Setting

Karen Hutchison Headteacher Hevingham Primary School New Road Westgate Norwich NR10 5NH

p.1

School

Following my visit to your school on 19 July 2013, I write on behalf of Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Education, Children’s Services and Skills to report the findings of my visit. Thank you for the help you gave me and for the time you made available to discuss the actions you are taking to improve the school since the most recent section 5 inspection.

p.1

School

The visit was the first monitoring inspection since the school was judged to require improvement following the section 5 inspection in April 2012. It was carried out under section 8 of the Education Act 2005.

p.1

Evidence

During the visit, I had meetings with you and other senior leaders, the local leader of education with whom you work, a representative of the local authority, and a group of several governors including the Chair to discuss actions taken since the last inspection. I also visited all four classes to evaluate learning, and paid particular attention to pupils’ written work. I was pleased to see some examples of exceptional written work and to meet the pupils responsible. The school’s action plan was scrutinised, together with other school improvement documentation.

p.1

Main findings

Since the last inspection you and your colleagues have moved quickly to tackle the issues that the inspection identified. Your school improvement and action plans are detailed and challenging, accurately identifying how issues will be tackled, the timescales involved, and those responsible. Serco Inspections Colmore Plaza 20 Colmore Circus Queensway Birmingham B4 6AT T 0300 123 1231 Text Phone: 0161 6188524 enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk www.ofsted.gov.uk Direct T 01216 799162 Direct email :siobhan.garrattley@serco.com

p.1

PROTECT-INSPECTION

Teachers now assess pupils’ progress accurately. This has given you reliable information to monitor the progress both of groups and individuals. This is showing that progress is now accelerating in all year groups. This acceleration is most marked in Year 6. Mathematics is improving faster than English. As a result of actions taken since the last inspection the marking of written work has improved significantly. Teachers now point out mistakes and areas for improvement, and class time is devoted for the pupils to correct their own work so that they improve.

p.2

PROTECT-INSPECTION

In class, pupils are eager to learn and some show exceptional progress, especially in writing. Teachers do use the results of assessment to plan lessons, but not in a consistent way. In the best examples the standards of the work being covered are high and are suitably challenging for the oldest pupils of the mixed year-group classes. In this situation the teachers aim to bring all pupils up to the same high level. In some other classes expectations are not high enough, especially for those with low prior attainment. In these, the learning is pitched at a level too low for the most able and oldest pupils.

p.2

PROTECT-INSPECTION

Working with a local leader of education you have changed the school’s lesson observation system. It now pays much more attention to pupils’ learning and identifies when it can be improved much more accurately. This means that lessons in which standards are not high enough can now be identified and tackled.

p.2

PROTECT-INSPECTION

Teachers and teaching assistants have undertaken much professional development, for example in the implementation of a guided reading scheme and in the accuracy of assessment. In addition, much sharing of good practice has been undertaken with the other primary school in the federation. Staff from each school regularly observe the practice of others, sharing ideas and learning from each other.

p.2

PROTECT-INSPECTION

Governors have given you and the school good support during periods of recent staff turbulence. They give good challenge and have an understanding of the school’s performance data ‘dashboard’. However this challenge is not recorded in a form that clearly identifies agreed targets, actions, and timescales. This means that progress towards targets is difficult for them to monitor.

p.2

PROTECT-INSPECTION

Senior leaders and governors are taking effective action to tackle the areas requiring improvement identified at the recent section 5 inspection. The school should take further action to:

p.2

PROTECT-INSPECTION

 Ensure that all lessons challenge all pupils  Adapt the way that governors’ meetings record challenges, actions and timescales so that progress towards targets can be better monitored.

p.2

PROTECT-INSPECTION

Ofsted may carry out further visits and, where necessary, provide further support and challenge to the school until its next section 5 inspection.

p.2

External support

The school has used the local authority’s support services to improve literacy and numeracy, and to improve the accuracy of assessment. The local authority has enabled the school to use the expertise of a local leader in education.

p.3

External support

I am copying this letter to the Chair of the Governing Body and the Director of Children’s Services for Norfolk.

p.3