Cheveley CofE Primary School

Cheveley CofE Primary School Park Road, Cheveley, Newmarket, CB8 9DF

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Overall effectiveness

Previous inspection: Satisfactory 3 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’ attainment at the end of both key stages is above average. Pupils make good progress throughout the school.  Teaching is good. Staff work hard to make lessons interesting and to develop pupils’ learning. Teaching assistants provide good support for the teachers and pupils.  Pupils’ behaviour is good. They have a good appreciation of how to keep themselves safe.  Staff are united and work as a team. They support the new headteacher who has made a good start in leading the school. Oversight of teaching and learning are good.  Close links with the church and the community support pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development effectively.  The governing body is well led and is both supportive and challenging. Governors work hard for the benefit of the pupils.  The school has an accurate awareness of its strengths and aspects for further development.  Teachers track pupils’ progress very effectively

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

and know the pupils’ very well. They take very good care of them and so the pupils feel safe.  A large majority of parents are very supportive of the school’s efforts for their children.

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It is not yet an outstanding school because

 Pupils’ writing skills are not at the same high standard as their reading and mathematics because opportunities to write at length are limited and spelling can be variable in quality.  Pupils do not have enough opportunities to investigate in science and to use their mathematics and literacy in this subject to describe the results.  More able pupils are not always challenged sufficiently well in the introductions to mathematics lessons in Key Stage 1 and lower Key Stage 2.

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Information about this inspection

 Eleven lessons or parts of lessons were observed. Two joint observations were undertaken with the headteacher.  Discussions took place with the headteacher, some of the staff, the Chair of the Governing Body and a group of pupils.  The inspector heard pupils read and observed the teaching of reading skills.  He sampled pupils’ work in different year groups, examined records of pupils’ progress and read the school’s self-evaluation and plan for improving achievement. A range of other documentation was examined, including that relating to safeguarding.  The inspector had a telephone conversation with a member of the local authority’s advisory staff.  The views of staff were sought and 17 responded to a written questionnaire.  The inspector looked at the 28 responses to the on-line questionnaire, Parent View.

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Inspection team

Peter Sudworth, Lead inspector Additional Inspector

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Information about this school

 This school is smaller than the average-sized primary school.  There are five classes of which four are mixed-age.  Almost all pupils are White British.  A lower proportion of pupils than usual are entitled to the pupil premium which provides additional government funding for pupils who are looked after by the local authority, known to be eligible for free school meals or from families with a parent in the armed forces. The proportion of pupils entitled to free school meals is about half the national average.  The proportions of disabled pupils and those with special educational needs supported at both school action and school action plus are average.  The school meets the government’s current floor standards, which set the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress in English and mathematics.  The headteacher commenced her duties at the school in September 2013.  Temporary staffing arrangements were in place in two classes during the inspection because of

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve pupils’ skills further in writing by:  providing more opportunities for pupils to write independently and practise their punctuation and grammar in longer pieces enabling teachers to assess individual pupils’ strengths and weaknesses in writing  improving pupils’ spelling skills through learning spelling rules and words which they use often but spell wrongly.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Ensure that the improvement in mathematics attainment by the end of Year 6 is sustained by providing more challenge for able pupils in the first part of mathematics lessons in Key Stage 1 and lower Key Stage 2 so that these pupils are always working at an appropriate level.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Giving more opportunities for pupils to investigate in science and use their mathematics and writing skills more effectively when describing their results.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Children’s attainment when they first enter the school varies from year to year because the groups are quite small and the number of children who find learning more difficult or are more able changes from year to year. Overall children enter Reception with the skills and knowledge typical for their age. However, the most recent group to complete the Early Years Foundation Stage had weaker skills and knowledge than is typical for their age. The children made good gains in their learning. Most at least reached the expected stage of development in the majority of different aspects of learning when they entered Year 1.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Overall, pupils make good progress in Key Stage 1 with a consistent pattern of above average attainment. All Year 1 pupils reached the expected standard in the national phonics check in 2013. Reading is a particular strength because teachers listen to pupils read on a regular basis and staff teach phonics (the sounds letters make) well.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Good progress continues into Key Stage 2. Results in 2013 were well above those nationally in grammar, punctuation and spelling, mathematics and reading. Comparatively, overall attainment in writing was not as strong, albeit still above average.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Considerable improvements have taken place in mathematics due to staff training and a focus on mathematics teaching. The proportion of pupils reaching the highest level (Level 6) was higher than nationally.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Pupils who are disabled or who have special educational needs make similar rates of progress to others. There were too few pupils entitled to pupil premium in Year 6 to compare results meaningfully with those not entitled to this grant. The attainment of these pupils currently in the school is broadly similar to the attainment of their classmates who do not receive the funding.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Pupils have good speaking and listening skills and often pupils select good vocabulary when speaking. A Year 6 pupil suggested ‘mood’ as a word to consider when writing about settings for stories.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 The school’s information about current pupils indicates that overall attainment is above average in all year groups but writing is not as strong as mathematics and reading. Progress rates in writing are, nevertheless, improving quickly.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teachers maintain a pleasant working atmosphere and promote a positive attitude to learning. Respectful relationships between staff and pupils enable the pupils to do their best. Teachers deploy the teaching assistants thoughtfully. Teaching assistants work well and complement the teaching effectively when working with small groups and individual pupils.

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The quality of teaching is good

 The teaching of pupils who are disabled and those with special educational needs is good. Teachers track their progress carefully, identify difficulties quickly and plan work which is relevant to individual needs.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Questioning of the pupils is good. Teachers listen to pupils’ responses carefully and often follow up with an extra question so that pupils explain what they mean or provide an example.  Marking is good and usually up to date. Teachers share with pupils what they need to do to get to the next level in their work and set targets for them to aim for. Both of these are regularly assessed and are leading to improvements in writing.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Good use is made of modern technology to introduce learning to pupils. This visual approach helps pupils to concentrate. Pupils are clearly informed what they can do to be successful in their tasks.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Strategies used keep pupils thinking, for example the selective use of paired talk to discuss an idea. The use of individual whiteboards similarly keeps pupils active as they compose a sentence to practise grammar or write an answer to a question in mathematics.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teachers adopt good techniques to help pupils understand mathematics. In a Year 1/ 2 lesson, the pupils learned about doubling and halving as the teacher showed different numbers of red and blue pegs on a hanger. However, teachers do not always consider able pupils sufficiently well in mathematics lessons in Key Stage 1 and lower Key Stage 2, especially in the first half of lessons. They sometimes sit through the same work as other pupils. When teachers arrange pupils in a circle during lessons, they do not always ensure that pupils can see the demonstrations of the learning.

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The quality of teaching is good

 The staff are working hard to improve the teaching of writing, but pupils do not write at length independently and often enough to put into practise the skills that they have learned. The teaching of spelling is not yet secure enough so that pupils understand spelling rules and learn words that they use frequently but spell wrongly.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils behave well. Evidence seen during the inspection indicates that this is usually the case. The pupils say that there is no bullying of any type. They enjoy school. Attendance is above average and pupils are punctual to school.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils have good attitudes to work and enjoy learning. They try hard. Lessons largely proceed without interruption because pupils are well mannered and courteous. Occasionally pupils can be too chatty and they do not hear the teacher’s requests.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils feel safe in school and know how to keep themselves safe. They understand road safety. Those who want to cycle are keen to undertake cycle training.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils know that smoking is harmful to health and they are aware of the danger of drugs. They have a good awareness of keeping safe on computers. They are convincing about the potential dangers when they say, ‘We don’t get cyber bullying at school.’

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils have good awareness of the needs of others. They raise money to provide for a Kenyan pupil’s school fees. The school council organises events for ‘Children in Need.’ Pupils engage well in community activities, such as choir performances in the neighbourhood.

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The leadership and management are good

 The headteacher’s good start to this role is seen in the increased rigour in tracking pupils’ progress. Her style of openness and sharing information are appreciated by both staff and governors.

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The leadership and management are good

 Subject leaders fulfil their roles well. The English leader has already put into place several initiatives to improve attainment in writing, such as working closely with another school and assessing the levels of pieces writing together. These initiatives are beginning to bear fruit. The mathematics leader has brought about considerable improvement in mathematics progress and attainment.

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The leadership and management are good

 Reviews of different aspects of the school’s work are well planned through a weekly diary of activities which include a variety of activities to keep different subject areas under scrutiny, including listening to pupils’ views about their learning.

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The leadership and management are good

 Good use has been made of the pupil premium funding to provide one-to-one tuition and small group arrangements in English and mathematics. As a result the progress of these pupils is broadly similar to other pupils in the school.

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The leadership and management are good

 Partnerships with other local schools have been beneficial for staff training and the sharing of ideas. A particular partnership with another school has enabled staff to undertake joint observations of lessons and hold discussions with the pupils about their work.

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The leadership and management are good

 The school has just received the new government funding for physical education and sport and so the impact of this cannot yet be assessed. The school has clear plans on how to spend this money including the development of inter-school sporting activities and staff training for the teaching of physical education.

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The leadership and management are good

 There is no evidence of discrimination and all pupils have equal opportunities. No child is left out.

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The leadership and management are good

 Reviews of the performance of staff are well organised. Targets set for individual teachers are clearly worded as is the method by which success will be measured. Targets are linked to the ‘Teachers’ Standards’ and a link to pay is planned.

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The leadership and management are good

 The curriculum interests the pupils and there is a good range of out-of school activities. Good attention is paid to the basic subjects but pupils do not write at length enough. Not enough science investigative work is undertaken and there are missed opportunities for pupils to apply their mathematics and writing when reporting. Able pupils are not always extended enough in the first part of mathematics lessons in some classes.

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The leadership and management are good

 The school’s plan for raising achievement has a clear focus on the priorities to improve the school further. However, although initiatives for improvement are clearly identified, the methods to measure their success are not always obvious.

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The leadership and management are good

 Local authority advisers visit the school at least termly and the school has access to the local authority’s training opportunities for staff which have been effective in helping the school to improve.

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The leadership and management are good

 The governance of the school:  Members visit in connection with their responsibilities and so gain an insight into the quality of teaching and learning.  Governors have been trained in pupil data and so are able to challenge the school and ask questions about performance.  The governing body knows how the pupil premium is spent and monitors the impact. It knows that not all initiatives have proved successful and so are reviewing the progress of these pupils more rigorously.  Safeguarding measures meet requirements.  Governors understand the school’s procedures for the management of teachers’ performance and ensure that these are undertaken on schedule.

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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 110785 Local authority Cambridgeshire Inspection number 425206

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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 Voluntary controlled Age range of pupils 4–11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 140 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Rowena Berridge Headteacher Diane Kingdon Date of previous school inspection 28 November 2011 Telephone number 01638 730273 Fax number 01638 730285 Email address office@cheveley.cambs.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

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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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