Great Dunham Primary School

Great Dunham Primary School Litcham Road, Great Dunham, King's Lynn, PE32 2LQ

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Overall effectiveness

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

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

This is a good school.  Pupils of all backgrounds and abilities make good progress and achieve well in most subjects.  Teachers and teaching assistants work well together to make sure that most of the tasks they set are matched to pupils’ different abilities.  Children in Reception enjoy a stimulating range of activities in a well-managed setting. This ensures that that make a good start to school and grow quickly as confident and inquisitive learners.  Teaching is usually good. Teachers are skilled at giving pupils exciting learning experiences in lessons.  Pupils are proud of their school. They are welcoming and friendly. They feel safe, and their behaviour is good both in lessons and around the school.  Pupils thrive in their learning and in their spiritual, moral, social and cultural development.  The new headteacher and staff work together well to ensure that achievement and teaching are good and improving.

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

 Governors know the school well. They ask challenging questions and understand, and are involved in setting, the priorities for improving the school.

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It is not yet an outstanding school because

 Some pupils do not receive helpful guidance on how to improve their work through teachers’ marking.  Teachers do not show high enough expectations for the presentation of pupils’ work.  Pupils do not achieve as well in writing as in reading and mathematics. They do not get enough practise in applying their writing skills in different subjects, or learning from examples of high quality writing.

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Information about this inspection

 The inspector observed teaching and learning in seven lessons.  The inspector observed an assembly and made a number of short visits to classrooms.  Pupils were observed at break and lunchtimes.  The inspectors held discussions with the headteacher, staff, a representative from the local authority and a range of pupils.  Groups of pupils of different ages were heard reading.  The inspector considered the 17 responses to Parent View, Ofsted’s online website.  The inspector looked at the school’s policies, teachers’ plans, samples of pupils’ work, leaders’ improvement planning and records on behaviour and safety. Information on individual pupils’ progress and teachers’ performance were also examined.

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Inspection team

Richard Blackmore, Lead inspector Additional Inspector

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Information about this school

 The school is smaller than the average-sized primary school, with three mixed-age classes.  The very large majority of the pupils are White British.  The proportion of disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs supported through school action is below the national average. The proportion supported through school action plus or with a statement of special educational needs is above average.  The proportion of pupils for whom the school receives the pupil premium is below the national average. This is additional government funding for pupils who are known to be eligible for free school meals and those in the care of the local authority.  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 headteacher started at the school in September 2013.  The school offers breakfast and after-school clubs.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve teaching by ensuring that:  all teachers help pupils to improve their work through marking, and check that pupils reflect and respond so they learn from the guidance and their mistakes  teachers insist on high-quality presentation of pupils’ work.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Raise achievement in writing by ensuring that:  pupils practise the skills learnt in writing lessons in other subjects  pupils see high-quality examples of creative and technical language which they can use in their own writing.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Most pupils make good progress. They make a good start in Reception and progress well because teaching is good. Strong care and support from adults ensure children settle quickly in their new environment, feel safe, and enjoy coming to school.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Attainment varies because the very small year groups are comprised of pupils with significantly different starting points. Typically children start school with skills a little below that expected for their age.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Pupils make good progress in reading. They make quick progress in Reception with breaking words down into letters and sounds. Pupils have daily opportunities to read in class or in small groups. Well-structured teaching of phonics (the sounds letters represent in words) and regular reading at school and at home sustain the effective step-by-step development of pupils’ skills throughout the school.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs are taught well and make good progress. They are well supported by teaching assistants who work closely with class teachers to support individuals and clarify areas of potential difficulty, and to help pupils to work out solutions when they are given problems to solve.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Pupils who are eligible for support through the pupil premium funding make good progress because the school plans effective support to help them develop their literacy and numeracy skills. There were too few of these pupils in recent years for their attainment at the end of Key Stage 2 to be compared with that of their classmates without identifying individual pupils.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 The more-able pupils are making good progress. In Years 5 and 6, they are reaching the higher National Curriculum levels this year, and carrying out work at Level 6 in both English and mathematics.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Mathematical skills are reinforced especially well across lessons because pupils are able to talk and write confidently about what they have observed. However, although opportunities for pupils to consolidate their writing skills are generally well developed, there are not always enough in other subjects in all year groups.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 In literacy, teachers do not share with pupils examples of high-quality writing and they do not always support pupils to use correct technical words or high-quality creative language in lessons. This limits pupils’ learning and the quality of their written work.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teachers plan thoroughly to make sure that learning is interesting, that high-quality resources are available to pupils, and that work is set at the right level of difficulty for most pupils. Pupils who attend the before- and after-school clubs also benefit from the well-planned use of resources and activities that keep them purposefully busy and playing very sensibly with each other.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teachers and teaching assistants develop good relationships with pupils that gives them the confidence to learn. The activities staff plan captivate pupils’ attention, especially in their topic work. Pupils show great delight in being asked to work with each other and rise to their teachers’ high expectations. This contributes to pupils’ consistently good attitudes to their work.

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The quality of teaching is good

 A bright, stimulating and welcoming Reception area, coupled with effective teaching and care, ensures that the youngest children settle quickly to become enthusiastic learners. Adults are skilled at drawing on the children’s natural curiosity by designing imaginative and stimulating learning experiences. Young children sustain concentration and stick with a task for a long period.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teachers make good use of their subject knowledge and knowledge of pupils’ attainment levels to ensure that work is suitably demanding for all groups of pupils, including those capable of reaching higher levels. Good displays of pupils’ topic, writing and number work make classrooms bright and stimulating, and positive environments for learning.

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The quality of teaching is good

 In well-planned reading sessions, adults provide effective support for small groups of readers as they become more competent in the use of context clues and letter and sound relationships in their reading. As a result they read fluently and understand the wide range of texts that they read.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teachers ask questions effectively to check on pupils’ understanding so they can quickly reshape tasks when necessary and ensure that expectations for pupils’ learning continue to be strong. However, teachers do not always expect sufficient quality in the presentation of pupils’ work.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Marking in pupils’ books often praises their efforts, but it does not guide them enough on how to improve and teachers do not make sure pupils respond to comments made. Consequently, some of the misconceptions and mistakes made by pupils recur in subsequent work.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 The behaviour of pupils is good. They are welcoming to visitors and proud of their school, and their relationships with one another and with adults are very positive. As a result, the school atmosphere is calm, purposeful and productive.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 The school’s work to keep pupils safe and secure is good. The school undertook a safeguarding audit in January which confirmed a picture of a very safe school. Pupils are knowledgeable about personal safety. They say they feel safe in school. The school’s own parental questionnaire responses endorse this, and most of the parents who responded to Parent View also agreed.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils say that bullying is rare. They are fully aware of the different forms that bullying may take, such as cyber-bullying, pushing and name-calling. Pupils say that if bullying happens or if anything worries them they know they can talk to a member of staff and it will be quickly and effectively dealt with.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils’ enjoyment of school is reflected in their above-average attendance. The proportion of pupils who are persistently absent is low.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 The school works effectively to make sure pupils from all backgrounds and of all abilities have an equal opportunity to succeed, and rejects discrimination in all its forms.

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The leadership and management are good

 The very analytical and effective headteacher evaluates the school’s strengths and weaknesses very accurately, based on rigorous checks of teaching and pupils’ progress. He and other leaders use this information well to draw up very precise plans for improvement. As a result, both teaching and pupils’ achievement have been strengthened, indicating good capacity for further improvement.

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The leadership and management are good

 The shared subject leaders of English and mathematics undertake scrutiny of pupils’ work and interviews with pupils to assess the impact of the steps taken to secure improvement. Work done by subject leaders is reviewed termly. All areas, including the provision for disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs, are well led.

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The leadership and management are good

 The headteacher monitors teachers’ performance very effectively and identifies where improvements need to be made. Staff performance is suitably linked to pay rises and promotion, based on pupils’ achievement. Where teaching requires improvement, leaders provide appropriate individual support.

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The leadership and management are good

 Child protection and safeguarding have a high priority. Leaders ensure that national requirements are met and that the school site is a safe environment.

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The leadership and management are good

 Links with parents are good. Parents were largely positive about the school in conversation with the inspectors and in the online survey. The school sends out a regular newsletter. Parents have support sessions provided to help them address their children’s needs.

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The leadership and management are good

 The curriculum provides suitable opportunities for pupils to use and extend their literacy skills, and particularly their numeracy skills, and it promotes pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development effectively.

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The leadership and management are good

 The local authority has provided appropriately limited support for this good school, including a range of valued specialist support such as help for governors when recruiting the new headteacher.

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The leadership and management are good

 Primary school sports funding is being used effectively to extend the range of sporting activities available to pupils, to improve staff expertise and to encourage pupils to participate in sport in the community. It is helping pupils to develop healthier lifestyles.

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The leadership and management are good

 The governance of the school:  Governors possess a mix of appropriate skills and include people who know the local community well. Governors support the school by working with and challenging the headteacher. They review data about pupils’ progress and hold the school to account. Governors help to formulate plans for school improvement and set robust targets for the headteacher’s performance. They are accurately aware of its strengths and areas for improvement. They hold a clear overview of the quality of teaching and ensure that any salary awards are closely linked to the progress of pupils. Governors closely monitor the progress of pupils supported by the pupil premium to ensure that the money is used effectively. They are up to date with training in all their areas of responsibility and ensure that their statutory obligations are fully met.

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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 120811 Local authority Norfolk Inspection number 439592

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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 Community Age range of pupils 4–11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 81 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Christopher Ridout Headteacher Jack Russell Date of previous school inspection 10 June 2009 Telephone number 01328 701357 Fax number 01328 701082 Email address office@greatdunham.norfolk.sch.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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