Caddington Village School

Caddington Village School Five Oaks, Caddington, Luton, LU1 4JD

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Overall effectiveness

Previous inspection: Good 2 This inspection: Requires improvement 3 Achievement of pupils Requires improvement 3 Quality of teaching Requires improvement 3 Behaviour and safety of pupils Good 2 Leadership and management Requires improvement 3

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

 In Key Stages 1 and 2, achievement and teaching vary across classes and subjects. Not enough pupils, including the most able, make consistently good or better progress in reading, writing and mathematics.  Pupils for whom the school receives additional funding make slower progress than their classmates.  In some lessons, teachers do not make sure that pupils have fully understood their work before they move on. In some other cases, the work set is too easy. This slows progress.  Pupils are not always guided well enough on how to improve their work and learn from their mistakes.  Pupils do not have enough opportunities to practise and develop their writing and mathematical skills in subjects other than English and mathematics.  Leaders do not have sufficiently robust systems in place to help them accurately check on pupils’ progress and plan for improvements. They have not, therefore, secured consistently

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

good teaching and achievement across all key stages.  Governors do not check carefully enough during the year on the progress being made by pupils in all year groups or on those groups for whom the school receives additional funding.

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The school has the following strengths

 Pupils make a good start to their education in the Nursery. They make good progress in the Early Years Foundation Stage.  Pupils make good, and sometimes rapid, progress at Key Stage 3. They leave Year 8 with standards that are above those expected and are well prepared for upper school, both academically and socially.  Plentiful enrichment opportunities in the curriculum support pupils’ learning and social development well.  Attendance has improved and is now above average. Pupils feel safe in a caring environment, and their behaviour and attitudes to learning are good.  Teachers and new leaders welcome the breadth of training opportunities available and are keen to develop their expertise. They want to improve so all pupils across the year groups attain the standards of which they are capable.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors observed 22 lessons taught by 22 teachers. Six of these observations were carried out jointly with the headteacher.  Meetings were held with the Chair of the Governing Body and three other governors, staff and groups of pupils. The lead inspector spoke on the telephone to a representative of the local authority.  Inspectors observed the school’s work and looked at documentation including: teachers’ planning; the school’s analysis of its strengths and weaknesses and resulting development plans; information on pupils’ attainment and progress; records of the monitoring of teaching and meetings of the governing body; safeguarding documentation and samples of pupils’ work.  Inspectors listened to pupils read, spoke with them about their learning and behaviour, and reviewed the work in their books.  Inspectors considered the 72 responses to the online questionnaire, Parent View, and 58 responses to the staff questionnaire. They also spoke informally to parents as they brought their

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Information about this inspection

children to school, and considered letters and emails sent to the inspection team.

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Inspection team

David Radomsky, Lead inspector Additional Inspector Lynn Lowery Additional Inspector Henry Weir Additional Inspector

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Information about this school

 This middle-deemed-primary school is much larger than the average-sized primary school.  The proportion of pupils for whom the school receives the pupil premium (additional government funding which in this school supports pupils known to be eligible for free school meals and those looked after by the local authority) is below average.  The proportion of disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs supported through school action is average. The proportion supported at school action plus or with a statement of special educational needs is well below average.  The school meets the government’s current floor standards, which set the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress by the end of Year 6.  The proportion of pupils joining or leaving the school at other than the usual time is higher than average; around 15 to 20 pupils transfer from lower schools into Year 5 each year.

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Information about this school

 On occasion, the school makes use of an alternative facility at the Academy of Central Bedfordshire, which helps pupils experiencing behavioural difficulties.  Since the previous inspection, changes have been made to the structure of the senior leadership team; some leaders took up new posts in September 2013.  The school established a soft federation with a local lower school two years ago. The headteacher and other senior leaders provide senior leadership for this school.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve the quality of teaching to accelerate pupils’ progress by ensuring that:  pupils who have not completely mastered a new concept are given enough time to develop their understanding fully before moving on to new work  the most able pupils are given work from the start that challenges them to reach higher levels  marking and feedback are always of the quality of the best practice which already exists  pupils always have sufficient opportunities to respond to their teachers’ comments in order to improve their work  pupils have more opportunities to practise their writing skills in subjects other than English and to apply their mathematical skills in subjects other than mathematics.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve the impact of leadership and management by ensuring that:  leaders always use accurate and reliable information about pupils’ progress to identify any shortcomings and tackle thoroughly any pockets of underachievement, particularly with regard to pupils for whom the school receives additional funding  the governing body checks the progress of all pupils during the year, measures the impact of pupil premium and Year 7 catch-up funding, and makes sure that eligible pupils achieve well.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 An external review of governance and of the school’s use of the pupil premium should be undertaken in order to assess how these aspects of leadership and management may be improved.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 In Key Stages 1 and 2, rates of progress vary from class to class and from subject to subject. Not enough pupils, including the most able, make the consistently good progress of which they are capable.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 Standards at the end of Year 2 have declined since the time of the previous inspection. In the recent 2014 school assessments, validated by the local authority, the proportions reaching the expected levels in reading, writing and mathematics dipped to below the 2013 national average. In writing and mathematics, the proportions reaching the higher levels though were above the 2013 national average.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 At the end of Year 6 in 2013, standards dropped from the previous year and were broadly average. The school is on track for a higher proportion of pupils currently in Year 6 to reach the expected level but for a lower proportion to attain the higher levels. A few are expected to reach Level 6 in reading and mathematics.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 Improving writing has been a focus across the school this year. Children are actively encouraged to write from the time that they join the Nursery. Evidence in books shows that pupils have opportunities to write for a good range of audiences and purposes. Where marking is of a high quality, pupils receive good guidance on how to improve and progress well, such as at Key Stage 3. Progress in writing, however, is not yet consistently good across other key stages as there are too few opportunities for pupils to write extensively across different subjects, and pupils do not always respond to their teachers’ comments and learn from their mistakes.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 The proportions of pupils in Year 1 reaching the expected level in the national phonics check in 2012 and 2013 were below average. The school has introduced a new scheme of work and training for all staff so that, from the start, children can learn to understand the letters and the sounds that they make (phonics). The school has also invested in more books. Reading both at school and at home is encouraged, including through the use of rewards for pupils who read extensively. These strategies have not yet had enough time to have an impact on raising standards. Some of the most able readers are not reading a wide enough range of authors which would stretch them more. Those who experience difficulties are helped, including through reading regularly with adults and with older pupils.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 In mathematics, there are occasions when pupils are moved on to new work before they have fully mastered the mathematical operations they have been learning. This slows their progress. Others, who learn quickly, are not always given more difficult work to do. Additionally, pupils do not have enough opportunities to practise and improve their mathematical skills in other subjects. These missed opportunities mean that pupils’ progress is not consistently good.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 The school spends the pupil premium funding on additional adult support and resources. These have not been effective in closing the attainment gaps between pupils for whom the funding is intended and their peers fast enough, as they are still making slower progress across year groups. In 2013, the attainment of pupils in Year 6 for whom the school received pupil premium funding was the equivalent of just over a year behind their classmates in reading and mathematics, and more than 2 years behind in writing.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 The school does not make specific provision or check on the progress made by the pupils eligible for the Year 7 catch-up funding. Inspectors, therefore, were not presented with any evidence on the impact that the funding is having on those pupils’ progress.  The progress of disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs, as well as those who join at other than the usual time, requires improvement because, like their classmates, their rates of progress are variable and not enough make consistently good progress in reading, writing and mathematics.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 Children enter the Nursery with skills expected for their age. During their time in the Early Years Foundation Stage, they make steady progress in all areas of learning. The proportion of children leaving Reception with a good level of development and well prepared for Year 1 is above that found nationally.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 Attainment at the end of Year 8 is consistently above national expectations in reading, writing, and mathematics. This is because pupils in Years 7 and 8 are taught well and make at least good progress. Current Year 8 pupils have made rapid progress in writing and mathematics since they started Year 7.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 As the school has only recently arranged once more for a very small number of pupils to attend the alternative provision for one day a week, there is insufficient evidence at this stage to comment on those pupils’ progress.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 The quality of teaching is variable and, as a result, pupils do not always make good progress.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 Evidence in books and from conversations with teachers and pupils, shows that sometimes learning is moved on too quickly before some pupils have fully understood their work. Those pupils, therefore, fail to consolidate their learning and, when at a later stage the topic is revisited, they find it difficult to proceed and build on their previous learning.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 On the other hand, in some instances, pupils are expected to do work which is too easy for them before they are given work which is appropriately challenging. This time-wasting slows their progress, especially for the most able.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 Marking is too variable across the subjects to support pupils’ good progress over time. There is some good practice but, in other cases, the marking consists of mainly ticks or encouraging words and does not offer clear guidance on how pupils can improve their work. On occasion, when pupils mark each other’s work, they mark something as being correct when in fact it is not. The teachers do not always spot this. Some teachers give good advice on what needs improving, but the pupils do not always act on this advice.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 In a few instances, teachers’ subject knowledge, and how to teach it, is not fully secure. This inhibits them from delivering well-structured and inspiring lessons to help all pupils achieve well.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 Where teaching is good or better over time, it is because teachers have high expectations and the planned activities are stimulating and so motivate pupils to work hard. The work set is well focused to help pupils of all abilities achieve well, any misconceptions are identified and pupils are helped to understand where they have gone wrong. Typically, those teachers use questioning to challenge pupils to deepen their thinking and solve their own problems. Teaching assistants support pupils who need additional help in those classes well.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 Positive relationships between teachers, teaching assistants and pupils help to create classrooms where pupils are not afraid to make mistakes and are confident to ask for help. It also means that pupils arrive punctually to lessons, ready to learn and work cooperatively with their teachers and peers.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 In the Early Years Foundation Stage, teachers and teaching assistants provide well-chosen activities and resources that interest all children through the day. Adults interact with children well which helps them to develop their reading, writing, mathematical and imaginative skills well. Children enjoy pretending to be explorers or mechanics and the like, engaging in physical activities and artwork, and they work with each other eagerly. As a result, children learn well and develop their social skills and self-confidence quickly.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 The behaviour of pupils is good. From the Nursery upwards, pupils were keen to welcome and talk to inspectors. They are polite and friendly.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils behave well in lessons. They respect their teachers and follow their instructions without fuss or delay. They work very well in pairs and groups and gladly help each other with their learning. They work hard and try their best. They are well aware of the reward and sanction ‘staircase’ system and say that this is usually applied consistently by most teachers and so disruption is rare. Pupils say that, when they are taught by supply teachers, there is occasionally some low-level disruption.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils behave well around the school and take care of the environment. The ‘eco crew’, for instance, has its own action plan which includes picking up the litter which blows into the school grounds from the surrounding areas.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 The school’s successful work with families to improve attendance means that it has improved from being below to above average this year.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils appreciate the many opportunities offered to them to take responsibility, such as serving on the school council or arranging fund-raising events for charity. Some older pupils have been trained to join senior leaders in observing teachers’ lessons and giving them constructive feedback on the quality of their teaching from a pupil’s point of view. The teachers value their insights.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 The school’s work to keep pupils safe and secure is good. Pupils confirm that they feel safe in school. Pupils know that if they are experiencing any difficulties they can approach a caring adult who will help them.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils are aware of the various types of bullying, including cyber bullying. They know how to stay safe, for instance, when using the internet, when riding bicycles and are aware of the dangers of substance abuse.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 The majority of parents are happy with all aspects of the school’s work. A handful of parents however, raised concerns about how the school deals with bullying. Pupils say that bullying is rare and they are adamant that when it occurs and they report it to a teacher or senior member of staff, it is dealt with promptly and effectively.

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The leadership and management requires improvement

 Three years ago, leaders, governors and staff worked together to devise a three-year development plan for the school. Resulting action plans, while detailed, do not make it clear how successful implementation will raise pupils’ standards. The headteacher has begun drafting a more effective plan for September with a greater focus on pupils’ achievement.

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The leadership and management requires improvement

 Key stage leaders and managers, some of whom are new to post, generally check on pupils’ progress and identify individuals needing additional help to catch up with their peers. They do not, however, always check specifically how the progress of pupils for whom the school receives pupil premium funding compares to that of other pupils; neither do they check the progress made by those pupils who should receive additional support through the Year 7 catch-up premium. During the inspection, leaders became aware that some of the data information systems used by the school are not accurate. As a result, leaders have not always had an accurate picture of pupils’ progress and so have not been able to ensure that achievement and teaching are consistently good.

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The leadership and management requires improvement

 Key stage leaders who also provide subject expertise for teachers are receiving training to help them become more effective in their roles and for the implementation of the new National Curriculum in September. These leaders and other teachers work in close collaboration with a group of local schools where best practice is shared. The schools’ subject leaders meet termly in ‘professional study groups’, plan together and review each other’s work. Leaders in turn, train other teachers in the school.

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The leadership and management requires improvement

 All teachers are very committed to their own professional development. They welcome the challenge and support they receive through the new appraisal processes which are focused on raising pupils’ achievement. Teachers also highlighted how much they are learning from the newly introduced cross-phase peer observation and feedback programme which is being run in school as a piece of research in conjunction with a university. The headteacher has given presentations to educational leaders in this country and abroad on this initiative.

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The leadership and management requires improvement

 The school established a soft federation with a local lower school two years ago. The headteacher provides strategic leadership as the executive headteacher, and a senior leader is currently acting head of the other school. Other senior leaders also offer leadership support. This arrangement is broadening leaders’ experience, including through sharing of good practice, and is also making a good contribution to developing leadership across the wider system.

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The leadership and management requires improvement

 The school has used the new funding to support sport and physical development well. It has introduced swimming for pupils in Year 6, a morning fitness club and a lunchtime table tennis club. Additionally, the school has introduced a weekly health-related fitness course for Year 8 and this will be extended next year into Year 7. The school has always offered a good range of sporting activities including competitive fixtures. The existing and additional opportunities introduced this year ensure pupils’ physical health and well-being.

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The leadership and management requires improvement

 The curriculum supports good attitudes to learning, safety and respect. There are not enough planned opportunities for pupils to practise their mathematical and writing skills.

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The leadership and management requires improvement

 The school promotes equality of opportunity soundly and rejects all forms of discrimination. Therefore, for instance, the school ensures that all have opportunities to participate in the many school trips, including the Year 3 visit to a partner school in Germany and other activities, regardless of parents’ ability to pay. With other experiences such as music, art and drama clubs and the recent First World War commemorative visit to France, the school makes sure that pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is promoted well. Leaders have identified the need to plan opportunities for pupils in this largely monocultural school to meet people of other cultures and faiths in this country.

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The leadership and management requires improvement

 Based on the results of the previous inspection, the local authority has not prioritised this school for ongoing support.

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The leadership and management requires improvement

 The governance of the school:  Governors know about the quality of teaching through the headteacher’s reports and, each autumn, they interview key stage leaders and scrutinise pupils’ performance during the previous year. They are thus aware of how the school is performing compared to other schools nationally. They do not, however, check regularly during the year on how pupils are progressing across the year groups and subjects. They do not check on the impact on eligible pupils of the spending of the pupil premium and Year 7 catch-up funding to ensure value for money. Some governors visit the school, talk to staff and check progress against the school’s development plan priorities. They offer some challenge to the headteacher and other leaders. They support the headteacher’s professional development well, such as encouraging her this year to visit Finland to research best teaching practice, especially in mathematics. Governors

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The leadership and management requires improvement

are involved in decisions as to whether teachers should be rewarded with pay rises and they set and review targets for the headteacher. In light of changes taking place in school provision locally, governors have been consulting with parents about the options for changing the school’s age range. All statutory duties are met, including arrangements for safeguarding.

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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 109664 Local authority Central Bedfordshire Inspection number 443849

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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 Middle deemed primary School category Community Age range of pupils 3–13 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 551 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Mike Smith Headteacher Sue Teague Date of previous school inspection 4 March 2010 Telephone number 01582 726058 Fax number 01582 727626 Email address office@caddington.cbeds.co.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 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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