Burleigh Primary School

Burleigh Primary School Blindmans Lane, Cheshunt, Waltham Cross, EN8 9DP

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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.  Since the previous inspection, leaders, governors and staff have worked successfully to improve the quality of teaching and pupils’ achievement.  Pupils of all abilities and from all backgrounds make good overall progress in English and mathematics as they move through the school, thanks to consistently good teaching.  Pupils know how well they are doing and how to improve their learning. Pupils’ progress is checked carefully, and any at risk of falling behind are given effective help to catch up.  Pupils behave well in lessons and around the school. They are friendly, polite and keen to talk about themselves, their learning, and their school. They are a credit to the school and to their families.  The headteacher and staff have created a caring, positive and welcoming place for pupils to learn and develop in. Pupils feel safe in school and have great confidence in how the adults will look after them.

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

 Attendance has improved and is now above average.  Governance is good. Governors know how well the school is doing, challenge leaders about its performance, and hold them to account for improving the quality of teaching and pupils’ achievement.

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It is not yet an outstanding school because

 There is not enough outstanding teaching.  Teachers do not always expect enough from pupils, so they do not develop the skills and confidence to learn on their own without relying on teachers to tell them what to do.  Achievement in writing is not as good as in reading or mathematics, particularly for the most-able pupils.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors observed teaching and learning in all classes. They visited 25 lessons, including four joint observations with the headteacher and the deputy headteacher, and attended two assemblies.  Inspectors looked at work in pupils’ books and on classroom displays. They listened to children reading.  Inspectors met with groups of pupils and talked to pupils during lessons, in the playground and as they moved around the school.  Meetings were held with the headteacher and the deputy headteacher, subject leaders and governors. Inspectors also gathered views from a representative of the local authority.  Inspectors took account of the 43 responses to the online questionnaire (Parent View) and spoke informally with parents and carers at the start of the day.  Questionnaires completed by 48 members of staff were taken into consideration.  A wide range of school documents were reviewed. These included development plans, policies,

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Information about this inspection

the school’s own judgement of its strengths and weaknesses, various monitoring, safeguarding and planning records, information for families, and governing body documents.

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Inspection team

Ruth Dollner, Lead inspector Additional Inspector John Viner Additional Inspector David Belsey Additional Inspector

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Information about this school

 Burleigh is a larger than average-sized primary school.  Most pupils are White British. The proportion of pupils from minority ethnic groups is slightly below the national average, and the proportion of pupils who speak English as an additional language is below average.  The proportion of pupils eligible for the pupil premium is above average and has increased since the time of the last inspection. This is additional government funding for pupils who are known to be eligible for free school meals, in the care of the local authority or who have a parent in the armed services.  The proportion of disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs supported at school action plus and with a statement is below average. The proportion supported at school action is slightly above the national average.  The school runs a breakfast club.  The school meets the government’s current floor standards, which set the minimum expectations

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Information about this school

for pupils’ attainment and progress in reading, writing and mathematics.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Make more teaching and learning outstanding, by: – sharing the outstanding practice that exists in the school – demonstrating high expectations by making sure that pupils are able to work on their own and can plan how to tackle their own work.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve progress and attainment in writing by ensuring that pupils: – apply their knowledge of phonics effectively and accurately in writing in Key Stage 1 – sharpen their grammar and punctuation skills in longer pieces of writing in Key Stage 2.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Pupils start in the Reception class with skills and abilities which are generally below those typical for their age. Because of good teaching, the proportion of children who leave the Reception classes with a good level of development is in line with national averages.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 This progress is built on in Year 1. For example, the good knowledge children have of phonics (the sounds letters make) when they leave Reception is developed further to ensure pupils meet the expected level in the phonics test at the end of Year 1. The percentage of pupils achieving the expected level increased by 37% in 2013, bringing it in line with the national average.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Good teaching throughout Key Stages 1 and 2 has meant that pupils continue to make good progress. Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2 in 2013 was broadly average, but it was slightly below average in writing. Work in pupils’ books shows that all pupils are now making good progress and attainment in writing is rising. The number of pupils attaining the higher levels in mathematics and reading has risen sharply over the last two years and is above the national average, but more-able writers are not always stretched enough to help them achieve the higher levels.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 The school has focused effectively on identifying and supporting pupils who are at risk of falling behind in their learning. Less-able pupils in Year 6 who receive additional teaching and support have made progress that is in line or better than the progress made by their classmates.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 All groups of pupils make at least the progress they should, and accurate school data show that the number of pupils exceeding expected progress is rising in mathematics, reading and writing.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs make good progress. They benefit from support and guidance from teachers and teaching assistants in lessons and in groups outside the classroom that help them build their skills and make good gains in their learning.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Leaders are successfully closing the attainment gap for pupils supported by the pupil premium across the school. This group of pupils make progress in line with their classmates. In 2013, eligible pupils left Year 6 with standards which were over two terms behind their classmates in reading, writing and mathematics. Current data show that the gap is closing. In the Year 6 classes, it has already narrowed by one term, and, in Year 5, the gap has closed. This is because of the careful and effective use of the funding to provide specialist teaching and effective ‘catch- up’ lessons.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teaching is typically good and has improved considerably since the last inspection, particularly in reading and mathematics. Some teaching is outstanding. In a Year 6 mathematics lesson, the teacher constantly encouraged pupils by saying, ‘Go on, you can do this part without me. Have a go!’ This led to pupils really challenging themselves, supporting each other and making visible, outstanding progress within the lesson.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Typical of the most successful teaching in the school was a Year 4 mathematics lesson where pupils were tackling number problems which had been planned around their trip to Colchester Zoo on the previous day. Children were enthusiastic about their learning. They talked to each other about learning, challenged each other’s thinking and had a lot of fun using the carefully selected resources provided for them. When asked if they were enjoying their lesson, one pupil said, ‘Oh yes! I love maths. It’s my favourite. We have lots of fun and I really like the column method for taking away!’ Work in books for all those in the class showed at least good and sometimes outstanding progress since September.

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The quality of teaching is good

 The school is rightly focusing on improving the teaching of writing. In Key Stage 1, phonics is given high priority and taught regularly, but pupils do not always apply their skills effectively in their writing. There are some inconsistencies in the way staff across the school say the sounds that the letters make, and this sometimes confuses pupils when they are trying to match a sound with a letter in order to spell correctly. The resources and books provided for pupils who are at the early stages of learning how to form or join letters do not always help them to be fully successful.

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The quality of teaching is good

 In Key Stage 2, better teaching of the skills involved in writing, such as grammar and punctuation, is supporting better progress. However, pupils are not always practising these new skills in their writing, or using them in writing longer pieces of work.

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The quality of teaching is good

 One of the main reasons why more teaching is not outstanding is that teachers do not have high enough expectations of what pupils can do. For example, they are not always encouraged to learn by thinking for themselves and exploring their own ways of doing things without constant direction. Sometimes more-able pupils are given ‘frames’ or sentence starters. One very able writer spoke of how he needed to ‘fill the boxes’ on a planning sheet. His work showed that he and other more-able writers were capable of writing at length without this sort of support.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teachers use marking and assessment well to make sure that all ability groups make good progress. Pupils know what they need to do to improve their work and respond well to teachers’ feedback. One pupil told inspectors that when he was struggling with learning his times tables, his teacher ‘put them into a song for me and that really helped’.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 The behaviour of pupils is good in lessons, in the playground and around the school. Pupils are polite, chatty and friendly, and they have very good manners.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Attitudes to learning are almost always good. Pupils are keen to contribute in lessons. They work hard and try to do their best. Pupils were keen to tell inspectors how much they ‘love’ coming to school. They get on well with adults and with each other.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 In the breakfast club, pupils of all ages play, chat and eat together happily in a kind, caring environment created by the teaching assistants who run the club. This helps them to start the day ready for learning.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Teachers manage pupils well and show that they have high expectations for behaviour. The school uses effective systems to reward pupils who work hard and behave well. For example, pupils say they feel proud when they are given the ‘mathematician of the week’ and other awards.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils know and use the school motto and refer to it in lessons. One said, ‘I know I’ll need “gumption” to do this!’ when faced with a challenging problem to solve.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 The school’s work to keep pupils safe and secure is good. Pupils feel safe and know exactly who to go to if they need help or advice. They understand about the different forms of bullying and say that if anything ever concerns them, ‘The teachers always sort it out.’ Responses from parents and school records show that incidences of bullying are rare.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Leaders and governors have worked effectively to improve attendance over recent years. It is now above average.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 The majority of responses to the online survey Parent View were positive. Parents who spoke with inspectors said that they were very happy with the school and felt that leaders and staff were always approachable.

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The leadership and management are good

 The headteacher, ably supported by the deputy headteacher and other senior leaders, has created a highly effective team. Their successful drive to improve teaching and learning since the last inspection is now showing a clear impact on raising pupils’ achievement.

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The leadership and management are good

 Key to this has been the actions taken to improve the teaching of mathematics and to ensure that marking moves pupils on in their learning. As a result of effective training and support provided by leaders, teaching in mathematics is now good and sometimes outstanding. Marking is consistently effective across the school and is leading to good pupil progress in all areas.

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The leadership and management are good

 Steps taken to improve achievement for disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs, and those eligible for the pupil premium, have led to good progress for these pupils. Gaps in attainment are closing.

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The leadership and management are good

 Leaders have a clear and accurate view of what needs to be done to improve the school further. They have high expectations, promote good-quality teaching and continually reflect on what they can do to improve achievement for all pupils.

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The leadership and management are good

 Teachers’ performance is well managed and the governing body has ensured that it is linked appropriately to decisions about pay rises and promotion. Improving staff skills is given a high priority, and teachers are keen to improve their teaching skills.

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The leadership and management are good

 Pupils’ progress is carefully checked so that actions can be taken quickly to help them catch up with others in the class if they start to fall behind.

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The leadership and management are good

 The good curriculum provides many opportunities to develop pupils’ social, moral, spiritual and cultural skills and understanding. In an outstanding assembly, the deputy headteacher played the cello for pupils. Pupils were delighted. One pupil remarked, ‘He’s awesome isn’t he?’ School trips and journeys enrich the curriculum and help pupils to develop their English and mathematical skills in real-life settings.

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The leadership and management are good

 The primary school sports funding has been used effectively to provide additional sporting experiences for pupils across the school, as well as additional resources and specialist coaches. Pupils were keen to show inspectors how ‘fit’ they are because of the sports they experience. They enjoy using the new equipment such as the skipping ropes during playtimes.

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The leadership and management are good

 The local authority has provided good support to the school in planning for improvements in achievement since the last inspection, and considers that the school has improved significantly.

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The leadership and management are good

 The governance of the school:  Several highly skilled governors have joined the governing body since the last inspection. Together with the Chair and the existing governors, they have provided robust challenge to the school.  The governors have an up-to-date and accurate view of the school’s strengths and areas for development. They know all about pupils’ achievement and the quality of teaching. They are aware of the use of performance management to reward good teaching.  Governors manage finances well and are rigorous in checking on the impact of spending, including the pupil premium and sports funding.  Governors reflect on the skills they have and find appropriate training to make them even more effective in their roles. The governors ensure that safeguarding procedures meet current national requirements.

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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 117367 Local authority Hertfordshire Inspection number 430758

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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 4–11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 380 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Bernard White Headteacher Garry Virtue Date of previous school inspection 15 March 2012 Telephone number 01992 624045 Fax number 01992 624045 Email address admin@burleigh.herts.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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