Brockenhurst Church of England Primary School & Pre-School

Brockenhurst Church of England Primary School Sway Road, Brockenhurst, Hampshire, SO42 7RX

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Overall effectiveness

Previous inspection: Requires improvement 3 This inspection: Good 2 Achievement of pupils Good 2 Quality of teaching Good 2 Behaviour and safety of pupils Outstanding 1 Leadership and management Good 2

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

This is a good school.  The school has improved rapidly since its previous inspection. Pupils’ achievement is now good and the school is very well placed to improve further.  Teaching is uniformly good and increasingly outstanding. In the younger classes, pupils’ progress is accelerating so that their attainment is now above average. By Year 6, pupils’ attainment is significantly above average and has been so for a number of years.  Pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is promoted exceptionally well. Behaviour and relationships throughout the school are excellent.  The school is an exceptionally friendly and happy place to be. Pupils are especially well cared for and they feel very safe in school.  Systems for checking on and improving pupils’ achievement and the quality of teaching are very rigorous. The information gathered is used to good effect by school leaders and governors to improve the school’s work.

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

 The headteacher and her deputy are now well supported by subject leaders and a fully committed staff. Local authority officers provide very good support for the school’s improvement plan.  Governors’ very effective contribution to monitoring and development ensures the governors support and challenge staff well.  The curriculum engages and interests pupils, encouraging them to achieve well. Arrangements to promote pupils’ well-being through participation in sport are excellent.

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It is not yet an outstanding school because

 Teachers do not always ensure that all pupils are working at a challenging level throughout lessons or check that they have made improvements in response to the advice given on how to improve.

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Information about this inspection

 The inspection team observed 12 lessons or parts of lesssons of which six were joint observations with the senior leaders. In addition, the inspection team made a number of short visits to classes, sat in on pupils’ group work, observed extra-curricular activities, heard a sample of pupils read and scrutinised a sample of pupils’ written work.  Meetings were held with groups of pupils, members of the governing body, staff, including senior and middle managers, and a representative of the local authority.  Inspectors took account of the 83 responses to the online questionnaire (Parent View) and spoke to a sample of parents and carers bringing their children to school.  Responses from the 21 staff questionnaires were analysed.  Inspectors observed the school’s work and scrutinised a number of documents including the school’s records on current pupils’ progress and their behaviour and attendance. Documents

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Information about this inspection

relating to planning and monitoring and safeguarding were also looked at.

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Inspection team

Diane Wilkinson, Lead inspector Additional Inspector Anthony Green Additional Inspector

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Information about this school

 Brockenhurst is an average-sized primary school.  The proportion of pupils with special educational needs supported by school action is below average as is the proportion supported by school action plus or with a statement of special educational needs.  The proportion of pupils from minority ethnic backgrounds, including those who speak English as an additional language, is well below average.  The proportion of pupils eligible for the pupil premium, which provides funding for children in local authority care, children from service families and pupils known to be eligible for free school meals, is well below average.  The headteacher and senior leaders work closely with, and provide support to, other primary schools and secondary schools in the area in order to facilitate a coherent approach to pupils’ education and welfare.  The school meets the current floor standards in English and mathematics (these are the

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Information about this school

minimum standards for pupils’ attainment and progress required by the government).

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve the quality of teaching so that it is typically outstanding, especially by ensuring that:  when pupils are learning quickly, teachers adjust the activities so that all pupils are kept challenged  pupils take greater account of teachers’ advice on how to improve their work and that teachers constantly check that pupils do not continue to make the same mistakes.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 When children enter Reception their skills and knowledge are broadly at the levels expected for this age, although a significant minority has weaknesses in some areas. Children then make at least good progress in all areas of learning; so that, by Year 1, pupils’ attainment is slightly above average. Their personal and social development is excellent and attainment in this aspect is well above average.  The rate of pupils’ progress in Years 1 and 2 has improved rapidly since the previous inspection, although the residual effect of past inadequacies has limited pupils’ attainment to broadly average in the past three years of national tests. Pupils’ progress since September 2013 has been good and continues to accelerate. As a result, their attainment at the time of the inspection was above average in reading, writing and mathematics.  In Years 3 to 6, their consistently good progress has resulted in pupils’ attainment being

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The achievement of pupils is good

significantly above average in reading, writing and mathematics for a number of years, making up for their slower progress in Years 1 and 2. The proportion of pupils making or exceeding the expected progress in Key Stage 2 is better than that seen nationally.  The school’s strong commitment to equality of opportunity is evident in the fact that pupils at risk of falling behind achieve at least as well as their peers. Unless they have significant or complex needs, all disabled pupils and those with special educational needs, pupils who speak English as an additional language and those eligible for the pupil premium reach at least the levels expected for their age, and in mathematics increasingly exceed them.  The progress of older pupils continues to accelerate as the proportion of outstanding teaching increases. The most-able pupils achieve well and, by Year 6, consistently reach the higher Level

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The achievement of pupils is good

5 in national tests; those capable of doing so are reaching Level 6. At the same time, the proportion of Year 2 pupils reaching Level 3 is rising.  Younger pupils quickly learn to understand phonics (the sounds letters make in words) which helps them to build up new words easily, as is evident in the above-average results in the Year 1 phonics check. This, together with their ability to understand and discuss what they are reading, encourages their good progress. Older pupils read widely and often in a wide range of subjects.  A strong emphasis on presentation means that, throughout the school, pupils’ recorded work is always well written and punctuation is accurate. Some younger pupils still spell phonetically rather than accurately, but their wide vocabulary helps make their work interesting to read.  By Year 6, pupils write effectively for different purposes and in different styles using personification or metaphors to make their work interesting. Phrases such as ‘scuttle down the

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The achievement of pupils is good

stairs’ or ‘I felt nothing can stop me’ show a very good awareness of how to engage the reader.  In mathematics, younger pupils quickly understand place value which helps them to calculate confidently and accurately. They begin to apply this well when using measures or data and in solving problems. Older pupils build well on this to work effectively, for example with coordinates and time zones.  The attainment of the many pupils who attend physical education activities and sport is high, and evidence of the school’s outstanding commitment to pupils’ physical well-being and healthy lifestyles.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Previous weaknesses in teaching have been eradicated. Teaching is now uniformly at least good throughout the school and much is outstanding.  Teachers’ planning, the marking of pupils’ work and the level of challenge seen in all lessons are all good. In addition, staff are keen to try out new ideas to see if they help pupils to make even better progress and they willingly share successful ideas with colleagues, including those in other schools.  The challenging activities planned in all classes are generally well designed to support pupils working at different levels to make good progress. This helps to ensure that the most-able pupils and those at risk of falling behind learn well.  Good use of pupils’ individual improvement targets ensures that pupils know what they need to achieve in reading, writing and mathematics. However, in lessons, particularly when different ability groups are completing a similar task, it is not always clear to pupils what different levels

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The quality of teaching is good

of work are expected.  Adults explain and demonstrate new work clearly, questioning pupils effectively to make sure they understand. Resources are especially well used to support learning. For example, in an outstanding English lesson, the analysis and discussion of a film clip helped pupils produce some very high quality writing.  All staff are good at checking how well pupils are doing during lessons and are swift to provide extra support for those who are having difficulty. Special programmes to help pupils who have fallen behind catch up are especially effective. At these times, learning support assistants play a very effective role.  Where teaching is outstanding, adults are very good at setting more challenging tasks for pupils who are learning quickly so that they make the best possible progress. This was evident in a mathematics lesson where one pupil with special educational needs swiftly grasped the concept

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The quality of teaching is good

of subtracting tens and units. Seeing this, the teacher quickly moved him on to working with hundreds and he completed the lesson using thousands, attaining as well as the most able pupils in the class. This excellent practice however is not always the norm.  Helpful marking shows pupils how well they have done and how to improve. Although pupils are given time to respond to teachers’ feedback, few staff check that pupils do not make the same errors again.  Teachers have high levels of expertise in information and communication technology (ICT), music, and extra-curricular sport, ensuring that teaching in these subjects is outstanding.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are outstanding

 Pupils’ behaviour is outstanding and this, together with their excellent attitudes, makes a significant contribution to their learning and prepares pupils exceptionally well for the next stage of their education and beyond. Attendance levels are well above average.  Pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is embedded in every aspect of school life. Pupils’ ability to reflect on important issues related to the 21st century, such as the conservation of energy and the benefits of living in a multicultural society, is excellent. Pupils’ spiritual development is also underpinned by outstanding school assemblies and strong links with the local church.  Pupils have great pride in the school and work very hard. As the quality of teaching continues to improve so does pupils’ progress. Pupils want both to please their teachers and to achieve well for themselves. For example, Year 6 pupils spoke of their strong determination to reach the

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are outstanding

higher Levels 5 and 6 in national tests.  That behaviour management is not overt, either in lessons or around the school, is a testament to the respect that staff have for pupils and the excellent relationships pupils have with staff and each other. Pupils are uniformly polite, helpful and caring of one another. This helps to ensure the success of the school’s very strong determination to prevent discrimination in any form. Excellent support for this aspect ensures that the behaviour of the few pupils who find good behaviour difficult improves exceptionally well over time.  The school’s work to keep pupils safe and secure is outstanding. Bullying in any form is extremely rare and pupils have total confidence that bullying, or any concern regarding their safety that might arise, will be speedily and successfully dealt with. Pupils feel very safe and secure in school and have an extremely well-developed understanding of how to secure their

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are outstanding

own safety, for example when using social media or websites.

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The leadership and management are good

 The headteacher, ably supported senior leaders and governors showed a strong determination to tackle the weaknesses identified at the previous inspection. The very thorough analyses of these weaknesses and the robust plans put in place to tackle them have helped bring about rapid improvement. With inadequate teaching eradicated, leaders, governors and staff are working effectively to provide the best education possible for pupils.  The school recognises that not enough teaching is yet outstanding and that the outcomes of measures to counteract previous slow progress in the younger year groups have yet to show up in national tests.  The leadership of the school has been strengthened by the comprehensive training for subject leaders who are now effectively supporting school improvement. Their success is evident in pupils’ improved progress in Years 1 and 2 and in the increasing proportion of older pupils

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The leadership and management are good

attaining highly in national tests.  The wide range of evidence collected to help check the impact of the school’s work on pupils’ progress is analysed well by both staff and governors so that improvement planning is always effectively targeted at weaker aspects.  The school has capitalised very well on the enhanced local authority support provided over the past year. For example, local authority officers have helped to refine the procedures for monitoring teaching quality and identifying areas for staff development. These procedures are developing into a strength, ensuring that teaching is always at least good and increasingly outstanding. Help has also been given to help raise younger pupils’ attainment. Although now judged to be a light touch school, leaders and governors are keen to continue to benefit from the local authority’s monitoring and support in its drive to become an outstanding school.

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The leadership and management are good

 Staff are very keen to improve their practice. They willingly undertake training, reflect on their teaching and seek and share new ways of doing things. Formal performance management procedures fully meet requirements, with good information provided to help governors make decisions on salary increases related to good performance.  Effective curriculum planning provides a consistent approach to learning and helps pupils extend their literacy and numeracy skills well as they move through the school. The wide range of subjects, extra-curricular activities and programmes to support pupils’ personal development are excellent. There is excellent provision for art, music and ICT. As a result, pupils achieve especially well in these areas and their enjoyment of school is greatly enhanced.  Partnerships with other schools and organisations are excellent and enrich pupils’ learning especially well, for example in modern foreign languages.

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The leadership and management are good

 Safeguarding procedures, including those related to child protection and the vetting of staff, are very robust and fully meet requirements, contributing especially well to pupils feeling safe.  The large majority of parents have positive views about the school. Although some concerns were expressed about leadership and management in the Parent View survey, inspection evidence indicates at all levels this is good. Parents support their children’s learning very well, including in homework. A small minority raised concerns about the amount of information they receive, but inspection evidence shows that communications are very much better than in most schools. The many opportunities for Reception parents to work with their children at the start of the school day were highly praised.  The governance of the school:  Under the exceptionally strong leadership of the Chair of the Governing Body, governors play

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The leadership and management are good

a key role in holding staff to account for their work, and supporting improvement. Governors’ commitment to training is evident in the very good understanding of data that ensures governors can monitor pupils’ achievement and teaching quality well. Some governors have less time than others to carry out first-hand monitoring, but some innovative ways of involving all governors are being set up. Staff and governors’ management of finance is particularly strong because they are very focused on providing value for money. Pupil premium funding is suitably allocated and is used very effectively ensuring that almost all eligible pupils do as well as their peers. Acknowledging that high-quality, extra activities are already in place to promote pupils’ well-being through sport, governors have wisely allocated recent funding to increasing staff expertise in response to pupils’ requests to have ‘more very good sports teachers’.

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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 116276 Local authority Hampshire Inspection number 432142

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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 227 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Hilary Lyne Headteacher Trudie Cawthra Date of previous school inspection 4–5 December 2012 Telephone number 01590 623163 Fax number 01590 624395 Email address adminoffice@brockenhurst-primary.hants.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

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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