Bromstone Primary School, Broadstairs

Bromstone Primary School Rumfields Road, Broadstairs, Kent, CT10 2PW

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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 Requires improvement 3 Leadership and management Requires improvement 3

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

 Teaching is not consistently good in all year groups. Outstanding practice observed in some lessons has not been adopted by all staff across the school.  Some staff, especially in Key Stage 1, do not have high enough expectations of what pupils can do. More able pupils are not always challenged sufficiently in the younger classes.  Not all teachers make the most effective use of time and resources to help pupils learn at a good rate.  Teachers mark pupils’ work, but do not always give them time to respond to comments and to understand fully what they need to do to improve their next piece of work.  Pupils’ achievements in mathematics are not good enough because some teachers are not secure in teaching the subject and pupils do not have sufficiently rapid recall of number facts. In Key Stage 1, pupils do not cover enough work.  While leaders and managers are determined to meet the diverse needs of pupils, self-

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

evaluation procedures and the school development plan do not identify the precise action that needs to be taken to improve pupils’ attainment, progress and quality of teaching.  Through its partnerships with other schools, new ideas have been introduced but have not yet been checked for their impact on pupils’ learning.  Three governors and the Chair of the Governing Body are new to their roles. They have not yet undergone training to make the governing body as a whole fully effective, especially in the analysis of numerical information about the school’s performance.  Too many pupils do not attend school regularly.

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The school has the following strengths

 Teaching in Year 6 is outstanding, and pupils achieve well in writing.  The school’s commitment to inclusion is exceptionally strong. Pupils with challenging behaviour are supported well and helped to take responsibility for their actions.  Pupils who speak English as an additional language make good progress. The individual talents of pupils are recognised, and extended by specialist groups outside school, and this contributes significantly to pupils’ spiritual moral, social and cultural development 

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors observed 26 parts of lessons, sometimes accompanied by the headteacher or deputy headteacher.  Pupils’ behaviour was observed in lessons, assemblies, playtimes, lunchtime, and while the pupils were moving around the school.  Inspectors listened to pupils read in Years 1 and 2. They asked pupils in different age groups about their views of the school and scrutinised their previous work in literacy and numeracy.  Meetings were held with the headteacher, deputy headteacher, and staff with responsibility for inclusion, disabled pupils and those with special educational needs, literacy, numeracy, and the Early Years Foundation Stage. Inspectors also met with representatives of the local authority and the governing body.  The responses of 53 parents who completed the on-line survey Parent View were taken into account.  Documents reviewed include the school’s self-evaluation report and improvement plan,

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Information about this inspection

arrangements for safeguarding, records of pupils’ progress, behaviour and attendance, and minutes of governing body meetings. In addition, the school’s website and reports from the local authority about the school’s effectiveness were scrutinised.

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Inspection team

Kath Beck, Lead inspector Additional Inspector Julie Sackett Additional Inspector Peter Thrussell Additional Inspector Fiona Robinson Additional Inspector

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Information about this school

 This school is larger than most primary schools. The number on roll is rising rapidly.  Four members of staff, including the mathematics subject leader, are new.  Three members of the governing body and the Chair of the Governing Body are new to their roles.  The proportion of pupils known to be eligible for the pupil premium (the additional funding for pupils known to be eligible for free school meals, looked after children and those with a parent in the armed forces) is above that found in schools nationally.  The proportion of disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs supported at school action is above average. The proportion of pupils supported at school action plus or with a statement of special educational needs is also above average.  The school admits pupils with visual and hearing impairments, and some with challenging behaviour.  The percentage of pupils who come from minority ethnic backgrounds, and who speak English

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Information about this school

as an additional language, is broadly average.  The school meets the current government floor standards, which set the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress.   The school is due to become an academy in April 2013.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve the quality of teaching to consistently good or better by:  raising expectations of what pupils know and can do  providing more demanding work, especially for the more-able pupils in Key Stage 1  making sure that lessons proceed at a good pace so that pupils do not spend too long listening to their teacher before applying the skills they are learning  giving pupils practical resources to make learning more meaningful  using checks on pupils’ progress in lessons to adapt work as needed  allowing pupils time to respond to comments made by teachers in their marking, and to understand fully the steps they need to take to improve their work  sharing the outstanding practice observed in some classes to help teachers who are not as effective to do better.  Raise pupils’ achievements in mathematics by:  improving teachers’ subject knowledge  helping pupils recall multiplication tables and number facts quickly so that they can calculate

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

and solve problems confidently  making sure that the work pupils record in their books, especially in Key Stage 1, represents the full range of the curriculum.  Increase the rates of attendance by reducing the number of pupils taking extended leave in term time.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Strengthen leadership and management by:  refining self-evaluation procedures and the school development plan to ensure they identify precisely what needs to be done to enhance the quality of teaching in order to improve pupils’ attainment and progress  monitoring robustly the impact of developments on pupils’ achievements  providing training for members of the governing body who are new to their roles, including the analysis of numerical data, so that they are fully effective.

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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 governance may be improved.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 In Year 6 and Year 2, attainment has been broadly average in English and mathematics for the past two years, although overall progress is faster in English than in mathematics.  Attainment in Year 6 is currently low. This is because over one quarter of the pupils has complex learning difficulties and most have joined the year group in the past six months. That said, more able pupils continue to be challenged to make good progress in reading, writing and mathematics.  Progress requires improvement in Key Stage 1, where it is slower than in Key Stage 2, because teachers’ expectations of what pupils know and can do are not consistently high enough. This means the good progress made by children in the Early Years Foundation Stage is not built on sufficiently. Pupils, especially the more able, do not do as well as they should in reading and writing.  In mathematics throughout the school, pupils’ attainment and progress also require

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

improvement. Not all teachers have secure subject knowledge to enable pupils to make the best progress and attain as highly as they should as they move through the school. Pupils do not find it easy to recall number facts rapidly to help them to calculate or solve problems confidently. In Key Stage 1, their books show that they are not covering the mathematics curriculum in enough depth.  All groups who benefit from the pupil premium are a term behind others of their age group nationally in English, and almost a term and a half in mathematics. They nonetheless make good progress from their individual starting points, especially in Key Stage 2. The gap in their attainment and all pupils nationally is narrowing in mathematics, but widening in English, as seen in their average point scores in the Year 6 national tests.  The school has a strong commitment to inclusion. To ensure that all pupils have equal

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

opportunities to succeed, senior leaders provide additional support to those who are disabled or who have special educational needs. Skilled and knowledgeable staff help those who are visually or hearing impaired to play a full part in all the school has to offer. Small group work with well- qualified teaching assistants helps pupils with wide ranging needs to make good progress from their starting points.  Pupils who speak English as an additional language also make good progress and achieve well because of the specific support they receive. Those who are gifted and excel in art, dance, and public speaking, are helped to extend their talents with specialist groups outside the school, such as those provided by the Ursuline College and a specialist art gallery.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 There is too much teaching that requires improvement. This limits opportunities for pupils to make the best possible progress. Typically in these lessons:  t eachers’ expectations of what pupils know and can do are not high enough  work in Key Stage 1, especially, is not sufficiently demanding for the more able pupils  time is not used well as pupils spend too long sitting on the carpet or listening to lengthy introductions by the teacher before getting on with their activities; this limits opportunities for them to practise new knowledge and skills  pupils do not have sufficient practical resources, particularly in mathematics, to support them with their learning  checks on pupils’ progress in lessons are not always used well enough to provide extra challenge, or additional support, where necessary.  The quality of mathematics teaching is inconsistent because not all teachers give full attention to

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

helping pupils to learn the number skills they need to apply in a wide range of situations. In the younger classes the teaching of the sounds letters make is also inconsistent. In part this is because some staff are new and are not yet fully aware of the best ways to help pupils to acquire this knowledge.  Teachers assess pupils’ progress regularly and meet each half term to identify those who may need extra help. Pupils are involved in discussions with their teacher and parents to agree the targets they are to work on and how they can achieve these. Work is marked regularly, but this does not have sufficient impact on pupils’ learning. Not all teachers allow time for pupils to respond to their comments, make corrections and understand fully what they need to do to improve their next piece of work.  Where teaching is at its best, especially in Year 6, teachers:  make clear to pupils exactly what they are to learn and achieve during the lesson, and what

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

they need to do to demonstrate higher levels of attainment in their work  provide an engaging range of tasks that are matched very well to all pupils’ needs and capture their enthusiasm and interest  build very effectively on what pupils have learned before  use effective questioning to involve pupils in whole class and paired discussion, as well as group work, to share ideas and deepen their understanding  deploy additional adults very effectively so that they support pupils fully throughout the lesson.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils requires improvement

 Attendance is low and has been for the past two years. This is because, despite the school’s robust actions, too many pupils do not attend every day of each week and take unauthorised extended holidays in term time. In the lessons that require improvement, especially those where teachers talk for too long or do not provide sufficient resources to help pupils with their learning, pupils lose interest and do not listen as well as they should. This is not dealt with quickly enough and holds back the rate of pupils’ learning.  Parents, staff and governors mostly consider that behaviour is good. The pupils hold contrasting views. They say, and this is confirmed in the inspection, that while pupils mostly behave well in the classroom, this is not consistently the case during lesson breaks or when moving around the school. When concerns about behaviour are raised, pupils are consulted, and give sensible,

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The behaviour and safety of pupils requires improvement

considered responses about the best ways to resolve them.  Pupils are aware of different kinds of bullying. Most feel safe in school and know who to speak to if they are anxious. Pupils are proud to hold responsibilities, such as house captain or librarian, and are keen to carry out their duties sensibly. The nurture group helps pupils to manage their emotional needs and develop their social skills and confidence well.  Pupils with high levels of challenging behaviour are supported effectively so that lessons are rarely disrupted. Some receive one-to-one support, counselling, and intensive guidance until they can take responsibility for their actions. No pupils have been permanently excluded from the school. The number of times pupils have not been allowed to come to school because of their behaviour has reduced in the past two years.  Discrimination is not tolerated. Pupils from all backgrounds work well together in lessons, and

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The behaviour and safety of pupils requires improvement

there have been very few racist incidents in recent years.  Staff work very closely with professionals and support services to safeguard the needs of pupils, especially those whose circumstances are known to make them vulnerable.

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The leadership and management requires improvement

 Senior leaders take determined action to seek out new ways of working to meet pupils’ diverse and rapidly changing needs. Self-evaluation procedures take into account a wide range of views, and acknowledge national and local numerical data, and are used to inform the school improvement plan. While they identify broad areas for development, they do not focus sharply on the precise action that needs to be taken to raise pupils’ achievements.  Since the previous inspection, considerable work has been done to improve the rate of progress of pupils who speak English as an additional language, and to develop pupils’ confidence in dealing with a wide range of social, emotional and educational situations. Action taken to improve pupils’ abilities in writing has been particularly successful, and attainment at the end of the Early Years Foundation Stage has risen over three years. Developments in mathematics have

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The leadership and management requires improvement

been slower because of discontinuity in staffing.  The quality of teaching is checked regularly by senior staff and subject leaders. Key areas of strength are identified and targets for improvement set. Staff undergo training to improve their teaching, but high quality practice in school is not shared sufficiently across year groups, and the quality of teaching remains uneven across year groups and key stages.  A system to record pupils’ progress is available to all staff. It is used to track pupils’ achievements, identify those who need additional help, and to hold staff accountable for the progress their pupils’ make. Teaching staff have been appraised recently. Their targets, and salaries, are linked to pupils’ progress.  Senior leaders have developed close working relationships with many partner schools and outside groups to raise the skills of staff working in the school. These help pupils to develop a

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The leadership and management requires improvement

wide range of skills, not only academic, that they need to be successful in their future lives. Changes, such as all pupils reading in class after lunch, brought about through these partnerships are new and have yet to be checked carefully to ensure that they having the intended impact on pupils’ achievements.  A stronger partnership with parents is developing. Parents and their children talk together with the teacher to agree ways in which pupils can achieve more. The partnership requires improvement to raise the level of pupils’ attendance.  The curriculum is not providing sufficient impetus for pupils across the school to acquire the mathematics skills they need. It does not challenge pupils to higher levels of achievement in Key Stage 1. In Key Stage 2 it offers good opportunities for pupils to think through their ideas and write at length, and allows them to develop their individual gifts and talents through the arts.

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The leadership and management requires improvement

 Innovative ideas such as discussions about philosophical questions contribute much to developing pupils’ skills in justifying their points of view in a constructive manner. This, together with visits to places of interest such as a local synagogue, contributes to the strong provision for pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development.  The local authority has challenged and supported the school effectively to bring about improvements in Key Stage 2. It is now supporting the school in raising pupils’ progress in Key Stage 1 and in mathematics across the school.  The governance of the school:  Governors have yet to undertake training matched to their precise needs. New committees have been formed to monitor the effectiveness of different aspects of the work of the school. Governors benefit from their visits to the school, but do not have a full picture of the quality of teaching. Their contribution to the school’s self-evaluation is at an early stage of development.

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The leadership and management requires improvement

Governors are fully aware of the school’s performance against other schools in the locality. They have not used numerical national data about pupils’ attainment and progress with sufficient rigour to hold leaders fully to account, or to compare the school’s performance to that of other schools nationally. The budget is monitored carefully. Economies have been made to prevent a possible deficit at the end of the year. The funds to support pupils who are eligible for pupil premium are used to good effect and to improve the progress of these pupils across the school. Targets for staff to improve teaching are linked closely to improving pupils’ achievements and salaries. Governors rightly support the school’s fully inclusive ethos and are proud of its reputation within the community for the way in which individual needs and talents are nourished and met. Together with the local authority, they are planning a new building to

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The leadership and management requires improvement

accommodate the rapidly rising number of pupils attending the school. Their plans to become an academy in April are advanced.

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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 118534 Local authority Kent Inspection number 405778

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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 410 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Rebecca Foy Headteacher Nigel Utton Date of previous school inspection 21–22 March 2011 Telephone number 01843 867010 Fax number 01843 871139 Email address office@bromstone.kent.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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