching. As a result, they are not achieving as well as they should, especially in mathematics.  Pupils enter Reception with skills and experiences that are typical for their age. For the last three years, they have made the expected progress and started Year 1 broadly in line with the national average. Within the last year, however, there has been an improvement in their personal, social and emotional development, communication, language and literacy, and mathematics. Mathematics standards are now slightly above national expectations.  In 2011 and 2012, pupils did not make sufficient progress and their attainment by the end of Key Stage 1 was well below average in reading, writing and mathematics. This was the result of weak teaching in Year 2, which has been dealt with effectively by senior leaders. The school’s

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

data are now showing a rapid improvement and acceleration in pupils’ learning in Years 1 and 2 in all areas, but particularly in reading.  Last year, pupils in Year 1 did not achieve the national benchmark for the phonics screening check. As a result, the school implemented a systematic phonics programme to improve the ability of the pupils to spell and blend words together. This was evident when inspectors listened to pupils read as they were applying the skills they had been taught. There are planned opportunities for pupils to read widely and often throughout the school.  In 2011 and 2012, pupils, including disabled pupils and those with special educational needs, did not make enough progress in reading and mathematics and standards at the end of Year 6 were below the national average. However, the pupils supported through school action plus, who are more able, did better than those pupils nationally.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 Pupils are now improving rapidly, catching up on past underachievement and a large group of pupils are already working at the level expected nationally by the end of Year 6.  Work in lessons and in pupils' books shows that achievement overall is improving. Pupils are making good progress in mathematics, although in some lessons, the work is not well matched to pupils' needs. In Year 1, some pupils lack understanding in using different types of calculation operations, which is hindering their progress.  Rates of progress are now accelerating for all vulnerable groups because of the effective support they receive. Those who are eligible for pupil premium funding are being effectively supported in their learning and have made rapid progress. By the end of Key Stage 2, pupils eligible for free school meals, based on their average point scores, are doing better than pupils nationally.  There are opportunities across the curriculum for pupils to develop their writing and this has

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

been reflected in the more rapid progress pupils make. In Year 3, this was clearly seen in an art and science lesson. The teacher helped the pupils to produce colours by mixing paints and linked them to colours found in a rainforest. Pupils were asked to identify strong adjectives to describe their work. However, such opportunities are not used in mathematics, although the school is striving to ensure that this will be the case in the very near future.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 The quality of teaching has not been consistent over time and, as a result, pupils have not made the progress or reached the standards expected by Year 2 and Year 6. The school has recognised this and the school’s leaders have focused strongly on improving teaching and learning.  At times, expectations are not high enough. Planning does not always match pupils' different needs, with the result that similar work is sometimes set for pupils of all abilities, especially in mathematics. This means that the work is too hard for some less able pupils and not always challenging enough for more-able pupils.  The information and communication technology resources available in classrooms are not used to best effect to encourage pupils to be actively involved in their learning. Teachers do not check on pupils' learning and progress frequently enough in lessons, which reduces their ability to adapt their teaching accordingly to meet pupils’ needs.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 Children in Reception are fully involved in their own learning and are supported well by the adults. They are encouraged to develop their understanding of numbers and calculations through a range of well-planned activities that they thoroughly enjoy.  Teachers now remind pupils of their specific targets that they have to achieve, which are reviewed when they have achieved them. Despite this, other than in Year 6, pupils do not have a clear understanding of what they are expected to achieve by the end of the year.  Teachers adhere to and apply the school’s marking policy consistently. As a result, pupils understand what they need to do to improve, as well as the areas they have achieved.  In the more effective lessons, the pace of learning is brisk and there is appropriate challenge for all pupils, along with some good opportunities for learning independently. Relevant resources are used to help the different abilities of learners. In a Year 6 class, the teacher, ably supported by

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

teaching assistants, used her good subject knowledge effectively, together with open-ended questions, to help pupils solve complicated number operations in a context that was meaningful to them. In the least successful lessons pupils wait too long during introductions and the pace of learning is too slow.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils generally behave well. Teachers usually manage pupils’ behaviour effectively in lessons to keep them on task and interested. In Reception, children have exemplary attitudes towards learning, both in the classroom and outside.  Break times are lively but all interaction between pupils is friendly and supportive. For example, when a child fell over, pupils were there to help and take him to an adult who would tend to his needs.  Throughout the school, pupils show respect towards each other and support one another in their learning. Pupils readily accept new pupils from the autism resource base and make them feel welcome, even if they only stay for a short time or part of the day.  Exclusions have increased slightly but senior leaders have made every effort to respond to the needs of the pupils. Pupils are integrated successfully back into class through the teachers’ good management of their behaviour. Pupils comment how behaviour has improved over the past

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

year.  Pupils feel safe at school. They are polite and courteous to adults and to each other.  Pupils are well aware of how to keep safe using the internet. They have a clear understanding about bullying and the different forms it may take. They believe that the school deals with any incidents of bullying effectively.  Most parents and carers who responded to the Parent View were very positive about pupils' behaviour and believe their child is safe at school.  There are good opportunities for pupils to assume responsibilities across the school, including in Reception where they tidy up after each session and also take the attendance register to the office. For the older pupils, the school council plays an active role in making decisions with the school improvement team.  Attendance is average and improving, and pupils are punctual to school.

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The leadership and management require improvement

 Leadership and management are not good because some middle leaders are not yet doing enough to check the quality of teaching and learning in their areas of responsibility or using information on pupils’ progress to tackle underachievement. In addition, the governing body does not have sufficient information to enable it to challenge the senior leaders robustly about the school’s performance.  The school’s leaders recognise that pupils’ progress and attainment were not improving sufficiently over time. With the support of the local authority and governors, they have taken radical and successful action to eradicate inadequate teaching.  The school is working hard to accelerate the progress in all year groups and ensure that all pupils have equality of opportunity. A new tracking system for checking on pupils' progress has helped leaders to identify more clearly any underperforming pupils and to take swift action to

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The leadership and management require improvement

address the issue.  Teachers’ accountability has increased. Systems for managing their performance mean that all teachers have targets to improve their teaching and the achievement of pupils in their care. Effective support from the local authority has improved the quality of teaching in all years but some weaknesses still remain.  Targets for leaders with particular responsibilities are ensuring that they are improving their effectiveness. The skills of a few are less well developed in making accurate checks on the quality of teaching and learning and in using performance data to identify and tackle any underperformance.  The Early Years Foundation Stage is managed effectively. Good transitional arrangements are in place from pre-school settings so children’s learning is not affected by change. The good arrangements for transferring from Reception to Year 1 ensure continuity of learning for all pupils.

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The leadership and management require improvement

 The autistic resource base is managed effectively, with clear systems in place to ensure effective provision for some vulnerable pupils. Both in the resource base and in mainstream classes, pupils are tracked well and have the appropriate resources to meet their needs.  The curriculum is enhanced by trips to other local schools and local businesses . The school also offers a wide range of additional activities to support pupils and parents and carers. There is an ‘Early Risers’ breakfast club, as well as a range of musical, sporting and culinary clubs.  The school has strong links with parents and carers. Parents and carers attend governors’ meetings, and there is an active parents’ association, which organises a multitude of activities throughout the school year to get parents and carers to attend on a regular basis.  The governance of the school:  The governing body supports senior leaders in securing the necessary improvements across

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The leadership and management require improvement

the school and in challenging weaker practices. Governors know the school's strengths and weaknesses and the quality of teaching, and have supported the school in dealing with ineffective teaching. However, governors are not always fully informed and this makes it difficult for the governing body to hold the school’s leaders effectively to account for the school’s performance. Recent training from the local authority has given governors an accurate understanding of data so they are better able to check on pupils’ achievement. They ensure that pupil premium funding is used to support those who need extra help but have insufficient understanding about its impact. They know about performance management and about suitable rewards for good management and teaching for all staff. They ensure the safeguarding and child protection procedures keep pupils safe. The governors monitor the school’s finances well.

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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 126292 Local authority Wiltshire Inspection number 406354

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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 199 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Nick Golledge Headteacher Sarah Flack Date of previous school inspection 7–8 February 2011 Telephone number 01249 447223 Fax number 01249 447223 Email address admin@charter.wilts.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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