Preston Park Primary School

Preston Park Primary School College Road, Wembley, Middlesex HA9 8RJ

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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.  Attainment at the end of Key Stages 1 and 2 has risen since the school was last inspected. Year 6 pupils’ progress across Key Stage 2 has been rapid for a number of years.  Teachers and pupils have good working relationships and this feature, alongside pupils’ good behaviour, enables pupils to learn well.  Preston Park Primary is an inclusive and welcoming school: pupils from a wide range of backgrounds interact well together and feel safe.  Pupils enjoy school and their spiritual, cultural, social and moral development and skills in physical education and keeping fit and healthy are promoted well.  The headteacher is strongly committed to preparing pupils for life in the 21st century: pupils have excellent opportunities to use technology across subjects.  Leaders' good checks on the quality of teaching and strong links with other schools have enabled pupils’ good achievement and the good quality of teaching to be maintained.

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

 The expertise of leaders is recognised by the local authority as a strength, and several have helped to support other schools.  The governing body provides good support and asks searching questions to ensure that staff are held accountable for pupils’ achievement.  Most parents are entirely supportive of the school and recommend it to other parents.

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It is not yet an outstanding school because

 Not all teachers have the highest expectations for pupils in relation to the presentation and standard of work or their response to comments in marked work.  Sometimes teachers do not use up-to-date assessment information to set appropriately challenging work, and additional adults do not always guide pupils well in lessons.  Some pupils supported through the pupil premium in Year 3 and Year 4 have made slower progress in mathematics than others.  Leaders’ plans for improvement do not have clear timeframes or indicate the ways in which the school will measure success in relation to pupils’ achievement.  Leaders have not undertaken a formal analysis  Some pupils in Year 1 attend less regularly than they should. of patterns of behaviour.

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Information about this inspection

 The school had half a day’s notice of the inspection which took place over two days.  Inspectors observed teaching in a range of subjects and in all classes. Some of these observations were conducted with senior leaders.  Meetings were held with pupils, leaders and managers, members of the governing body and a representative of the local authority.  Pupils were observed in class and during informal times.  Inspectors held informal discussions with parents. They also took account of 62 responses to the Parent View online survey and 50 questionnaire responses from staff.  They looked at pupils’ work in lessons and also separately with leaders. Inspectors heard pupils reading and observed them in class and around the school.  A wide range of school documentation was considered. This included: information provided by the school relating to the attainment and progress of pupils and groups of pupils; the

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Information about this inspection

performance management of staff; evidence of checks on teaching; external evaluations of the school; the school’s website; the school’s action plans; minutes from governing body meetings; the school’s self-evaluation; and behaviour records and safeguarding information, including risk assessments for pupils and for educational visits.

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Inspection team

Najoud Ensaff, Lead inspector Additional Inspector Milan Stevanovic Additional Inspector Monica Raphael Additional Inspector Kate Robertson Additional Inspector

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Information about this school

 Preston Park Primary is much larger than the average sized primary school.  The number of pupils at the school has increased since its previous inspection in 2009 and is set to increase further when the school expands. Two Year 1 classes are accommodated on a separate site five minutes’ walk from the main school site. Many of these pupils have been taken in by the school because they cannot be accommodated elsewhere. Some have never had formal schooling or have additional behavioural needs.  Pupils come from a diverse range of cultural heritages. The largest group of pupils come from an Indian background. There is an above-average level of mobility with pupils joining and leaving the school other than at the usual times.  The proportion of pupils who speak English as an additional language is well above average with pupils speaking 45 different native languages.  The proportion of disabled pupils and those with special educational needs supported through

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Information about this school

school action is below average. The proportion of pupils supported through school action plus or with a statement of special educational needs is also below average.  The proportion of pupils supported through the pupil premium, which is additional funding for pupils known to be eligible for free school meals, those in the care of the local authority or those with a parent in the armed services, is above average. There are no pupils with a parent in the armed services in the school.  The school meets the government’s current floor standards, which set the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress in English and mathematics.  There have been a number of recent changes to staff and several staff, including one assistant headteacher, are currently on maternity leave.  The headteacher and a number of other senior and middle leaders have helped to support other local schools.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Raise the quality of teaching to outstanding to raise achievement even further by ensuring that:  teachers always have high expectations of pupils and require the presentation and standard of their work always to be as good as possible  pupils are expected to always respond to teachers' comments in marked work  teachers always use up-to-date assessment information to set work at an appropriately challenging level  additional adults in lessons consistently guide pupils well in their learning.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Sharpen leadership and management by ensuring that:  school development plans have clear timeframes and indicate ways to measure success, particularly in raising pupils’ achievement, so that the gap in attainment between pupils supported by additional funding and their peers in mathematics in Years 3 and 4 closes at a faster rate  leaders work even more closely with parents of pupils in Year 1 to raise the attendance of those pupils who do not attend as regularly as they should  leaders undertake a more formal analysis of behaviour to monitor trends and patterns in preparation for the school’s expansion.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Attainment at the end of Key Stages 1 and 2 in English and mathematics has improved since the previous inspection. Pupils, including those from an Indian background and those who join the school other than at the usual times, make good progress during their time in the school.  Children enter the Early Years Foundation Stage with skills which are usually below and sometimes well below those typically found for their age. They make good progress in the Nursery and Reception classes and enter Year 1 with attainment which is much closer to average in writing and mathematics, but with reading levels which are below average.  They make good progress across Key Stages 1 and 2, achieving well over time. Work in pupils’ books supports this view that by the time pupils reach upper Key Stage 2 classes, they have made good gains in their learning and progressed well.  Year 6 pupils made rapid progress across Key Stage 2 in 2012 and 2013, leaving with attainment

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The achievement of pupils is good

in mathematics and writing which was above average and attainment in reading which was broadly in line with the national average.  In 2012 and 2013, the proportion of Year 6 pupils who attained at the higher levels in English and mathematics was significantly above average, and current school data indicate that the most able pupils make good progress over time.  Although a few disabled pupils and those with special educational needs did not achieve as well as similar pupils nationally in 2013 and 2012, the recent appointment of a well-qualified special educational needs coordinator is beginning to have a positive impact. Current progress information indicates that this group of pupils now generally makes progress at least in line with expectations.  The many pupils who speak English as an additional language make at least good and sometimes outstanding progress, and they attain better than similar pupils nationally,

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The achievement of pupils is good

particularly by the time they reach the end of Key Stage 2.  The vast majority of pupils supported through pupil premium funding make similar progress to their peers, and in 2013, Year 6 eligible pupils left having made rapid progress across Key Stage 2. Although there are sometimes gaps in attainment of between one and two terms in English and mathematics between these pupils and their peers, most eligible pupils generally attain better than similar pupils nationally. In 2013 they attained better than their peers in the end of Key Stage 2 test in spelling and grammar but slightly less well in mathematics. Current progress information indicates that some eligible pupils in Year 3 and Year 4 are making slower progress than their peers in mathematics.  Pupils’ scores in the Year 1 linking sounds and letters (phonics) screening check in 2012 was above average but dipped in 2013 to just below the national average. The school has introduced

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The achievement of pupils is good

the teaching of phonics earlier in the Early Years Foundation Stage, and improved the quality of teaching in phonics to address this issue. Inspectors found the teaching of phonics to be good and pupils’ phonic skills to be secure. An above average proportion of pupils in Year 1 are on track to reach the expected standard in the phonics check this year.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Pupils report that they enjoy coming to school because ‘teachers are really nice and you learn a lot from them’. Most parents agree that teaching at the school is good.  Teachers create a positive climate for learning and engage pupils’ interest well. Displays celebrate pupils’ achievements and guide their learning effectively.  Classrooms are well organised and lessons are well planned. Teachers demonstrate good subject knowledge and use questioning effectively to check on and deepen pupils’ understanding.  Marking in books is regular and usually provides pupils with suggestions about how to move forward and improve their work. Pupils understand the level at which they are working and what they need to do to improve.  Pupils’ learning is enhanced with the use of information and communication technology across subjects. Each pupil in Key Stage 2 has a tablet computer which is used effectively, for example,

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The quality of teaching is good

for learning to research. The recent purchase of two robots is enabling pupils to learn basic programming skills.  The provision of homework effectively complements learning in lessons and the school’s learning platform enables pupils to access work via the school website.  Most work is set at the right level for pupils but occasionally the level of challenge in lessons does not enable all pupils to reach their full potential, especially when up-to date assessment information is not used well to set work at the right level of challenge.  Teachers do not always have the highest expectations for pupils. As a result, the presentation and standard of some pupils’ work varies too much. Not all teachers expect pupils to respond to comments in marked work. Consequently, although pupils make good gains in their learning, they do not achieve outstandingly well.  Most additional adults support pupils well in lessons, for example, by showing them how to

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The quality of teaching is good

sound out words, asking them questions or by providing suggestions about resources to use. Occasionally, pupils are not guided well in their learning when additional adults do not ask probing enough questions or they wait too long before providing support for pupils who need extra help.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 The behaviour of pupils is good.  Pupils have positive attitudes to learning and because of this factor and good working relationships with teachers, they make good progress. The vast majority of pupils are absorbed in their learning and work hard in lessons. They get on well together, respecting each other’s points of view.  Pupils reported that behaviour is typically good in lessons, although occasionally a few pupils become distracted and disengage with the work they are doing. They said behaviour around the school was also good; responses from parents and staff confirm that this good behaviour is usual.  The school’s work to keep pupils safe and secure is good.  Pupils say that they feel safe at school because the teachers are ‘kind’ and they enjoy the familiarity that the school offers. They reported that ‘worry boxes’ and ‘peer mentors’ also help them to feel safe. Pupils are well supervised at lunchtimes and staff training ensures they know

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

how to keep pupils safe.  Pupils have a clear understanding of what constitutes bullying and understand about different forms of bullying such as verbal, physical and cyber bullying. They report that bullying is rare and effectively handled by the school. School records of bullying confirm that incidents are few.  Pupils have a good understanding of right and wrong. They are polite and friendly and respond well to others. Behaviour is not outstanding because in a few lessons where teaching is less strong, pupils are not as engrossed in learning and do not always behave as well as possible. Pupils enjoy the opportunities to take on responsibilities such as caring for the school goats and hens and in growing vegetables.  There have been no permanent exclusions of pupils in the past few years.  Pupils’ attendance has improved and is now broadly in line with the national average. Despite the school’s efforts, not all parents ensure that their children attend regularly. Leaders recognise

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

the need to work even more closely with parents in Year 1, particularly, to improve the attendance of some pupils known to be eligible for free school meals and others who speak English as an additional language.  The school keeps appropriate records of any incidents and takes actions where necessary, but leaders acknowledge the need to undertake a more formal analysis of behaviour and to monitor any trends and patterns, especially as the school is expanding even more.

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The leadership and management are good

 All staff believe that the school is well led and managed and individual staff report that the headteacher has been a valuable contributor in their development as teachers and middle leaders.  Senior and middle leaders have been successful in raising attainment at the end of Key Stages 1 and 2 and at improving the proportion of the most able pupils achieving at the higher levels. They have raised attendance so that it is now broadly average and have sustained the good quality of teaching and achievement seen in the previous inspection.  The rising numbers of pupils, an increasing proportion of whom enter the school with very little English or who have had no formal schooling, as well as recent changes in staff have been very well managed by leaders.  Because of their expertise, different leaders have been used by the local authority to support schools in the local area. The local authority has offered very light touch support to the school,

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The leadership and management are good

but the headteacher has arranged additional visits from the local authority to provide a ‘critical eye’ and to develop the role of additional adults.  Leaders are well supported by the vast majority of staff who share their vision for a school which encompasses ‘one world under one roof’. The school is highly inclusive and welcomes pupils of all abilities and backgrounds. Leaders do not tolerate discrimination of any kind and they promote equality of opportunity well.  Most parents are entirely supportive of school leaders, recognising the good work that they do in enabling their children to achieve well. Most would recommend it to other parents.  Leaders’ judgements of the school's performance identify accurately key strengths and areas for development. However, plans for improvement do not indicate clear timeframes or provide ways in which the success of actions taken will be measured, particularly in relation to pupils’

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The leadership and management are good

achievement across different years.  While leaders track very carefully pupils’ attainment and progress across the school, they have not yet ensured that pupils who are supported through the pupil premium in Year 3 and Year 4 make similar progress to their peers in mathematics.  Leaders oversee the professional development of staff and their progression along pay scales effectively, in order to improve teaching.  Creative opportunities within well-organised subjects mean that pupils’ spiritual, social, moral, cultural and physical development is well promoted. Pupils enjoy good opportunities to develop responsibility when they take care of the school goats and hens and tend to vegetables. They act as peer mentors and participate in a wide range of educational visits and extra-curricular clubs.  The school has used the additional sports funding to promote pupils’ greater participation in sport and to ensure their health and fitness are getting better.

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The leadership and management are good

 The governance of the school:  The governing body is increasingly active. It is provided with useful information by senior leaders which means that governors have a clear understanding of the key strengths and areas for development in the school, including information on pupils’ achievement and the quality of teaching. Governors ask searching questions, for example about the achievement of pupils in mathematics and about the way in which both the sports and pupil premium funding is spent. They ensure that this is spent appropriately. The governing body ensures that there is a clear link between teachers’ performance and salary progression. Safeguarding meets 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 101510 Local authority Brent Inspection number 431272

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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 815 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Linda Green Headteacher John Redpath Date of previous school inspection 26−27 February 2014 Telephone number 020 8904 3602 Fax number 020 8904 8745 Email address admin@prestpk.brent.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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