Chalkwell Hall Junior School

Chalkwell Hall Junior School London Road, Leigh-on-Sea, SS9 3NL

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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 make good progress because teaching is good.  Pupils enjoy coming to school because they like learning and are keen to do well.  Pupils’ behaviour is good. They say that bullying is rare and occasional incidents are dealt with well. They feel safe and say they are well looked after.  The headteacher provides good leadership. He works closely with other leaders, governors and staff, to improve pupils’ progress and raise standards.  Leaders expect high standards of teaching. They provided good training to help teachers improve their skills, and to help new leaders to work effectively in their responsibilities.

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It is not yet an outstanding school because

 Teachers do not consistently encourage pupils to spell new and commonly used words accurately.  Teaching occasionally is not demanding or matched closely enough to pupils’ ages or learning needs.  Teachers do not always give enough guidance on how pupils should improve their work, or make sure that pupils follow guidance when it is given.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors observed 15 teachers in 29 lessons or parts of lessons. Two of these were observed jointly with senior leaders.  Meetings were held with staff, pupils, governors, parents and a partner headteacher who supports the school’s development.  Inspectors examined documents about the school’s work, including information about the achievement of pupils, development planning and the school’s self-evaluation.  They took account of 104 responses to the Parent View online questionnaire, and the school’s own survey of parents’ and carers’ views. They considered 22 responses to the staff questionnaire.

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Inspection team

Edward Wheatley, Lead inspector Additional Inspector Matthew Klimcke Additional Inspector Sandra Teacher Additional Inspector

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Information about this school

 The school is larger than most junior schools.  The proportion of pupils who speak English as an additional language is broadly average. None are at the early stages of learning English.  The proportion of pupils supported through school action is broadly average and the proportion supported at school action plus or with a statement of special educational needs is well below average.  The proportion of pupils known to be eligible for the pupil premium is below average. This is additional government funding for children looked after by the local authority, pupils known to be eligible for free school meals and children who have a parent in the armed forces. Currently, no pupils come from families with a parent in the armed services.  The school meets the government’s current floor standards, which set the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve the quality of teaching and pupils’ achievement by making sure that:  pupils spell new and commonly used words correctly  work is demanding and closely matched to the needs of pupils of all ages and abilities  teachers tell pupils how to improve their work and check that pupils follow any guidance they are given.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Standards are well above average by the end of Year 6, and have risen in recent years. A significant proportion of pupils achieve high levels of attainment in the end of Year 6 national tests, and this is improving.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Based on the school’s own assessment of pupils’ above-average attainment on entry, pupils’ progress is good. Inspectors saw good and sometimes outstanding progress in lessons. Progress is accelerating, especially in English where standards have caught up with those in mathematics, and over time pupils make good progress in all years.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Pupils achieve well above average standards in reading. The small numbers of pupils who find reading hard, link sounds and letters together well to help them read new words. Pupils enjoy reading. They read a wide range of books and the school keeps detailed records of what pupils read to help them choose carefully what they read.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Standards in writing are well above average. Pupils write well in all subjects. They express their ideas well, and write imaginatively using accurate grammar. They have a wide vocabulary but their spelling of new and commonly used words is not always accurate.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Pupils’ mathematical skills are well above average and some reach high levels of attainment. They carry out mental calculations accurately and quickly, and practise this on a daily basis. They add, subtract, multiply and divide well and reinforce their skills regularly by using them in several subjects.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Disabled pupils and those with special educational needs make good progress. Learning assistants provide good support and ensure the pupils they help successfully gain confidence and skills they need to gain mathematical skills.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Pupils supported by the pupil premium funding make good progress, and the gap in standards between them and other pupils has narrowed considerably since they joined the school. In the current Year 6, their standards are less than one term behind other pupils in reading, writing and mathematics. Funding is used well to provide individual teaching support, books and other resources to promote pupils’ success in English and mathematics.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teachers use accurate assessment information well to make sure that work is usually challenging and matched to pupils’ different attainment levels. They regularly provide extra activities to support pupils who learn fast, and support for those pupils who need to learn more slowly.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teachers’ questioning is usually searching and makes sure all pupils are involved in discussing what they learn and explaining their knowledge and understanding.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teachers provide many opportunities for pupils to work together, to collaborate over what they learn and over work they produce. This promotes pupils’ abilities to make decisions about their own learning and contributes effectively to their social and moral development.  Teachers use topic approaches well to make learning interesting. For example, teachers engaged pupils in writing their own poetry using themes of music from the 1960s and 1980s. Pupils’ wrote and sang their own verses and were delighted with the high quality work they produced.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Links between subjects are good and help enliven learning. For example, pupils learn about the Romans, and also use the topic effectively to develop their writing skills, and skills in using computers.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Classroom assistants work closely with teachers to plan work for pupils they work with. They are well informed about pupils’ learning needs and mostly work effectively with them to ensure they learn well. They also make sure that the pupils they work with have opportunities to work with other pupils and independently.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Generally, teachers’ marking is good. It usually tells pupils how well they are doing, what the next steps in learning are, and gives them guidance on how to improve their work. Occasionally, guidance on how to improve is not given, and pupils do not always follow the guidance when it is given.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Sometimes teachers do not correct pupils’ inaccurate spelling, or remind pupils to spell carefully and correctly.

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The quality of teaching is good

 In a small number of lessons work is not demanding or carefully tailored to pupils’ ages or abilities, and this slows their learning briefly.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils’ behaviour is good and the great majority of pupils have excellent attitudes to learning. They enjoy school, their lessons and the wide range of activities the school provides.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils like work and other activities to be challenging. On rare occasions the attention of some pupils wanders when work is not demanding or they think the activity is not interesting, but they do not disrupt lessons or interfere with the learning or involvement of other pupils.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils have a very good understanding of what kinds of behaviour are classed as bullying, including cyber-bullying. They say that incidents of bullying are rare, and that when it does happen, they know who to go to, and that it is dealt with extremely well.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils feel safe, and know how to look after themselves and stay safe. They play sensibly in the school grounds and move around carefully in the school’s narrow corridors and stair cases.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Relationships are very good. Pupils treat each other well and with great consideration. If someone is hurt or upset, they seek an adult if they cannot help themselves.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Attendance is average and rising. Persistent absence has reduced and the school works closely with families and external agencies to make sure pupils attend school regularly.

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The leadership and management are good

 The headteacher provides good direction for the school to improve. He works effectively with other leaders to improve teaching in order raise standards and improve pupils’ progress.  Leaders have a good understanding of the school’s strengths and weaknesses. They act quickly to resolve areas which are likely to lead to a fall in the level of achievement. They have, for example, taken effective action to continue the good provision for pupils with special educational needs after unexpected resignation of staff, and avoided any slowing of pupils’ progress.

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The leadership and management are good

 The school has set its target to achieve at least good teaching, and teaching is steadily improving. Leaders provide good training to improve the small amount of teaching that is not yet good. Teachers have targets to help them improve their work. These are linked to pupils’ progress, the school’s main areas for improvement and teachers’ personal professional development.

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The leadership and management are good

 The local authority provides good support for the school, especially in helping improve teaching, and the school has effective links with other schools to share and benefit from good practice in teaching elsewhere.

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The leadership and management are good

 The school organises the curriculum well. It makes sure that individual subjects are managed well and that opportunities are provided in most subjects to promote pupils’ English and mathematics skills. A wide range of trips is provided to enliven classroom activities, and these, along with the many opportunities for pupils to experience music, drama, art and sports, promote pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development effectively.

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The leadership and management are good

 The school provides good care for its pupils in the breakfast and after school clubs, and makes sure there are many practical and physical activities for pupils to take part in. Suitable refreshments are provided for all pupils.

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The leadership and management are good

 Parents and carers are pleased with the school. Parents spoken to during the inspection spoke highly of the school, how well pupils make progress and how well they are taught and looked after.

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The leadership and management are good

 The school works effectively for pupils to have opportunities to achieve well. Teaching is improving, standards are rising, progress made by pupils is improving and levels of attendance have risen. The school has demonstrated the capacity for further improvement.

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The leadership and management are good

 The governance of the school:  The governing body is well informed and training they have recently undertaken helps them ask challenging questions and support the school well. Governors know how well different groups of pupils in the school make progress, and how well the school does in comparison with other schools nationally. They have a good understanding of how leaders check the quality of teaching. They know that teachers must meet targets for pupils’ performance, their own professional development and the school’s priorities for improvement before they can advance on salary scales. They check how effectively the school spends its funds on staff and resources. In particular, they examine how the school spends its pupil premium fund, and the effect of this on the standards and progress made by pupils. Governors ensure the school is safe, that it fully meets safeguarding requirements and makes sure the school checks the

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The leadership and management are good

suitability of staff appointed to the school.

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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 114718 Local authority Southend-on-Sea Inspection number 413028

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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 Junior School category Community Age range of pupils 7–11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 411 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Tony Moltino Headteacher Richard Spence Date of previous school inspection 21 January 2009 Telephone number 01702 478570 Fax number 01702 714394 Email address office@chalkwellhall-jun.southend.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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