Ramsden Primary School

Ramsden Primary School High Road, Carlton-in-Lindrick, Worksop, S81 9DY

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Overall effectiveness

Previous inspection: Satisfactory 3 This inspection: Requires improvement 3 Achievement of pupils Requires improvement 3 Quality of teaching Requires improvement 3 Behaviour and safety of pupils Good 2 Leadership and management Requires improvement 3

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This is a school that requires improvement. It is not good because

 Pupils’ standards of reading in Key Stage 2 are falling, and in 2013 were below national average levels.  Boys do not achieve as highly as girls, especially in writing.  More-able pupils do not make good progress. Few reach the highest levels of attainment by the end of Key Stage 2.  The quality of teaching has not been good enough in the past to make sure that pupils’ progress is consistently good.  In some lessons, work is not hard enough for more-able pupils.  Teachers do not always encourage all pupils to work hard enough to make rapid progress.  Although school leaders check pupils’ progress regularly, their judgements of pupils’ standards, particularly in reading, have not in the past been accurate enough to allow effective help to be given, especially in Key Stage 2.  Improvements made by school leaders have not yet made an impact on pupils’ achievement in Key Stage 2.  The school does not plan enough chances for

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This is a school that requires improvement. It is not good because

pupils to learn about people from different cultures, beliefs and backgrounds.

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The school has the following strengths

 Pupils’ standards in Key Stage 1 are rising, and are now slightly above national figures.  Children get off to a good start in the Early Year Foundation Stage and make good progress in the Reception Year.  The quality of teaching is improving. Much good teaching was seen by inspectors.  Improvements to the teaching of reading are raising standards in Key Stage 1.  Pupils behave very well in school. They enjoy school and feel safe.  Pupils’ attendance is rising, and is now slightly above average.  School leaders, supported by governors, have a clear sense of purpose. They have made recent improvements to the school and have good plans for further improvement.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors observed 14 part-lessons, four of which were jointly observed with the headteacher. All classes and teachers were seen. Inspectors also listened to pupils read and looked at pupils’ work.  Meetings were held with pupils, staff, school leaders and governors. The lead inspector also spoke on the telephone to a representative from the local authority.  Inspectors spoke to a number of parents at the start of each day of the inspection. They looked at the 29 responses to Ofsted’s online questionnaire, Parent View, as well as the results of the school’s own survey of parents and carers. Inspectors also considered 16 staff questionnaires.  Inspectors looked at the school’s plans for improvement, records of the quality of teaching, school information on the progress of pupils and at nationally published results. They also looked at records of pupils’ behaviour and attendance, and at how the school keeps its pupils safe.

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Inspection team

Michael Phipps, Lead inspector Additional Inspector Jonathan Sutcliffe Additional Inspector

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Information about this school

 The school is smaller than the average-sized primary school.  The proportion of disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs supported though school action is lower than average. The proportion supported at school action plus or with a statement of special educational needs is much lower than average.  The proportion of pupils known to be eligible for the pupil premium is lower than average. The pupil premium is additional funding provided for children in local authority care and those known to be eligible for free school meals.  Almost all pupils are of White British heritage and speak English as their home language.  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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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve the quality of teaching so that it is consistently good or outstanding by making sure that teachers:  plan work in all subjects that matches the different abilities of pupils, especially more-able pupils  encourage all pupils to work hard and make rapid progress in lessons.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Raise pupils’ achievement, especially in reading and writing, by:  making sure that teachers’ judgements about pupils’ standards in reading are accurate, so that effective help can be given to pupils who need it  encouraging all pupils, but especially boys, to write at length in different subjects by providing them with topics and situations to write about which they will find interesting  making sure that more-able pupils consistently make the progress of which they are capable.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Make sure that leaders and managers:  check more accurately the progress made by pupils in Key Stage 2 so that any gaps in pupils’ skills can quickly be corrected  plan more chances for pupils to learn about and understand people who come from different cultures, beliefs and backgrounds so they are better prepared to live in a culturally diverse society.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 Pupils do not make consistently good progress across the school, especially in Key Stage 2. Recent improvements made by school leaders have not yet made an impact on pupils’ attainment and progress in Key Stage 2.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 Pupils’ standards of reading in Key Stage 2 have been falling for several years, and in 2013 were below national average levels. Recent improvements to the teaching of reading, including to the teaching of phonics (the sounds that letters make) are improving pupils’ standards of reading in Key Stage 1, but have not yet made an impact in Key Stage 2.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 Boys achieve less well than girls, especially in writing. Pupils do not have enough chances to write at length across different subjects, on topics and situations which pupils, especially boys, will find interesting.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 More-able pupils do not make consistently good progress. The proportion of pupils who reach the highest levels of achievement by the end of Year 6 in reading, writing or mathematics is considerably below the national average.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 Pupils’ standards in mathematics are broadly average. Pupils enjoy the chances they have to solve problems and to apply their mathematical skills in real-life situations.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 Disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs are supported by teaching assistants in lessons. They make similar progress to that of other pupils.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 Pupils who are known to be eligible for the pupil premium make similar progress in all year groups to that of all other pupils in school. Extra funds from the pupil premium have been spent appropriately on systems for checking the progress of pupils, on teaching assistants to support vulnerable pupils and on subsidising the cost of clubs and visits. There were not enough pupils known to be eligible for free school meals in 2013 to comment on their attainment without identifying them.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 Children join the school with skills which are below the level expected for their age. They get off to a good start in the Early Years Foundation Stage and make good progress. By the time they go into Year 1 they have caught up, and their skills are at the level that is expected.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 Pupils’ standards in Key Stage 1 have risen steadily in recent years. In 2013, pupils’ standards in reading, writing and mathematics by the end of Year 2 were slightly above national figures.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 Although it is improving strongly, the quality of teaching has not been good enough over a sustained period of time to make sure that pupils’ progress is consistently good.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 In some lessons, work is not matched closely enough to the ability of different pupils, especially more-able pupils. For example, in one geography lesson, some more-able pupils in Key Stage 2 finished the task set quickly while pupils who found the work difficult had barely started.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 Teachers do not always successfully encourage and motivate all pupils to work hard enough in lessons. In an English lesson in Key Stage 2, for example, some groups of pupils made slower progress than others in writing a set of instructions because they worked at their own rather leisurely pace.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 The quality of teaching is now improving. Most of the teaching seen during the inspection was good, and some was outstanding. Relationships between adults and children are warm and positive.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 Improvements to the way that reading is taught are raising pupils’ standards of reading in Key Stage 1. In an outstanding lesson seen by inspectors, for example, pupils in Year 1 made excellent progress in learning the sounds that letters make because the teacher knew each pupil’s ability well and had planned activities at just the right level of difficulty.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 In the best lessons, teachers’ questions make pupils think hard. For example, in an art lesson in Year 6 the teacher skilfully and rapidly aimed questions at individual pupils, which made them think and explain how they were going to make a sculpture, and made sure that they all paid attention.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 Teaching assistants are used well and make a good contribution to pupils’ learning. They support pupils who need extra help well.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 Teachers’ marking is consistently helpful across the school and makes it clear to pupils what they have done well, and how to improve their work. Pupils use green pens to show how they have responded to teachers’ marking.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils behave very well in class and around school. They are polite and friendly, and treat adults and each other with respect. Playtimes and lunchtimes are calm and orderly.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils’ attitudes to learning are good. They work hard, enjoy learning and want to do well. They understand why it is important to behave well. They enjoy answering questions and sharing their opinions in lessons. Lessons are very rarely interrupted by poor behaviour.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils told inspectors they feel safe in school, and are taught how to keep themselves safe. They have a good understanding of, for example, the possible dangers posed by the internet. They understand different types of bullying, and say that bullying in this school is rare. School records confirm this. Pupils are confident that if they told an adult, any bullying would stop.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils’ attendance is rising, and is now slightly above the national average. School systems to encourage good attendance are effective. Pupils are punctual to school and to lessons.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Parents say that pupils behave well in school, are well looked after and feel safe. Staff also feel that pupils behave well.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils’ behaviour and safety are not outstanding because, in the small number of lessons when teaching is not good, pupils lose concentration and their attention wanders.

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The leadership and management requires improvement

 Leadership is not good because, although improvements have been made by the recently restructured leadership team, the quality of teaching has not been good enough for a sustained period of time and pupils’ achievement still requires improvement.

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The leadership and management requires improvement

 School leaders’ judgements of pupils’ standards of reading have in the past not been accurate enough for effective help to be given to those pupils who were falling behind so they could catch up. As a result, standards of reading have declined in recent years.

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The leadership and management requires improvement

 Systems to manage the performance of teachers have recently been strengthened, and are now linked to teachers’ salary progression. Judgements are based on pupils’ progress. Teachers are now held to account for the progress of the pupils they teach in half-termly meetings. However, although school leaders check pupils’ progress regularly, these systems have yet to secure good progress, especially in Key Stage 2.

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The leadership and management requires improvement

 The school’s curriculum provides pupils with interesting topics and lessons. A wide range of themed days, visitors and special events contribute well to pupils’ spiritual, moral and social development. However, the school does not plan enough chances for pupils to learn about people from different cultures, beliefs and backgrounds.

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The leadership and management requires improvement

 The school has a generally positive relationship with most parents, although some expressed concerns about school leadership.

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The leadership and management requires improvement

 The school plans to spend the extra primary sport funding on helping more pupils represent the school in various sports and on training school staff. It has plans to evaluate the impact of this funding.

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The leadership and management requires improvement

 The school’s arrangements to keep its pupils safe meet legal requirements.

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The leadership and management requires improvement

 The school is committed to equal opportunity, though the relative under-performance of boys indicates that this has yet to be fully realised.

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The leadership and management requires improvement

 The leadership of the Early Years Foundation Stage is good. Children settle in quickly, and good links are made with parents.

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The leadership and management requires improvement

 The school has received useful support from the local authority, including training school leaders in the use of data about pupils’ performance.

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The leadership and management requires improvement

 School leaders have made recent improvements to the school, and have successfully raised the quality of teaching. These improvements, leaders’ clear sense of purpose and their good plans for the future show that they have the capacity to improve further.

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The leadership and management requires improvement

 The governance of the school:  The governing body is ambitious for the school, and demonstrates a growing capacity to hold leaders to account for the performance of the school. Governors are frequent visitors, so they have a good understanding of what goes on in school. They have an accurate view of the school’s strengths and weaknesses, though they are reliant on the headteacher for information on the quality of teaching, how the school’s performance management systems help to improve the quality of teaching and how any underperformance is tackled. Plans are in place for governors to gain more first-hand experience by seeing and checking teaching for themselves. They understand what data about pupils’ performance tells them about how well the school is doing compared to other schools nationally, and are developing expertise in interpreting data for themselves. They responded actively to pupils’ disappointing results in

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The leadership and management requires improvement

2013, and are now aware that they need to monitor pupils’ progress more regularly. Governors oversee the school budget well, and know how extra funds, for example from the pupil premium, are spent, but are less clear on the impact of such spending. They are keen to improve their skills and many have undertaken further training.

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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 122627 Local authority Nottinghamshire Inspection number 425027

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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 4–11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 177 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair John Unwin Headteacher Anita Ashley Date of previous school inspection 31 January 2012 Telephone number 01909 730408 Fax number 01909 732544 Email address ramsden.office@ramsden.notts.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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