Moreton Say CofE Primary School

Moreton Say CofE Controlled Primary School Moreton Say, Market Drayton, TF9 3RS

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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 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 achieve well. They make good progress in each year group as they move through the school.  Teaching is good, with some that is outstanding. Pupils enjoy the challenging tasks they are given.  The teaching of reading is particularly good throughout the school. Pupils are fluent readers by the time they leave.  Pupils feel very safe at school. Bullying and other forms of bad behaviour are extremely rare.  Good leadership from the headteacher and governing body is driving the school forward. Leaders have ensured that teaching and achievement are good despite staffing changes. The school’s systems for checking and improving the quality of teaching are effective.

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It is not yet an outstanding school because

 There are not enough outstanding lessons for pupils to make consistently rapid progress. The best practice is not shared enough between teachers to improve this.  Teachers’ use of targets is not precise enough when checking on pupils’ learning.  Marking does not consistently show pupils how to improve their work.

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Information about this inspection

 The school was inspected with one day’s notice and took place over two days.  The inspection was carried out by one inspector. He observed eight lessons or part lessons and visited every class. For four of these lessons, he was joined by the headteacher. He also carried out a series of short visits to classes to look at marking in pupils’ books. The inspector also listened to pupils reading.  The inspector held discussions with the headteacher, teachers and with the Chair of the Governing Body. He held a meeting with a representative from the local authority. He met with groups of pupils.  He scrutinised a wide range of pupils’ books and read a range of documentation, including the school’s plans for improvement, data on pupils’ progress, information about observations of teaching and the management of performance, and safeguarding documentation.  The inspector considered 25 responses from parents and carers to the on-line questionnaire

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Information about this inspection

(Parent View). He also talked to some parents and carers.

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Inspection team

David Evans, Lead inspector Additional Inspector

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Information about this school

 The school is much smaller than most other primary schools.  The proportion of disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs supported at school action is below average. The proportion of pupils supported through school action plus or who have a statement of special educational needs is above average.  The proportion of pupils who are known to be eligible for free school meals or belong to other groups for whom the school receives additional income (the pupil premium) is below average.  There is a pre-school provision on the school site, known as the Goslings, which is inspected separately.  The school meets the government’s current floor standard, which sets out the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress.  The school has recently undergone a period of significant disruption to staffing. The headteacher has a notable teaching commitment.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Increase the proportion of outstanding lessons by:  sharing the good practice that exists in school  ensuring that teachers use targets more regularly and precisely to explain exactly what they want pupils to achieve in lessons  making sure that marking provides clear next steps so that pupils can improve their learning.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 When children start in the Early Years Foundation Stage, their skills and knowledge are broadly typical for their age. Most make good progress in their first year because teachers continuously assess their achievement and use this information to plan stimulating activities well matched to their learning needs.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 The small numbers of pupils mean that standards on leaving school vary from year to year and attainment at the end of Key Stages 1 and 2 has been broadly average. However, the school’s reliable data, recent unvalidated data, evidence from school records, lesson observations and the scrutiny of a wide range of workbooks show attainment rising and pupils making good progress throughout Key Stages 1 and 2.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs achieve well because they receive well-planned support.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Pupils who are supported by the pupil premium achieve well because the school uses the additional resources effectively to provide them with carefully tailored programmes of additional support. The impact of this support is measured very precisely, and staff modify it accordingly to ensure success. In the 2012 Key Stage 2 national assessments, there was a gap of about a year in English between eligible pupils and their peers. The gap in mathematics was not significant. Internal information about current pupils’ progress shows that eligible pupils now in the school are doing as well as their peers. This was confirmed by lesson observations and scrutiny of pupils’ work.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Any pupils who start to fall behind are quickly identified through the school’s thorough system to track their progress. They are given effective extra support that helps them catch up.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Pupils at an early stage in learning to read develop good skills in using letters in unfamiliar words to work out how they sound.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 By the end of Year 6, almost all pupils are fluent readers. They read widely and whenever they have a spare moment.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Pupils’ progress in mathematics has been slower than in English in recent years. This is no longer the case because lessons are more practical and relevant. Pupils measure large distances in the playground, for example, and solve problems.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Good teaching enables pupils to make good progress in all subjects. While the large majority of parents and carers who used Parent View agree that their children are taught well, this is an area of more concern for others. However, it is likely that this concern relates to the past year or so when there was a significant degree of staff disruption and change and some weak teaching. These issues have now been largely resolved.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teachers have high expectations of what pupils can achieve. They give them difficult tasks, which pupils can complete if they try their hardest. The tasks are different for each group of pupils, so none finds them too hard or too easy.  Teachers maintain pupils’ attention during explanations by using skilful questioning, short written tasks and opportunities to discuss new ideas with partners.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teachers enable pupils to develop good skills in working as part of a team, learning through discussion and persevering with challenging problems.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teaching assistants support small groups effectively. The teacher gives them clear instructions so that they know exactly where each pupil in the group needs extra help.

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The quality of teaching is good

 In the best lessons, teachers check pupils’ learning effectively. Activities are adjusted and difficulties to be tackled in future lessons identified well through marking, watching and listening to pupils. Marking is frequent, but it does not focus precisely enough on the next steps that pupils should take to improve their work.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Pupils are sometimes unclear about their targets and how to use them. Teachers do not regularly amend these targets to enable pupils to move forward in their work.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils enjoy school and feel safe, so they like to come to school. They are absent less often than is found nationally.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils are courteous and respectful to each other and adults. They are kind and helpful. During the inspection, the corridors were calm, despite the fact that there was an open day and that bad weather kept pupils indoors for some of the time.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils’ behaviour observed during the inspection was always good. Discussions with pupils, parents and carers support the notion that this is typical.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 In lessons, pupils show a positive attitude to learning and each other. They are keen to please the teacher and to help each other. Even when a few lessons lacked structure, pupils persevered and kept their enthusiasm. Most are keen to work hard and do their best.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

They enjoy the varied activities planned. As a result they sustain their concentration well. Pupils listen attentively to teachers and other staff. They work independently because they are expected to do as much as they can for themselves. This approach is successful in preparing all pupils well for their next stage of education.  Pupils have a good understanding of how to keep themselves safe, especially when using the internet.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Most pupils listen and think carefully and demonstrate good spiritual, moral, social and cultural development.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 All pupils are valued and well supported. They have a good understanding of cultural differences and have established links with other countries, such as Kenya.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 The school has made pupils aware of all kinds of bullying and how to deal with it. Bullying is very rare and pupils feel confident it is dealt with effectively and quickly.

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The leadership and management are good

 The headteacher’s open, honest and determined approach to leading the school has brought together the whole community and created a highly effective learning culture. As a result, rapid improvements have been secured and issues from the previous inspection successfully tackled.

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The leadership and management are good

 Monitoring and evaluation are effective. Information gathered from lesson observations, regular meetings with teachers to review the progress pupils have made, and looking at pupils’ work in books provide leaders with an accurate picture of how well the school is performing. The findings are carefully considered and then effectively used to plan for future training and further improvements.

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The leadership and management are good

 The headteacher manages the performance of teachers well. This ensures there is a close match between how well teachers are paid and how well pupils learn. Targets set for teachers are accurate, focus on pupils’ progress and link to the quality of their teaching as well as the school improvement plan priorities.

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The leadership and management are good

 The curriculum is exciting and reflects the needs and aspirations of the pupils. For example, there are stimulating projects on the Vikings and astronomy. Topic-based work develops pupils’ wider understanding of different cultures well, both around the world and locally.

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The leadership and management are good

 Data from test and assessments are analysed in great detail to provide leaders with a clear and accurate picture of performance across the school.

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The leadership and management are good

 The headteacher applies rigorous criteria when visiting lessons and points out exactly how even the best can be improved. These checks on teaching target lessons where the analysis of pupils’ progress shows a weakness. This allows the school leaders to determine the cause of slow progress, and quickly rectify it.

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The leadership and management are good

 The local authority provides an effective ‘light touch’ support and it regularly checks on school data and pupils’ progress, the quality of teaching and leadership and management.

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The leadership and management are good

 The governance of the school:  The governing body works closely with all members of the school community in an open and transparent way. This trusting relationship strengthens the overall leadership of the school. Governors pay regular visits to the school and play a strong part in devising plans for improvement. They receive high-quality information about the performance of pupils and teachers from the headteacher. This is used well to ask appropriate and searching questions and to challenge and support effectively. As a result, governors have a good grasp of how good teaching is, and how targets set for teachers are helping them to make it better. Governors have approved spending of the additional pupil premium on strategies to help pupils catch up with their learning. They are aware that the information on pupils’ progress shows the positive impact of this action.

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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 123485 Local authority Shropshire Inspection number 413060

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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 5–11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 94 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Elaine Griffiths Headteacher Gary Lester Date of previous school inspection 6 May 2010 Telephone number 01630 638465 Fax number 01630 638 465 Email address admin.moretonsay@shropshirelg.net 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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