Setting

Miss Danielle Cronin Headteacher Thingwall Primary School Pensby Road Thingwall Wirral Merseyside CH61 7UG

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School, Wirral

Following my visit to your school on 30 April 2014, I write on behalf of Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Education, Children’s Services and Skills to report the findings. Thank you for the help you gave me and for the time you made available to discuss the actions you are taking to improve the school since the most recent section 5 inspection.

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School, Wirral

The visit was the first monitoring inspection since the school was judged to require improvement following the section 5 inspection in January 2014. It was carried out under section 8 of the Education Act 2005.

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School, Wirral

Senior leaders and governors are taking effective action to tackle the areas requiring improvement identified at the recent section 5 inspection. The school should take further action to:

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School, Wirral

 Ensure the action plan includes milestones and more clearly defines the person responsible for each action so governors can check that the plan is working.

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School, Wirral

 Improve the way senior leaders and governors work together to make best use of each other’s experience and professional skills.

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Evidence

During the visit, meetings were held with you, other senior leaders, a group of pupils, four representatives of the Governing Body and two representatives of the CfBT Inspection Services Suite 22 West Lancs Investment Centre Maple View Skelmersdale WN8 9TG T 0300 123 1231 Text Phone: 0161 6188524 enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk www.ofsted.gov.uk Direct T 01695 566857 Direct F 01695 729320 Direct email :jkinsman@cfbt.com local authority to discuss the action taken since the last inspection. The school improvement plan and other documents related to self-evaluation were evaluated. I visited all classes in school to see the impact of actions.

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Context

Since the inspection the Chair of the Governing Body has resigned. A new deputy headteacher has been appointed and will take up their post in September.

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Main findings

The school’s development plan sets out appropriate actions linked to the areas for improvement identified in the last inspection. It also includes clear targets to be achieved by the end of this academic year. However, next year’s plan should be improved to identify individuals responsible for actions and include milestones to allow governors to check that the plan is working.

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Main findings

Re-structuring of the senior leadership team and clarification of each member’s responsibilities is allowing you to delegate leadership. Consequently, you have more opportunity to focus on and evaluate impact. Senior leaders who are new to their roles demonstrate increasing confidence in holding staff to account. This is because of training and coaching that they have received from you and from the partner National Leader in Education.

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Main findings

The secondment of an experienced Deputy Headteacher from a local school is strengthening the senior leadership team. A partnership with a National Leader of Education brokered by the Local Authority is providing opportunities for teachers to learn from good and outstanding practice in another school.

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Main findings

School data identifies that standards of achievement in mathematics, and English are beginning to improve. You and your leadership team attribute this to improvements in the quality of teaching brought about by additional training and coaching.

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Main findings

Pupils say that they feel they are getting better at mathematics because work is more challenging, teachers have higher expectations of them and because they are taught in smaller groups.

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Main findings

Marking is improving. You have set clear expectations about what staff must do when marking pupils’ work and regularly check to see that this is happening.

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Main findings

Governors have received training from the Local Authority and are sharpening their focus on evaluating the impact of actions. Consequently, governors have a deeper understanding of what is working. However, governors and leaders must now enhance how they work together to identify and plan what needs to be done next, making the best use of both each other’s experiences and professional skills. Ofsted may carry out further visits and, where necessary, provide further support and challenge to the school until its next section 5 inspection.

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External support

The Local Authority is providing an appropriate level of support and challenge to the school, including the brokering of a partnership with a National Leader of Education and additional support from English, mathematics and Early Years Foundation Stage consultants.

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External support

I am copying this letter to the Chair of the Governing Body, the Director of Children’s Services for Wirral and as below.

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Her Majesty’s Inspector

The letter should be copied to the following:

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Her Majesty’s Inspector

 Appropriate authority - Chair of the Governing Body  Local authority – including where the school is an academy

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