Waltham Leas Primary Academy

Waltham Leas Primary Academy Manor Drive, Waltham, Lincolnshire, DN37 0NU

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Overall effectiveness

Previous inspection: Not previously inspected as an academy 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

 Pupils in all year groups make good progress from their individual starting points. Many pupils make more than the progress expected of them, particularly in reading.  When children start school in the early years they settle in quickly and make good progress because they are given lots of exciting activities to take part in.  Pupils are keen to learn because the curriculum is exciting for them and teachers plan lessons that engage and motivate them. Visits and visitors to the school enrich this further.  The teaching of writing has improved rapidly over the last year. Pupils’ written work is good and they enjoy writing, as they are given lots of opportunities to write across the curriculum. Pupils are excited about writing and want to do well.  School leaders carefully check the progress of each pupil and quickly put support in place where it is needed for pupils to catch up.  Behaviour and safety are good and pupils are

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

keen to learn. They listen well to one another and to adults.  The school is improving quickly because all adults are determined that pupils will learn as much as they can do. Staff want pupils to enjoy learning and be proud of their achievements. Leaders and governors make their expectations clear. Leaders help teachers to make sure that all pupils learn well.  Relationships are outstanding throughout the school. Adults and pupils show great respect for one another. Staff and pupils say they feel valued by school leaders.  The whole school environment is impeccably presented. All staff and pupils are proud to be part of the school and they care for it exceptionally well. It is clean and tidy and there are some wonderful displays of pupils’ work, particularly in the early years.  School leaders and governors know the school well and have high aspirations. Governors have a good range of individual skills and these are fully used to

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

support and challenge the school as well as they possibly can do.

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It is not yet an outstanding school because

 Teachers do not always give pupils clear enough guidance about how to improve their work. Pupils do not always understand which parts of their work are particularly successful.  School leaders and governors do not have clear enough ways of measuring the impact of their actions. There is not always a common understanding of whether or not an action has been implemented to full effect.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors observed a good number of lessons, three of which were observed jointly with the deputy headteacher or the headteacher. Inspectors also observed break times and listened to pupils reading.  Meetings were held with the headteacher, school staff, groups of pupils, the Chair of the Governing Body and four governors and a local authority school improvement adviser.  To ascertain parents’ opinions inspectors took account of 44 responses to the online questionnaire (Parent View) and 1 telephone call. Inspectors also spoke to parents at the school.  Inspectors received 12 completed staff questionnaires.  A number of school documents were examined. These included information about pupils’ progress, school action plans, documents used by the school to measure its own performance, and records of reports to the governing body. The work in pupils’ books and records relating to the quality of teaching, behaviour,

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Information about this inspection

attendance and safeguarding were also scrutinised.

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Inspection team

Karen Foster, Lead inspector Additional Inspector

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Information about this school

 Waltham Leas Primary Academy is a larger than average size primary school. It converted to become an academy school on 1 st January 2012 and is a single academy. When its predecessor school, Waltham Leas Primary School, was last inspected by Ofsted, it was judged to be good overall.  Most pupils are of White British heritage.  The proportion of disabled pupils and those with special educational needs supported at school action, school action plus, or with a statement of special educational needs, is similar to that found in most schools.  The proportion of disadvantaged pupils and therefore supported through the pupil premium funding is below average. (The pupil premium is additional government funding to provide extra support for pupils known to be eligible for free school meals or for children in the care of the local authority).  Children enter the school in the early years and attend school full time.

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Information about this school

 The school meets the government’s current floor standards, which are the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve teaching so that the overall quality is outstanding and leads to pupils making outstanding progress by:  making sure that marking and feedback is consistently good across year groups so that all pupils always know what they need to do to improve their work and understand where they have done particularly well.  Improve leadership and management so that the overall quality is outstanding by:  making sure that actions that the school agrees to take to improve what it offers are recorded in such a way that enables the impact to be measured accurately so that all staff and governors have a common understanding of them and can agree when these have been completed successfully.

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The leadership and management are good

 The headteacher and deputy headteacher work seamlessly together to improve standards and achievement in the school. Their effective and determined action has rapidly improved both the quality and quantity of writing across the school. They have high ambitions for the school and this is shared by all staff and pupils.  The headteacher has designed an excellent system for checking the progress that pupils make. This is easy to use and gives clear indications of where the school has been successful in putting in support and where further support may be needed. This is used to guide governors and leaders in their planning. It is used by all staff to help with their lesson planning.  School leaders have accurately identified the areas to improve and regularly check the progress pupils are making. They meet frequently with teachers to see how they can all work together to support further improvements in pupils’ achievement.

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The leadership and management are good

 Leaders meet with teachers individually and advise them well on how to continually improve their teaching. Teachers know what they need to do each year and understand that they are accountable for the progress and achievement of their pupils.  The headteacher has recently appointed teachers to new posts of year group leaders. Although the impact of this has yet to be seen, they are very clear about their roles and fully understand the actions they need to take in order to make the school outstanding.  The deputy headteacher has led the review of the curriculum effectively. The school now provides an exciting and motivating curriculum, which makes full use of the local environment and prepares pupils well for life in modern Britain. Links between subjects are maximised and the displays of a range of cultures and subjects around the school support this. The pupils are involved in international weeks and the school

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The leadership and management are good

is a centre of excellence for financial training.  The school works well in partnership with other schools and the local authority. It has had effective support from all of these partnerships and has also given support to other schools. The local authority has an accurate view of the school’s performance and the influence of the senior leaders on achievement.  Subjects of the curriculum are led and managed well by leaders who know the strengths of the staff and where, if necessary, any additional support is needed. They are beginning to use data to inform these decisions.  Leadership of special educational needs is good. This is a shared responsibility between the deputy head and a teacher. They have an action plan in place to further improve provision for the pupils and this has clearly identified areas to improve.  The pupil premium funding is used effectively to improve the learning and achievement of those eligible

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The leadership and management are good

for it. Leaders and teachers check that the provision for these pupils is still enabling them to achieve as well as other pupils.  Statutory requirements relating to safeguarding and equality of opportunity are met and arrangements for both are good.  The new primary school sport fund is used to good effect. Pupils enjoy taking part in lessons in different sports and competing with other schools. There is a good range of clubs for pupils to attend. Pupils and staff also benefit from training from specialist sports coaching paid for through the funding.  Senior leaders ensure that pupils are taught about health education through the wider curriculum.  Senior leaders do not have clear enough ways of measuring the impact of their actions. They do not always have direct links that will tell them how their actions will improve progress for pupils.  The governance of the school:  Governors provide good challenge and support to the school. They know the school well and how well it

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The leadership and management are good

is doing compared with others. They use their own individual skills to ensure that they get best value for the pupils. The Chair of Governors calls into school most days and other governors are regular visitors. They have high ambitions for the school and are fully involved in planning for the future.  Governors know how the pupil premium funding has been spent. They know that this has been spent well and that it has significantly improved the achievement and progress of all the pupils entitled to this funding.  Governors have reviewed the pay and performance management policy. They are clear about the links between pay and performance for all staff. They are given good information about the quality of teaching.

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Behaviour

 The behaviour of pupils is good.  Pupils’ attitudes in lessons, around school and at playtimes are good. Pupils say they enjoy school and that everyone gets on well. They understand the consequences of not behaving well but say that almost all pupils behave well every day.  They are keen to learn and listen carefully to the teachers and to one another. As a result, they work well in all lessons. In one lesson, in Year 2, pupils were sharing a large sheet of paper and, although they had a pen each, they were keen to make sure that the whole group could see the sheet and contribute.  Pupils show respect for adults and one another, even when not being directly supervised. In Year 6, pupils sometimes mark the work of other pupils. This is done sensitively and carefully.  Pupils are proud of their school and their achievements. Work is well presented throughout the school. Examples of good and outstanding achievements across the curriculum are displayed well around the

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Behaviour

school and pupils are proud to have them on display.  Pupils say they enjoy their lessons and they are enthusiastic when talking to their partners or other adults about their ideas. In the early years, children chatted excitedly to one another while pouring water from a watering can into a large water tray to make bubbles. They joked with the inspector about the water being warm and squealed with delight when the inspector put her hand in and found it to be very cold.  Parents say the behaviour of pupils is good. A small minority of parents expressed concerns on the online questionnaire (Parent View), but parents spoken to during the inspection said they have no concerns about behaviour and pupils agree with them. Pupils’ attitude to learning in lessons is mainly good, but there are some lessons where pupils do not always try as hard as they could do when they are not being spoken to by adults.  Pupils say that bullying is very rare. They know that they can tell an adult if they are worried about

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Behaviour

anything. They do not have any concerns about name-calling.  Pupils take pride in their appearance and look after the school well. The school environment is impeccable and this encourages pupils to treat it respectfully. Resources are good and pupils use them carefully.  The attendance of pupils is good and they are rarely late for school.

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Safety

 The school’s work to keep pupils safe and secure is good. There are good systems and routines in place to keep pupils safe. Pupils say they feel safe both inside school and in the school grounds.  Safe use of the Internet and other social networking devices is given a high priority in school. There is a lot of evidence on the school website and around the school of training for pupils in this. Although some pupils find this area difficult to explain, they are aware of not giving personal details out to others and the reasons why this is important, saying, ‘they could come to your house.’

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The quality of teaching is good

 The quality of teaching is good. Teachers and assistants work well together. In some classes the assistants are highly skilled in moving the learning on rapidly. They encourage and guide pupils well through the lessons.  Those parents who expressed an opinion agree that their child is well taught, makes good progress and has appropriate homework.  Teachers use the exciting curriculum to motivate pupils. Pupils in both Year 2 classes had been for a memorable walk around the school grounds. Subsequently, they had been asked to think about senses. Pupils were excited about this, even though they said they got wet. The experience supported the learning effectively and one pupil said ‘I can see fluttery, wet leaves.’  Pupils take an active part in lessons. In a lesson with Year 6 pupils, the teacher used ‘hot-seating’ where two pupils took the role of different characters and had a discussion, sharing their views with the class.

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The quality of teaching is good

This supported the writing of a considered argument on creation myths. Pupils were so motivated that they said it was just as easy to write the argument as it was to discuss it.  Pupils enjoy reading and talk about authors they particularly enjoy. Reading skills are good because younger pupils are given lots of well planned support to learn about the sounds letters make (phonics). The highly effective teaching of phonics ensures that pupils are able to attempt to read unfamiliar words confidently. Reading is given a very high priority in school.  The teaching of spelling is good and as a result of this, where pupils spell words incorrectly they are almost always written how they sound.  The quality of writing in pupils’ books is at least good and sometimes, because pupils know exactly how to improve their work, it is outstanding. This has improved rapidly over the last year. The rich curriculum

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The quality of teaching is good

provides lots of opportunities for pupils to write about a wide variety of different topics. Pupils have lessons about writing skills and these help them to improve their written work.  Pupils enjoy mathematics, particularly where they are actively participating in lessons. In a lesson in Year 1 pupils enjoyed it when the teacher turned part of the lesson into a competition between girls and boys to count on and back in tens.  Teachers plan lessons that meet the learning needs of the most-able pupils and as a result, their progress is improving. Results from the end of the school year in 2014 show that this is consistent across the school, where 60% reached a level higher than they were expected to do.  The quality of marking of pupils’ work is variable. Although there are some outstanding examples, in writing for example, where pupils are clear about what they have done well and how they can do better,

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The quality of teaching is good

there are too many pieces of work where marking and advice are limited to ticks, particularly in mathematics and topic work.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Pupils make at least good progress overall and a few make outstanding progress. They are well prepared for the next stage of their education.  Across the school pupils of all abilities make good progress in reading, writing and mathematics. Adults make sure that pupils have plenty of opportunities to read and write. This has contributed to the rapid improvements made in how well pupils write.  Children start the school in the early years with knowledge and understanding that are typical for their age. They leave the early years with skills above those typically expected. Children do well here because staff are skilled in supporting them and resources are varied and of good quality. Relationships are strong and are built up very quickly. This means children are confident to try out new things and willing to talk to teachers, assistants and visitors about their learning and achievements.  In 2013 the proportion of pupils who reached the expected standard in the Year 1 national phonics check

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The achievement of pupils is good

was above average. In 2014 it was well-above average with almost all pupils reaching the required level. The school received a letter of congratulations from the Schools’ Minister for achieving these results.  Achievement in Key Stage 1 is above that expected nationally in reading, writing and mathematics. School data show that all groups of pupils are making good and sometimes outstanding progress through the key stage. This is confirmed by lesson observations and work in books.  In Key Stage 2 in 2013 pupils’ achievement in reading and mathematics was similar to that expected nationally. Achievement in writing was below that expected nationally. In 2014 achievement improved in reading and writing to just above that expected nationally. For pupils achieving higher levels in the end of key stage tests pupils achieved significantly better than other pupils nationally in reading.  Progress for all pupils in Key Stage 2 in 2014 was good in reading and writing and outstanding in

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The achievement of pupils is good

mathematics from where they were at the end of Key Stage 1 to leaving at the end of Key Stage 2.  Disabled pupils and those with special educational needs make good progress in reading, writing and mathematics, although the small number of these pupils makes national data comparisons difficult.  Disadvantaged pupils supported through the pupil premium funding were 6 months behind other pupils in the school in reading; in writing they were 4 months behind and in mathematics 10 months behind. However, the progress of these pupils was better than the progress of other pupils in the school because the school has provided a lot of additional support to close the gaps between the groups.  Achievement of pupils eligible for pupil premium funding across the school is at least good. In 2014 the school analysed progress data from each year group in reading, writing and mathematics. This showed that progress was better than the progress of other pupils in almost all of the areas, other than Year 4

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The achievement of pupils is good

writing and Year 3 mathematics. This is as a result of good use of the additional funding to target support exactly where it is needed.  The most-able pupils are making good progress and achieving well throughout the school. Provision for them is improving and planning shows additional challenge is provided for them. Leaders check that teaching is helping them to do well. The most-able pupils achieved particularly well in reading at the end of Key Stage 2 in 2014. In 2013 the most-able pupils achieved as well as other schools nationally. In 2014 they were significantly above other schools nationally.

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The early years provision is good

 Almost all children, including those with disabilities and special educational needs, make good progress from their starting points. When children enter the school they have skills and knowledge typically expected for their age.  The children develop the skills they need ready for entering Key Stage 1. Links with Year 1 are strong and teachers spend time discussing the needs of individual children. Teachers make sure that children can read, write and count by the time they leave early years.  Adults talk to the children about their learning and encourage children to talk to adults and other children. The children are confident at speaking and clear about class rules. During the inspection a boy came over to the inspector. He was carrying a basket of buns and held them out so they could be seen. ‘They are real but you are not allowed to eat them!’  The children are excited and motivated by all the activities. These have been carefully planned so that no

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The early years provision is good

learning time is lost. Children engage with all the equipment and enjoy being outside as much as being inside. There are lots of opportunities for physical development. In one lesson children were excitedly digging up real coins and sorting them.  Children get on well together and are taught what is right and wrong. They behave well and understand about taking turns. They take care of the equipment put out for them.  Adults all contribute to deciding how well children are doing and this is recorded well. Adults check what children can do when they start school and then check regularly throughout the year and again at the end of the year. The accuracy of these checks has been confirmed by the local authority. As a result, staff have an accurate picture of how well each child is progressing.  Staff continually add challenge to learning activities to get the best from each child, including the most

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The early years provision is good

able. For example, on occasions staff gently expose the most-able children to activities more typical of Key Stage 1 children.  They take into consideration what the children will be doing in Key Stage 1. Children respond to this well.  Children are safe and adults regularly check that the learning environment is kept safe.  Leadership of the early years is good. The leader knows the children well and has high aspirations for each of them. She plans work and activities that will interest and support their personal development and learning needs well.

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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 137760 Local authority North East Lincolnshire Inspection number 449204

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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 Academy converter Age range of pupils 5–11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 420 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair I Appleton M.B.E. Headteacher Robert Beel Date of previous school inspection Not previously inspected as an academy Telephone number 01472 822419 Fax number 01472 821992 Email address office@walthamleas.net 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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