Etruscan Primary School

Etruscan Primary School Dundee Road, Etruria, Stoke-on-Trent, ST1 4BS

p.1

Overall effectiveness

Previous inspection: Good 2 This inspection: Inadequate 4 Achievement of pupils Inadequate 4 Quality of teaching Inadequate 4 Behaviour and safety of pupils Inadequate 4 Leadership and management Inadequate 4

p.1

Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

This is a school that requires special measures.  Pupils make inadequate progress in Key Stages 1 and 2, especially in writing, and there has been a decline in standards. Attainment is now below average in reading and mathematics, and low in writing.  Pupil premium funding is not used effectively to accelerate the progress of the pupils known to be eligible for additional support.  Teaching is inadequate in Key Stages 1 and 2. Teachers do not have high enough expectations of pupils, especially the more- able. They do not use the assessment information well enough to provide engaging and challenging activities that build upon what pupils already know, understand and can do.  Some pupils misbehave in lessons, often because teachers’ lesson introductions and explanations are too long and pupils lose interest and become bored. Attendance is consistently below average.  Leaders and managers do not make regular

p.1

Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

checks to ensure that the improvement strategies are leading to better achievement. As a result they have failed to improve the school since the last inspection.  Some of the leaders do not have sufficiently developed skills to assess, check and so improve the quality of teaching and raise achievement.  The school’s leaders do not have an accurate view of the achievement of disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs because the tracking of their progress is ineffective.  Governors do not have sufficient skills to hold the school’s leaders to account.

p.1

The school has the following strengths

 Teaching is consistently good in the Early Years Foundation Stage and children make good progress.  Pupils say that they enjoy coming to school and feel safe.

p.1

Information about this inspection

 Inspectors observed 23 lessons, many of which were observed jointly with the headteacher.  Inspectors heard pupils reading and looked closely at the work in their books.  Inspectors held meetings with the staff, groups of pupils, a representative of the local authority, the Chair of the Governing Body and five other governors.  Inspectors looked at plans for improvement, information on pupils’ progress and attendance, lesson plans, the school’s monitoring information and school policies.  There were 13 responses to Ofsted’s online questionnaire, Parent View, at the time of the inspection. Inspectors held informal discussions with some parents, and looked at the results of school’s own parent survey.

p.2

Inspection team

Roy Bowers, Lead inspector Her Majesty’s Inspector Huda Aslam Additional Inspector Doreen Davenport Additional Inspector

p.2

Full report

In accordance with section 44 of the Education Act 2005 (as amended), Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector is of the opinion that this school requires special measures because it is failing to give its pupils an acceptable standard of education and the persons responsible for leading, managing or governing the school are not demonstrating the capacity to secure the necessary improvement in the school.

p.3

Information about this school

 The school is larger than the average-sized primary school.  The proportion of pupils supported by the pupil premium is above average. Pupil premium is an additional funding given to schools for pupils who are known to be eligible for free school meals, those who are looked-after and those from families in the Armed Forces.  Most pupils are from minority ethnic backgrounds, the largest group being of Pakistani origin.  The proportion of pupils who speak English as an additional language is high.  The proportion of disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs supported through school action is above average. The proportion supported through school action plus or with a statement of special educational needs is average. Most of these have moderate learning difficulties and a few have speech, language and communication needs.  The school meets the government’s current floor standard, which sets the minimum expectations

p.3

Information about this school

for pupils’ attainment and progress.  Half of the teaching staff started at the school at the beginning of this term, September 2013.

p.3

What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Raise the quality of teaching in Key Stages 1 and 2, so that pupils’ behaviour improves and their progress accelerates, especially in writing, by ensuring that teachers:  have high expectations of pupils, especially the more able  use assessment information to provide engaging and challenging activities that build upon what pupils already know, understand and can do  plan lessons that focus on pupils’ learning and not just on the activities they will do  do not use an excessive amount of time introducing lessons or explaining activities  give pupils clear guidance when marking their work about what they need to do to improve, and increase the opportunities for pupils to respond to teachers’ comments so that they can learn from their mistakes  stimulate pupils’ imaginations so that they are motivated to write  give pupils more opportunities to write at length in literacy lessons and in subjects such as

p.3

What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Use the pupil premium funding to accelerate rapidly the progress of those pupils known to be eligible for this additional support.

p.3

What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Work with parents to improve attendance to at least the national average.

p.3

What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve leadership and management, including governance, by ensuring that:  all leaders and managers make regular checks to ensure that the improvement strategies are improving teaching and raising achievement  all leaders develop their skills of checking and improving the teaching and so raise achievement in their areas of responsibility  the progress of disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs is tracked effectively so that leaders have an accurate view of their achievement  all plans for improvement are sharply focused on improving pupils’ achievement and have measurable outcomes that can be monitored regularly  governors develop their skills so that they can effectively check the work of the school and hold leaders to account for the quality of teaching and pupils’ achievement  an external review of governance is undertaken, to include a specific focus on the school’s use

p.3

What does the school need to do to improve further?

of the pupil premium, in order to assess how this aspect of leadership and governance may be improved.

p.4

The achievement of pupils is inadequate

 Pupils underachieve in Key Stages 1 and 2. There has been a decline in attainment at the end of Key Stage 2 from broadly average at the time of the last inspection to well below average in 2013. Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1 has also shown a slight decline and remains well below average. The attainment of last year’s Year 6 pupils who were known to be eligible for free school meals was approximately one term behind their classmates in mathematics, and two terms behind in reading and writing. The gaps in attainment between these two groups are wider than in 2012.  Attainment is consistently below average in reading and mathematics. Writing is particularly weak and standards are low throughout the school. The 2013 writing assessments undertaken by teachers show that by the end of Key Stage 2 only just over half of the pupils made the expected progress from the end of Key Stage 1, and only one pupil made more than the

p.5

The achievement of pupils is inadequate

expected progress.  The school does not currently have assessment information to show pupils’ progress from the start of this term. There is no evidence in pupils’ books or in lessons observed to show that progress is accelerating.  Children start Nursery with skills and knowledge that are well below those typical for their age. The well-structured activities help them make good progress in all areas and especially in their personal and social development. By the time pupils enter Year 1, although their skills in literacy and numeracy are still below average, they are well prepared for future learning.  There are few differences in the progress of different groups. Disabled pupils, those who have special educational needs, those from minority ethnic backgrounds, those who speak English as an additional language and those who are known to be eligible to be supported by pupil premium funding, make good progress in the Early Years Foundation Stage and inadequate

p.5

The quality of teaching is inadequate

 In Key Stages 1 and 2, teaching over time in reading, writing and mathematics has been inadequate and has led to a decline in achievement. Despite many changes in staffing, teaching is still not good enough to accelerate pupils’ progress.  Teachers in Key Stages 1 and 2 do not have high enough expectations of pupils, especially the more able. They do not use the information they have on what pupils already know, understand and can do to plan activities that help pupils learn. As a result, the work given to many pupils is not pitched at the right ability level, and that given to the more-able pupils is often too easy.  In some lessons, teachers plan activities for pupils that have no clear learning outcomes. Where this occurs, pupils happily and successfully complete the activity, such as colouring a shape or figure, but have learned nothing from doing so.  In guided reading sessions, pupils who work with the teacher or teaching assistant often make

p.5

The quality of teaching is inadequate

good progress because pupils are asked challenging questions about the text they are reading and have to think deeply about what they have read. However, other pupils who are not supported by an adult are set tasks which occupy their time, but have no clear learning focus and do not help them make progress. Some pupils have reading books which are too easy and do not challenge them to develop their reading skills.  In some lessons, teaching assistants are deployed well and help pupils who speak English as an additional language overcome some of the language barriers. However, in some lessons, teaching assistants merely help the pupils to complete the activities and do not focus enough on helping them make sufficient gains with their learning.  Some marking gives pupils clear guidance on how to improve their work. However, this is inconsistent and pupils are given few opportunities to respond to the teachers’ comments so that

p.5

The quality of teaching is inadequate

they can learn from their mistakes.  Many writing tasks given to pupils do not stimulate their imaginations and do not motivate them to want to write. In many lessons, pupils are not given enough time to write at length. In some lessons observed, by the time pupils had copied the lesson’s purpose into their books, there was little time left for their writing task. Teachers do not take opportunities to improve pupils’ writing skills through subjects such as history and geography.  In the Early Years Foundation Stage, teachers and teaching assistants plan the children’s activities well and are clear about how each activity is contributing to children’s learning. Good use of assessment information means that tasks are matched well to children’s different abilities. Skilful questioning which stretches children’s thinking and a wide range of well-structured activities ensure that children’s learning in the Early Years Foundation Stage is consistently good.

p.6

The quality of teaching is inadequate

Children enjoy the activities and leave Reception with good attitudes to learning.

p.6

The behaviour and safety of pupils are inadequate

 Overall attendance has not improved since the last inspection and remains well below average. However, the strategies put into place to improve the attendance of the small number of pupils who were persistently absent have resulted in a significant improvement in the attendance of this group of pupils.  In some lessons, some pupils become bored and lose interest, misbehave and disrupt the learning of others. This is often because teachers make pupils sit for too long while they give lengthy introductions or explanations. Occasionally, a very small number of pupils show lack of respect for the teacher.  The majority of pupils behave well in lessons and around the school. They play happily together and move around the school sensibly. When given a topic which they find of interest, they are keen to talk with each other about their learning.  In the Early Years Foundation Stage, children are interested in their work, are willing to take

p.6

The behaviour and safety of pupils are inadequate

turns, and pay close attention to what the adults are saying to them.  Pupils say that they are happy and feel safe at school. They say that bullying is rare and believe that, when it occurs, it is handled well by the teachers. However, they add that, occasionally, name-calling remains undetected because teachers do not understand the language and pupils do not report it to the teachers. Parents and governors say that they are happy with the school’s arrangements for keeping pupils safe and feel that behaviour is good.

p.6

The leadership and management are inadequate

 Leadership and management are inadequate because leaders and managers have not effectively addressed the decline in pupils’ achievement or dealt successfully with the areas for improvement identified at the last inspection. They have not tackled the inequalities resulting from the marked difference in teaching between the Early Years Foundation Stage and the rest of the school.  Joint lesson observations with the inspectors show that the headteacher can accurately identify the strengths and weaknesses in teaching. However, the headteacher and other leaders have not been rigorous enough in regularly checking that the improvement strategies they put into place are improving teaching and accelerating pupils’ progress. The many changes in staff over recent years, and the lack of regular checks on the quality of teaching, have meant that senior leaders have been unable to ensure consistency of good teaching practice.

p.6

The leadership and management are inadequate

 Although the leaders who have responsibility for subjects and for disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs carry out their roles conscientiously, they do not have the monitoring and evaluation skills to help raise pupils’ achievement rapidly. They do not have a strong enough understanding of how to interpret, analyse and use assessment data to ensure that the improvement strategies are raising pupils’ achievement and improving teaching. Some of their plans for improvement are lists of actions without any measurable targets for improving achievement.  The system for tracking the progress of disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs is not understood by the coordinator and is ineffective. As a result the school’s leaders do not have any way of checking the progress made by these pupils.  The pupil premium funding is used widely to provide, for example, additional trips out for all

p.6

The leadership and management are inadequate

pupils and additional teaching assistants. However, it is not targeted sharply enough on raising the achievement of the pupils known to be eligible for additional support.  The leader for physical education (PE) has a detailed plan for the use of the primary school sport funding. The plan is based on surveys of the views of staff and pupils about how best to increase pupils’ participation in sport and improve their sports skills. The plan includes use of external sports agencies to work alongside teachers to improve their teaching skills. Teachers are expected to complete documentation showing what they have learnt from each session and write child-study reviews which show how individual pupils have benefited from the teaching. The plan also includes the use of external agencies to work with the PE leader to increase the range of out-of-school clubs and to improve the school’s successes in sports competitions. The

p.7

The leadership and management are inadequate

PE leader has clear plans of how she intends to monitor the impact of these new initiatives on increasing participation and performance in sport, and improving teachers’ skills in teaching PE.  Senior leaders and governors are aware that teachers’ performance must be linked with pay and have up-dated the policy accordingly.  Diversity is celebrated well with pupils studying a variety of faiths, and experiencing dance, art and music from different cultures. This helps foster good relationships and ensures that pupils from all cultures get on well together without discrimination. The school makes good use of visits to places of interest to stimulate pupils’ imagination and promote their interest in learning. However, the work in pupils’ books shows that the learning from these experiences is not built on effectively in lessons.  Although the local authority has given only minimum guidance to the school, it has plans to

p.7

The leadership and management are inadequate

provide extensive support as a matter of urgency.  Safeguarding meets requirements.  The school should not appoint newly qualified teachers.  The governance of the school:  Governors are highly committed to improving the life-chances of the pupils through raising achievement and some have attended governor training sessions. Some governors visit the school regularly and meet teachers, observe lessons, and talk with pupils. They inform other governors by writing reports about what they have found. However, governors do not have sufficiently developed skills to check the quality of teaching and pupils’ achievement. They have not questioned why the very positive reports from the school’s leaders and external agencies do not concur with declining standards and lack of progress in the areas identified for improvement at the last inspection. Although they are now aware that teachers’ performance must be related to pay progression, in the past they have not had a clear view of the quality

p.7

The leadership and management are inadequate

of teaching or the performance of teachers and the school’s leaders. Governors know how the school spends its pupil premium funding, but have not challenged the school on why the achievement of pupils known to be eligible for additional support has not been raised.

p.7

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

p.8

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.

p.8

School details

Unique reference number 133328 Local authority Stoke-on-Trent Inspection number 427264

p.9

School details

This inspection of the school was carried out under section 5 of the Education Act 2005.

p.9

School details

Type of school Primary School category Community Age range of pupils 3–11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 347 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Lynne Ball Headteacher Vivienne Mees Date of previous school inspection 4 October 2010 Telephone number 01782 235711 Fax number 01782 235714 Email address etruscan@sgfl.org.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 .

p.9

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.

p.10

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

p.10

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

p.10

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’.

p.10

School details

T: 0300 123 4234 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.ofsted.gov.uk

p.10