Welford Primary School

Welford Primary School Welford Road, Handsworth, Birmingham, B20 2BL

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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.  In the school’s highly positive climate for learning, pupils make good progress and achieve well in a range of subjects and in each phase of their education.  The school works relentlessly to find areas where different pupils can excel, building their confidence and enhancing personal and social development. It comprehensively raises pupils’ self-esteem.  Teaching is good and some is outstanding. Well-organised, relevant lessons make sure pupils are highly motivated to do well. Teachers and teaching assistants work closely together to involve pupils effectively.  Behaviour in lessons is good because it is well managed, relationships are respectful and pupils try their best. Pupils say they feel safe in school.  The headteacher leads decisively and leadership is having a positive impact for example in improving teaching, staff are responding well and parents hold very positive views of the school.

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

 The governing body combines long serving and new governors who are deeply conscientious in carrying out their duties and who hold the school to account well.

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It is not yet an outstanding school because

 Occasionally, work is not pitched at precisely the right level to provide the maximum challenge to pupils, slowing progress.  Leadership and management responsibilities are insufficiently spread out to different staff, limiting efforts to raise standards and improve provision further.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors observed 16 lessons, including ones involving the teaching of phonics (the sounds letters make). Two lessons were observed with senior staff. An after-school club was also seen.  Inspectors held meetings with pupils, staff, three governors, a representative of the local authority, and the schools improvement partner.  Individual pupils read aloud to inspectors.  The inspectors observed the school’s work and looked at various documents including assessments of pupils’ progress, records of attendance and behaviour, and documents concerning safeguarding.  Inspectors took account of 13 responses to the online questionnaire, Parent View, and held informal discussions with parents collecting their children after school.

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Inspection team

Michael Farrell, Lead inspector Additional Inspector Andrew Phipps Additional Inspector Jatinder Sembi Additional Inspector

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Information about this school

 Welford is a larger-than-average inner-city primary school.  Almost all pupils come from minority ethnic backgrounds.  Nearly two thirds speak English as an additional language with the main home languages being Urdu, Punjabi and Bengali. This is very high.  A high proportion of pupils are eligible for the pupil premium (additional funding from central government for pupils known to be eligible for free school meals, children who are looked after by the local authority, or who have a parent in the armed forces).  The proportion of disabled pupils or those with special educational needs supported through school action is above average.  The proportion supported at school action plus or with a statement of special educational needs is below average.  The school meets the government’s current floor standards, which set the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress in English and mathematics.

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Information about this school

 The previous headteacher retired in December 2012 and the current headteacher took up the post from January 2013.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Increase the proportion of outstanding teaching by making sure that in all lessons work is as challenging as possible for all pupils.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Develop responsibilities of leaders at all levels in raising standards and improving provision.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Progress in all key stages is good. Last year boys’ attainment in the Year 1 phonics check was weaker than girls but the school has rectified this through enthusiastic and effective teaching. National comparisons, the school data, lesson observation and pupils work show good progress in a range of subjects including English and mathematics. Different groups including pupils from different minority ethnic groups progress well.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Learning is good in all phases. Children enter Nursery at well below expected levels and achieve well because of good relationships and focused support for their learning. In a ‘free-flow’ lesson, Nursery children achieved well, excited and absorbed by the many activities, including ‘bug catching’ which especially encouraged physical development. Adults celebrated children’s achievements while steering them towards further learning opportunities.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 In a Key Stage 1 lesson, pupils achieved well in preparing to write a story because well-prepared resources were used effectively and pupils enthusiastically discussed and recorded their ideas. Pupils in a Key Stage 2 lesson made good progress in using ‘clever tricks’ for action writing because a brisk pace, the teacher’s good subject knowledge and touches of humour captured pupils’ attention and they concentrated well.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Pupils like reading and enjoy applying their skills as was seen in a Key Stage 2 history lesson in which pupils learned about child labour in Victorian times.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Pupils are well prepared for the next stage of their education because the school provides many opportunities for them to succeed and grow in confidence and sees that they achieve well in English and mathematics. They apply literacy and numeracy skills well in other subjects.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Pupils known to be eligible for the pupil premium make good progress because the funding is scrupulously directed to special resources and interventions whose effectiveness is closely evaluated. As a result current school data show that these pupils achieve at similar levels to other pupils.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs achieve well because they are securely identified, while well thought-out interventions, including one-to-one work help pupils make rapid progress. Pupils with a wide range of needs are fully included in the school, making good progress including in their personal and social development.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teaching reinforces the positive climate for learning that characterises the whole school. The great majority of teaching observed during the inspection was good and some was outstanding. Planning is well structured and teachers explain to pupils at the start of each lesson what they should learn, giving lessons a clear sense of direction and purpose.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Good behaviour is nurtured by the high expectations of staff and by following the school’s behaviour policy consistently. Relationships are respectful and staff are enthusiastic. Teaching assistants contribute well to pupils’ progress and well-being. For example in a Key Stage 1 lesson on dividing shapes in half, the well-deployed teaching assistant made sure pupils in groups participated fully and progressed well. Especially in the strongest lessons, teachers rigorously check throughout what pupils are learning and steer the lesson accordingly.

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The quality of teaching is good

 In the Early Years Foundation Stage children achieve well. Reception class children made good progress in working out missing numbers in a sequence and other number activities because the teacher used a rich variety of resources to help with the task, group work was well organised, and staff both demonstrated and encouraged good behaviour so children got the most from the lesson.

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The quality of teaching is good

 In a Key Stage 1 phonics lesson the teaching was well paced and the teacher taught sounds clearly, checking understanding as the lesson moved along. Children took turns sensibly and listened well, making good progress.

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The quality of teaching is good

 In a Key Stage 2 science lesson on how substances can dissolve in liquids, the teacher made the activity relevant and interesting and gave pupils ample opportunity to talk to each other and then check with the teacher that they fully understood.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Occasionally, work in lessons is not pitched at exactly the right level for pupils and where this occurs it slows progress.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils’ attitudes to learning are positive and they enjoy coming to school. Behaviour in lessons is consistently good because it is well managed and because pupils are keen to learn and try hard. This is helped by teachers making real efforts to see that lessons are practical, relevant and interesting, as in a mathematics lesson on money for younger pupils in Key Stage 2 where good behaviour and concentration was encouraged by the well-structured and engaging activities.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Around school, at lunchtimes, play time and in after-school clubs, behaviour is sometimes excellent. Pupils are courteous and sensitive to the needs and views of others. They have good manners.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils say they enjoy school and find it difficult to identify anything they dislike. Pupils with a wide range of needs are fully included in activities and so feel part of the school. This was vividly evident in a dance lesson but is seen in other lessons too.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils feel safe in school and could not identify any times or any places where they did not feel secure. They can give examples of when safety is especially important for example near roads and can explain how to keep safe in these circumstances (‘use a crossing’). They are aware of the importance of safety when using the internet, for example knowing you do not give any personal details to unknown people. Parents are very confident about their children’s safety.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils know what bullying is and can give examples but say that it is very rare in school or that they are not aware of any bullying. They know that if they were bullied they could go to a member of staff and they would be listened to and appropriate action would be taken.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Behaviour in lessons is not yet outstanding because the pupils’ involvement and effort is such that it leads to good not outstanding progress.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Attendance has improved since the previous inspection and the most recent figures indicate that it is just above average. Pupils are punctual to lessons and get straight down to work because teachers are well-organised and the pupils want to learn.

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The leadership and management are good

 The school knows its strengths and where it can improve. The new headteacher provides decisive leadership. Staff express very positive views for example saying ‘communication has improved’ and are ambitious to do better.

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The leadership and management are good

 Well-managed staff performance arrangements are related to targets for pupils’ progress. Staff speak highly of their support and training including links with other schools which have outstanding practice.

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The leadership and management are good

 Parents hold very positive views of the school and highly value the information and support they receive including ‘drop in’ sessions.

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The leadership and management are good

 The local authority provides effective support which was temporarily increased to help the transition to a new headteacher and has now reverted to a ‘light touch’.

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The leadership and management are good

 Equal opportunities are effectively promoted with any pupil slipping behind being identified and helped. Discrimination of any kind is not tolerated.

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The leadership and management are good

 Safeguarding meets current government requirements and parents express considerable confidence in the procedures.

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The leadership and management are good

 The school has a strong capacity to improve, having improved several aspects in the past year including boys’ phonics levels.

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The leadership and management are good

 The schools’ learning programmes mean pupils have opportunities to apply literacy and numeracy skills across a range of subjects. Activities effectively promote spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. Religious education lessons cover different faiths while some lessons, for example on Victorian child labour, encourage moral thinking.

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The leadership and management are good

 The school actively promotes strong partnerships with other schools and services such as the health service to benefit pupils.

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The leadership and management are good

 The need to distribute leadership more was highlighted by the previous inspection report but the school has made insufficient progress in this despite recent changes made by the new headteacher. Consequently, standards and provision are not improving as quickly as they could be.

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The leadership and management are good

 The governance of the school:  Governors have a strong sense of direction for the school, providing effective challenge and support through a combination of long-serving and newer governors with wide-ranging skills and experience. They know about the quality of teaching and pupils’ performance. The governing body is fully involved in the appraisal of the headteacher and has a suitable overview of the management of the performance of other staff. It knows what the school is doing to reward good teachers and to tackle any underperformance. Governors have an exact knowledge of pupil-premium funding, how it is used and to what effect while more broadly making sure resources are managed well. They take care that children at the school are safe.

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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 103328 Local authority Birmingham Inspection number 412125

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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 478 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Michaela Mold Headteacher Jamie Barry Date of previous school inspection 13 October 2008 Telephone number 0121 4649228 Fax number 0121 4644097 Email address enquiry@welford.bham.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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