Wildground Infant School

Wildground Infant School Crete Road, Dibden Purlieu, Southampton, Hampshire, SO45 4JX

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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.  Children have a successful start to school in the Reception class. They make good progress, from starting points that are often very low, and this continues throughout Years 1 and 2.  Pupils leave Year 2 with average standards in reading, writing and mathematics. An increasing number are achieving above average standards.  The majority of teaching is good. All staff have worked successfully with senior leaders to remove weaknesses in teaching, and this has strengthened the progress made by pupils.  The leadership of the headteacher and deputy is strong. Governors and senior leaders check the quality of teaching and pupils’ achievement and are accurate in their judgement.  Pupils enjoy coming to school and behave well in lessons and around the school.  Pupils who have specific learning or behavioural needs, including the pre-school children in the Early Learning Group, benefit from good individual guidance and support.

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

 Pupils have many memorable learning experiences and opportunities to take responsibility, which prepare them well for the future.

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It is not yet an outstanding school because

 Not enough teaching is outstanding. Pupils do not have enough opportunities to find things out for themselves and assess their own learning.  Pupils have too few opportunities to practise extended pieces of writing, particularly those who are more able.

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Information about this inspection

 The inspector observed 12 lessons of which five were joint observations with senior leaders.  Pupils talked to the inspector about their learning and other aspects of the school’s work. The inspector heard some pupils in Year 2 read and scrutinised work in books.  Meetings were held with the Chair of the Governing Body and other members. A representative of the local authority was interviewed. Meetings were held with senior and middle leaders.  Questionnaires completed by 15 members of staff were taken into account.  The inspector spoke to parents at the end of the school day and also took account of the 42 responses to the Ofsted on-line questionnaire (Parent View). One letter from a parent was received and noted.  The inspector scrutinised documentation, including the school’s own information regarding progress, planning and monitoring. Evidence relating to child protection, safeguarding, attendance and behaviour was also considered.

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Inspection team

Liz Bowes, Lead inspector Additional Inspector

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Information about this school

 This is a smaller-than-average-sized infant school.  The overwhelming majority of the pupils are White British and the proportion who speak English as an additional language is well below average.  The proportion of pupils known to be eligible for the pupil premium funding is above average. (Pupil premium is additional funding for children who are eligible for free school meals, looked after children or children of service families.)  The proportion of disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs supported at school action is average. The proportion supported at school action plus or with a statement of special educational needs is also average.  There is an Early Learning Group for pre-school children who have specific difficulties with speech and language.  There is a privately-run on-site community pre-school and an after-school club which were not included in this inspection.

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Information about this school

 The school is currently in consultation regarding federating with the adjacent junior school.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Increase the amount of outstanding teaching to raise pupils’ achievement by: – providing pupils with more opportunities to find out things for themselves and assess their own learning.  Give pupils, particularly the most able, more opportunities to practise their writing skills by working on extended pieces of writing.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Children join the Reception classes with skills and knowledge that are generally well below the levels expected for their age, particularly in communication, language and literacy. Exciting learning experiences, well matched to their needs, result in the majority of children making good progress, particularly in speaking and listening.  Good progress continues throughout Key Stage 1 and, typically, pupils reach national expectations by the end of Year 2. Achievement is on an improving trend and this is continuing due to the school’s close monitoring of each pupil’s progress.  The results of the Year 1 screening check on phonics (the link between letters and sounds) in 2012 were slightly below average. The school immediately acted upon this information and has focused on providing well-targeted support for all pupils. All staff, including those who are lunchtime supervisors, are involved in either helping individuals or small groups of pupils. This

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The achievement of pupils is good

has resulted in the majority of pupils reading either at, or above, national expected levels.  Phonics is taught across Key Stage 1 in ability groups within each year group. As a result, all pupils make good progress in acquiring essential reading skills. Those who are less confident readers know how to use their phonic skills when reading unfamiliar words. Pupils enjoy reading from the wide range of books the school provides and speak about reading for pleasure at home. They enjoy the time in the mornings when they can read with their parents in the school hall. Those who are more able at reading in the Reception classes also benefit from individual support to further improve their progress.  Pupils make good progress in acquiring and applying mathematical skills. In a Year 2 lesson, for example, pupils explained clearly, using mathematical language, how they solved a problem related to the five times table.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Pupils write for a range of purposes including in topics and newsletters. The understanding of basic punctuation is good because of teachers’ continued emphasis on this. However, not enough pupils reach the higher levels in writing by the end of Year 2 and this is because there are not enough opportunities for them to write at greater length.  In 2012 there was a gap in attainment in English and mathematics between pupils known to be eligible for pupil premium funding and other groups within the school. Pupil premium funding is used to provide extra adult support in reading, writing and mathematics. The progress of each pupil is carefully tracked to show the impact of support, such as the one-to-one and small group sessions. Recent data shows that the gap in attainment no longer exists and many pupils who are eligible for the additional funding now make better progress than their peers.  Disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs make similar progress to their

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The achievement of pupils is good

peers and are set challenging individual targets. The support they receive is carefully planned to meet their specific needs.  Those who attend the Early Learning Group for pre-school language impaired children make good progress due to effective targeted support from well-trained teachers, speech therapists and assistants. In a lesson where staff encouraged pupils to talk about a book about the sea, one pupil demonstrated her language skills by enacting the story and then talking about the characters.

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The quality of teaching is good

 All groups of pupils are making good progress because of the good teaching and effective support they receive. Teachers have high expectations of behaviour and in all lessons seen pupils were intent on learning and finding the answers to questions and tasks.  In the Reception class, children thrive in the stimulating learning environment both inside and outside. Work is well matched to children’s needs and teachers and assistants make regular checks of what children can do, moving them on quickly to new tasks when they are ready. For example, in one lesson, children were discovering about mermaids; they had numerous exciting opportunities to explore the topic and all were encouraged to explain what they were doing and why. Children’s learning journals provide clear evidence as to how their skills are developing.  In lessons, teachers make effective use of the information about pupils’ attainment to plan their

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The quality of teaching is good

teaching and to match tasks to different abilities. As a result, pupils are set work at the right level of difficulty and their interest is sustained. Teachers ask questions skilfully to check pupils’ understanding. In a lesson on the Great Fire of London the teacher took on the role of Samuel Pepys and provided work which was carefully adapted to the different ability groups. This led to pupils being engaged and motivated and, as a result, they made good progress.  Teachers successfully promote pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. They create a positive classroom atmosphere to learn in and establish good working relationships.  Books are well marked and provide a clear record of what the pupils have been asked to do and how well they are doing. This helps pupils move forward to the next stage in their learning.  Pupils have recently been learning about finding things out for themselves as one of their

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The quality of teaching is good

learning values. They were encouraged to vote, using real polling boxes, for the animal that they thought succeeds when working on its own. Pupils have related well to this concept and reported that they like becoming independent learners. However, as yet, pupils do not have enough opportunities to work independently and assess their own learning.  The teaching of disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs is effective. Activities and support are closely suited to pupils’ learning needs. Teaching assistants are used to good effect in guiding and supporting pupils’ learning. In the Early Learning Group, staff provide carefully chosen activities to ensure that pupils make good progress.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils have positive attitudes to learning throughout the school. They listen attentively to the teacher and work well together, sharing ideas and finding solutions to tasks. Pupils feel part of the school and the great majority are very proud to belong to it.  Spirituality is well developed. In assemblies, pupils enjoy celebrating the achievements of others. In one class assembly they were encouraged to reflect on their own lives and consider the various reasons why they were special.  Pupils have a good awareness of the school’s rules. Good behaviour not only leads to pupils’ good academic performance but also promotes strong relationships in the school.  Pupils feel safe and secure, they say that bullying is rare and adults promptly sort out disagreements and quibbles. Pupils understand that bullying can take on different forms, including verbal and physical.  There are numerous opportunities for pupils to take responsibility throughout the school which

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

contribute well to their social development. The school values pupils’ comments and feedback, and has recently asked them to help design the markings for the playground. Overall attendance is average and punctuality is good. The school is continually working to challenge any poor attendance and parents are constantly reminded in newsletters about the importance of good attendance.

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The leadership and management are good

 Strong leadership, particularly by the headteacher, deputy and governors, is at the heart of the school’s success. The result is that achievement is improving and progress is good. Throughout the school there is a common sense of purpose and morale amongst staff is high. Staff questionnaires show that they appreciate the support that leaders give.  Senior leaders make rigorous checks to find out how well pupils are achieving. All staff, including governors, use information on achievement well to track the progress that pupils are making and ensure that they are meeting challenging targets. Extra help is provided for those who need it to help them catch up with others.  The development of teaching is a strong focus of the leadership team. There are regular lesson observations and detailed, constructive feedback has ensured that teaching is good. The headteacher manages the performance of staff well and there are clear links between pupils’

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The leadership and management are good

achievement and pay increases. The headteacher ensures that all staff, including teaching assistants, have sufficient opportunity to develop their skills.  Leaders conducted a survey to find out parents’ views. Although the results were very positive, parents did request more information on their child’s progress. In response, leaders designed a report and parents are now provided with weekly information specific to their child’s progress.  The local authority provides light touch support to the school. It has an accurate understanding of the school’s performance and has confidence in its ability to maintain and build on its work.  The curriculum is broad and gives pupils many enjoyable learning experiences. For example, pupils were very excited by a visit from a chauffeur from Beaulieu Motor Museum who introduced the topic of moving things. Staff plan engaging and creative lessons that allow pupils

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The leadership and management are good

to explore the world and learn about how others live. Pupils recall with pleasure the opportunities they have had to learn about other cultures through dance and music. In particular, the African project for Reception children started with an imaginary flight to Africa, complete with air hostesses. There is a large range of clubs such as singing, computers and sewing.  There is a strong commitment to every child being equal and pupils have full access to all the activities the school provides. Discrimination of any kind is not tolerated.  Child protection, risk assessment and safeguarding policies and procedures meet current national regulations.  Productive partnerships are formed with local agencies and organisations. Strong partnerships already exist with the adjacent junior school, with good transition arrangements and opportunities for moderation of assessments of pupils’ work prior to starting junior school.

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The leadership and management are good

 Parents are given good advice on how they can support their children’s learning at home through a variety of information evenings and links to useful websites. Parents are very positive, and as one reported, ‘The school does a good job for my children, teachers are always approachable and I am really pleased with the progress my children are making.’  The governance of the school:  Governors have a good knowledge of the school’s strengths, including the overall quality of teaching. Governors have a good understanding of the data on pupils’ progress and how well pupils perform in comparison to those in other schools. Governors have been fully involved in the school’s actions to improve achievement and they ask challenging questions. Finances are well managed overall and funds available through the pupil premium have been used well to improve the attainment of targeted pupils. Governors understand the performance of teachers

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The leadership and management are good

is linked closely to their pay and that pay will only be increased if pupils make good progress. They support the headteacher in ensuring that any underperformance is challenged. Governors ensure that all statutory requirements are fully met.

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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 115885 Local authority Hampshire Inspection number 412661

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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 Infant School category Community Age range of pupils 4−7 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 146 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Fiona Western Headteacher Amanda Mullett Date of previous school inspection September 2008 Telephone number 02380 842212 Fax number 02380 842212 Email address adminoffice@wildground-inf.hants.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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