Bottesford Junior School

Bottesford Junior School Manor Road, Bottesford, Scunthorpe, Lincolnshire, DN16 3PB

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Overall effectiveness

Previous inspection: Good 2 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 Good 2

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

 The quality of teaching is not good enough across the school. Teachers do not always adjust their teaching in lessons to match the needs of pupils.  Progress is uneven across the school and in some classes pupils do not make consistently good progress in reading, writing and mathematics.  Some of the most-able pupils are not provided with sufficiently challenging work to enable them to reach the higher standards of which they are capable.  Pupils, but particularly girls, do not make the progress expected of them in mathematics, and they underachieve.  Pupils are not provided with regular opportunities to develop their problem-solving skills in mathematics.  Teaching assistants are not always directed well enough to support learning in the classroom.  Information about progress is not always used well enough to pinpoint possible underachievement so that the needs of pupils can be met effectively.

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The school has the following strengths

 The new headteacher is taking a strong lead in this improving school and has ensured that teaching has improved markedly and continues to do so.  More recently, teaching usually captures pupils’ attention and is lively and engaging. Teaching in Year 5 is particularly effective.  Computers are especially well used to promote learning.  Pupils feel safe in a caring environment. They behave well, are keen to learn and have good manners.  Parents, carers and staff are all very positive about the school.  The governance of the school is effective. Governors do not simply accept what they are told but check information for themselves.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors observed 20 lessons or part lessons taught by teachers and teaching assistants. The headteacher accompanied inspectors on visits to lessons.  Meetings were held with pupils, staff, members of the governing body and one representative from the local authority.  Inspectors took account of the 18 responses to the on-line questionnaire Parent View survey and to the school’s latest questionnaire for parents. They also took into account the 23 responses to the staff questionnaire.  Inspectors observed the school’s work and examined a range of documents, including the school’s own records of pupils’ progress and attainment, monitoring documents, records relating to the performance management of staff and those relating to behaviour, safeguarding and attendance.

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Inspection team

Glynis Bradley-Peat, Lead inspector Additional Inspector Andrew Swallow Additional Inspector James Reid Additional Inspector

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Information about this school

 This is an average-sized primary school.  The proportion of pupils receiving support through the pupil premium grant is low. (The pupil premium is additional funding for those pupils who are known to be eligible for free school meals, children from service families, and those children that are looked after by the local authority.)  A below average proportion of disabled pupils and those with special educational needs are supported through school action. The proportion of pupils supported through school action plus or with a statement of special educational needs is above average.  Most pupils are of White British heritage. The proportions of pupils from minority ethnic groups or who speak English as an additional language are much lower than the national average.  The school meets the government’s current floor standards, which set the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress in English and mathematics by the end of Year 6.

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Information about this school

 The school does not make use of any alternative provision for its pupils.  The headteacher has been in post for a year.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve the quality of teaching so that it becomes consistently good with more that is outstanding by:  ensuring that all teachers check pupils’ progress during lessons, adjust their teaching as a result and provide advice which promotes rapid learning  making sure teaching assistants are fully deployed and used well in all classes  refining approaches to marking pupils’ work so that teachers’ comments focus on improvement and pupils respond accordingly.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Accelerate rates of progress across the school, especially in mathematics, by:  ensuring that the most able are challenged effectively throughout lessons  checking progress information, about girls in particular, more assiduously and following this up with clear actions and support  providing regular opportunities for pupils to solve problems and develop their mathematical- thinking skills in lessons.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 Pupils enter Year 3 with the knowledge, skills and understanding expected for their age and reach broadly average standards in reading, writing and mathematics by the time they reach Year 6.  Achievement requires improvement because progress is not yet consistently good across subjects and year groups. In part, this is because of a history of weaker teaching in the past. However, more effective leadership and a significant improvement in the quality of teaching are beginning to have a positive impact on pupils’ progress and the standards they reach.  Pupils say that they enjoy reading and they talk eagerly about their books. Provisional results in 2013 show that most pupils made good progress in reading and writing although this was not the case in mathematics. Girls, in particular, underachieved and this remains the case in the current Year 6.  The most-able pupils in the school tend to make expected rather than good progress and

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

therefore do not always reach the standards of which they are capable in reading, writing and mathematics. This is because sometimes teachers do not challenge them with hard enough work throughout lessons and so time is wasted repeating work they can already do.  Disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs achieve similarly to their classmates. Actions taken to accelerate their progress and help them to catch up have been successful in reading and writing but less so in mathematics. Pupils who receive additional support through the pupil premium funding benefit from programmes such as one-to-one and small group support to improve their basic skills. There is no gap between their achievement and their peers.  Pupils in the current Year 5 are presently achieving well because teaching is consistently good and often outstanding. In a mathematics lesson excellent teaching meant that all pupils were

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

able to get to grips with using a protractor successfully including those with special educational needs.  The school provides a wide variety of sporting activities in which pupils can take part, for example cross country running and tag rugby. This has a good impact on pupils’ physical well- being. The school has entered a number of inter-school competitions with great success.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 Although teaching has improved markedly since the new headteacher joined the school, over time it has been weaker and has left the inconsistencies presently evident in pupils’ progress. Teachers do not always use information about girls’ progress, in particular, to ensure that support and help are provided to prevent underachievement. Good and outstanding teaching was seen during the inspection but this is not reflected in the information about how well pupils have done. Therefore, teaching requires improvement.  Pupils do not have sufficient opportunities to develop their mathematical-thinking skills. This is because they do not regularly tackle problems which make them think more deeply about their mathematics.  Sometimes teachers do not check whether pupils’ understanding is secure or whether more-able pupils are ready to move on more quickly with their learning. For example, in a mathematics

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

lesson, pupils’ misconceptions were not addressed and the most able were left to fill time when completing addition and subtraction problems that they found easy.  Verbal feedback is not always provided in a timely fashion during lessons so that pupils can relate to the advice and make more rapid progress. In addition, teachers’ written comments in pupils’ exercise books do not always focus on what needs to be done better in order to improve. In turn, pupils do not always respond well enough to the advice.  The use of teaching assistants to deliver specific support programmes is good. Teaching assistants are also used highly effectively in some lessons but this is not always the case.  Where teaching is outstanding pupils are stimulated and encouraged by passionate and highly skilled practice. This was seen, for example, in a Year 5 English lesson where the most able were immersed in an activity to produce ‘thought-provoking’ language in their planning for writing a

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

persuasive text.  Pupils are highly confident and competent in their use of technology during lessons. Hand-held devices were in use in many lessons to research, plan and execute a range of tasks. For example, the most-able pupils in a Year 4 mathematics lesson studied temperature trends through looking at weather forecasts on the internet before drawing line graphs to represent their findings.  In a Year 6 games session all pupils’ skills were developed outstandingly well. Pupils thoroughly enjoyed the lesson and had clearly gained in competence. Coaching clearly indicated the ways pupils could improve their skills.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils are proud of their school and enjoy their lessons and other activities. They are polite, courteous and keen to make a good impression on visitors. They behave well, for example in the dining hall they show patience when queuing and good manners while eating.  Behaviour is well managed by teachers and all pupils clearly know the colour coded system and the consequences of moving down to amber or red if behaviour is not up to scratch or up to ‘wow’ to be rewarded.  Pupils say they feel safe in school and almost all parents and staff agree. They have a good understanding of ‘e’ safety and are aware of the dangers the internet can pose. They are aware of how to stay healthy through diet and have an understanding of medicines and drugs.  Pupils say that bullying rarely occurs but are confident that staff deal with incidences when they arise, for example name-calling. Buddies and play leaders help to ensure playtimes run

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

smoothly.  Attitudes to learning in most lessons are good and especially so when teaching is exciting and pupils are given demanding work. Pupils occasionally lose interest when teaching is less effective. Pupils show excellent attitudes during assemblies and engage well with activities such as listening to stories and singing along with the guitar. This contributes well to pupils’ good spiritual, moral, social and cultural development.  Attendance rates are high which further demonstrates pupils’ high satisfaction with their school.

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The leadership and management are good

 Although only in post for just over a year, the headteacher has significantly improved the quality of teaching through a coaching approach linked clearly with bespoke training for individual teachers. He is determined and ambitious for the school and his strong leadership has ensured that all staff are equally like-minded. The staff questionnaire shows that staff morale is high and that teachers enjoy working alongside leaders.  Subject leadership has improved since the previous inspection. Literacy and information and communication technology (ICT) are managed very well. The new leader of mathematics has already brought about improvements in pupils’ mental agility through policy changes and she has a clear plan of action to bring about further developments.  The school’s evaluation of its strengths and weaknesses are generally accurate. During lesson observations with inspectors the quality of teaching was also judged accurately by the

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The leadership and management are good

headteacher. However, although this is the case, teaching has only recently improved and leaders have not sufficiently taken this into account when judging the quality of the school’s work as ‘good’ rather than realising that it requires improvement.  The school is working hard and with increasing success to ensure that every pupil has an equal opportunity to reach their own potential and that there is no discrimination. It has been successful in closing the gap between the standards reached by pupils supported by the pupil premium and their classmates. However, leaders realise that there is still work to do to narrow the gap between girls’ and boys’ achievement, particularly in mathematics, and the progress of the most able.  The curriculum provides some good opportunities for links to be made between subjects such as English, history and art. In Year 5 pupils visited a local Tudor hall, recorded their visit and made

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The leadership and management are good

Tudor shields in art. There are good opportunities for pupils to join clubs, for example the gardening and drama clubs. Currently, the school is planning to review the curriculum in light of the 2014 requirements. The new sports funding is spent wisely. Coaches ensure that the skills of teachers in the school improve and new equipment has been purchased which promotes the development of new skills for pupils, for example in basketball.  Parents engage well with the school and participate in a number of projects, such as in the ‘wild area’ to improve the environment for pupils.  The local authority has provided good support to the school. The headteacher has welcomed regular visits which have contributed to improvements. The local authority has offered advice and guidance about improving the use of assessment information and has ensured that judgements of the quality of teaching have become more accurate.

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The leadership and management are good

 The governance of the school:  The governing body provides high levels of support and challenge to the school in equal measure. Governors use assessment information well to ask questions of school leaders about the performance of pupils in the school. They do not simply accept information provided by the school but seek to validate it through external reviews.  Finances are well managed and governors clearly know, for example, how the pupil premium funding is spent and what impact this has on pupils’ achievement.  The governing body is fully aware of how teaching has improved and what measures have been taken to challenge weaknesses in performance. This is clearly linked to performance management for staff and teachers are rewarded with salary rises appropriately.  Arrangements for the safeguarding of pupils currently meet requirements.

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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 117727 Local authority North Lincolnshire Inspection number 427260

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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 7–11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 254 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair David Thomson Headteacher Phil Brown Date of previous school inspection 29 September 2010 Telephone number 01724 867906 Fax number 01724 867906 Email address head.bottesfordjuniors@northlincs.gov.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

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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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