Setting

Katy Harris Headteacher Mayhill Junior School The Bury Odiham Hook Hampshire RG29 1NB

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School

Following my visit to your school on 30 June 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

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

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School

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

 ensure performance management targets set for teachers hold them to account effectively for the progress pupils make  ensure the feedback pupils receive about their work focuses on what they are learning and that pupils use their teachers’ comments to improve their work  ensure leaders’ monitoring activities across the school more clearly analyse the impact of teaching on pupils’ progress  ensure the attendance of more vulnerable pupils, for example those in receipt of free school meals, is more effectively monitored. Tribal 1-4 Portland Square Bristol BS2 8RR T 0300 123 1231 Text Phone: 0161 6188524 enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk www.ofsted.gov.uk Direct T 0117 311 5359 Direct F 0117 315 0430 Email : christina.bannerman@tribalgroup.com

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Evidence

During the visit, meetings were held with you and other senior leaders, a group of pupils, members of the governing body, and a representative of the local authority to discuss the action taken since the last inspection. I evaluated a range of documentation including the school improvement plan, information relating to the monitoring of teaching, attendance information and minutes of governors’ meetings. You took me on a tour of the school and we made brief visits to most classes where I spoke to pupils about their work and looked at their books.

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Context

An interim part-time headteacher has been leading the school since the last inspection. A full-time substantive headteacher has recently been appointed for September. Subject leaders for English and mathematics and a special needs co- ordinator have also been appointed. A new Chair of Governors took up post in March.

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Main findings

The school improvement plan focuses on the key areas for improvement. It details specific long-and short-term targets and measures for how the school will know when it has been successful. The week-by-week plan of monitoring activities you have put in place is giving you useful information about how much progress is being made across the school.

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Main findings

You have made important changes to how teachers plan their lessons so that they focus on what pupils will learn rather than what they will do. As a result lessons are planned to more closely match a range of pupils’ needs and a greater level of challenge is being presented to pupils. Pupils who spoke to the inspector commented on how work being given to them was more difficult and made them think much harder.

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Main findings

Information about pupils’ progress is being collected and analysed more rigorously. As a result senior leaders and teachers have a more accurate view of how pupils are doing. Teachers are more aware of the importance of the link between teaching and its impact on pupils’ learning. However, performance management targets set for teachers do not enable leaders to hold them to account effectively for the progress pupils make because the process has lacked the rigour and focus to provide a good level of challenge and support to teachers over time.

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Main findings

Subject leaders have had valuable support to write development plans for their areas. As a result these leaders are becoming more skilled at identifying the strengths and areas for development in the areas they lead and manage. You have made valuable refinements to the marking policy. Pupils’ books show they are often given specific guidance on how to improve their work. However, these comments are not always linked to what the pupils are learning and inconsistencies remain about how and when pupils respond to this feedback in their work. Higher expectations have been established for the presentation of pupils’ work. Pupils who spoke to the inspector pointed out improvements in their written work from the beginning of the year and they were clear that scruffy work would be returned to them to be redone.

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Main findings

You are using a range of information to judge the quality of teaching across the school, including lesson observations and looking at pupils’ books. However, there is often too little evaluation of the impact of teaching on the progress pupils are making.

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Main findings

Attendance is above the national average. However, attendance rates of more vulnerable pupils, for example those pupils in receipt of free school meals, are lower than those of their classmates. The attendance of these pupils and the impact of actions the school is taking are not being effectively monitored.

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Main findings

The governing body have worked closely with the local authority to ensure that a full-time substantive headteacher has been appointed for the next academic year. Governors have a good understanding of the strengths and areas of development of the school and what needs to be done for it to improve. They have a comprehensive plan for monitoring the progress the school is making. Useful training in using assessment information is enabling them to ask more challenging questions of senior leaders. A review of the governing body is planned for the autumn term.

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External support

The local authority has provided a range of effective, well-targeted support. Senior and middle leaders have benefited from valuable support in refining development plans that reflect the key areas for improvement. Classroom teachers and subject leaders have received useful training and support to develop their teaching and leadership skills. Recruitment training given to the governing body has supported them in the appointment of a new headteacher.

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External support

I am copying this letter to the Chair of the Governing Body and the Director of Children’s Services for Hampshire.

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