Collingwood Primary School

Collingwood Primary School Oswin Terrace, North Shields, Tyne and Wear, NE29 7JQ

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Overall effectiveness

Previous inspection: Good 2 This inspection: Good 2 Achievement of pupils Good 2 Quality of teaching Good 2 Behaviour and safety of pupils Outstanding 1 Leadership and management Good 2

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

This is a good school.  Behaviour is outstanding because the school succeeds in encouraging pupils to behave consistently well. Pupils have a thorough understanding of how to keep themselves safe.  The school has a welcoming atmosphere. Relationships, care and support are strong so pupils are keen to learn.  The headteacher has taken effective action to improve achievement by rapidly increasing the proportion of good and outstanding teaching and eradicating weak teaching.  The school has a much higher proportion of pupils with special educational needs than is normally found. Provision for them is good. Consequently, they make good progress.  The curriculum promotes pupils’ good achievement and their spiritual, moral, social and cultural development well. It provides relevant opportunities for pupils that address their needs.  The headteacher and other leaders are well respected by all and they lead and support

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

staff very effectively, so that the school has improved since the previous inspection.  Partnerships with other schools are a strength and have contributed successfully to the significant improvements in the quality of teaching and pupils’ progress.  Governance is strong and provides effective support and challenge to help the school improve further.

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It is not yet an outstanding school because

 The quality of teaching and learning is not yet consistently outstanding in all classes, particularly in promoting pupils’ mathematical problem-solving skills, their better handwriting and clearer presentation.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors observed 29 lessons and analysed the work in pupils’ books.  Meetings were held with the school council, the headteacher, senior and subject leaders, the Chair and two other members of the Governing Body and one representative from the local authority.  Inspectors took account of the six responses to the online questionnaire (Parent View) and 36 responses from staff in planning and carrying out the inspection.  They observed the school’s work and scrutinised a number of documents, including the school’s checks on how well it is doing and improvement plans, data on pupils’ current progress and the school’s checks on teaching, and records relating to behaviour, attendance and safeguarding.

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Inspection team

Kevin Dodd, Lead inspector Additional Inspector John Pattinson Additional Inspector Jane Beckett Additional Inspector

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Information about this school

 This is an above-average-sized primary school.  The proportions of pupils supported at school action and school action plus or with a statement of special educational needs are well above the national average.  The proportion of pupils eligible for the pupil premium is high. The pupil premium is additional funding for those pupils who are known to be eligible for free school meals, children from service families and those children that are looked after by the local authority.  The school meets the government’s current floor standards which set the minimum expectations for pupils’ progress and attainment.  Almost all pupils are of White British heritage.  The headteacher is a Local Leader in Education and leads a group of 11 other schools in North Tyneside in a soft federation.  The school has achieved the Artsmark Gold and Basic Skills Awards.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Raise the quality of teaching and learning to outstanding by:  systematically sharing the outstanding practice evident in the school and eradicating the small number of weaker aspects that remain in lessons  providing opportunities for all pupils to apply taught strategies to solve mathematical word problems  ensuring a consistent approach to the teaching of handwriting and presentation.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Children start school with skills and abilities well below those typically expected for their age. Questioning is used effectively when children are initiating their own learning, and support provided by teaching assistants means that children do well in the Early Years Foundation Stage. A significant minority of children enter the Nursery class with speech, language and communication difficulties. Highly skilled staff support these children to achieve as well as their peers. Nevertheless, attainment is still below average when pupils enter Year 1.  Improved teaching in Key Stage 1 ensures pupils continue to make good progress, so that, at the end of Year 2, their attainment has risen to broadly average in reading, writing and mathematics.  In Key Stage 2 pupils’ progress is good, and has accelerated since the previous inspection due to improved teaching. Overall, pupils typically attain broadly average standards in reading, writing

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The achievement of pupils is good

and mathematics by the time they leave at the end of Year 6. All groups of students, including those with special educational needs, achieve well from their varied starting points.  Disabled pupils and those with special educational needs attain standards that are in line with similar pupils across the country. They make good progress from their starting points, especially in their social and emotional development, as a result of work that is very well suited to their abilities and the very good support and teaching they receive from teachers and teaching assistants.  The progress of pupils supported by the pupil premium, including those known to be eligible for free school meals, is improving. The effective action taken to provide one-to-one support for these pupils has accelerated the rate of their progress. Good teaching continues to ensure that any gaps in their attainment compared to other pupils are closing rapidly and that they make the

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The achievement of pupils is good

same good progress as other pupils in the school. Their attainment is now broadly average in reading, writing and mathematics. This shows the school’s commitment to promoting equal opportunities and tackling discrimination.  Pupils write in a variety of styles and express their ideas confidently. In mathematics pupils use their mental recall skills to develop written methods of calculation.  Inspection evidence shows that pupils make good progress in reading. This is a result of the effective teaching of how to link sounds and letters, in order to help pupils read words they are not familiar with, and a successful drive to help pupils enjoy books and read more in school and at home.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teaching is consistently good with evidence of outstanding teaching across the school, and the school’s records show that the proportion of good and outstanding teaching is rising.  Teaching in the Early Years Foundation Stage and routines are based on a good understanding of children’s needs. Observations of children’s achievements are used well to inform activities. Teachers’ questioning extends children’s skills and understanding well. Teaching assistants guide children’s progress effectively. Good resources, including information and communication technology (ICT), support learning well. Provision outdoors is not yet as vibrant as indoors but this is being addressed through an action plan.  In the very best lessons in Key Stages 1 and 2 teachers plan their lessons to make sure all pupils are given work that gets the very best out of them. They explain ideas carefully and use questions skilfully and so pupils learn very quickly. Teaching assistants provide effective support

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The quality of teaching is good

to guide the learning of all pupils and help them to learn for themselves.  Activities are interesting and capture pupils’ interest. For instance, a range of relevant word problems were used with a class of Year 3 children to help them practise calculation methods and deepen their understanding of mathematics. In an outstanding Year 1 English lesson pupils were challenged to identify rhyming words in a poem about the ocean and read with expression. Careful questioning and support helped the children learn how to link sounds and letters to read words.  When teaching is less effective, one or more of these strengths are missing and pupils are not given sufficient opportunities to use methods taught in mathematics to solve word problems or encouraged to present their work neatly and develop a joined style of handwriting.  Disabled pupils and those with special educational needs are given extra help; teaching methods

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The quality of teaching is good

are especially well suited to the needs of these pupils and those who are known to be eligible for the pupil premium and so help them to learn quickly.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are outstanding

 Staff and parents are highly positive about behaviour within the school and report that instances of misbehaviour are rare and are dealt with quickly and effectively. Pupils have a high level of understanding and support for vulnerable children in school.  The school is a ‘learning family’ where all staff are excellent role models. The school succeeds in encouraging pupils to behave well through a calm, caring and supportive atmosphere. Consequently, pupils display positive attitudes in lessons and pupils’ learning is rarely interrupted.  Pupils speak positively about their learning and are happy in school. They are punctual to lessons and eager to get on with their work because of the excellent relationships and high expectations of staff. They work and play exceptionally well together, respect one another and are extremely polite to adults.  School records show that bullying is rare and effectively managed. Pupils showed a good

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are outstanding

understanding about different types of bullying, including racism, harassment and cyber-bullying. Pupils are very clear about the behaviour expected of them.  Pupils report that they feel safe in school and understand what constitutes unsafe situations and the basic principles of how to keep themselves safe. Risk assessments are undertaken and the school is rigorous in its procedures for ensuring pupils’ safety.  Break times and lunchtime are supervised particularly well and a well-resourced play area ensures pupils enjoy playing with each other.  The school is reviewing current practice to secure consistent improvement in attendance, which is lower than schools nationally.

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The leadership and management are good

 The leadership of the headteacher and other leaders is strong; they have a very clear view of how successful the school can be and support staff well. All staff share this view. The leadership team inspire staff and pupils and there is a good team spirit. Parents are overwhelmingly supportive of the school and the staff and pupils appreciate the headteacher’s encouraging approach.  The leadership team have worked hard and successfully to improve pupils’ progress by strengthening the quality of teaching and through forming effective partnerships with other schools in the area. Good progress has been made in tackling the other areas identified for improvement in the previous inspection report. Successful actions, including improved teaching and learning, have raised achievement in reading, writing and mathematics for all groups of pupils.  An accurate and robust system has been put in place to check pupils’ progress. The effective use

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The leadership and management are good

of this system is evident in the good progress now being made by all pupils and the school promotes equal opportunities well, ensuring all learn well and take part in school activities.  The leadership team check on the quality of teaching and provide astute comments on how to make it better. Training for staff links effectively to these needs. The team acknowledges, however, that, by sharing the best teaching practice evident in the school more widely among staff, the quality of teaching could be strengthened even further.  The headteacher has strengthened the way teachers are appraised for their performance. Discussions about pupils’ progress ensure that staff are answerable for the progress pupils in their class make. The headteacher and governors ensure teachers are only rewarded when they are successful in helping pupils to make at least good progress.  The school’s procedures for gaining an accurate view of its strengths and areas to develop are

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The leadership and management are good

effective in identifying the main priorities for improvement. Plans to tackle priorities are correctly centred on teachers sharing good and outstanding practice; this is having a positive impact on raising attainment and improving the consistency in the quality of teaching.  Links between home and school are good and parents are involved appropriately in pupils’ learning.  The curriculum meets pupils’ needs. It adds interest to pupils’ learning and pupils say they enjoy the topics, the way that subjects are linked and the visits to places of interest. A number of school clubs exist to meet the interests of all pupils and are well attended. Homework is also provided to extend pupils’ skills and learning.  The local authority has a good understanding of the school’s needs and has been effective in its support for the school towards rapid improvement.  The school is aware of the need to keep parents fully informed by providing access to

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The leadership and management are good

information on the school’s website.  The governance of the school:  Governors know that achievement and teaching have improved and are good. They check that teachers’ salary progression is linked to their appraisal outcomes and their stage of career development. Under the leadership of the headteacher, governors are playing a more central role in future planning by, for example, having a clear understanding of pupils’ performance data. They understand that pupil premium funding has been allocated to provide help for pupils who are at risk of underachieving and they know the impact of this spending on outcomes for pupils. The governing body ensures safeguarding meets requirements. Governors hold the school to account 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 108602 Local authority North Tyneside Inspection number 413147

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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 325 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Beverley Atkinson Headteacher Jim Crinson Date of previous school inspection 28 April 2009 Telephone number 0191 2005038 Fax number 0191 2005038 Email address james.crinson@northtyneside.gov.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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