St Mary's and St John's CofE School

St Mary's and St John's Church of England Primary School Prothero Gardens, Hendon, London, NW4 3SL

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Overall effectiveness

Previous inspection: Good 2 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 make good progress from their starting points. Progress is stronger in mathematics and reading than in writing.  The attainment overall at the end of Key Stage 2 has been significantly above average over the last three years, with the attainment in mathematics significantly above average over the last two years.  Children have very low starting points when they enter the Nursery. Through effective adult support and good teaching, they make good progress by the time they leave Reception.  Reading is promoted well across the school, with pupils showing enjoyment when reading on their own and to adults.  Leaders and managers have been successful in improving the quality of teaching, particularly in the Early Years Foundation Stage, through providing effective support and training. As a result, teaching is consistently good, with all groups of pupils making good progress, particularly in mathematics and reading.

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

 Behaviour and safety are good. Pupils are courteous and respectful and very well behaved. They are aware of different types of bullying and feel safe in the school.  Leaders are ambitious and have high expectations for the school, and morale is high among staff.  Governors know the school well and provide appropriate support and challenge to bring about improvements.

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It is not yet an outstanding school because

 Pupils’ progress, particularly of boys, in writing is not consistently good enough  Pupils are not always given opportunities to respond to comments in teachers’ marking to Inspection report: St Mary’s and St John’s Church of England Primary School, 28–29 November 2013 2 of 9

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It is not yet an outstanding school because

across the school.  Pupils are not always actively involved in their own learning in lessons, particularly when teachers sometimes spend too much time talking. enable them to improve their own work.  Teachers do not always monitor pupils’ progress closely enough in lessons to pick up any mistakes to move their learning on quickly.

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Information about this inspection

 The inspectors observed 26 lessons, of which seven were joint observations with the headteacher and the deputy headteacher. Inspectors also observed four short interventions outside of the classroom where adults were supporting the learning of small groups of pupils.  Meetings were held with a group of pupils, and inspectors listened to pupils read and discussed their reading with them.  Discussions were held with the headteacher, senior leaders, subject coordinators, the Chair of the Governing Body and two other governors. A telephone conversation took place with a representative from the local authority who supports the school. In addition, inspectors spoke to parents and carers in the playground at the start of the school day.  Inspectors observed the school’s work and examined a range of documentation, including the school’s own performance information, an analysis of its strengths and areas for development,

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Information about this inspection

improvement plans, records of the monitoring of the quality of teaching, minutes of the governing body meetings and records relating to attendance, behaviour, safeguarding and the school’s plan for spending the sports funding.  Pupils’ work was also scrutinised to look at their progress, the quality of marking and feedback, and the coverage of the curriculum.  The inspectors took account of 43 responses received from parents to the online questionnaire (Parent View). They also considered 38 questionnaires completed by staff.

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Inspection team

Avtar Sherri, Lead inspector Additional Inspector David Wolfson Additional Inspector Michael Buist Additional Inspector Inspection report: St Mary’s and St John’s Church of England Primary School, 28–29 November 2013 3 of 9

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Information about this school

 This school is larger than the average-sized primary school.  The proportion of pupils from minority ethnic backgrounds is well above the average, as is the proportion of pupils who speak English as an additional language.  Pupils come from a wide range of ethnic backgrounds. The largest group of pupils are of White British heritage, with pupils from Black or Black British African backgrounds forming the next sizeable group.  The proportion of pupils for whom the school receives the pupil premium (additional government funding for pupils known to be eligible for free school meals, children who are looked after by the local authority and children of service families) is average. The school currently has no children who are looked after by the local authority or children from service families.  The proportion of disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs who are supported by school action is average; the proportion supported at school action plus or with a

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Information about this school

statement of special educational needs is below average.  The school does not currently use any alternative provision for its pupils.  The school is going through major expansion plans to become an all-through school, taking its first secondary cohort in September 2014.  The school meets the government’s current floor standards, which set the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Increase the proportion of teaching from good to outstanding by:  providing more opportunities for pupils to be actively involved in their learning  ensuring that teachers always monitor the work of pupils closely in lessons to pick up any mistakes and misconceptions to move their learning on quickly  ensuring pupils always have opportunities to respond to comments in teachers’ marking in their books to improve their work and further their understanding.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Accelerate pupils’ progress in writing, particularly of boys, so that it is consistently good across the school by providing them with more opportunities to write on their own and at length across the different subject areas. Inspection report: St Mary’s and St John’s Church of England Primary School, 28–29 November 2013 4 of 9

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Attainment at Key Stage 2 has been significantly above average for all subjects over the last three years. Attainment is also significantly above average in English grammar, punctuation and spelling. However, attainment in writing is weaker than in other subjects.  Pupils make good or better progress from their starting points across the school, particularly in mathematics and reading. Their progress in writing is not consistently good across the year groups, with boys doing less well than girls. However, the school has been focusing on writing by providing pupils with more opportunities to write, but this has yet to have an impact on their overall progress in writing.  Children in the Early Years Foundation Stage start school with skills and knowledge that are well below the levels that are usually expected for their ages. Leaders and managers have been successful in improving the quality and leadership of teaching since the previous inspection. As a

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The achievement of pupils is good

result, children make good progress from their starting points in the Nursery and Reception classes. However, by the time children leave the Reception, the skills and knowledge levels of most of the children are below those typically expected for their age.  Children make good progress in Years 1 and 2 from their starting points. However, their attainment remains low because of their low starting points, particularly in reading and writing and because of the substantial number of children at very early stages of learning English as an additional language.  Pupils enjoy reading, both on their own and to adults. They are able to use their phonic skills (the links between letters and sounds) well to read difficult or unfamiliar words. Children’s scores in the end-of-Year 2 phonics screening check have improved and are above average.  Mathematics is the strongest subject across the school. Pupils have opportunities to practise their

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The achievement of pupils is good

mathematical skills in other subjects; for example, in a Year 3 science lesson pupils were estimating capacity and measuring volume of a liquid using the correct units of measurement. Teachers use good mental starters to develop their mathematical thinking skills.  There is a rich environment for developing pupils’ speaking and listening skills. Teachers take time to test and build pupils’ understanding of the vocabulary used in lessons. This benefits all pupils, particularly those who speak English as an additional language, who, as a result, make good and often better progress with their learning compared to their peers.  Leaders and managers ensure that equal opportunities are promoted well in the school, particularly in relation to the achievement of different groups of pupils. The school tracks and checks the progress of individuals and different groups of pupils to identify those who are not making sufficient progress

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The achievement of pupils is good

to give them additional support. The most able learners make good progress and their attainment in Key Stage 2 is significantly above average, particularly in reading and mathematics. Overall, there are no significant differences in the progress of different ethnic groups. However, boys do not do as well as girls in writing.  Both teachers and teaching assistants provide effective support for weaker learners through one-to- one support and small-group interventions. As a result, disabled pupils and those with special educational needs and those who are entitled to the pupil premium make at least good progress from their starting points.  The school has been successful in closing the gaps in attainment in all subjects between pupils entitled to the pupil premium and their peers at the end of Key Stage 1, and in mathematics at the end of Key Stage 2. However, these pupils are still just over six months behind their peers in reading

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The quality of teaching is good

 Leaders and managers have been successful in improving the quality of teaching through providing appropriate support and training for staff. The quality of teaching in the Early Years Foundation Stage has particularly improved since the previous inspection. As a result, teaching is good and sometimes Inspection report: St Mary’s and St John’s Church of England Primary School, 28–29 November 2013 5 of 9

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The quality of teaching is good

better across the school.  Some of the strong features of teaching include the very positive relationships in the classroom that promote good learning, good use of questioning to test and develop pupils’ understanding, and the effective use of teaching assistants to support pupils’ learning.  Although pupils’ work in books is marked with next steps for learning often included, they do not always have the opportunities to respond to comments in teachers’ marking to enable them to improve their own work and deepen their understanding.  In some lessons, pupils do not always have sufficient opportunities to be actively involved in their own learning, particularly when teachers sometimes spend too much time talking.  In a minority of lessons, teachers do not always monitor the progress pupils make closely enough to move their learning on quickly. For example, pupils sometimes make mistakes with their spellings and

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The quality of teaching is good

grammar in their work on mini-whiteboards that are not always picked up quickly enough and these are then transferred into their books with work containing errors.  Children in the Early Years Foundation Stage receive high levels of care and support from adults, who carefully plan both indoor and outdoor activities that engage children in their learning. There is a good balance between child-initiated and adult-initiated activities and children develop their confidence and self-esteem in making their own decisions on what they want to do. For example, in a Reception class one boy was eager to complete his writing task before going outside to play with his friends.  The promotion of pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is a strength of the school. Pupils from all backgrounds interact well with each other in the classroom and around the school. They value the diversity of the school and show respect for each other through learning about other

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The quality of teaching is good

cultures and faiths. Assemblies provide opportunities for pupils to reflect and promote a sense of togetherness through singing and celebrating achievement. Pupils have an opportunity to grow their own vegetables at school and cook and eat their own pumpkin bread!  Pupils enjoy their extra-curricular activities, particularly sports, gardening and cooking clubs and the school choir. There are good opportunities for them to make educational visits, for example visits to different museums, to support their learning.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils are very polite, friendly and courteous. Pupils from all backgrounds interact and get on well with each other in the classroom and around the school.  Behaviour is consistently good and pupils display good attitudes to their learning. However, sometimes they are not active and independent enough in their learning and become too dependent on the teacher.  Pupils agree that behaviour is good and that bullying and racist and homophobic behaviour is rare. They say they feel safe at school; as one Year 3 pupil said, ‘The gates keep us safe and strangers cannot get into our school.’ They say they can post any concerns they have in the ‘worry box’ and adults will follow these up. They are able to approach members of staff if they have any concerns about behaviour and safety and trust them fully to deal with these matters quickly.  They know how to keep themselves safe through learning about internet, fire and road safety,

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

including bike-ability. They know about the dangers of cyber-bullying through the anti-bullying week and what to do if it should happen.  Pupils enjoy the responsibilities they are given around the school, for example being members of the school council, play leaders, older pupils mentoring younger pupils and acting as monitors around the school.  As a result of stronger links with parents, attendance is improving and is currently average. However, punctuality is an issue amongst a small group of pupils who are occasionally late to school.  All staff responding to the questionnaire agree that behaviour and safety are good in the school, as do all parents who responded to Parent View. Inspection report: St Mary’s and St John’s Church of England Primary School, 28–29 November 2013 6 of 9

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The leadership and management are good

 The headteacher is supported well by senior leaders and managers in her commitment to driving improvements. As a result, the quality of teaching, progress of children and leadership and management in the Early Years Foundation have improved since the previous inspection.  The effectiveness of middle managers has also improved since the previous inspection. They are clear about the school’s strengths and areas for development and the progress pupils make in different subject areas. They are involved monitoring pupils’ progress, checking the quality of teaching and supporting teachers to bring about improvements.  There is an effective system in place to monitor the quality of teaching and learning linked to appropriate support and training to bring about improvements. Performance management of staff is in place and shows a strong link with the progress pupils make, including the link between teachers’

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The leadership and management are good

salary progression and the quality of their teaching.  The range of subjects promotes good leaning and there are sufficient opportunities for developing pupils’ speaking and listening skills and promoting the key skills in literacy and numeracy. Pupils enjoy studying a range of different topics through the cross-curricular approach. A range of appropriately targeted and well-planned interventions enable weaker learners to make good progress. However, there are sometimes insufficient opportunities for pupils to develop their writing skills across all subject areas.  There is a plan in place for spending the primary sports funding. There is a good emphasis on building capacity through training teachers to enhance their skills in delivering consistently high quality physical education. Sports coaches are effectively used by the school to improve the teaching of physical education, including enhancing teachers’ questioning skills. As one coach said, ‘We try to

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The leadership and management are good

help children solve problems.’ The school is to expand opportunities for sports, including pupils’ participation in local leagues and sporting events, to promote pupils’ healthy lifestyles and physical well-being.  Links with parents are strong and this has had a good impact on improving attendance. Almost all parents who responded to Parent View felt the school is well led and managed, and all staff responding to the staff questionnaire agree with them.  The local authority has worked closely with senior leaders on the use of performance information. As a result, monitoring and tracking of pupils’ progress have improved.  The governance of the school:  Governors have high expectations for the school and strive for the best possible outcomes for pupils. They know the school and its context well, including its strengths and areas for development. They know about the quality of teaching in the school and the progress pupils make,

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The leadership and management are good

and how the school is performing in comparison to similar schools and other schools nationally. They provide appropriate support and challenge to bring about improvements, for example improving the quality of teaching in Key Stage 1, strengthening links with parents and close involvement in the school’s expansion programme. They ensure the efficient management of financial resources, including how the pupil premium funding is used to narrow the gaps between eligible pupils and their peers and how the new sports funding is to be used to promote pupils’ physical well-being. They are aware of the quality of teaching in the school and how pay and promotion are linked to teachers’ performance through the information they receive from the headteacher. They show commitment to their own training and are keen to enhance their skills and knowledge by attending courses on the use of data and safeguarding. All statutory duties are met,

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The leadership and management are good

including arrangements for safeguarding. Inspection report: St Mary’s and St John’s Church of England Primary School, 28–29 November 2013 7 of 9

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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. Inspection report: St Mary’s and St John’s Church of England Primary School, 28–29 November 2013 8 of 9

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School details

Unique reference number 103119 Local authority Barnet Inspection number 433160

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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 aided Age range of pupils 3−11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 500 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Rev John Hawkins Headteacher Dee Oelman Date of previous school inspection 5−6 October 2011 Telephone number 020 8202 0026 Fax number 020 8203 5584 Email address office@smsj.barnetmail.net 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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