John Randall Primary School

John Randall Primary School Queen Street, Madeley, Telford, TF7 4DS

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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 achieve well from their below average starting points. They achieve average standards by the end of Year 6.  Teachers’ knowledge of pupils’ skills and learning needs, good teaching and skilled extra support help all groups of pupils to make good progress.  Teachers’ feedback to pupils helps them to know how to improve their work.  Pupils say that they feel safe in school. Their good attitudes and behaviour contribute well to their progress. They are polite and courteous to each other and adults.  Leadership and management are good. The determination of leaders to raise achievement is shared by all staff. Monitoring, evaluation, staff appraisal and training have led to an improvement in pupil progress.  Pupils’ good spiritual, moral, social and cultural awareness is developed across all aspects of school life.

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It is not yet an outstanding school because

 The level of challenge in learning does not always give enough opportunities for the most-able pupils to make the best possible progress, particularly in mathematics and spelling.  Pupils are not given enough opportunities to work independently of adults, and marking in books does not always give enough support for them to know how to improve their work.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors observed teaching in all classes and visited 15 lessons. The headteacher shared in the joint observation of three lessons.  Inspectors held discussions with pupils, parents, teachers, the headteacher, two members of the governing body and a local authority officer. There were not enough responses to the online questionnaire (Parent View) to register an analysis. Information on the school’s website was reviewed.  Account was taken of the 37 staff questionnaires returned to the inspectors.  Inspectors looked at records of pupils’ achievement and heard pupils read. They looked at pupils’ work, judgements made by leaders about the quality of teaching, and the training activities undertaken to bring about improvement.  Attendance was checked along with safeguarding records, records of pupils’ behaviour, the use of the pupil premium (additional funding provided by the government to support groups of

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Information about this inspection

pupils including those who are looked after by the local authority and those known to be eligible for free school meals) and the use of the extra government funding for physical education.  Plans for improvement were examined against the self-evaluation carried out by school leaders.

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Inspection team

Lynne Bradbury, Lead inspector Additional Inspector Iain Colledge Additional Inspector

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Information about this school

 John Randall Primary School is smaller than the average-sized primary school.  Most pupils are from White British backgrounds and the others come from a wide variety of other groups.  The proportion of pupils known to be eligible for the pupil premium is above average.  The proportion of disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs supported through school action is above average, as is the proportion of supported at action plus or with a statement of special educational needs.  In 2013 the school met the government’s floor standards, which set minimum expectations for progress and attainment.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Increase the proportion of outstanding teaching so that all pupils can make more rapid progress by:  providing a greater level of challenge for the most-able pupils, particularly in mathematics and spelling  increasing the opportunities for pupils of all abilities to work independently of staff  ensuring that all teachers’ marking and feedback helps pupils to know how to improve their work.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Children enter the Nursery and Reception class with levels of attainment which are generally well below what is expected for their age group. Exciting and imaginative learning experiences based upon a secure knowledge of what children already know are enabling them to make rapid progress.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Pupils entered Year 1 in 2013 with knowledge and skills below those expected for their age group. Their good start in Nursery and Reception enabled them to settle quickly to their work.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 In 2013, the high number of pupils with special educational needs, and generally lower initial attainment levels, meant that overall pupils achieved below national levels in the Year 1 phonics test (linking letters with sounds). During the inspection there was evidence that extra support for this area is leading to better progress.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Pupils enjoy reading and are keen to talk about their favourite books across a wide range of authors including Julia Donaldson, Roald Dahl and Jacqueline Wilson. They develop confidence and understanding, and can use the technical aspects of non fiction books (for example, the contents, index and glossary) to help them to find information. By Year 6 they are able to explain language features and character development.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 In 2013 Y2 pupils achieved levels generally in line with those nationally in mathematics, but below this in reading and writing because of the proportion of pupils with special educational needs in the year group.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Skilled teaching assistants support and challenge pupils appropriately in extra group work and in lessons so that their reading and writing is now developing more rapidly.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 In 2013 results in Year 6 were affected by very difficult family circumstances for some pupils during their last few months in the school. The percentage of pupils who made progress in line with those nationally and exceeded such progress was above expectations. Pupils supported by the premium were two terms below their peers in mathematics, half a term below in the spelling, punctuation and grammar tests and combined subjects, half a term above in writing, and two terms above in reading.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 The pupil premium funding supports an extra teacher, support assistants, the breakfast club and out of school activities for those pupils entitled to this funding.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 The proportion of pupils across the school who have experienced disruption to their education, have moved schools or who have emotional difficulties has caused results to be lower than expected. Staff training, leaders’ rigorous monitoring and the targeted use of extra support have enabled the school to support these pupils more effectively so that all pupils are making good progress.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Current progress tracking in school and work in books show that gaps between groups in their achievement are closing. All pupils, including those entitled to support from the pupil premium funding and those with special educational needs are making more rapid progress. In July 2013, pupils across the age range had made good progress and were closer to national expectations than in the past.  English and mathematical skills are developed well for all pupils, though the most-able pupils could be challenged further in some lessons, particularly mathematics.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 The extra funding for physical education is being used to provide extra coaching for pupils, and training for staff. Pupils greatly enjoy the range of sports offered and demonstrate very healthy attitudes.

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The quality of teaching is good

 All teaching observed in the Nursery and Reception class during the inspection was outstanding. Exciting and imaginative activities outdoors and indoors create an almost magical learning experience where language, number, physical development and all other aspects of the curriculum are woven through creative topics.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teachers in all year groups use their knowledge of pupils’ achievement to plan next steps in learning, enabling all pupils to make progress. The level of challenge for more-able pupils, particularly in mathematics, is not always enabling them to make the best possible progress and there are too few opportunities to develop pupils’ learning independently of their teachers.

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The quality of teaching is good

 A small proportion of teaching observed during the inspection required improvement but most teaching was good or outstanding.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Where teaching was most effective teachers understood the level of challenge each pupil needed in order to make progress. In these lessons, pupils had the opportunity to develop high level independent writing skills, retelling a story or using exciting language to improve their work. Teachers used skilful questioning in order to drive pupils’ learning and so that they could amend the level of challenge during the lesson.

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The quality of teaching is good

 The achievement of disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs is tracked carefully so that teachers plan learning experiences and support which help them to make good progress.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teaching assistants are highly skilled in assessing progress during lessons and giving extra support and challenge during or beyond lesson time.

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The quality of teaching is good

 The learning mentor works with many agencies so that pupils who experience a range of difficulties can make progress during lessons.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Warm and nurturing relationships are established by staff so that pupils feel that their work is valued and important. Good management of behaviour during lessons means that pupils concentrate on their work and learn new skills quickly and confidently.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils’ good behaviour and attitudes enable them to concentrate and work hard, and make a good contribution to their learning.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils are polite, courteous, and respectful of each other’s views and ideas. They work or play together happily and confidently.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils, staff and parents agree that behaviour is managed well and encourages pupils to work hard to achieve well.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 The school has developed effective processes to support children who experience extreme difficulties outside school. This has enabled them to settle in school and to make good progress.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils and parents are proud of their school.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils are excited about their learning activities during lesson time, on visits and with visitors, and in after school clubs.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils know how to keep themselves safe in and out of school. They understand the different kinds of bullying, including those associated with new technologies. They say that bullying is rare in school but is dealt with effectively by staff if it happens.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Attendance is below average but has improved recently. The school has extensive measures in place to try to improve this.

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The leadership and management are good

 The headteacher, governors, senior leaders and subject leaders have a determination that every pupil will be supported to achieve the very best, and this ambition is shared by all members of the school community.

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The leadership and management are good

 Leadership of the Early Years Foundation Stage is good and the provision ensures that pupils’ progress is rapid.

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The leadership and management are good

 Monitoring of school performance by leaders is rigorous and identifies appropriate priorities for improvement. These are addressed in the school development plan and the raising achievement plan, which lead staff training and development and the allocation of school finances.

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The leadership and management are good

 Leaders at all levels and governors attend appropriate training so that they are able to have high expectations of everyone in school and to hold staff accountable for the achievement of pupils. The performance management policy enables staff salaries to be linked to pupil progression and challenging targets to be set.

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The leadership and management are good

 The school’s learning environment is imaginative and vibrant, celebrating the wide range of pupil achievement and giving support for progress across a broad and exciting curriculum.

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The leadership and management are good

 Sport, music, art and opportunities to lead community projects add excitement and are appreciated by pupils and parents.

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The leadership and management are good

 Pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural awareness is promoted across all aspects of school experience.

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The leadership and management are good

 Pupil progress is supported well through the school’s extensive relationships with parents.

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The leadership and management are good

 The strong commitment to tackling discrimination and promoting equal opportunities is reflected in the good achievement across all pupil groups.

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The leadership and management are good

 The school’s development has been supported by the involvement of the local authority.  The governance of the school:  Governors fulfil their statutory duties for safeguarding and finance, and have effective policies in place to link staff salaries to pupil achievement through staff appraisal. More is expected of those on higher pay scales, and there are robust processes to tackle under-performance. The governors’ work is supported by extensive training which has enabled them to use data effectively and undertake high quality monitoring and evaluation of school performance measured against pupil achievement. They identify appropriate priorities for improvement and link these to well-focused targets in the school development plan. Actions, training and resources are further developed in the raising achievement plan, and governors use this to ensure that all resources, including staffing, the pupil premium and the extra funding for

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The leadership and management are good

physical education, support pupil achievement.

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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 123445 Local authority Telford and Wrekin Inspection number 426976

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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 3–11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 207 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Trish McLachlan Headteacher Helen Middleton Date of previous school inspection 20 September 2011 Telephone number 01952 388390 Fax number 01952 388390 Email address a2176@telford.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

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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