Trewirgie Infants' School

School report Trewirgie Infants’ and Nursery School Trewirgie Road, Redruth, TR15 2SZ

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Overall effectiveness

Previous inspection: Not previously inspected This inspection: Good 2 Achievement of pupils Good 2 Quality of teaching Good 2 Behaviour and safety of pupils Good 2 Leadership and management Good 2

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

This is a good school.  Pupils’ attainment in English and mathematics is above average. Children in the Nursery and Reception and pupils higher up the school achieve well.  All groups of pupils, including disabled pupils and those with special educational needs, and those supported by the pupil premium, make good progress.  Good teaching, along with pupils’ desire to learn, is responsible for pupils’ good achievement. Teachers ensure that pupils acquire the knowledge and skills which prepare them well for their next school.  Pupils behave well. They enjoy school and feel very safe. Attendance has improved.  The school’s leaders check the quality of teaching and what else is happening in the school very thoroughly. They plan well for further improvement.  Other staff and governors share the leadership team’s determination to aim high. This is an improving school with plenty of capacity to improve further.  The school provides outstanding care and

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

support, especially for children and pupils at risk of not doing as well as others.  Pupils and parents and carers are very positive about the school and would strongly recommend it.

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It is not yet an outstanding school because:

 Teaching is not yet outstanding and does not result in outstanding achievement. Teaching varies in quality and teachers do not always provide the type of work which would help the more-able pupils to fulfil their full potential.

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Information about this inspection

 The inspectors observed 18 lessons, taught by 10 teachers and two higher-level learning assistants. Three of the observations were carried out jointly with the headteacher. Inspectors also visited some classes for shorter periods and observed some small-group sessions outside lessons, led by support staff. Inspectors heard pupils read and looked at pupils’ books.  Meetings were held with the headteacher, other staff and four governors. An inspector had a telephone conversation with the school’s improvement partner.  The inspection team took account of 44 responses to the online questionnaire (Parent View) and 41 questionnaires returned by staff. Inspectors also took account of the school’s own surveys of parents’ and carers’ views.  The inspection team observed the school’s work and scrutinised a variety of documents, including the school’s evaluation of its own performance, the school improvement plan, minutes

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Information about this inspection

of the governing body, information on pupils’ current progress and records relating to safeguarding.

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Inspection team

John Laver, Lead inspector Additional Inspector Jennifer Cutler Additional Inspector Christine Taylor Additional Inspector

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Information about this school

 Trewirgie Infants’ and Nursery School converted to become an academy on 1 July 2011. When its predecessor school, also called Trewirgie Infants’ and Nursery School, was last inspected by Ofsted, it was judged to be good.  The school is larger than the average-sized infant school.  The vast majority of pupils are of White British heritage.  The proportion of pupils eligible for the pupil premium, which is additional funding provided by the government for children in local authority care, pupils known to be eligible for free school meals and children with a parent or carer in the armed services, is below the national average.  The proportion of disabled pupils and those with special educational needs supported by school action and the proportion supported by school action plus or with a statement of special educational needs are both above average.  There are two Nursery classes, one operating in the morning and the other in the afternoon,

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Information about this school

three Reception classes, three Year 1 classes and three Year 2 classes.  The school holds the United Nations Children’s Fund Rights Respecting Schools Award.  The school runs a breakfast club.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve teaching, so that more of the good teaching becomes outstanding, by making sure that teachers always plan work with enough challenge for the more-able pupils, so that these pupils can achieve their full potential.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Children typically join the Nursery with levels of skills and knowledge below those expected for their age, although in the current year several children joined at higher levels than this. The good teaching in the Nursery and Reception classes ensures that many children leave Reception with attainment above national expectations.  This good progress continues through the rest of the school. For several years, pupils have left Year 2 with attainment above, and often significantly above, the national average. Exceptionally in 2013, pupils’ attainment fell to well below average. However, more than half the pupils being assessed in 2013 had special educational needs and had begun school with a very low level of attainment. Most of these pupils had made good progress from their starting points by the time they left school.  Pupils achieve well. This was clear from the lessons inspectors saw. It is also evident in pupils’

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The achievement of pupils is good

work and from the school’s tracking, which shows how pupils do as they move up through the school. Most pupils, whatever their background or abilities, make good progress. Many are making progress at a faster rate than is usual nationally, although their progress is slower in mathematics than in English.  Boys and girls and different groups of pupils all do equally well. The school has successfully tackled past variations in achievement, mainly by providing a lot of extra support for pupils in danger of underachieving and by looking at different ways in which staff can get the best out of all pupils.  Disabled pupils and those with special educational needs now make better progress than before, and sometimes at a faster rate than other pupils. Learning assistants give these pupils very good support in lessons, so they get the confidence to join in activities fully and improve their skills in key subjects such as reading and writing. Inspectors also saw outstanding teaching of some of

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The achievement of pupils is good

these pupils in small groups outside the usual lessons. This was done sometimes by staff with particular expertise, such as in speech and language therapy, which is particularly successful in developing pupils’ language skills.  The school has also done a lot to improve the progress of pupils eligible for the pupil premium. The school’s leaders have used the funding to provide extra teaching resources and staff support for these pupils. As a result, the gap between their performance and others’ in the school has significantly narrowed. Several of these pupils now make better progress than their peers, and much better progress than is usual for similar pupils nationwide. Nevertheless, there are still some significant variations, which is partly why pupils’ achievement overall is not outstanding.  Many pupils read well, showing good levels of confidence, accuracy and fluency. Pupils in Year 1 have improved their learning of phonics (letters and the sounds they make), as evident in the most

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The achievement of pupils is good

recent national phonics check, in which pupils did better than was expected nationally.  The school has worked hard to improve achievement in mathematics, mainly by developing teachers’ expertise and bringing in new resources and methods. The success can be seen from the rapidly improving progress pupils make, especially lower down the school.  Inspectors saw many examples of good learning and good progress during lessons. Young children showed energy and enthusiasm as they tackled various tasks alone or with each other, for example when making helicopters in the Nursery or learning new words and their meanings. Older pupils showed initiative when exploring new vocabulary to make their writing more interesting.  Occasionally pupils’ progress in lessons is not as rapid as it could be. This happens usually when the more-able pupils do work which is too easy for them. For example, inspectors saw this when a

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The achievement of pupils is good

few pupils who had good calculating skills in mathematics spent too long on basic problems which did not really challenge them.  Parents and carers are very positive about the progress their children make at school, and the school provides a lot of advice to help parents and carers support their children’s learning at home.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teaching has been typically good in the school for some time, as is evident from the school’s own records. It has continued to improve, and inspectors saw mainly good teaching in all year groups.  Staff in the Nursery and Reception provide a good range of activities for children. Children enjoy developing their language and numeracy skills and learning how to play together and explore the range of indoor and outdoor resources. Staff support children well, although occasionally they miss opportunities when questioning children to develop their language and numeracy skills further. This is particularly the case for the more-able children.  Teachers mark pupils’ work well, giving them useful feedback which shows them how they can improve their work further. Teachers use pupils’ targets in many lessons to show clearly how they can improve their learning effectively.  Teachers have fostered a very good working relationship with pupils, so that the great majority are

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The quality of teaching is good

eager to learn. For example, pupils are keen to respond to teachers’ questioning.  Pupils make very good progress in physical education. They benefit from specialist teaching, partly funded through the primary sports grant. This teaching has also helped to develop the expertise of other staff in the subject; so, for example, inspectors saw pupils making very good progress in gymnastics.  While pupils make good progress over-time, there is not always enough challenge for the more- able pupils so that they get the most out of the opportunities to build on their existing knowledge and skills.  Inspectors agree with parents’ and carers’ view that teaching is good and helps pupils to make good progress.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 The behaviour of pupils is good. Pupils generally behave well in lessons, although some teachers have pupils in their class with potentially challenging behaviour. Teachers have to work hard to keep these pupils concentrating fully on their work, which is why behaviour is not outstanding.  Pupils behave very well around the school, for example at lunchtime. They are friendly and polite to visitors and enjoy responsibility. They have made up their own class behaviour charters and value their school council.  Attendance has improved and is now just above average. This is partly because the school has put a lot of effort into encouraging regular attendance and punctuality, for example by employing pupil and parent support workers.  Pupils enjoy the good range of sports and clubs which the school provides. Inspectors witnessed the thriving breakfast club, which offers a healthy and enjoyable start to the school day for many

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

pupils.  The school’s work to keep pupils safe and secure is good. The school’s extensive survey of parents’ and carers’ opinions confirms that they, like pupils, regard the school as a very safe place. It successfully tackles discrimination and ensures security and an equal opportunity for all pupils to do well and be happy.  The school has tightened up some safety procedures and provides extensive support in all sorts of ways for parents, carers and pupils. The care of and support for pupils are excellent. A strong emphasis is put on e-safety. The school gives information to parents and carers on how to help their children at home so that they become more effective learners in school, and encourages parents and carers to come into school and see things for themselves.  Pupils and parents and carers are confident that bullying is not a significant issue for the school.  The school is very proud of being the first Cornish school to be awarded the Rights Respecting

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

Schools Award, and it is working towards the next level. The school is very outgoing, for example supporting orphan children in Burma.

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The leadership and management are good

 The headteacher has continued to improve the quality of teaching and pupils’ achievement, and she is supported well by other staff.  The senior leadership team regularly and thoroughly checks the quality of teaching and learning. Other members of the wider school leadership team and some subject coordinators are also involved in this. The checking has led to the provision of additional support for some staff to enable them develop their skills further, which in turn has helped to improve the progress of pupils. School leaders have also brought outside expertise into the school, including from the local authority, to provide more training opportunities. Nevertheless, some of the most-able pupils remain insufficiently challenged.  The headteacher understands the school’s strengths and weaknesses very well. This is clear from the school’s accurate judgement on its own performance and its planning for further development.

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The leadership and management are good

 School leaders have developed a thorough system of tracking and assessing pupils’ progress. This has made it easier for teachers to spot pupils in danger of underachieving and provide them with appropriate support. This has resulted in the improved progress of those pupils at risk of not doing as well as others in English and mathematics.  The school assesses pupils’ performance not just in English and mathematics but in all subjects, including those studied through various topics.  Staff welcome their increased accountability. The school links teachers’ pay and responsibilities to their performance and to the progress made by their pupils, and the great majority of staff feel that they get the right amount of support.  The school uses its links with other local schools to increase opportunities for staff to learn from each other and, for example, to make sure that pupils move confidently to their next school at the

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The leadership and management are good

age of seven. The headteacher also gives advice and support to other schools further afield.  The school creates good opportunities for pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. Children get the chance to reflect on issues around personal responsibility and how to live and work well together. They learn about different beliefs and ways of life.  The governance of the school:  The governing body is experienced and understands how the school has progressed in recent years. Governors know the strengths and weaknesses of teaching in the school, analyse the performance data and know how different groups of pupils do in relation to pupils elsewhere in the country. Governors are active in school, for example visiting classes and listening to reports from staff. As well as supporting the school, they ensure accountability, for example by getting the school’s leaders to explain what they are doing about issues which sometimes arise about

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The leadership and management are good

staffing or progress in a particular class. The governing body has been trained in safety awareness and makes sure that the school meets safeguarding requirements, has the relevant policies and follows appropriate procedures. Governors check how national initiatives such as the pupil premium and primary school sports funding influence pupils’ progress. They also oversee the process by which teachers’ pay is linked to the achievement of targets. Governors are proud of the school’s performance, its standing in the local community and the high quality of the support it offers to pupils and families from all backgrounds. The governing body is not complacent, and, like the school’s leaders, is keen to improve the school’s performance further.

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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 136881 Local authority Cornwall Inspection number 434618

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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 Infant and Nursery School category Academy converter Age range of pupils 3–7 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 328 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Deborah Warford Headteacher Paula Sharpe Date of previous school inspection Not previously inspected Telephone number 01209 216111 Fax number 01209 215212 Email address head@trewirgie-inf.cornwall.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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