Wood Green Junior School

Wood Green Junior School Hobs Road, Wednesbury, WS10 9BW

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Overall effectiveness

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

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

 Pupils are not reaching high enough standards in subjects beyond English and mathematics.  Teaching in subjects such as science, history and geography has not been carried out effectively enough for pupils to make good progress.  Pupils’ work across all year groups in a wide range of subjects shows that they do not acquire knowledge or develop understanding quickly and securely.  Literacy and numeracy skills have not been developed effectively in other subjects. Spelling mistakes and grammatical errors too often go uncorrected.  Disadvantaged pupils’ attainment is below that of other pupils, although the gap is now narrowing due to more systematic assessment and checking.  Pupils are not always given clear enough guidance on how to improve their work. Teachers do not always ensure that pupils act upon the corrections, improvements or guidance that are given.  Poor presentation and scruffy handwriting are

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

accepted in mathematics and topic work, in contrast to pupils’ work in literacy.

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The school has the following strengths

 The headteacher sets high standards for teaching and pupils’ progress. Her determined leadership, supported by other leaders and governors, has ensured that this is an improving school.  Good leadership has had a positive effect on improving the quality of teaching since the previous inspection.  Pupils’ attainment and progress in reading, writing and mathematics improved in 2014 from the results in 2013.  The school promotes pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development effectively.  There is a positive climate for learning evident in the classrooms. Pupils work well together and cooperate happily with each other.  The school manages behaviour well. It teaches pupils how to keep themselves safe. A large majority of parents consider their children to be happy, safe and well looked after.  The governors accurately assess the school’s performance and use the information to provide a good degree of support and challenge to the

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Information about this inspection

 The school’s improvement plan, assessment records and tracking of pupils’ progress, self-evaluation and monitoring documents and teachers’ performance management procedures were evaluated.  The inspectors assessed the quality of teaching by observing lessons, looking at pupils’ work and talking to the pupils, the headteacher and other leaders.  Discussions were held with the headteacher, groups of pupils, members of the leadership team, and four members of the governing body.  The inspector discussed the school’s performance and capacity for improvement with a representative from the local authority.  The inspectors took account of the 27 responses to the online questionnaire for parents (Parent View) and emails submitted during the inspection. The inspectors also spoke informally to parents as they brought their children to school.  The inspectors reviewed the records relating to behaviour, attendance and safeguarding.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors heard pupils read, met with two groups of pupils and spoke to pupils informally.  Policies, procedures and records for the safeguarding of pupils were scrutinised.  Responses to the inspection questionnaire were received from 34 staff and their views taken into account.

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Inspection team

Michael Appleby, Lead inspector Additional Inspector

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Information about this school

 Wood Green Junior School is an average-sized junior school. It is federated with Albert Pritchard Infant School and has the same executive headteacher.  The very large majority of pupils are from White British backgrounds.  An above-average proportion of the pupils are eligible for the pupil premium, which provides additional funding for pupils who are in local authority care or known to be eligible for free school meals.  The proportion of pupils supported at school action is above the national average. The proportion supported at school action plus or assessed with a statement of special educational needs is above average.  Pupils are taught in ability sets for mathematics and writing in Year 5 and Year 6.  The school did not meet the government’s floor standards, which set the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress, in 2013 but did in 2014.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve teaching across the school in all subjects, so all groups of pupils make the best possible progress, by ensuring that:  work in all subjects accurately reflects pupils’ abilities, effectively challenges pupils and engages them fully in learning  all staff show high expectations of pupils’ achievement, including the presentation of their work  teachers mark and correct errors in pupils’ work consistently well  pupils act on advice given by teachers through marking.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve the effectiveness of subject leaders by ensuring that they plan for, monitor and assess the development of reading and writing skills in their subjects.

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The leadership and management are good

 The headteacher is providing very strong and effective leadership. She has successfully introduced demanding and effective systems to improve the quality of teaching and learning. She is being well supported by the deputy headteacher, senior leaders and governors.

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The leadership and management are good

 Leadership has been strengthened considerably since the previous inspection. Senior and middle leaders are playing an increasingly important role in improving the quality of teaching and pupils’ achievement. Although some are only recently appointed they are already showing the potential to be effective leaders and bring about the further improvements the school needs to make.

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The leadership and management are good

 The quality of teaching has improved because leaders and governors check it regularly and provide additional support and training where necessary, including deciding whether pay increases are to be awarded. Teachers have risen to the challenge, as is evident in the improvement in pupils’ attainment and progress results in reading, writing and mathematics in 2014.

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The leadership and management are good

 The systems for checking pupils’ progress are robust and comprehensive. The school regularly reviews the data to check the progress of individual pupils and to identify any areas of underachievement and then to provide additional support if required.

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The leadership and management are good

 The school has developed a broad, balanced and comprehensive curriculum plan which was introduced at the beginning of term. All subjects are carefully planned to enable pupils to learn the subject skills in a systematic and progressive way. This new curriculum will be linked to a new assessment system that is being developed with a cluster of other local schools.

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The leadership and management are good

 Safeguarding procedures and policies to protect pupils are effective and meet statutory requirements. The site is safe and building security is effective. Appropriate audits and risk assessments are conducted and action taken if a concern arises.

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The leadership and management are good

 The school has used the pupil premium funding effectively to employ teaching and other staff who have focused on giving support to eligible pupils who are identified as falling behind and in need of more individual or small group teaching. This has been particularly effective in mathematics. The allocation of the funding is discussed and agreed by the headteacher and the governors.

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The leadership and management are good

 The school has made good use of the new primary sport funding to provide additional sporting activities including, for example, golf, dance and football. As a result, more pupils take part in physical activities and are developing new skills in a range of sports. They are having more opportunities to take part in inter- school competitions. In addition, specialists work alongside teachers to coach and develop their skills in teaching physical education. This is contributing effectively to developing healthy lifestyles and the physical well-being of pupils.

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The leadership and management are good

 Following the previous inspection in 2012, the school has benefited from very effective and valuable support from the local authority to raise pupils’ achievement in English and mathematics and to improve the quality of teaching and learning.

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The leadership and management are good

 The governance of the school:  The work of the governing body has improved since the previous inspection. Governors have worked closely with the headteacher to evaluate the school’s performance and make sure that the right things are being done to bring about improvement, setting challenging targets.  Governors have a good understanding of the information about pupils’ progress and of how the school is doing compared to similar schools nationally. They have a clear picture of the quality of teaching, and ensure that pay rewards for both teachers and the headteacher are closely related to performance. During the past 18 months they have worked closely with the headteacher to tackle the underperformance of several teachers.  Governors manage the school budget effectively, including any extra government funding such as for that for primary school sports, and check that money is spent to positive effect. They know that the

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The leadership and management are good

pupil premium has helped to close attainment gaps in mathematics, reading and writing.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 The behaviour of pupils is good. They are eager to learn and enjoy most of the teaching they receive. Pupils work well together and cooperate happily with each other. Their positive attitudes to learning are contributing to the improving progress they are making.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Playtimes are harmonious and pupils from all backgrounds get on well with each other. Lunchtimes are calm and orderly. Some pupils take responsibility to keep the playground tidy and free of litter.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 The behaviour policy is understood and implemented consistently well by all staff including midday supervisors, who are fully involved in its implementation. As a result, pupils play happily together at breaks and lunch-times, enjoying a range of physical activities and each other’s company.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Parental responses to the online questionnaire show that a small minority have concerns about behaviour and bullying. When questioned, however, pupils said that the behaviour of most pupils is good most of the time. Very little misbehaviour was observed during the inspection.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Attendance has been improved through the effective actions taken by the school. It was 96.5% for 2014, which is broadly in line with the national average.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 The support provided for the most vulnerable pupils is a strength. Highly committed staff engage with a range of other agencies to ensure pupils and their families receive the support they need. As a result of this work and the robust yet caring approach, the number of exclusions and ‘sanction’ sessions has reduced significantly.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 The school’s work to keep pupils safe and secure is good. Its safeguarding procedures are clearly understood by all staff and regular training ensures this remains a high priority. Good site security and good maintenance ensure that the environment provided for pupils is safe and attractive.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils say they feel safe at school and this view is shared by the staff and parents. Pupils understand the different forms bullying can take, but are clear that very little or no bullying happens. Pupils understand very well how to keep themselves safe when using the internet and on the roads. They enjoy and learn from the responsibilities they are given, which include such roles as class ambassadors, eco-councillors and school councillors.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 The before-school and after-school clubs enhance learning for those who attend. These sessions, in a caring and secure setting, offer a range of activities enjoyed by the pupils.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 Teachers have not ensured that pupils make consistently good progress over time, or across a wide range of subjects. Lessons have not deepened knowledge or enabled pupils to develop their skills sufficiently well.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 Over time, the teaching in subjects other than English and mathematics has not been good enough to enable pupils to make the progress they should, particularly the more-able pupils. Teachers do not always provide activities which challenge and motivate pupils in these subjects. Sometimes pupils are all given the same task, with no account being taken of the different ability of pupils, and consequently progress is held back for groups who find the task too easy or too hard.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 Teachers do not routinely encourage pupils to apply the skills they were learning in literacy or mathematics in other subjects such as history, geography or science. Teachers’ marking in topic work does not direct pupils to correct errors in spelling or grammar. Marking is often only a tick or stamped as ‘target achieved’. Work in mathematics shows teachers’ expectations regarding pupils’ presentation to be too low, as poor number formation and untidy setting out continue over time.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 Phonics (letters and their sounds) has not been systematically taught to Year 3 or Year 4 pupils and this has held back their progress in reading and writing. Since the beginning of term, phonics is being taught more effectively to these year groups.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 Teachers’ marking of pupils’ work by teachers is not always helpful. Not all pupils are given clear enough guidance or feedback that would enable them to make faster progress. Even when marking is clear, teachers do not always ensure that pupils do the corrections or act on the advice. The new marking policy is helping to address this.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 A majority of parents who responded to Parent View feel that their child does not get appropriate homework. The school has taken steps to improve this.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 The assessment of pupils’ progress in reading, writing and mathematics has improved since the introduction of a new system together with regular checking for accuracy of assessments. Meetings to discuss pupils’ progress that take place every three weeks, together with frequent reviews of pupils’ work, are ensuring that the progress of all pupils is being carefully checked by teachers and leaders.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 Pupils demonstrate positive attitudes to learning in their lessons. Teachers have good relationships with pupils and manage them well. Teachers use displays very effectively to support learning and to celebrate good work.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 Pupils who are disabled or have special educational needs benefit from additional support which is closely matched to their individual needs. This enables them to take a full part in lessons and, together with extra help outside lessons, contributes to their good progress and demonstrates the school’s commitment to equality of opportunity.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 Pupils are very positive about how they enjoy the teaching they receive, and this is supported by a large majority of parents. In a Year 5 lesson the pupils were enjoying planning their own adventure for the characters from The Chronicles of Narnia by CS Lewis.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 Pupils receive effective support from teaching assistants, both in the classroom and when small groups are taken away from the classroom for focused work. This helps them to make good progress and build confidence in themselves as learners.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 Pupils’ work shows that they do not acquire knowledge or understanding quickly and securely in a wide range of subjects, so they are not as well prepared for the next stage of their education as they should be.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 Pupils do develop appropriate skills in reading, writing and mathematics, but do not apply them consistently well in other subjects. The progress made by pupils in these other subjects was judged to be below that expected because the work given to them was often too easy. The quality of work seen was often poor.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 The proportion of pupils achieving Level 4 or above in 2013 was significantly below the national average for writing and mathematics, and at Level 5 results were significantly below the national average for reading, writing and mathematics. In 2014 the proportions of pupils attaining Level 4 and 5 increased for reading, writing and mathematics.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 Pupils’ progress in 2013 was lower than the national average and significantly so in writing. In 2014 the progress made by pupils has improved considerably for pupils of all abilities. The proportion of pupils reaching the higher levels of attainment in reading, writing and mathematics also improved in 2014.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 In the Year 6 national assessments in 2013, the attainment of disadvantaged pupils was one term behind other groups in the school in writing and nearly two terms behind in mathematics. Their attainment was two terms behind all pupils nationally in reading, and three terms behind in writing and mathematics.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 In 2014 the attainment gap remained similar for reading and writing but was reduced in mathematics. The progress made by disadvantaged pupils at the end of Key Stage 2 improved in reading, writing and mathematics to be closer to that of other pupils in school.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 The gap between the attainment of boys and girls that existed in 2013 for Level 4 reading and writing was closed in 2014. Boys’ achievement is now much closer to that of the girls in reading and writing.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 The progress of the most able pupils in 2013 was below that expected, but this improved in 2014, particularly in reading and writing.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 Disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs make good progress because their needs are carefully assessed and monitored, and the pupils get the support they need to achieve well.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 Current pupils’ work in their writing books shows that it is of a good standard across all year groups.

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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 failing

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Grade Judgement Description

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 103913 Local authority Sandwell Inspection number 442540

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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 Junior School category Community Age range of pupils 7–11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 240 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Lesley Turner Headteacher Carla Clarke Date of previous school inspection 4 October 2012 Telephone number 0121 556 0377 Fax number 0121 556 0630 Email address carla.clarke1@woodgreen-jun.sandwell.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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