Oakfield Primary Academy

Oakfield Primary Academy Oakfield Road, Rugby, CV22 6AU

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Overall effectiveness

Previous inspection: Not previously inspected This inspection: Requires improvement 3 Achievement of pupils Requires improvement 3 Quality of teaching Requires improvement 3 Behaviour and safety of pupils Requires improvement 3 Leadership and management Requires improvement 3

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This is a school that requires improvement. It is not good because

 Pupils’ progress has not been fast enough in Years 1 and 2, especially in the development of their writing and reading skills.  Too few more-able pupils in these year groups have reached the higher levels of attainment in reading, writing or mathematics.  The quality of teaching is inconsistent. Although it is improving, not enough is good or outstanding.  Not all teachers show high enough expectations for what their pupils can achieve.  A small minority of pupils are sometimes disruptive and disturb the learning of others. There is some misbehaviour in playgrounds where there is a lack of play resources.  Pupils’ attendance is rising but still not high enough. Their punctuality requires improvement.  Not all leaders, some of whom are new, are as yet playing a full part in improving the school.

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The school has the following strengths

 Pupils are now making better progress and reaching higher standards, particularly in reading and mathematics. Children in the Nursery and Reception classes are doing increasingly well in a stimulating environment.  The head of school is leading improvement with great energy and determination. Her rigorous checks on the performance of pupils and teachers have resulted in better teaching and rising standards.  Although attendance and pupils’ punctuality require improvement, they enjoy coming to school, and most have good attitudes to learning. They are keen to do well and are proud of their school. Staff keep them safe and look after them well.  The governing body is now taking a more effective role in challenging leaders.  The Academy Trust sponsor is playing a very important and positive role in improving leadership and the school’s performance.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors observed 19 lessons. Five of these were seen jointly with the head of school.  Meetings were held with pupils, the head of school, other staff with leadership responsibilities, one governor and two representatives of the sponsors.  Inspectors discussed teaching and pupils’ progress with class teachers and learning support assistants. Pupils’ books and records of their progress were also examined.  Inspectors listened to pupils reading and discussed their reading experiences with them.  There were 11 responses to Parent View, the online questionnaire for parents. Inspectors examined 21 responses from the parents to the school’s own survey of their views from November 2013, and one email received during the inspection. They also spoke to a number of parents in the playground. The inspectors also considered 21 responses to the staff questionnaire.  A range of documentation was examined, including the school’s self-evaluation and development

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Information about this inspection

plan and analysis of pupils’ achievement and progress, safeguarding arrangements, school policies, and records of checks made by leaders on the quality of teaching.

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Inspection team

Rodney Braithwaite, Lead inspector Additional Inspector Diana Pearce Additional Inspector Jonathan Moore Additional Inspector

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Information about this school

 The school is an average-sized primary school.  Oakfield Primary Academy converted to become an academy school in November 2012, sponsored by the REAch2 Academy Trust.  Two thirds of the pupils are White British, the remainder coming from a range of ethnic heritages, including a rapidly growing number of pupils from Eastern Europe. The proportion of pupils who speak English as an additional language is above average.  The proportions of disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs supported through school action, and at school action plus or with a statement of special educational needs, are average.  The proportion of pupils supported by the pupil premium is above average. This is additional government funding provided for pupils who are looked after by the local authority or known to be eligible for free school meals.  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.  The school has a Nursery class which children attend on a part-time basis, two Reception classes and seven other classes. The number of pupils has increased rapidly in the last year.  Since the school became an academy there have been a number of changes of staff, including senior leaders. The present head of school took up the post in January 2014.  The school is based in two buildings on a large site.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve teaching and achievement, especially in Key Stage 1, by ensuring that: – more-able pupils are challenged to reach higher levels of attainment – teachers improve their knowledge of teaching about the links between letters and sounds (phonics) in order to guide pupils’ reading skills more effectively – teachers have more opportunities to observe the most effective practice to inform and improve their own skills.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Further improve pupils’ behaviour by making sure that: – pupils remain focused on their learning in lessons, and do not distract others – the rise in attendance is sustained, and all pupils learn and understand the importance of being punctual for school and for lessons – the playground in Key Stage 2 is stimulating and enjoyable for pupils, with a wider range of play resources.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Make leadership and management more effective by: – enabling new leaders to develop their skills as quickly as possible, so that they can play a full and effective part in improving the school’s performance.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 Children enter the Nursery with lower levels of skills and experience than is typical for their age, especially in their language and social development. They make good progress in the Nursery and Reception classes, but standards are still below average when they begin Year 1.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 In the first year of the academy pupils’ progress in Years 1 and 2 was too slow, and they were not reaching the levels of which they were capable in reading, mathematics and especially in writing. Pupils supported by additional funding made less progress in reading, writing and mathematics than others.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 Observations of teaching, the work in pupils’ books and the school’s reliable assessment records indicate that better progress is now being made by Year 1 and 2 pupils. This includes disabled pupils and those with special educational needs, minority ethnic groups, those who speak English as an additional language and pupils eligible for additional funding. This reflects improving teaching, especially through ‘team teaching’ with effective learning support assistants.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 Pupils make good progress in Years 3 to 6 in reading, writing and mathematics. In the national tests at the end of Year 6 in 2013, above-average proportions of pupils made and exceeded nationally expected progress in reading and mathematics. Although few pupils reached above expected levels for their age in 2013, faster progress, especially in Years 5 and 6, means that more pupils are now doing so.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 Pupils supported by extra funding through the pupil premium are now progressing as well as other pupils, and there is no significant gap in attainment in reading, writing and mathematics between the two groups. Effective support is enabling disabled pupils and those with special educational needs to make better progress.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 Progress in the learning of phonics (letters and the sounds they make) has been inconsistent but there are signs of improvement. This is because teachers are improving their skills in helping pupils to learn and understand letter sounds.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 Pupils are becoming increasingly enthusiastic readers as they improve their skills. Most read regularly to adults, and have well-established views on what kind of books they like, such as ‘action and adventure’. Some also talk about their enjoyment of the versions of Macbeth and Hamlet they have read in school.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 Pupils are beginning to improve their achievement in a range of other subjects such as physical education and information and communication technology.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 Teaching is not good because too many pupils have not achieved as much as they are able, especially in reading and writing in Key Stage 1.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 Some inconsistency in teaching has been the result of frequent changes of staff, although there is now more stability. Inconsistent aspects of teaching include the teaching of phonics and teachers’ expectations of what pupils can achieve, especially more-able pupils.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 Following decisive action by school leaders, teaching is improving, especially of reading and writing. Since September 2013, more teaching is now good and almost all inadequate teaching has been eliminated.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 Effective learning is far more in evidence in lessons, and in pupils’ work in books and on display. For example, pupils showed the effectiveness of recent teaching in their extended writing in Year 5 in a display of lengthy imaginative and original stories about ‘My Lost Thing’. Pupils demonstrated good handwriting and grammatical skills, as well as good use of word processing. The good subject knowledge of the teacher, and clear guidelines on writing skills, helped pupils make rapid progress.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 The promotion of literacy skills is now being developed more widely across the curriculum, as seen in Year 2 when pupils wrote questions about animals such as rabbits, and then did their own search for answers on computers. This learning benefited pupils’ writing, reading and comprehension skills.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 Improving teaching in the Early Years Foundation Stage is enabling children to make increasingly rapid progress. Children are provided with many stimulating and exciting learning opportunities. In particular teachers have created an excellent outdoor learning environment, described by one adult as, ‘A child’s paradise.’ This area and its copious resources continually stimulate and extend children’s learning and exploration of their world.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 Teachers and the learning support assistants work well together in providing help and guidance to their pupils. The support assistants are especially active in all classroom and activity areas, and are effective in assisting the learning of all groups of pupils.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 The school is supporting effectively its increasing number of pupils who speak English as an additional language. Good links with parents are helping pupils to settle quickly and develop their learning and knowledge of English.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils requires improvement

 The behaviour of pupils requires improvement. Although most pupils have good attitudes to their learning in class, a few sometimes lose concentration and then disturb the learning and progress of others.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils requires improvement

 The majority of pupils behave well around the school and in the playground. However, in the Key Stage 2 playground especially, there is insufficient play and sports equipment readily available. Consequently some pupils can become bored or spoil the play of others.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils requires improvement

 Leaders are working to ensure that all staff implement the agreed behaviour policy, which has not always been used consistently in the past. Pupils understand what is expected of them and report that ‘only a few misbehave now, like talking when the teacher talks’. They have learned the new rules for acceptable behaviour, saying, ‘It’s all about positive learning, you’ve got to be on track.’

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The behaviour and safety of pupils requires improvement

 A small number of parents have had concerns in the past about pupils’ behaviour, but during the inspection parents commented that it had improved noticeably in the last few months.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils requires improvement

 Children in the Nursery and Reception classes rapidly learn what is expected of them, as shown by the way they tidy up and take turns.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils requires improvement

 Pupils have a good knowledge of different kinds of bullying. In discussion, one said ‘It is infrequent, only a couple of times this year,’ and another commented, ‘I think it’s extinct now.’ Older pupils are well aware of the dangers of bullying through the internet.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils requires improvement

 Attendance was well below average in 2012/13. Leaders have made strenuous efforts to improve it. In the last year a more robust approach and encouragement of pupils and parents have shown much success, and attendance has improved significantly from well below to almost in line with the national average.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils requires improvement

 The punctuality of some pupils has improved. There are still occasions, however, when pupils are late for school or for classes.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils requires improvement

 The school’s work to keep pupils safe and secure is good. Pupils have great faith in the adults in the school, saying, for example, ‘Our teachers are really kind.’ Pupils act safely around the school and in the dinner halls.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils requires improvement

 The school works effectively with external professionals in supporting pupils and families whose circumstances make them vulnerable. The staff are sympathetic to the needs of such families. As one parent commented, ‘They focus on the positives all the time.’

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The leadership and management requires improvement

 Leadership and management are not yet good because leaders have not ensured that teaching and pupils’ achievement are consistently good throughout the school. The wide range of actions taken by senior leaders have not yet resulted in sufficiently rapid improvement in the quality of teaching and learning throughout the academy.

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The leadership and management requires improvement

 Since becoming an academy, significant changes to the staffing structure have led to more effective leadership and management. In particular, the new head of school has had a positive impact, leading the school with great energy and sensitivity in dealing with a lengthy list of priorities for improvement. These include the quality of teaching, the rates of progress of the great majority of pupils, the use of additional funding for disadvantaged pupils, and the overall attendance of pupils.

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The leadership and management requires improvement

 Additionally, new senior and middle leaders have been appointed to key posts. They have not yet developed the skills, or had the time, to be fully effective in bringing about improvements in the areas for which they are responsible.

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The leadership and management requires improvement

 Leadership of the Early Years Foundation Stage is good. The learning needs of each child are understood by all adults, and targeted support for children is helping them make increasingly better progress.

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The leadership and management requires improvement

 The leadership team has been strongly supported by advisers and guidance from the school’s sponsor, the REAch2 Academy Trust. New leaders have benefited from the training and advice received through other leaders from the Trust.

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The leadership and management requires improvement

 Leaders have developed their skills in the accurate checking and analysis of pupils’ performance and this is already contributing to school improvement. They are continuing to refine the use of additional funding, and most eligible pupils are making progress similar to that of their peers.

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The leadership and management requires improvement

 Teachers, several of whom are new to the school, receive close support. Their teaching is monitored regularly by the head of school, and increasingly by other leaders. Teachers are encouraged to evaluate their own teaching on a regular basis and are given appropriate training. Leaders ensure that any pay increases or promotions are related to their performance in reaching targets.

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The leadership and management requires improvement

 Leaders are expanding the range of practical and stimulating learning opportunities provided for pupils in all subjects, including out-of-school clubs. They are also using the new sports funding effectively to give pupils more opportunities to develop their sports skills and knowledge of how to live healthily.

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The leadership and management requires improvement

 The school promotes equal opportunities and cooperation well. This results in no discrimination, and contributes positively to the improving behaviour of pupils and increasingly good promotion of their spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. As a result pupils are becoming more aware of the importance of cooperation, perseverance and respect for others.

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The leadership and management requires improvement

 The school’s partnership with parents has improved, and a new parents’ association has been established recently. Parents’ responses during the inspection and to Parent View were almost all positive and indicated their belief that the school is improving rapidly.

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The leadership and management requires improvement

 The governance of the school:  The governing body is led by an experienced and challenging Chair. Governors bring a range of important skills to the management of the school, which have been helpful during the introduction of many changes since conversion to academy status, and the continual drive for improvement. They have become more skilled in holding leaders to account  The governors have developed their understanding of the link between staff performance, the progress of their pupils and pay decisions. As a result, they now have a much wider knowledge of the strengths of the school and what still needs to improve, including details of the quality of teaching and pupils’ performance  Governors understand how the school spends extra funding for particular groups of pupils, and how they are progressing as a result. They have a good understanding of the use of the new sports funding. Governors ensure that safeguarding arrangements are fully met, that

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The leadership and management requires improvement

pupils are kept safe and that school policies are regularly reviewed.

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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 138915 Local authority Warwickshire Inspection number 440070

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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 Academy sponsor-led Age range of pupils 3–11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 252 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Emma Hanson Headteacher Geraldine Crofts (Head of School) Date of previous school inspection Not previously inspected Telephone number 01788 565021 Fax number 01788 571231 Email address draper.c51@welearn365.com 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 and 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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