Cherry Lane Primary School

Cherry Lane Primary School Sipson Road, West Drayton, Middlesex, UB7 9DL

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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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This is a good school

 From their well below average starting points, almost all pupils make good progress.  By the end of Year 6, standards are broadly average overall. They are above average in mathematics and reading, but below average in writing.  Disabled pupils and those with special educational needs and those eligible for additional funding make good progress because they receive effective support.  Teaching is consistently good across the school.  Pupils enjoy learning and try hard in their work. Their attendance and their behaviour are good. Pupils form trusting relationships with the adults in the school, and so they feel safe and happy in school.  Senior leaders, including the governing body, make sure that improvements are strongly focused on raising standards and ensuring pupils’ good progress.  The systems in place to assess pupils’ progress are meticulous. This enables the school to identify quickly any pupils who are

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This is a good school

underachieving, and to give them extra help with their learning.  Parents and carers are very positive about the school, and all those who responded said they would recommend the school.

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It is not yet an outstanding school because

 While much of the teaching is good, not enough is outstanding to drive pupils’ progress more rapidly. The most able pupils do not always have hard enough work to make sure that they make as much progress as they possibly could.  Standards in writing are not as high as those in reading and mathematics because pupils, who can discuss ideas with mature language in lessons, do not always apply that mature language in their written work.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors observed 27 part lessons, three of which were observed jointly with the headteacher and members of the senior management team. In addition, inspectors observed lessons for small groups, or for individual pupils, who were receiving additional support. Inspectors analysed pupils’ work. They held formal discussions with pupils and spoke to others informally in lessons, at breaks and lunchtimes.  Meetings were held with senior and middle leaders and with the Chair of the Governing Body.  Inspectors analysed a range of school documentation. This included safeguarding records and those related to pupils’ behaviour and attendance; minutes of meetings of the governing body; records of monitoring of teaching and pupils’ learning; and the school’s self-evaluation summary and improvement plans.  Inspectors looked specifically at the records that showed how successfully the school spends the additional funds it receives on pupils’ learning and progress. Inspectors also measured the

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Information about this inspection

success of the use of monies, specifically to increase pupils’ participation in sports at school.  Inspectors also examined teachers’ planning and records of pupils’ progress.  Inspectors took account of the 17 responses to the online questionnaire (Parent View) and the 30 written responses by staff to the questionnaire sent to them.

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Inspection team

Ron Cohen, Lead inspector Additional Inspector Sue Payne Additional Inspector David Gutmann Additional Inspector

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Information about this school

 The school is much larger than the average primary school.  There is a well above average proportion of pupils known to be eligible for free school meals or who are looked after by the local authority, or who are children of service families, for all of whom the school receives additional funding (pupil premium).  The proportion of pupils from minority ethnic groups, and whose first language is not English, is well above average.  The proportion of pupils who are supported by school action is well above average.  The proportion of disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs, and those who require additional support, is above average. Nearly 50% of the current Year 6 and Year 5 are in these categories.  The school runs a breakfast club every day.  The school meets the current government’s floor standards, which set the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress in English and mathematics.

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Information about this school

 There is a children’s centre on site which is subject to a separate report.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Raise achievement of higher ability pupils in all subjects by: - ensuring teachers plan a range of tasks and problems for the higher ability pupils which challenge them with wider reading and deeper thinking - providing pupils with additional work, at a higher level, to do if they successfully complete their original tasks early.  Raise achievement in writing by ensuring that: - teachers use a range of different ways to teach writing, so that pupils find the approach to the subject which suits them best - pupils use writing as often as possible in other subjects - pupils engage in strategies which encourage them to plan, draft and revise their written work - teachers make sure in lessons that pupils understand the purpose of the writing - pupils’ reading is linked more purposefully to their writing tasks - pupils’ untidy handwriting and poor presentation are rigorously countered by teachers.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Achievement is good because almost all pupils make good progress from their starting points to when they leave school at the end of Year 6.  When children join the school in the Early Years Foundation Stage, their skills, knowledge and understanding are well below those typically expected at their age. Many children join the school with limited acquisition of English language, and a small, but not insignificant, number still portray social and physical features, usually associated with younger children, for example, still needing nappies.  Children make good progress because of the good teaching and careful nurturing they receive. Consequently, they enter Year 1 with standards a little below the levels of development expected. Given their starting points, this represents good progress.  That good progress continues through Years 1 to 6, by the end of which, pupils attain standards in line with those attained nationally. However, the rate of progress has not always been the

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The achievement of pupils is good

same throughout the school. In 2012, the rate of progress at Key Stage 1 lagged behind that of Key Stage 2. This was offset by the stronger rate of progress in Key Stage 2. In this current year, progress in Key Stage 1 is better than before, and the good foundations are being laid down, on which Key Stage 2 learning and progress can be further developed.  In reading, standards have risen from below average to average in 2013, but inspectors observed reading that was above average in both Year 2 and Year 6. Reading is taught well throughout the school. Phonics (letters and the sounds that they make) is taught very effectively in Reception and Years 1 and 2. Reading skills are developed well as pupils move up the school.  Standards in mathematics are also rising. They were average at the end of Year 6, in 2013, and current standards, observed by inspectors in lessons and pupils’ notebooks, would indicate that

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The achievement of pupils is good

that they are above national averages. A small cohort of pupils are demonstrating the capacity to attain the highest possible levels in the upcoming tests. Good progress comes from the linking of mathematics to their practical use in everyday life. This helps the pupils develop problem- solving skills.  Standards in writing are lower than those in mathematics and reading. Pupils’ reading skills and their good oracy skills are not sufficiently carried over into their writing skills. Although, there is some improvement, observations in lessons and a scrutiny of their notebooks show that writing continues, too often, to be bland, rather than exciting. Often, there is little evidence that pupils really understand the audience for whom they are writing and why they are writing. Pupils seem not always to be sufficiently aware of the differences between, for example, writing to inform or to persuade.  Pupils’ handwriting is sometimes untidy and poorly presented.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 The achievement of disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs is good because of the high quality of support that they receive from the teachers and teaching assistants. School’s data show that this group makes good progress overall compared to their schoolmates, and their progress in mathematics was significantly better than similar pupils nationally.  Those pupils eligible for additional funding to support their learning, including those eligible for free school meals, and those whose first language is not English, make good progress and attain similar standards to their classmates. Although a very small number remain up to a term behind their classmates in mathematics and English, they have mostly made up a year’s gap. Their gain in progress (measured in average points scores) is comparable to their classmates. Overall, the school’s efforts to promote equality of opportunity and tackle discrimination are effective.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 The school effectively uses its additional funding to promote sports and healthy living. Large numbers of pupils take up the opportunities for engagement in sport. They are encouraged by the mixture of staff and the professional outside coaches who come into school. Pupils are enthusiastic about this aspect of their curriculum.  Higher ability pupils do well when compared to their classmates, and some attain the higher levels in both Key Stages 1 and 2. However, a small proportion fail to achieve as well as they should.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Most pupils’ learning accelerates at a rapid pace in lessons that sustain their enthusiasm because they are interesting and have a clear sense of purpose. Teachers use information about pupils’ ability and progress effectively in their planning, and pupils mostly have clear targets for improving their learning. They receive regular homework. They know the expectations their teachers have of them, and for the most part, these expectations are well pitched to extend pupils’ learning and progress.  However, this is less so for the higher ability pupils. For them, the challenges in the lesson are sometimes not sufficiently demanding. They quickly finish the tasks set, but are not always directed to extended tasks, which are set out to test their deeper analytical or evaluative skills. This sometimes leads to a slowing in their learning. Sometimes teachers take one aspect to a level corresponding to the higher ability levels and skills of these pupils, but the follow-up task

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The quality of teaching is good

does not always embed and deepen those skills. For example, in a Year 6 class in literacy, the pupils, who were studying ‘The Wedding Ghost’, were discussing the symbolism of various aspects of one part of the story. The pupils’ deeper understanding of the text and their own analytical skills were shown well. However, the follow-up written exercise did not demand that same high level of operation by the pupils.  Teachers and teaching assistants work closely together and effectively to help pupils who need extra support either in lessons, individually, or in small groups. These include disabled pupils and those with special educational needs, those who are eligible for additional support for their learning, and those who speak English as an additional language. Such extra well-targeted support ensures they make the same good progress as the other pupils in the school.  Teachers successfully promote pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. In

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The quality of teaching is good

lessons, teachers successfully promote qualities such as cooperation, sharing and respect for others. This was underlined by one pupil, who commented, ‘Everyone works together and we all get along.’  Essential reading skills are effectively taught throughout the school through a well-structured programme. Pupils enjoy reading. Guided reading sessions are agreed by many pupils to be ‘a great way to study a book together, which we might otherwise not have read’.  Teachers have introduced some initiatives to improve the quality of pupils’ writing. There has been limited success here. In some cases, pupils’ writing has improved markedly, but for many, this remains their weakest subject. Where there has been such limited success, teachers have not always clarified the difference in writing styles and techniques which are governed by the purpose of the writing. Marking of work in writing is as comprehensive as in other subjects, but

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The quality of teaching is good

teachers are not always as vigilant as they might be in demanding high quality presentation from pupils.  Although writing plays a major role across most of the curriculum, there are insufficient comments about writing when it is part of another area, such as topic work or in science. There are some missed opportunities, therefore, to underpin writing as a way to successful learning across the curriculum.  A deep scrutiny of pupils’ work books indicate the hard work that the teachers have put in to enable pupils to make the good progress they have. When marking, most teachers make comments that give clear and precise advice as to what needs to be done to improve the work.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 The behaviour of pupils is good, both in lessons and around school. Pupils get on well with each other and have good skills in working collaboratively. Pupils respect one another. They work and play well together and are very polite to adults. The school gives opportunities for pupils to serve the school community. One of the many ways older pupils help younger ones is peer reading, in which Year 6 pupils help younger children with their reading. This provides purposeful and enjoyable experiences for the older pupils which prepares them well for the next stage of their personal and social education.  The vast majority of parents and carers who responded, believe that behaviour is good and their children are safe in school.  Pupils’ attendance has increased because of the good measures to maintain pupils’ coming to school. Much, but not all, of the improved attendance is a result of the additional measures that

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

have come from the additional funding which is used to enhance pupils’ enjoyment of school. One pupil, a late entrant to the school, but otherwise typical of a group of pupils whose attendance has been targeted by the school, confessed, ‘I expected school to be boring, but it isn’t. It is great and I love coming.’  Pupils are happy at school and enjoy their lessons when they are excited by their learning. Occasionally, there is some restlessness when they are not sure about their learning.  Pupils say that behaviour is generally good in lessons. Any misbehaviour tends to be minor and is swiftly and effectively dealt with by the teachers. A very small number of pupils have difficulties in managing their behaviour. The establishment of a quiet area, manned by staff, allows them to calm down, and they are often swiftly returned to class with good outcomes for their learning and progress.  Inspectors analysed the school’s records of behaviour, which showed that it is consistently good.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

This is based on clear expectations of how pupils should behave. These are underpinned by clear class rules, and the use of praise to celebrate good behaviour. As a result, the number of exclusions has dropped to minimal levels.  Pupils know what bullying is, and they say there is very little of it. They believe that the adults in the school definitely deal swiftly and effectively with bullying. Pupils have had training in how to deal with cyber bullying. They trust the adults in the school, and have no qualms about going to them if they have any problems.  The school’s work to keep pupils safe and secure is good. Pupils have a clear understanding of how to keep safe, for example with regards to the use of electrical equipment or sharp tools. They are aware of the dangers of the internet. They have learned about ‘Stranger danger’ and are knowledgeable about drugs abuse and the dangers of alcohol.

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The leadership and management are good

 The quality of leadership and management at all levels, including governance, is good throughout the school, and is largely evidenced by the improved achievement and progress that pupils are making.  The headteacher’s effective management, ably supported by his senior and middle managers, has established high staff morale and a widely shared commitment to continuous improvement.  The high level of care which the school provides is a key reason why the school is popular. The progress of pupils most at risk of falling behind is reviewed at regular and frequent intervals, and effective personalised support ensures that these pupils make good progress. Leaders make certain that pupils have the help they need to achieve well, and involve outside agencies promptly when the need arises.  The school involves parents and carers well by encouraging them to support their children’s learning both at home and in school.

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The leadership and management are good

 Senior leaders know the school well. Their self-evaluation is a clear analysis of the school’s strengths and areas for development. This analysis is underpinned by robust systems to track pupils’ progress.  The school monitors teachers’ performance effectively and identifies where improvements must be made. However, leaders have not always checked that planning of work and lessons includes planning of activities which challenge the higher ability pupils.  Robust procedures that are linked to salary progression are implemented to improve teachers’ performance. Partnerships with other schools are proving beneficial in ensuring the reliability of the school’s own assessment of pupils’ standards and progress.  The curriculum links subjects through topics that engage pupils’ interest well. However, pupils do not always have sufficient opportunities to write at length in these subjects. Consequently, pupils

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The leadership and management are good

miss the possibilities to enhance their writing skills.  Many enrichment activities extend pupils’ learning beyond school and promote their spiritual, moral, social and cultural development well.

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The leadership and management are good

 The governance of the school: - Governors have a good understanding of the school’s current performance, and how staff are taking actions to raise progress. They know that pupils, particularly the higher ability pupils, are capable of achieving more, and that standards in writing need to improve. - Governors ensure that the school meets all statutory safeguarding requirements and they effectively support the pupils who are most in need. - Governors check that policies are up to date and that finances are managed efficiently. For example, they understand and review the impact of the spending of pupil premium funding and sports funding, in order to ensure that the money is effectively used to increase pupils’ progress and physical well-being. - Governors use their skills well to challenge senior leaders, since, although they support the headteacher and his staff, they are also ambitious for the school and the pupils’ progress.

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The leadership and management are good

- Governors are well informed about the management of teachers’ performance, including that of the headteacher, and they review teachers’ pay accordingly. They make it clear to staff that pay awards will only be granted where it is evident that pupils have made good progress. - Governors understand well that not enough of the teaching is outstanding to secure outstanding 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 131638 Local authority Hillingdon Inspection number 441077

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School details

This inspection was carried out under section 8 of the Education Act 2005. The inspection was also deemed a section 5 inspection under the same Act.

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School details

Type of school Primary School category Maintained Age range of pupils 3–11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 525 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Philip Haigh Headteacher Stephen Whitehouse Date of previous school inspection 14–15 November 2011 Telephone number 01895 444480 Email address cherrylane@hillingdongrid.org 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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