Lenthall Infant and Nursery School

Lenthall Infant and Nursery School Marsh Avenue, Dronfield, S18 2HB

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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.  The headteacher provides good leadership and the staff work well together as a team to keep the school moving forward.  Pupils make good overall progress as they move through the school.  Standards are often significantly above national averages when the pupils leave the school.  Teaching is good. Staff provide lots of encouragement to the pupils, which raises their confidence. The marking of their work is thorough and identifies what they can do to improve even further.  Pupils’ behaviour is good. They get on very well together and enjoy each other’s company. They know how to keep safe.  Senior staff recognise what works well in the school and where improvement is needed. Governors are supportive and developing their effectiveness in challenging the school.  Parents are pleased with the quality of education and care provided for their children. They particularly value the ‘family feel’ of the

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It is not yet an outstanding school because

 Some groups of pupils do not achieve quite as well as others.  At times, pupils do not have enough opportunities to develop their communication skills.  Staff do not always adapt activities well enough to ensure there is further challenge when necessary.  The staff have only limited opportunities to work together in lessons and share their skills.

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Information about this inspection

 The inspector observed parts of eight lessons in the four classes in school. The inspector was joined by the headteacher for several joint lesson observations.  Meetings were held with the headteacher, the assistant headteacher in her role as Early Years Foundation Stage leader, and the special educational needs coordinator. Discussions also took place with groups of pupils and representatives of the governing body and the local authority.  The inspector took account of the views of 26 parents and carers from the online questionnaire (Parent View) and spoke to several parents at the start of the school day. She also reviewed the nine responses to the staff questionnaire.  The inspector observed the work of the school and looked at a number of documents, including recent data on pupil progress. She also listened to individual pupils reading and scrutinised a sample of recent work. She also considered in detail records relating to behaviour, attendance

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Inspection team

Sue Hall, Lead inspector Additional Inspector

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Information about this school

 This is a smaller than average-sized infant school.  Around 10% of pupils are from minority ethnic groups, which is below the national average. Less than half of these pupils speak English as an additional language.  Fewer than 20% of pupils are known to be eligible for the pupil premium, which is below the national average. Currently, this provides additional funding for those pupils in the school known to be eligible for free school meals.  The proportion of disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs identified at school action is about half the national average. The proportion of those supported at school action plus or with a statement of special educational need is close to the national average.  A new headteacher has been appointed since the previous inspection. In the last year, half the teaching staff are newly appointed and there has been a new assistant headteacher appointed.

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Information about this school

 The school has achieved an International Schools Award and several awards for the school gardens.  The provision for children of nursery age is for part-time attendance during the mornings.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Ensure that the rate of pupils’ progress is always good or better by:  providing more opportunities for pupils to discuss their ideas and develop their speaking skills  checking that boys and girls make equal progress and those who are supported by pupil premium funding do as well as their classmates.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Check that teaching across the school is consistently effective by:  ensuring that staff adapt their lessons so that activities provide further challenge for groups of different abilities  extending the opportunities for staff to work together to share their expertise and maintain high expectations of what the pupils can achieve.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Children enter the Early Years Foundation Stage with skills and abilities that are typical for their age. They make a good start to their education in the nursery and achieve well, but sometimes, children’s ability to communicate with others is below the usual level. They continue to make good progress through the school and leave Year 2 having achieved well.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Most of the pupils have very positive attitudes to learning. They settle quickly and want to do well. For example, children in the Reception class made excellent progress when describing two- dimensional shapes. They thoroughly enjoyed the warm-up ‘Disco dough’ activity where they manipulated pieces of dough while singing and joining in with a simple disco routine. This led to group activities including the very effective use of ‘talk boxes’ where children played pre- recorded messages that outlined the investigations they were to carry out.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 The most-able pupils make consistently good progress. In 2013 the percentage of pupils attaining the higher Level 3 in their work increased from the previous year and was well above national averages.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs make good progress. The school has a well-established and effective system of supporting such pupils. Most achieve well in relation to their category of disability and special educational need. The very small number of pupils who speak English as an additional language also make good and sometimes rapid progress.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 In the last few years, standards at the end of Year 2 have shown a slight but consistent year-on- year decline. While they remain significantly above national averages overall, standards are not as high as those noted in the previous inspection. The picture has started to improve in the last year because of better teaching, but progress is still uneven.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 In the 2012 phonics check (the sounds letters make) pupils in Year 1 did not do very well but in the 2013 checks the proportion of pupils achieving the expected levels rose by more than 30%. Pupils across the school read well. They are taught how to develop the skills to work out unfamiliar words and find out their meanings. Pupils’ speaking skills across the school are varied. At times, staff do not encourage pupils enough to respond fully to questions.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 In some years, girls have not done as well as the boys in mathematics, and boys have not done as well as girls in writing, by a wider margin than nationally. The school has recognised this and is now checking in a more systematic way to ensure any shortfall is dealt with quickly.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Pupils entitled to support from the pupil premium make good overall progress. In 2012, their standards lagged a year behind their classmates overall: five terms in writing, four terms in reading, and two terms behind in mathematics. This group of pupils receive targeted support from teachers, including the headteacher, support staff and trained reading volunteers. The gap between these groups is closing but rightly remains a priority for the school.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teaching has a good impact on pupils’ achievement. School leaders are providing good support to eliminate remaining weaknesses.

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The quality of teaching is good

 An effective feature of teaching across the school is the very strong working relationship between staff, the pupils and their families. Pupils are given lots of praise which raises their self- esteem and confidence to tackle new work. Good verbal feedback is given to pupils. The marking of work in their books is very regular and effective. This clearly identifies what they have done well and their targets for improvement. On the few occasions when staff work together it enables all to see what can be achieved in a lesson, and so raises expectations. There are plans to extend these opportunities.

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The quality of teaching is good

 The most effective teaching shows high expectations of what the pupils will achieve and vibrant activities that interest young learners. For example, Reception children made excellent progress making a boat for the Gingerbread Man to cross the river. The most-able pupils’ language skills were developed well through discussion of the different meanings of the word ‘mould’.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Pupils in Year 2 are particularly well taught. This was seen both in lesson observations and through scrutiny of previous samples of work showing activities that were well matched to pupils’ different abilities.

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The quality of teaching is good

 School leaders and the special educational needs coordinator work effectively with other staff to check where help is most needed. Extra support is provided especially for disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs. This support is well-matched to the individual needs of the pupils and boosts their learning.

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The quality of teaching is good

 The school identifies how to use additional funding to support pupils entitled to the pupil premium. This includes additional support by teaching assistants and extra teaching time, including from the headteacher. The progress these pupils make is carefully checked to ensure funding is used flexibly and reflects pupils’ individual needs.

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The quality of teaching is good

 The school has some skilled teaching assistants and when they are well-briefed about what is expected of them in particular lessons they work effectively with pupils. Occasionally, in other activities, they are not fully involved in supporting pupils.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Occasionally, teaching is less effective because teachers do not adapt plans quickly enough when pupils have finished their task and are ready for the next.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils is good

 Pupils’ typical behaviour is good in and around the school. Parents speak with pleasure about their children’s enjoyment of school and pupils’ attendance is above average. Pupils are friendly and polite to each other with little evidence of conflict or disagreement. Older pupils relish taking on responsibilities including as playground helpers.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils is good

 Pupil’s attitudes to learning are good. Where teaching is most effective they particularly enjoy sharing their experiences and discussing their ideas with others. Occasionally some pupils are quiet in discussions and do not make a lot of effort to join in and extend their vocabulary. On rare occasions when they are not well taught some do not manage their own behaviour as well as they could.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils is good

 For their age pupils have a good understanding of how to keep themselves and others safe. They know they have to behave well in the playground and they share equipment happily. While they struggle to explain the different types of bullying that could occur, the school has a good programme of activities including assemblies and Friendship Week that cover aspects such as cyber-bullying.

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The leadership and management is good

 The headteacher provides thoughtful, well considered and effective leadership. She accurately recognises where the school is on its journey of improvement. This has enabled staff and governors to also recognise that the school is no longer an outstanding setting and what has to be done to develop things further. Action and impact is evident, showing that the school is poised to improve further.

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The leadership and management is good

 Leaders and managers at all levels are effective. The school is working well as a team with experienced and recently qualified staff clearly ‘bouncing ideas’ around together. This ensures the school is moving forward and not living on past glories. The school recognises the value of sharing the good practice of experienced able staff with less experienced colleagues. So far, only limited opportunities have been given, but there are plans in place for more peer-coaching activities.

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The leadership and management is good

 The monitoring and evaluation of the work of the school is accurate and provides a firm foundation for improvement planning. Checks are well linked to a programme of continuing training. There are clear procedures to ensure that the most effective staff are recognised and paid more. Teaching assistants are included within the school’s procedures to manage staff performance.

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The leadership and management is good

 The school has extended the use of data on pupils’ performance to check and track the progress made. Funding to support those entitled to the pupil premium and disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs is used effectively and is making a positive impact on the achievement of the most vulnerable pupils.

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The leadership and management is good

 Parents are generally very appreciative of what is provided for their children. All of those spoken to during the inspection noted the close working relationship with the staff. They appreciate the family atmosphere and how well their children are looked after. The school’s procedures to safeguard pupils meet current requirements.

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The leadership and management is good

 Pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is well supported through a range of activities, including assemblies and the strong cultural links to teaching. The International School Award has enabled pupils to learn more about other cultures. The school provides an interesting range of subjects and activities that are appropriate to the age and stages of development of the pupils. Staff are particularly proud of the work in the school gardens recognised by several local awards. The use of primary school sport funding is being well considered and targeted to support a range of activities. The intended impact is well set out to promote healthy lifestyles.

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The leadership and management is good

 The school is correctly identified by the local authority as successful and receives ‘light touch’ support.

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The leadership and management is good

 The governance of the school:  The governing body is well informed about the school and the quality of teaching. They support the headteacher in managing teachers’ performance and ensure that pay matches performance. Long-serving governors are keen to encourage new governors and those who were relatively recently elected have made a strong start to understanding what the data tells them about pupil progress. Governors are supportive and enthusiastic about carrying out their responsibilities effectively. For example they ensure pupils are kept safe and respond promptly should any concerns arise. They check that pupil premium funding and other funds are used effectively. They are, however, aware that they are sometimes too dependent on senior leaders for information.

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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 112696 Local authority Derbyshire Inspection number 425101

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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 87 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Stephen Thompson Headteacher Bernadette Watters Date of previous school inspection 15 July 2009 Telephone number 01246 414569 Fax number 01246 419067 Email address headteacher@lenthall.derbyshire.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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