Deansbrook Infant School

Deansbrook Infant School Hale Drive, Mill Hill, London, NW7 3ED

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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 make good progress in reading, writing and mathematics and their attainment at the end of Year 2 is above average.  Children in the Early Years Foundation Stage make good progress from their low starting points because of the exceptional care and support they receive from adults.  Pupils who find work difficult are quickly identified and receive high-quality support from teachers and teaching assistants. As a result, all groups of pupils make good progress.  The quality of teaching across the school is good, with some that is outstanding. Teachers’ questioning and timely feedback in lessons, including written advice in books on how to improve, extend pupils’ learning.  Teaching assistants and support staff know the pupils well and provide effective support in the classroom and in small groups to help pupils make good progress.  Behaviour is good and pupils are polite, courteous and friendly. They show respect for

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

children from different backgrounds, get on well with each other and are keen to learn.  The school is well led and managed; leaders and managers work effectively as a team to bring about improvements. The staff are very supportive of the senior leadership team and morale in the school is high.  The governors know the school well, including its strengths and areas for development. They provide appropriate levels of support and challenge and are committed to the school’s improvement.

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It is not yet an outstanding school because

 Higher attaining pupils are not challenged consistently in all lessons to enable them to reach their potential.  There are too few opportunities for pupils to respond to teachers’ comments in their books to extend their understanding.  Not all lessons make it clear to different learners what they are expected to learn by the end of the lesson to give them more responsibility for their learning.  Attendance is not yet high enough to ensure no pupil falls behind in their learning.

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Information about this inspection

 The inspectors observed 22 lessons, of which four were joint observations with the headteacher and the deputy headteacher.  Meetings were held with a group of pupils, and inspectors listened to pupils read and discussed their reading with them.  Discussions were held with the headteacher, senior leaders and managers, subject coordinators, the Chair of the Governing Body, and a representative from the local authority. In addition, inspectors spoke to parents and carers in the playground at the start of the school day.  Inspectors observed the school’s work and examined a range of documentation, including the school’s own performance data, an analysis of its strengths and areas for development, improvement plans, records of monitoring the quality of teaching, and records relating to behaviour and safeguarding.  Pupils’ work was also scrutinised to look at their progress, the quality of marking and feedback

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Information about this inspection

and the coverage of the curriculum.  The inspectors considered 40 questionnaires completed by staff.  The inspectors took account of 62 responses received from parents and carers to the online questionnaire, Parent View.

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Inspection team

Avtar Sherri, Lead inspector Additional Inspector Anna Majcher Additional Inspector Richard Blackmore Additional Inspector

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Information about this school

 This is a larger than average-sized infant school.  Pupils come from a variety of ethnic backgrounds. The majority of pupils are from White British background, with pupils from Any Other White background and Black or Black British African heritage forming next sizeable ethnic groups.  The proportion of pupils for whom the school receives the pupil premium (additional government funding for pupils known to be eligible for free school meals, children who are looked after by the local authority and children of service families) is well above average. The school currently has no children who are looked after by the local authority or children of service families.  The proportion of pupils from minority ethnic backgrounds is well above the average, as is the proportion of pupils who speak English as an additional language.  The proportion of disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs who are

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Information about this school

supported by school action is well above average; the proportion supported at school action plus or with a statement of special educational needs is below average.  The school provides a daily breakfast club for its pupils held in the Junior school. The school also runs a number of after-school clubs for its pupils.  Pupils are educated onsite. There is no alternative provision elsewhere.  A new headteacher has taken up post since the previous inspection.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve the quality of teaching from good to outstanding by ensuring that:  more able pupils are sufficiently challenged in all lessons  different groups of learners know what they are expected to have learned by the end of the lesson so that they take more responsibility for their learning  pupils are always given opportunities to respond to teachers’ written comments to deepen their understanding and improve their work.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve attendance further so that it is above average by creating stronger links with all groups of parents and carers, so that they are fully supportive of the school’s policy and its work on improving attendance.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Children enter the Nursery and Reception with levels of skills and knowledge below those expected for their ages. They are taught well and given a strong start to their schooling by caring and supportive adults who plan a wide range of exciting and engaging activities. As a result, children make good progress and by the time they enter Year 1, their skills and knowledge are broadly in line with the expected level for their age.  Attainment in reading, writing and mathematics is rising and is above average by the end of Year 2. Attainment is particularly strong in reading and mathematics. The current school data show that pupils make at least good progress from their starting points in Years 1 and 2 because of good teaching.  Leaders and teachers track and monitor pupils’ progress closely to meet their needs and to target those who need further support. Weaker learners are provided with effective support by

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The achievement of pupils is good

teachers and skilled teaching assistants in lessons, small groups and one to one. This ensures that pupils from all backgrounds, as well as disabled pupils and those with special educational needs, achieve as well as their peers.  National results for assessments at the end of Year 2 in 2012 show that pupils eligible for the pupil premium made slower progress than their peers. However, current school data show that their progress in reading, writing and mathematics has improved and is now similar to their peers.  Pupils from minority ethnic backgrounds and those who speak English as an additional language also do as well as their peers and their progress is particularly strong in reading and writing. This is because they receive additional support with good opportunities in lessons for speaking and listening and building of their vocabulary. As a result, they learn English quickly.  The school places a strong emphasis on developing children’s phonic skills (links between letters

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The achievement of pupils is good

and sounds), as reflected in the higher-than-average end of Year 1 phonic screening check score in 2012. As a result, pupils are able to use these skills to read unfamiliar and difficult words and the school’s current data show that progress in reading has significantly improved in Years 1 and 2. Pupils are encouraged to read through good home–school links, parental workshops and use of reading diaries that are checked by parents, carers and teachers.  More able pupils are not always sufficiently stretched to enable them to reach their potential and opportunities are sometimes missed to move their learning on quickly in lessons.

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The quality of teaching is good

 The quality of teaching is good, with some that is outstanding. Teachers have high expectations and they know their pupils well. Teachers take time to show pupils how they can improve their work and their skilful questioning tests and extends pupils’ knowledge and understanding.  The school is a very caring place for pupils and equal opportunities are promoted effectively. Teaching assistants work with weaker learners in lessons and in small groups, including on an individual, one-to-one basis outside of the classroom, to provide in-depth and high quality support. Adults make sure that disabled pupils and those with special educational needs have full access to resources to meet their needs; for example, the use of digital magnifier and information and communication technology. As a result, these pupils, who are at risk of underachieving, make good progress.  Teaching is particularly strong in the Nursery where highly engaging activities are planned which

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The quality of teaching is good

capture their interest and meet their needs well, with a good balance of indoor and outdoor learning. Children show independence and learning is appropriately both child-initiated and adult-led. Children are enthusiastic about their learning and are eager to share their work. For example, children were keen to show their colourful painting of butterflies linked to the story of The Very Hungry Caterpillar, with one child very keen to emphasise the wall she had built to prevent her butterfly from flying away.  There are good opportunities in lessons for pupils to enhance their speaking and listening skills with good emphases on building their vocabulary. Teachers use good models of speech to develop pupils’ communication skills. This benefits all pupils in developing their literacy skills, including those who speak English as an additional language.  The teaching of phonics is lively and effective across the school and pupils use their phonic skills

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The quality of teaching is good

to read unfamiliar and difficult words. Pupils enjoy reading and their progress in reading has improved significantly through the school’s positive work with parents and carers, including specific workshops on phonics, to enable them to be more engaged in and supportive of their children’s reading.  Pupils enjoy solving mathematical problems and learning about the different ways of getting the same answer. In a Year 2 lesson, pupils had opportunities to work through addition problems pitched appropriately to their abilities using appropriate resources, for example the hundred- square grid. They also checked each other’s work to further their understanding. In the Nursery, children learn about everyday use of money through buying different flavoured ice creams.  In a minority of lessons, the more able pupils are not always sufficiently challenged to enable them to reach their potential, and some learners do not always know what is expected of them

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The quality of teaching is good

by the end of the lesson. This makes it harder for them to take responsibility for checking their own learning.  Teachers’ marking of pupils’ work and feedback on how they can improve is good overall. However, there are not enough opportunities for pupils to respond to teachers’ comments to enable them to take more responsibility for their own learning and to ensure they do not make the same mistakes again.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils behave well in and around the school and they have good attitudes to their learning. They are courteous, friendly and show respect for each other and adults.  They have a good sense of right and wrong, which is promoted well through the curriculum, assemblies and circle time. Diversity is valued and pupils from all backgrounds get on well with each other. Senior leaders ensure there is no discrimination.  Pupils have a good understanding about different forms of bullying. They say that bullying and name-calling, including racist behaviour, are rare and that any incidents of poor behaviour are dealt with effectively by adults. This is reflected in the very low number of incidents recorded in the school’s behaviour log. There are no incidents of exclusion recorded by the school.  Pupils say that they feel safe in school and are able to talk to adults if they have any concerns. They know about how to keep themselves safe when using computers through discussions on

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

internet safety, and they are taught about road and fire safety.  Pupils are involved in drawing up class rules and they know about ‘Golden’ and playground rules. The behaviour policy is managed well by staff and pupils respond positively to the rules. However, occasionally, some pupils lose concentration in the classroom and become restless, particularly when they are not actively involved in their own learning.  Attendance has been improving over the past three years and is now broadly average. The school monitors attendance and any poor attendance is followed up by the attendance officer with meetings with parents and carers. However, the school has not been wholly successful in convincing a small minority of parents and carers that it is not in their children’s best interests to take them on holiday during term time.  All the staff responding to the staff questionnaire agree that behaviour in the school is good and

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

consistently well managed, and most of the parents and carers responding to Parent View agree that the school makes sure its pupils are well behaved.

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The leadership and management are good

 The headteacher is ably supported by the senior leadership team in her ambition to improve the school. She has created a very stable and committed staff who are very positive about the school.  There are robust systems in place to check the quality of teaching with detailed feedback to teachers on what they need to do to improve. Effective teamwork has been established and middle managers are increasingly involved in monitoring the work of the school and know the main strengths and areas for development. This is helping to bring about improvements in the quality of teaching and raising achievement.  Careful tracking and monitoring of pupils’ progress ensures that pupils who are falling behind or are at risk of underachieving are quickly identified and provided with appropriate support to remove any barriers to learning. This ensures that all groups of pupils make good progress.  Teachers’ performance is managed effectively and there are appropriate training and support

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The leadership and management are good

opportunities to improve the quality of teaching. There is a good link between teachers’ progress on the upper scale and their quality of teaching.  The curriculum is broad and balanced and enriched by visits and a wide range of lunchtime and after-school clubs. Assemblies provide good opportunities for pupils to reflect on important issues and in lessons pupils explore interesting topics. For example, pupils were fascinated as they watched and discussed a short video about nocturnal animals. Opportunities such as this contribute well to the promotion of pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development.  The school works well with parents and carers and keeps them informed through weekly newsletters, an active website and text messages, including workshops to support their children’s learning. However, there is still more work that needs to be done to improve attendance.  The local authority provides light touch support for the school. The school makes good use of

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The leadership and management are good

courses provided by the local authority.  All staff responding to the staff questionnaire agree that the school is well led and managed, and most parents and carers responding to Parent View also agree.  The governance of the school:  The governors know the school well, including its strengths and areas for development. They provide appropriate support and challenge and work with school leaders well to bring about improvements. They manage the performance of the headteacher effectively, are aware of the quality of teaching in the school and the link between teachers’ pay and performance. They make a strong contribution to the school improvement plan and ensure that it appropriately focuses on improving the quality of teaching and raising pupils’ achievement. They oversee the allocation of the pupil premium funding and know how it is used to improve pupils’ attainment. Governors maintain a firm control of the school’s budget. Governors have had

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The leadership and management are good

some training from the local authority on the use of data and safeguarding. They ensure that safeguarding procedures are secure and meet the statutory requirements to keep pupils safe in 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 101274 Local authority Barnet Inspection number 412720

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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 3–7 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 374 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Johnson Ogunniyi Headteacher Carole Catley Date of previous school inspection 14–15 November 2007 Telephone number 020 89592152 Fax number 020 89594350 Email address office@deansbrookinf.barnetmail.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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