Greek Primary School of London

Greek Primary School of London 3 Pierrepoint Road, Acton, London, W3 9JR

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Overall effectiveness Good 2

Achievement of pupils Good Quality of teaching Good Behaviour and safety of pupils Good Leadership and management Good

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This is a good school because

 Pupils make good progress from their starting points in a wide range of subjects, and outstanding progress in science and the Greek language. They are well prepared for the next stage of their education.  Teaching is good, with some that is outstanding. This is because the staff have good subject knowledge and use well-chosen activities to enable pupils to make good progress.  Pupils’ safety and behaviour in lessons and around the school are good. The school provides a caring environment and pupils are motivated to learn and to be respectful towards each other.  The proprietor and leaders ensure that all the standards for independent schools are met, so that achievement and teaching are good and pupils are safe within a caring environment.  The headteacher knows the school well and, as a result, leaders can plan appropriately for further improvements. Her clear vision is shared by the whole school community.

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It is not yet an outstanding school because

 There is not enough outstanding teaching to ensure that all pupils, including those with lower attainment, make outstanding progress.  Teachers’ comments in pupils’ workbooks do not always provide pupils with clear guidance on what they must do in order to make their work outstanding.  Progress in the Early Years Foundation Stage is not rapid because the outdoor area is not sufficiently well developed.  Assessment and recording of children’s progress in the Early Years Foundation Stage are not comprehensive enough.

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Compliance with regulatory requirements

 The school meets schedule 1 of the Education (independent School Standards) (England) Regulations 2012, as amended by the Education (Independent School Standards) (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2012 (‘the independent school standards’) and associated requirements.

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Information about this inspection

 The inspection took place with one day’s notice.  The inspector observed 11 lessons taught by 11 members of staff and scrutinised samples of pupils’ work.  Discussions took place with the headteacher, members of the teaching staff, a small number of parents and carers and with a representative group of pupils. There were 21 responses to the online Parent View survey. Questionnaire responses from 12 members of staff were considered.  A wide range of school documentation was scrutinised, including policies and procedures, records of pupils’ progress and individual pupil progress files.

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Inspection team

Jonathan Yodaiken, Lead inspector Additional Inspector

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Information about this school

 The Greek Primary School of London is a small co-educational primary school which was opened in 1984 by the Greek Ministry of Education to serve the Greek speaking community in London.  The Greek government provides free education at the school for Greek and Greek Cypriot pupils. All pupils are either native Greek speakers or bilingual.  There are currently 70 pupils on roll, aged from four to 11 years and all attend full time. In the Early Years Foundation Stage there are 14 children aged between four and six years, as compulsory school age in Greece is from six years.  The school is registered to admit up to 110 pupils. There are no pupils with a statement of special educational needs.  The school teaches the Greek National Curriculum and the language of instruction is Greek.  The school aims to ‘provide a high quality education for its pupils, to encourage and deepen their understanding of the Greek language and culture, and to keep them in touch with their

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Raise the quality of teaching to outstanding, especially so that less able pupils make the same rapid progress as others, by:  providing training opportunities for staff  sharing the excellent teaching practices present in the school to enable all pupils to make outstanding progress  ensuring that the comments in teachers’ marking of pupils’ workbooks provide comments on the strengths, areas for development and guidance on how to improve.  Ensure that children in the Early Years Foundation Stage make rapid progress by:  improving the quality of assessment and recording in the early years profiles  upgrading the outdoor learning area so that it provides opportunities for discovery and exploration.  Enhance the resources for teaching physical education.

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Achievement of pupils Good

 Pupils’ achievement is good because teaching is strong, pupils have good attitudes to learning and a suitable set of subjects to study.  Children enter the Early Years Foundation Stage with skills that are typical for their age, with the exception of English, as only a very small proportion of children speak any English. They make good progress from their different starting points because there is a high adult-to-child ratio to support learning and pupils are highly motivated.  By the time pupils leave the school at the end of Year 6 (Year 7 in the English curriculum), their level of attainment in most subjects is above average. Particularly noteworthy is the level of achievement in Greek language and science because basic skills in these subjects are taught exceptionally well.  All groups of pupils, including the most able, make good progress in their knowledge and understanding in most subjects. This is evident in pupils’ workbooks. However, occasionally

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Achievement of pupils Good

pupils of lower ability make slower progress because activities do not fully support their particular needs.  In English, pupils are often asked to read aloud; this gives them confidence in using expression to convey meaning. Consequently, the vast majority of pupils achieve well in developing their reading skills. Pupils also make good progress in writing and present their work well. By the time they leave school they are able to express themselves well.  In mathematics, activities are often based on real-life experiences, such as money transactions and using clocks to plan journeys. In this way pupils successfully develop their number skills well and consider practical problems involving calculation.  Scientific achievement is outstanding. Pupils are given challenging work and achieve excellent results. As a result, pupils engage enthusiastically in this subject. An example of this excellent progress was seen in a Year 5 (English curriculum Year 6) class, where pupils engaged in high

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Achievement of pupils Good

level biological discussions relative to the human body functions.  Progress in music and art is also good, with pupils enjoying singing and playing Greek folk music for example.  Although some good teaching of physical education was observed, progress in this subject is slower because of the limited specialist equipment available at the school.

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Quality of teaching Good

 The quality of teaching is consistently good, and some is outstanding. Teachers have good subject knowledge and usually plan their lessons well, for example by taking into account prior skills and knowledge within the subject area being taught. Teachers and other adults mostly support pupils' learning well.  All pupils study an appropriate range of subjects which they find interesting and this encourages them to work well. Pupils speak and listen in both their native language Greek, and English. As they mature, they demonstrate an increasing ability to respect each other’s contributions and ideas. For example, in a Year 1 (English curriculum Year 2) Greek language lesson, pupils praised one class member for the quality of his reading aloud to the class. This focus upon children’s language development begins in the Early Years Foundation Stage where children are encouraged to speak and to describe their feelings.

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Quality of teaching Good

 Questioning strategies are used well to challenge pupils and develop their understanding. Questioning is effective in encouraging pupils to think deeply about the subject being taught.  Work in mathematics is particularly challenging and effective in ensuring that high achievers are stretched, building effectively on prior knowledge and skills. An example of this was a Year 3 (English curriculum Year 4) lesson, when pupils were challenged to find different strategies to solve specific problems involving calculation. Pupils enjoyed the challenge provided and made good progress.  Pupils enjoy using information and communication technology (ICT) to support their learning and they demonstrate appropriate skills in the use of computers. Teachers skilfully weave the use of ICT into lessons in personal, social and health education (PSHE) and literacy.  Relationships between pupils and staff are very positive and good humoured. Teachers give

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Quality of teaching Good

pupils plenty of encouragement to complete tasks and create many opportunities for pupils to grow in their self-confidence and self-esteem, for example by rewarding pupils’ work with stars and offering much praise.  The deployment of specialist teachers in English, ICT, French and physical education enhances the teaching of these subjects, although the lack of resources for physical education limits somewhat the development of these skills.  Classes are small, which enable teachers to give focused support to pupils. Notwithstanding this, sometimes pupils with low attainment are not always given the support they need because activities are not always at the right level matched to their needs.  The quality of marking and feedback in pupils’ workbooks is variable in quality. In some classes teachers are meticulous in giving written guidance on what is good and how to improve, whilst in others there are only ticks or crosses.

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Quality of teaching Good

 In the Early Years Foundation Stage the children’s progress profiles are somewhat limited in scope and do not provide the staff or management with as full a view as possible on how a particular child is progressing.  The learning environment is bright and clean with some good display, which provides opportunities for pupils to develop pride in their work. However, the outdoor area, particularly for the Early Years Foundation Stage, is not used as well as it might be to facilitate discovery and exploration.

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Behaviour and safety of pupils Good

 The behaviour of pupils is good and this makes a positive contribution to learning and progress. Pupils behave well in class and around school. However, on occasion, low-level disruptions can be seen around the school at break times.  The school’s work to keep pupils safe and secure is good. There is a high adult-to-pupil ratio in all year groups, including the Early Years Foundation Stage, with pupils being well cared for and supervised well. Four members of staff have been trained in first aid including paediatric first aid. All safeguarding policies and procedures are in place, and implemented, and, as a result, pupils are kept safe. Pupils are taught how to stay safe online and how to respond, for example if they see any inappropriate images.  There is little bullying and pupils have a good awareness of how to respond to bullying should it occur. Pupils feel safe because friends support each other and they know teachers care about

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Behaviour and safety of pupils Good

their welfare.  Risk assessment procedures in school and for off-site educational visits are robust and carried out routinely.  The school gives good attention to the spiritual, moral and social development of pupils. Pupils grow in self-confidence through circle time discussion activities and are given many opportunities to reflect during religious education and PSHE lessons. An example of this was in a Year 4 (English curriculum Year 5) PSHE lesson where pupils evaluated the impact of the Sailing4Caring programme, which helps pupils develop a better understanding of their emotions and deal with the challenges of life. This work also inculcates altruistic values in pupils and helps them to know right from wrong.  Pupils’ understanding of their own cultural background is outstanding. Their understanding of other religions is good because in Years 5 and 6 (English curriculum Years 6 and 7) pupils learn

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Behaviour and safety of pupils Good

about different religions. Pupils display a deep respect for people who may be from different backgrounds, reinforced by the example of consideration and kindness of the headteacher and staff.  Pupils have some opportunities to take an active part in fundraising for charities. An example of this is the recent collection of clothes for Syrian refugees, but there are limited charity fundraising opportunities provided by the school.

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Leadership and management Good

 The quality of leadership and management is good, based on shared values and a commitment to provide the best for all pupils.  The headteacher manages the school well and is very clear about the strengths of the school and areas for development. Consequently, school improvement planning is good. Her clear vision is shared by all of the stakeholders and has been a key factor in improvements since the last inspection.  The proprietor and the headteacher ensure that all the standards for independent schools are met, so that teaching is good and pupils can achieve well and feel safe. The proprietor ensures pupils are taught well by highly qualified and experienced teachers. A clear system of appraisal is in place and, as a result, pupils make good progress. However, there are too few opportunities for staff training in areas such as marking and in developing the provision for pupils with low attainment, and this sometimes restricts progress.

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Leadership and management Good

 The headteacher demonstrates an accurate view of the quality of teaching in the school and is fully aware of the strengths and areas for development of each teacher.  The headteacher forges strong relationships with parents and carers, who receive all the information to which they are entitled on the school website and through school reports. Parents and carers are very positive about the school’s work.  Curriculum planning is exceptional and is based upon the Greek National Curriculum. The headteacher makes close checks on its implementation to ensure that all areas are being covered within the appropriate year group.  The headteacher and staff provide high quality role models and demonstrate excellent dedication, commitment and good pastoral care.  The leadership and management of the Early Years Foundation Stage ensure that all safeguarding requirements are met. However, the outdoor learning area is not well developed

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Leadership and management Good

and this limits some aspects of progress in the Early Years Foundation Stage curriculum. An aspect for development is in improving assessment and record keeping to provide more evidence of children’s achievement.

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Grade Judgement

Grade 1 Outstanding Grade 2 Good Grade 3 Requires improvement Grade 4 Inadequate

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Grade Judgement

Detailed grade characteristics can be viewed in the Non-association independent school inspection handbook which is published on the Ofsted website: www.ofsted.gov.uk/resources/140053 .

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School details

Unique reference number 131788 Inspection number 445760 DfE registration number 307/6080 Type of school Independent School status Foreign national day primary school Age range of pupils 4–11 years Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 70 Number of part time pupils None Proprietor The Embassy of Greece in London Headteacher Evangeli Salamoura Date of previous school inspection 16 June 2011 Annual fees (day pupils) No fees charged Telephone number 0208 992 6156 Fax number 0208 993 4373 Email address greekschool@btconnect.com guidance 'Complaining about inspections', 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.

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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

inspects to 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,

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School details

please 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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