East-the-Water Community Primary School

East-the-Water Community Primary School Mines Road, Bideford, Devon, EX39 4BZ

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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 Outstanding 1 Leadership and management Good 2

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This is a good school

 Pupils’ standards of attainment have continued to improve since the last inspection because pupils make consistently good progress and achieve well in all year groups.  Good teaching caters well for the needs of all groups of pupils. Parents and carers correctly believe that the school provides a good education for their children and prepares them well for the next stage of their education.  Pupils’ behaviour and safety are outstanding. Pupils have excellent attitudes to learning and feel very safe in school. They get on very well with each other and work hard in lessons.  Good leadership and management have ensured that the school has improved its overall effectiveness since the last inspection and displays the capacity for further improvement.  The governing body is well organised and fulfils all its duties well. It provides the school with a good level of support and monitors the school’s effectiveness closely. Governors are

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This is a good school

not afraid to ask challenging questions about the work of the school when required to do so.

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It is not yet an outstanding school because

 The more-able pupils do not consistently reach the standards in writing they are capable of attaining.  Teachers’ marking does not always ensure that pupils have a clear understanding of what they need to do in order to improve their work.

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Information about this inspection

 The inspectors observed 17 lessons taught by 11 teachers. Two of these were joint observations with the headteacher or deputy headteacher.  The inspectors observed the work of the school and looked at documentation including the school’s self-evaluation, school development planning, teachers’ planning, school tracking data about the progress of individual pupils, performance management documentation, minutes of governing body meetings and a range of other school policy documents.  The inspectors also listened to pupils of different ages reading and made short observations of sessions on the teaching of phonics (linking letters and sounds).  Discussions were held with the headteacher and deputy headteacher, three members of the governing body, staff and pupils. A telephone conversation took place with a representative of the local authority.  The inspectors observed pupils’ behaviour and scrutinised the school’s safeguarding procedures

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Information about this inspection

and documentation.  The views of the 21 parents and carers who responded to the Ofsted online Parent View survey or who talked to inspectors were analysed and the inspectors also took account of the views of school staff in the 27 completed questionnaires.

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Inspection team

Michael Barron, Lead inspector Additional inspector Rob Isaac Additional inspector Linda Rafferty Additional inspector

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Information about this school

 This is an average size primary school with steadily growing pupil numbers.  The proportion of pupils known to be eligible for the pupil premium is well above average. The pupil premium provides funding for children in local authority care, those known to be eligible for free school meals and those with a parent or carer in the armed forces.  Most pupils are White British. A very small number of pupils come from minority ethnic backgrounds although none has a first language other than English.  The proportion of disabled pupils or those with special educational needs who are supported at school action, school action plus or with a statement of special educational needs is well above the national average. These needs include social and emotional difficulties.  Children attending the Early Years Foundation Stage are taught in three mixed-age group classes, each containing Nursery and Reception Year children.

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Information about this school

 The school meets the current government floor standards, which are the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress in English and mathematics by the end of Year 6.  No alternative provision for pupils’ education is used by the school. However, there is an on-site unit for children with hearing impairments. Although this unit is not managed by the governing body it formed part of this inspection.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve attainment in writing of the more-able pupils, especially in Year 2 and Year 6, by:  developing more frequent opportunities for pupils to apply their writing skills when working in other subject areas  ensuring that the more-able pupils have opportunities to develop their writing skills through their involvement in writing-based projects.  Improve the quality of teachers’ marking of pupils’ work in order to ensure pupils always have a good understanding of what they need to do in order to improve.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Children enter the school’s Early Years Foundation Stage with skill levels well below those expected for their age. Although children make good progress in all areas of learning during their first years at school, the vast majority still enter Year 1 with below expected skill levels, especially regarding the development of their literacy skills.  Pupils, including disabled pupils and those with special educational needs, make good progress throughout the rest of the school because teaching consistently caters well for their needs. However, by the end of Year 1, pupils’ standards of attainment in reading are still below those expected for their age.  All pupils have individual learning targets linked to their progress in English and mathematics. Those pupils in danger of falling behind with their learning are taught either individually or in small ‘booster groups’ to improve their progress. This has helped to raise their achievement. As a

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The achievement of pupils is good

result, standards of attainment at the end of Year 2 have risen consistently since the last inspection. However, standards were below the national average overall in 2012 and significantly below in mathematics.  The attainment of pupils in Year 6 has also shown a similar improvement since 2008 and was similar to the national average in 2012. A scrutiny of pupils’ work and information from lesson observations confirmed that present Year 6 pupils are on course to reach the challenging targets set for them in English and mathematics in the forthcoming national tests.  The school is aware that more pupils need to gain the higher Level 3 in writing in Year 2 and Level 5 in Year 6 if this upward trend is to continue. The more-able pupils do not presently have regular opportunities to improve their writing skills through work in subjects other than literacy or through involvement in writing-based projects.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 The school uses the funding it receives for pupils entitled to the pupil premium very effectively to ensure that these pupils receive the support they require to make similar progress to all other pupils. As a result, the standards in English and mathematics of pupils in Year 6 entitled to this funding are in line with the standards attained by all other Year 6 pupils.

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The quality of teaching is good

 The quality of teaching is good over time and this is reflected in pupils’ consistently good progress in all year groups. It is also reflected in records of checks on teaching by school leaders and external advisors. The vast majority of teaching observed during the inspection was good. Some was outstanding.  Teaching in the Early Years Foundation Stage is consistently good. The three classrooms and the outdoor area, which comprise the Early Years Foundation Stage, are well resourced, colourful and spacious. This ensures that children enjoy their first experiences of school and enhances their desire to learn.  Pupils in all year groups say that they enjoy lessons because teachers match work well to pupils’ different abilities and make learning interesting. As a result, pupils work hard and make good progress.  An example of this was observed during an outstanding Year 1 literacy lesson. The teacher

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The quality of teaching is good

gained the attention of the class by showing a series of cartoon films about the life cycle of a butterfly. These really fired pupils’ imaginations and resulted in all of them working very hard and making excellent progress in developing their ability to write simple sentences accurately.  Teachers have very good relationships with the pupils in their classes, who say that they are confident that teachers and other adults will always help them if they are having difficulties learning. However, although there have been some improvements in the quality of teachers’ marking since the last inspection, pupils say that it still does not always help them to improve their work.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are outstanding

 The school places the interests of pupils at the heart of all it does and has high expectations of how well pupils behave. Pupils respond to this very well and show a high level of regard and respect for others. The school’s focus on developing children’s social skills when they first enter the Early Years Foundation Stage ensures that children quickly learn to behave well and develop good attitudes to learning.  This good start is built on exceptionally well throughout the rest of the school. Skilled and very consistent behaviour management ensures that pupils’ behaviour in all other year groups is outstanding both in lessons and when at play.  Pupils are very keen to do well. Their attitudes to school are outstanding and incidents of pupils misbehaving are rare. They say that behaviour in the school is ‘really, really good’ and that pupils of all ages get on very well together.  Pupils have a very good understanding of the different forms of bullying, including physical and

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are outstanding

emotional bullying, and are well aware of potential internet safety issues such as cyber-bullying. Pupils say they are confident that, should bullying of any sort occur, adults would deal with it quickly and very firmly. During discussions pupils said that bullying of any type was very rare in the school and many could not remember bullying ever occurring.  Pupils really enjoy school and this is reflected in their improving rates of attendance and their consistent punctuality to school each morning. There have been no instances of pupils being excluded from the school  Pupils are very well aware of the need to stay safe. Pupils say that they feel very safe in school and that they are very well looked after and the overwhelming majority of the parents and carers who completed the Parent View survey agree.

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The leadership and management are good

 The school is led by a dedicated and very effective headteacher. She has worked well with her staff and governing body to ensure that the school has developed and maintained a firm understanding of its strengths and of those areas in need of improvement.  Good leadership and management, including the leadership of teaching, have enabled the school to improve its overall effectiveness since the last inspection. The school receives light touch support from the local authority which rightly considers that the school provides pupils with a good education and demonstrates the capacity for further improvement.  The school has developed effective procedures to manage the performance of staff and uses these well to ensure that staff benefit from appropriate professional development in order to continuously improve the quality of teaching.  The school’s systems to monitor the progress of individual pupils are used well to ensure that all

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The leadership and management are good

pupils make the progress they are capable of. Any pupils identified as being in need of help with their work are quickly provided with the support they need to improve their progress and close the learning gap between them and other pupils.  A scrutiny of pupils’ work confirmed that the school has developed a curriculum designed to make learning interesting and enjoyable for pupils. The curriculum has an excellent impact on children’s spiritual, moral, social and cultural development and also provides pupils with a range of rich learning experience aimed at increasing their understanding of the local area and the wider world in which they live.  The on-site specialist provision for hearing impaired pupils is not managed by the governing body. However, the teaching and support staff at this unit are employed by the school and performance managed by the headteacher. The unit provides a good level of support in several

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The leadership and management are good

different schools for pupils with hearing impairments, including pupils attending this school.  The governance of the school:  The governing body is fully involved in school life and fulfils its statutory duties well, including its responsibilities for ensuring the safety and welfare of pupils. It is committed to making sure the school prepares pupils well for the next stage of their education. The governing body provides the school with an effective level of support and governors are not afraid to ask school leaders searching questions regarding the school’s effectiveness. As a result, the governing body has developed a realistic understanding of how well the school is doing in comparison to other primary schools.  Individual governors play an integral part in school life and closely monitor the school’s finances, including how effectively the school uses the money it receives to improve the progress of pupils entitled to extra help from the pupil premium.

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The leadership and management are good

 Governors are proud of the fact that the school has not only continued to improve its effectiveness since the last inspection but has also increased the number of pupils attending the school as a result. The governing body works closely with the school to ensure that all pupils have equal opportunities to succeed and that discrimination of any kind is not tolerated.  Governors receive regular training about their role. Individual governors visit the school frequently and keep a close watch on how the school’s funds are spent. The governing body also closely monitors school performance data, including data regarding the quality of teaching and their links to staff salary levels.

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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 113130 Local authority Devon Inspection number 401342

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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 3–11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 287 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Pam Orchard Headteacher Catherine Higley Date of previous school inspection 4–5 March 2010 Telephone number 01237 475178 Fax number 01237 423439 Email address catherine.higley@east-the-water.devon.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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