Lingham Primary School

Lingham Primary School Townmeadow Lane, Moreton, Wirral, Merseyside, CH46 7UQ

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Inspection dates 30 September–1 October 2014

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Overall effectiveness

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

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

 Clear and determined leadership from the headteacher and the highly dedicated senior leaders and governors are the main reasons why teaching and pupils’ achievement have improved well since the last inspection.  From their starting points, all groups of pupils, including those who join during the school year, make good progress in reading, writing and mathematics.  Standards are above average in writing and mathematics and average in reading by the time pupils leave in Year 6.  The early years provision is a strength of the school, because children rapidly develop a love of learning.  The quality of teaching is good and an increasing amount is outstanding. Key to this is the excellent care and support provided by all the adults for pupils’ individual needs.  The behaviour of pupils is good. They are polite and respectful towards adults and one another.  Pupils say, and their parents agree, that they feel

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

safe and well-cared for in school.  The exciting curriculum and strong partnerships with local and international schools provide exceptionally well for pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development.  Subject leaders are fully involved in checking that pupils achieve as well as they can in all subjects of the curriculum.  All staff and governors are fully committed to making the school outstanding. Consequently, the school is well placed to continue to improve.

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It is not yet an outstanding school because

 Pupils, particularly the most able, do not consistently have enough opportunities in their learning to extend their reading, writing and mathematical skills in order to achieve the best they can.  Marking in books does not always guide pupils as to what they need to do to improve their learning further.  Attendance rates are below the national average.

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Information about this inspection

 The inspectors observed 18 lessons or parts of lessons. One lesson was observed jointly with the headteacher.  Meetings were held with senior leaders, staff, members of the governing body, a representative of the local authority as well as with groups of pupils.  The inspectors listened to pupils in Years 1, 4 and 6 read, and spoke informally to pupils during playtimes and lunchtimes.  They took account of the 30 parent responses received at the time of the inspection from the on-line questionnaire (Parent View) as well as the views of the parents that inspectors spoke to and those expressed through the school’s own parental survey.  Inspectors took account of the 24 responses to the staff questionnaire.

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Inspection team

Clare Henderson, Lead inspector Additional Inspector

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Information about this school

 The school is larger than the average-sized primary school.  The proportion of pupils disadvantaged and therefore eligible for the pupil premium is above average. (The pupil premium funding is additional funding for those pupils eligible for free school meals and those children who are looked after by the local authority.)  The proportion of disabled pupils or those with special educational needs supported through school action is below average.  The proportion of pupils supported at school action plus or with a statement of special educational needs is above average.  The proportion of pupils joining the school midway through the year is above average.  The school met the government’s floor standards, which are the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress, in 2013.  There is provision for two-year-old children within the school. This setting was inspected separately and the report can be found on the Ofsted website.

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Information about this school

 The school has gained the International Schools Award.  The school runs a breakfast club.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve pupils’ attainment and accelerate the progress they make by:  providing them all, and particularly the most able, with enough opportunities in their learning to extend their reading, writing and mathematical skills in order to achieve the best they can  ensuring that the marking of pupils’ work consistently shows them how to improve further.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Continue to work with pupils and their parents to improve pupils’ rates of attendance.

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The leadership and management are good

 Leaders' checks on the quality of teaching and performance management are effective. Staff are clear about the high standard of teaching and leadership that is expected from them. Teachers and leaders are given much support to enable them to raise the standard of their work. The quality of teaching has improved as a result.  Senior and subject leaders are confident and effective. They work well together as a team and share the headteacher's aspirations for the school. Senior leaders lead training in their subjects for staff and have introduced improvements to practice. Pupils’ achievement has improved as a result, particularly in phonics (the sounds that letters make).  Leaders, including subject leaders, regularly and accurately check the school’s strengths and areas for development. The school’s plan to bring about improvements is clearly successful as shown through the actions taken recently to improve teaching and pupils’ achievement.

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The leadership and management are good

 Leadership is good, but not outstanding, because achievement for the most-able pupils is not as good as it could be. This is because pupils do not have enough opportunities to extend their reading, writing and mathematical skills.  Pupils find the curriculum topics very exciting; they promote their love of learning well. The actions the school takes to develop pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural awareness is excellent. For example, through making totem poles based on North West Pacific native Indians, pupils learn about the history and cultures of others in the past. Lots of Olympics-inspired high-quality artwork on the theme of One World successfully links to school values of friendship and determination.  Partnerships with other schools through, for example, language festivals held at the school and video conference links with pupils in China, are very effective and have enabled the school to continue to

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The leadership and management are good

improve the quality of pupils’ experiences and achievement.  Sport funding is spent effectively on developing teachers' confidence and expertise in aspects of physical education. It is also spent well on enhancing pupils’ engagement in sports events run with local schools. As a result, pupils are developing healthier lifestyles.  The school’s safeguarding and child protection arrangements are thorough and meet statutory requirements. Staff and governors receive up-to-date training that helps them to ensure the effectiveness of the school’s work in this area.  The school works and communicates well with parents, for example, to help them support their children’s learning in reading, spelling and mathematics at home. However, it acknowledges that more work is needed with parents to raise pupils’ overall levels of attendance.  The local authority has provided very little support to this good school because it has confidence in the

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The leadership and management are good

leaders' ability to carry on making improvements.  The governance of the school:  The governing body’s checks on the school's work are well-organised and systematic. Governors engage in regular dialogue with subject leaders and scrutinise data about pupils’ achievement carefully and with understanding. They check the quality of teaching carefully through a range of activities, including visits to speak to teachers and to see pupils’ work for themselves. Governors check that performance management is used well to improve teaching, and that teachers get sufficient support to help them develop their practice. They check that the school’s finances are spent effectively. Governors share the headteacher’s high expectations. They have ensured that the pupil premium funding has been used successfully to provide additional support to enable the disadvantaged pupils to access the whole curriculum and to make good progress in their learning.

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Behaviour

 The behaviour of pupils is good.  The school’s good work in promoting equal opportunities and working against discrimination was seen in the nature of pupils’ behaviour towards one another.  Pupils take pride in their achievements, their work and their school. They demonstrate positive attitudes to learning, which contribute to the good progress that they make.  Pupils typically concentrate well in lessons, although a small number of pupils can lose focus when they are not sure what to do. They work and play happily and cooperatively.  Pupils are well behaved in the playground, during lunchtime and when travelling around the school. They are courteous, respectful and friendly towards adults and each other.  The school’s use of playground leaders, which involve older pupils looking after younger ones, promotes caring behaviour and a sense of responsibility.  The school manages pupils’ behaviour effectively, and communicates well about behavioural expectations.

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Behaviour

Pupils are keen to see that the school rules, which they have helped to establish, are followed.  School records show very few incidents of poor behaviour or bullying over time, and that any incidents that have occurred have been responded to well by the school.  Pupils say belonging to the school council helps their understanding and practice of democracy. Pupils are encouraged to consider and value other people’s opinions, feelings and identities.  The school prepares pupils well for future life through initiatives such as its ‘reading changes lives’, which encourages pupils to read and share their love of reading and books with children in Africa. Through belonging to the eco-group, pupils understand about their relationship with nature.

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Safety

 The school’s work to keep pupils safe and secure is good.  Pupils are taught about risk assessment and keeping safe in different situations. E-safety is promoted effectively. The school teaches pupils how to guard against bullying, including cyber-bullying and other forms of mistreatment. Pupils who talked to the inspectors said that they felt safe in the school and that there were ‘no problems’ with bullying.  Due to the school’s clear expectations, attendance levels have improved recently. However, over time they have been below average and the school recognises the need to do more to ensure that rates of attendance continue to rise.  An overwhelming majority of parents consider that the school keeps their children safe and manages pupils’ behaviour well.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Pupils typically enjoy their learning and show good levels of concentration and engagement in their lessons. Teachers and pupils relate together well. They treat each other respectfully. Teachers value their pupils highly.  Teachers have strong subject knowledge. This includes specialist teachers and teaching assistants, for instance, for physical education or to learn French or Mandarin. This ensures that pupils make good progress in their learning in these subjects.  Questioning is used effectively to test and extend pupils’ knowledge and skills. Teachers generally use information about how well pupils have learnt to plan future work at the right level for them. However, they do not always plan enough opportunities for pupils, especially the most able, which really encourage them to think hard about their learning.  Writing is taught well and pupils make good progress in their time in the school. A contributing factor is

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The quality of teaching is good

the many opportunities provided for pupils to practise their writing skills in topic work, such as reporting on trips and residential visits undertaken. As a result, they develop a high level of confidence and skills in writing and reporting to an audience. However, this work does not always fully extend the writing skills of all pupils and, particularly, the most able and enable them to achieve their best.  The teaching of mathematics is good. Pupils are provided with additional support and activities which stretch their mathematical skills effectively, because they have opportunities to apply their numeracy skills in the other subjects they study. However, the most able are not always fully challenged to tackle tasks which make them reason problems out for themselves.  A strong feature of teaching is the contribution made by the skilled teaching assistants. They provide effective support for pupils who are disabled, have special educational needs or are disadvantaged. This

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The quality of teaching is good

targeted and nurturing support is provided without stifling pupils’ imagination and creativity and enables them to make good progress.  Marking systems are of a good quality overall and are often used effectively by teachers. However, this is not fully consistent. In some year groups, work in pupils’ books is not always marked in a way that provides them with helpful advice to extend their learning further.  Parents overwhelmingly believe that their children are taught well.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Achievement is good. All pupils make good progress from their starting points. This clearly demonstrates the school’s commitment to, and success in, tackling discrimination and promoting equality of opportunity for all pupils.  Pupils are beginning Year 1 with a better level of development this year. In previous years, this has varied and in some years they have started in Year 1 with skills below those typical for their age.  In 2013, in the Year 2 national tests standards in reading, writing and mathematics were below average for all pupils, including the most able. In 2014, as the result of improvements to teaching and learning, standards rose and were close to the national average.  At the end of Year 6, standards were average in reading and above average in writing and mathematics in the national tests in 2013 and 2014. Although the standards achieved in the Year 2 and Year 6 tests represented good progress from pupils’ starting points, some pupils and, particularly the most able, did

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The achievement of pupils is good

not achieve as well as they could.  The most-able pupils currently in Years 1 to 6 make good, rather than outstanding, progress in their learning in reading, writing and mathematics. This is because they do not consistently have enough opportunities to extend their reading, writing and mathematical skills and achieve the best they can.  In 2013 and 2014, an above average proportion of pupils reached the expected standard in the Year 1 national screening check on their knowledge of phonics (letters and the sounds they make).  In 2014, standards of reading improved in all year groups with an increasing proportion of pupils achieving the expected level in Year 2 and Year 6. This is due to a wider range of opportunities being provided now for pupils to practise their reading and to apply the skills learnt within their writing in subjects such as science and history.  The school acknowledges that there is more of this work to be done to ensure that pupils’ achievement in

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The achievement of pupils is good

reading continues to improve, particularly at the higher levels for the most-able pupils.  Pupils in Year 1 to Year 6 make good progress in mathematics because they have time every day to practise their multiplication tables and use them in real-life problem-solving activities.  Pupils who join the school during the school year make a similarly good rate of progress to that of their classmates. This is due to the good support provided to meet their individual learning needs.  Disabled pupils and those with special educational needs make good progress in their learning. This is because of the effective additional support and guidance given by teachers and teaching assistants.  The gap in average point scores between disadvantaged pupils and other pupils nationally at the end of Key Stage 2 in 2013 was one term in writing and mathematics, and one year in reading. The gaps between these pupils and others in the school in 2013 were two terms in reading, writing and

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The achievement of pupils is good

mathematics. Currently the gaps are closing and, for a large proportion, there is no gap between the disadvantaged pupils and other pupils in the school.

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The early years provision is good

 The overall quality of the early years provision is good. Most children begin school with skills that are below and often significantly below those typical for their age. They make a good start in the Nursery class and quickly settle because of the strong links established with families and pre-school settings prior to the children starting school. As a result, children settle happily, behave well and enjoy the excellent provision.  Children are safe and cared for well. They rapidly learn to share and to get along with each other. During the inspection, which was in the first few weeks in school for many children, they were observed playing happily with each other in the mud kitchen or using a metal detector to search for the right key to open the mysterious box they discovered in the outdoor area. ‘Let’s try this one’ suggested one boy.  Learning is firmly based around children’s interests. All the adults skilfully build on these to extend

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The early years provision is good

children’s speaking, listening and mathematical skills, as well as their overall confidence. They do this with activities such as making castles and houses from boxes and crates, or drawing and writing about the recent afternoon at the movies, which had taken place in the Reception class.  Children show good progress in developing confidence and concentration skills as they begin to explore letters and sounds and develop their reading and writing skills. However, opportunities are missed to extend children’s interest in reading fully and extend these skills further by giving reading and writing a high enough prominence while children are playing outdoors.  Children’s physical skills and their health and well-being are developed well through a wide range of activities. Learning to ride bicycles, to climb and to follow instructions all contribute well to this development.  The early years is led and managed well. The leader and the early years team are committed and

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The early years provision is good

focussed well on improvements. They have a shared, accurate understanding of current strengths within the provision and areas for development to drive forward improvements well. An increasing proportion of children attain a good level of development as a result.

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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 105005 Local authority Wirral Inspection number 449134

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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 3–11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 326 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Ceri Jones Headteacher Philippa Malcolm Date of previous school inspection 5 May 2011 Telephone number 0151 677 5381 Fax number 0151 677 9347 Email address schooloffice@lingham.wirral.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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