Hapton Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School

Hapton Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School The Street, Hapton, Norwich, NR15 1AD

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Overall effectiveness

Previous inspection: Outstanding 1 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.  Pupils thrive because Hapton is a very caring and nurturing school.  Pupils make good progress from their very varied starting points because teachers set work that helps them learn, whatever their ability.  Staff form an effective team driven by their desire to do the best they can for every pupil.  Well trained and effective teaching assistants ensure pupils receive any extra help they need to make good progress.  Pupils say, and their parents agree, that they feel safe in school. All staff see pupils’ safety as paramount to what they do.  Pupils behave well and like school.  The acting headteacher leads the staff very well; she teaches both classes and knows firsthand how effectively staff teach and pupils learn.  Changes in staff have been well managed; their training is clearly linked to an accurate evaluation of their performance. Hence, teaching has improved over the last year.

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

 The governing body is decisive and bold in the pursuit of its clear vision of Hapton as a financially-sound centre of excellence.  Parents are very supportive. One described it as ‘a small school but a massive personality.’

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It is not yet an outstanding school because

 Pupils do not have enough chances to practise their writing skills in other subjects.  Feedback about their work is useful but pupils are not given enough time to respond to it.  Pupils’ progress is not tracked methodically enough to promote faster progress.  Attendance is below average and some pupils are regularly late for school. Inspection report: Hapton Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School, 22–23 May 2013 2 of 9

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Information about this inspection

 The inspector observed nine lessons and all teachers teaching. All were joint observations with the acting headteacher.  The inspector made other visits to classes, looked at pupils’ workbooks and listened to a sample of pupils read.  The inspector held discussions with pupils, the acting headteacher, other staff, governors, parents and representatives of the local authority and diocese.  The inspector took account of the 11 responses to the on-line questionnaire (Parent View). The inspector also spoke to a small number of parents. The responses to ten staff questionnaires were also considered.  The inspector observed the school’s work and looked at a number of documents including: the school’s own data on pupils’ progress; planning and monitoring documentation; the school’s self- evaluation; the records of how the school uses its funding, especially how the money from pupil premium is spent; records relating to behaviour and attendance; and documents relating to

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Inspection team

Robert Greatrex, Lead inspector Additional Inspector Inspection report: Hapton Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School, 22–23 May 2013 3 of 9

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Information about this school

 This is a much smaller-than-average primary school.  Almost all pupils are of White British heritage.  The proportion of pupils known to be eligible for the pupil premium (the extra government funding for children in local authority care and those known to be eligible for free school meals) is well above average.  The proportion of pupils supported through school action is well above average. The proportion of pupils supported through school action plus or a statement of special educational needs is also well above average.  Pupils are taught in two mixed-aged classes, one for four to seven year-olds and the other for seven to 11 year-olds.  The school currently has an acting headteacher and there have been other changes to teaching staff since the last inspection.  The school will shortly enter a partnership with two other schools sharing a headteacher. Longer term, the plan is to form a federation, if public consultation is favourable.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Further improve the quality of pupils’ writing by:  looking for more ways to exploit opportunities for writing in other subjects  giving pupils more opportunities to choose an apt writing genre for the writing tasks they are asked to complete  giving pupils enough time and opportunity to carry out, and practise, the corrections and suggestions for improvement provided by teachers when written work is marked.  Use information about pupils’ progress more effectively to:  set challenging targets and monitor each individual pupil’s progress towards them  check how different groups are performing so that, if there is any difference, this can be identified quickly and rectified.   Improve attendance and punctuality by:  seeking and implementing examples of effective practice from other schools revising school policy on how term-time holidays are classified, and make this clear in the information given to parents.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

Inspection report: Hapton Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School, 22–23 May 2013 4 of 9

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The achievement of pupils is good

 When children start school, their skills and range of experiences vary but overall are below those expected for their age. They quickly settle and make good progress because their teacher presents lessons in an interesting way and they enjoy choosing from a good range of activities.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Pupils in Years 1 and 2 also make good progress. Those needing more time before settling to a more formal learning environment benefit from learning alongside the youngest who, in turn, benefit from having older pupils to watch and learn from.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Progress continues to be good in Years 3 to 6 because tasks are meaningful and interesting, and at the right level, neither too easy nor too difficult.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Hapton is a very small school with very small year groups. Because of this, results of tests vary greatly from one year to the next but, throughout the school, pupils make good progress from their very varied starting points.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Reading standards are good. The school responded quickly to disappointing scores in last year’s test of how to link letters to the sounds they make (phonics). The programme for phonics was quickly changed so that each lesson now builds on the last one and has a clearer structure.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 The school realised that writing levels were a little below those in reading and mathematics and introduced changes that have raised standards. Even so, not all pupils are confident with skills, such as how to construct interesting and varied sentences.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Whatever individual pupils excel at or find difficult to master, the staff make sure that all activities are closely matched to their levels so they learn at a good rate.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Pupils benefit from the small class sizes. One pupil summed it up, ‘if you need help in a lesson, there are enough adults for you to get help without waiting.’

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Pupil premium funding is spent effectively on new resources, extra staff hours to use them, and necessary training. As a result, these pupils make good progress and at levels similar to other pupils. Their attainment in English and mathematics is also similar to that of others.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Disabled pupils and those with special educational needs are particularly well catered for because of the level of skill and expertise that staff have built over time. Possible needs are quickly identified and extra support offered so pupils make a good start and do well.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Basic skills in numeracy are good. In literacy, pupils are making progress but do not always have enough opportunities to practise and master in other subjects the skills learnt in English. Pupils are quick and accurate in their use of tablet computers.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teachers overcome the challenge of teaching up to four different year groups by planning for several ability levels and then adapting the planning for each individual. Even if the whole class is learning together, teacher’s questions are at different levels of difficulty to match each pupil’s capability. Inspection report: Hapton Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School, 22–23 May 2013 5 of 9

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teachers’ careful marking of how pupils mastered the last lesson is the basis of the next. They accurately assess what each pupil knows and then decide the next steps in their learning.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teaching is most effective when questions constantly prompt and probe pupils’ understanding; looking for any errors that need correction, or pushing pupils towards the next level, or practising skills such as using doubles and near doubles to add two and three digit numbers.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Activities are interesting so pupils want to learn. For example, a very wide selection of drawings from many cultures depicting Christ formed the basis of a thought-provoking discussion about how he is represented in different cultures.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Pupils work well together. In a mathematics investigation, they were fully absorbed; discussing ideas, listening to one another, modifying their views based on what others may have said and learning how to come to a shared view. In this way, other subjects are used very effectively to practise and refine pupils’ speaking and listening skills.

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The quality of teaching is good

 The generous number of well-trained extra adults work closely with individuals and small groups of pupils to give them extra support tailored effectively to support their individual learning.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Pupils benefit from some imaginative opportunities to write in other subjects, but these are limited. In addition, pupils are generally given the writing style to use and rarely make their own choices of how they would like to set out their writing or what might be the most suitable style or genre.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Recent improvements to marking are useful because pupils have a clearer idea of what they have achieved and what they need to concentrate on next. However, they have too few and irregular opportunities to think about how to use the feedback in their future work.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Homework is suitably varied. It is used to practise or prepare for work in school, or to offer open-ended tasks that pupils respond to in the way that interests them. Pupils say they enjoy these tasks particularly.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Hapton has a good reputation locally as a very caring and nurturing school. In the eldest three year groups, about half the pupils joined the school from another school. In some cases, this was because of the school’s reputation.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 The relationships between staff and pupils are very close and trusting. Pupils and their parents say pupils are very well cared for and all staff know them as individuals and ensure they are happy at school.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils’ behaviour is generally good and incidents are rare. Pupils say they feel safe at school, and all parents agree. Staff are well trained and always vigilant. Pupils look out for one another, too. One stated, ‘all our children are friendly and help one another.’

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils’ attitudes to learning are generally good. When lessons are presented imaginatively, they show inquisitiveness and persevere to succeed. For example, their designs for labyrinths using both tablet computers and paper and pencil resulted in good quality life-sized models made with Inspection report: Hapton Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School, 22–23 May 2013 6 of 9

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

a range of materials including twigs and shells. They worked with enthusiasm and pleasure to build and then try their designs.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils have a meaningful voice in their school. The school’s response to some concerns about playtime behaviour was to invite pupils to design co-operative games. Pupils’ response was a number of imaginative and fun activities.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Attendance is below average. Although parents are regularly reminded about the importance of good attendance, the school is not doing all it can to improve it. In the way absence is classified, parents may gain the impression that up to two weeks’ term-time holiday each year is acceptable. A few pupils are regularly late, too, and this is a disadvantage to them as they often miss valuable teaching at the start of the day.

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The leadership and management are good

 Monitoring is a daily activity because the acting headteacher teaches alongside staff and has a firsthand knowledge of how well the pupils’ are being taught. Her particular expertise in writing has been helpful in driving standards up. However, information about pupils’ progress is not used to check targets are challenging enough or check each pupil is on track to meet them, nor to check how different groups of pupils are doing, and to quickly identify any differences.

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The leadership and management are good

 Staff form a strong team, always willing to share ideas to solve problems. Staff effectiveness is regularly checked and results acted upon. Staff are given opportunities to develop so that pupils benefit. Areas for improvement are identified and suitable training offered. For example, when a new phonics teaching system was introduced, all staff including teaching assistants benefitted from high quality training.

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The leadership and management are good

 The range of subjects taught is good. Pupils particularly enjoy the chance to ask questions and research answers. Spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is good. The school makes sure every pupil has similar chances to enjoy everything school has to offer, and that no one is discriminated against.

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The leadership and management are good

 The partnership with parents is close. Parents are seen as integral to the school community. Other than one criticism of homework, every parent responding to the on-line questionnaire agreed or strongly agreed with every statement.

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The leadership and management are good

 Much is done with local schools, including staff training and pupils’ events, particularly so pupils meet those moving to high school with them. This is part of good induction arrangements.

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The leadership and management are good

 Good support from the local authority and diocese, particularly the preparation for partnership with other local schools, is seen as very helpful by the school.

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The leadership and management are good

 The governance of the school:  Governors are far-sighted. An insightful recommendation based on thorough research led to a clear, carefully costed vision for how the school can develop. Their pragmatism is far-reaching. Governor training is much improved since the last inspection and an important basis of their effectiveness. They know the school well and strike a good balance between supporting and questioning what is happening. Finances, including pupil premium funding, are managed carefully and allocated correctly. Governors meet statutory requirements, including those for safeguarding. Clear targets are set for all staff and governors check arrangements to promote staff and links to pay. Inspection report: Hapton Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School, 22–23 May 2013 7 of 9

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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. Inspection report: Hapton Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School, 22–23 May 2013 8 of 9

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School details

Unique reference number 121040 Local authority Norfolk Inspection number 411707

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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 Voluntary controlled Age range of pupils 4–11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 32 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair J’Anne Robertson Headteacher Linda Skepelhorn (acting headteacher) Date of previous school inspection 13 May 2010 Telephone number 01508 489395 Fax number 01508 489395 Email address office@hapton.norfolk.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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