Selby, Longman's Hill Community Primary School

Selby, Longman’s Hill Community Primary School Myrtle Avenue, Brayton, Selby, North Yorkshire, YO8 9BG

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Overall effectiveness

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

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

 As a result of weaker teaching in the past, the achievement of pupils at Key Stage 2 has declined since the last inspection. Overall standards in reading, writing and mathematics were below average at the end of Year 6 in 2014.  Pupils, and children in the early years, are not always challenged sufficiently in the work they do to ensure that they achieve as well as they should, particularly in their reading.  Some disadvantaged pupils and pupils who have special educational needs, particularly those in Key Stage 2, do not make the gains they should because they are not always supported effectively.  Teaching is not good because work is not always set at the right level of difficulty for all pupils and teachers’ marking does not always provide pupils with the help they need to improve their work successfully.  Occasionally, when teaching does not challenge them sufficiently, a few pupils lose interest and go

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

off task and so achieve little.  With the high turnover of staff since 2013, leaders, including subject leaders have not yet had sufficient impact on securing consistently good teaching and thus raising standards in their areas of responsibility.  Governors have only recently begun to question the school’s performance and hold staff to account for the performance of the school and pupils’ achievement.

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The school has the following strengths

 The headteacher provides strong leadership. She is driving school improvement urgently and successfully so that all pupils can achieve well. She has tackled inadequate teaching robustly.  Standards at the end of Year 2 improved in 2014 to above average, and the teaching of phonics (letters and the sounds they make) is now good.  Pupils’ attendance improved in 2014; at nearly 97% it is now above average.  As a result of the rigorous monitoring of teaching and learning in the last year, the school’s current assessments show that an increasing number of pupils are now making good progress.  Most pupils behave well in an around school and say they feel safe at school. The school works well to ensure pupils are safe and understand how to keep themselves safe.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors observed 15 lessons, five of which were observed jointly with the headteacher and the deputy headteacher. In addition, inspectors made other visits to classes, scrutinised pupils’ work in their books and listened to them read.  Meetings were held with pupils, the Chair of the Governing Body and four other governors, the headteacher, senior leaders and subject leaders. Inspectors also had a conversation with a representative from the local authority.  Inspectors observed the school’s work and looked at a number of documents, including the school’s evaluation of its own performance, the school’s own current data on pupils’ progress, planning and monitoring documentation, and the records of how the school uses its funding, especially the funding for disadvantaged pupils and primary school sports funding. Records relating to behaviour and attendance, as well as documents relating to safeguarding were also taken into consideration.

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Information about this inspection

 There were 51 responses to the online questionnaire (Parent View). Inspectors took account of the views of parents who spoke with inspectors during the inspection and the school’s own survey of parents.  The 20 responses from staff who completed Ofsted’s staff inspection questionnaires were also considered.

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Inspection team

Rajinder Harrison, Lead inspector Additional Inspector

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Information about this school

 This is a smaller than average sized primary school.  Almost all pupils are of White British heritage.  The proportion of disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs supported through school action is average. The proportion supported at school action plus or with a statement of special educational needs is well below the average.  The proportion of pupils deemed disadvantaged and supported through the pupil premium is below average. These pupils include those who are known to be eligible for free school meals and those who are looked after by the local authority.  The school has had a very high number of staff changes since its previous inspection, including two changes of headteacher and other changes at leadership level.  The school did not meet the government’s current floor standards, which are the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress in English and mathematics by the end of Year 6 in 2014.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve teaching so that it is all consistently good or better by ensuring that: - pupils who have gaps in their learning or fall behind have timely and sufficient support to help them catch up and achieve well - work is set that is always challenging and suitably matched to the ability levels of pupils in all classes and that of the children in the early years - well-timed questions and explanations move pupils’ learning on and deepen their knowledge and understanding - expectations are consistently high for pupils to behave well in class and complete any written tasks to the highest standard - teachers make sure that pupils take note of feedback from marking and that subsequent work improves as a result.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Raise standards at Key Stage 2, so that all pupils achieve well in reading, writing and mathematics , by ensuring that: - spelling, grammar and punctuation skills are taught and applied accurately in writing in all subjects - pupils who have special educational needs and those eligible for pupil premium funding achieve well in order to narrow the gap between their achievement and that of others - pupils’ ability to recall and apply key number facts and multiplication tables accurately is improved - pupils read regularly at school and at home and that they receive the help they need to improve their skills and confidence in reading.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Strengthen leadership and management by: - checking more rigorously that all the teaching is of high quality and that all pupils, including those eligible for the pupil premium, make good progress in every class and every subject - holding leaders, including subject leaders, to account for raising standards in their areas of responsibility - checking that policies for marking and behaviour management are applied consistently in all classes - ensuring that governors hold senior leaders to account if improvements are not effective.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

An external review of the school’s use of the pupil premium should be undertaken in order to assess how this aspect of leadership and management may be improved.

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The leadership and management requires improvement

 The school has experienced a high number of staff changes since its previous inspection and the good achievement recorded at that time has not been maintained. However, the new headteacher has taken urgent action to raise standards in both Key Stages 1 and 2 and pupils’ progress is accelerating strongly, particularly at Key Stage 2. In addition, attendance has returned to above average. The headteacher has established an ethos of high ambition and high expectation so that all pupils can achieve well and is driving school improvement effectively. Consequently, the school is well placed to improve further quickly.  While the headteacher is promoting effective teamwork in the school, a number of staff are relatively new and so subject leaders and the leader for special educational needs have not had sufficient opportunity to ensure good progress in their areas of responsibility. Good plans are in place to address the decline in

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The leadership and management requires improvement

standards in Key Stage 2, especially in reading, for example, but the impact is not yet fully evident.  The monitoring of learning and pupils’ progress is now rigorous and identifies clearly where pupils have gaps in their learning or are falling behind. Support for these pupils is variable in quality and so they do not always retain new knowledge and skills successfully in order to make good progress consistently.  The work in pupils’ books shows that pupils are sometimes working at levels lower than the assessments would suggest. This is sometimes due to pupils not applying what they already know confidently or not taking sufficient care to do their best work. As a result, not all pupils achieve as well as they should.  Governors have now started to oversee the funding for disadvantaged pupils and acknowledge that this money was not spent well in the past. They accept that the school needs to provide better support to help

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The leadership and management requires improvement

these pupils achieve well and so narrow the gap between these pupils and their classmates.  Although the school has arrangements for marking and providing feedback to pupils so that pupils have the help they need to improve their subsequent work, the quality of marking remains inconsistent. Similarly, there are inconsistencies across classes as to what constitutes good behaviour and positive attitudes for learning. Expectations are not always high enough and so some pupils do not achieve well.  The school’s procedures for managing the performance of teachers are extremely clear. Teachers have individual targets linked to the national Teachers’ Standards and to expectations for pupils’ progress. Leaders, including governors, conduct regular checks on the quality of teaching and pupils’ progress. As a consequence, inadequate teaching has virtually been eradicated and an increasing proportion of teaching

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The leadership and management requires improvement

is now good. Staff who need support to improve their skills have good opportunities to receive training. Teachers new to the school know what is expected of them and good practices are being established effectively.  While most pupils are now beginning to make at least expected progress, this has not always been the case. Some pupils, notably those who are disadvantaged and those who have special educational needs, could achieve more if supported more effectively. Provision is, therefore, not yet equally effective in helping all pupils to make good progress and therefore the school’s effectiveness in promoting equality of opportunity requires improvement.  The local authority has helped to review school performance and identify areas for urgent improvement. Thus, the headteacher has accurately identified the key priorities to bring about the improvements required to raise standards quickly.  The curriculum places a good emphasis on promoting the key skills pupils need to prepare them for

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The leadership and management requires improvement

secondary school. Pupils are encouraged to apply these skills across all subjects but opportunities are missed to engender a love of reading and apply the knowledge they gain to achieve even more. While pupils are excited when using iPads, opportunities are missed for them to use information and communication technology to deepen their knowledge more readily in their day-to-day learning. Through many sporting events and activities, such as the choir, playing musical instruments, learning about life in other communities and learning French and Japanese, the school promotes pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development well. Pupils explore other faiths and cultures well through assemblies and subjects, and so have an understanding of British values in Britain today.  The primary sports funding has increased opportunities for pupils to enjoy numerous sporting activities led by professional coaches, such as inter-school competitions and gymnastics and increased participation for

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The leadership and management requires improvement

pupils of all abilities. In addition, staff have undertaken training to increase their capacity to offer a wider range of physical activities including dance, rugby and football.  The governance of the school: - Governors have undertaken extensive training in the last year and are now more involved in monitoring the school’s performance. They have worked with the headteacher to successfully eradicate inadequate teaching. They are now better informed about the school’s performance and are asking pertinent questions about pupils’ progress and the quality of teaching. Having seen standards decline since the previous inspection, governors are now more diligent in holding leaders to account for pupils’ progress and achievement. However, they are not challenging staff sufficiently when policies, such as those for marking, are not adhered to consistently. Governors are involved in decisions regarding teachers’ pay

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The leadership and management requires improvement

and make sure that any action the school takes to make improvements leads to pupils making better progress. Governors make sure safeguarding procedures meet requirements.

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Behaviour

 The behaviour of pupils requires improvement. While most pupils conduct themselves well and try hard with their work, a few occasionally lose interest because the work fails to challenge them sufficiently. When this occurs, they go off task, chat about things unrelated to their work, become noisy, achieve little and contribute insufficiently in discussions. When such lapses are not managed promptly, pupils produce work that is often poorly presented, incomplete and far from their best.  Pupils form good relationships with others and are generally very polite, friendly and courteous. They behave well around school. While the dining hall can be a little noisy, it is orderly and well managed. Pupils show due respect to lunch staff, look after each other sensibly and help to keep the place tidy.  Most of the parents who have previously completed the school’s survey or submitted the Ofsted Parent View questionnaire are positive about pupils’ behaviour and how well the school looks after their children.

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Behaviour

A few are less positive in their responses. Parents are encouraged to raise any issues with staff.  Pupils enjoy helping around the school and take responsibilities, such as tidying playground equipment seriously. Older pupils particularly befriend younger ones who are not always sure of routines. As one pupil said, ‘I used to be frightened when I was little, so it is nice to help each other’.  The school has worked successfully to promote good attendance and discourage holidays in term time. Pupils’ attendance is now good, as is punctuality. Pupils enjoy being at school and being with their friends.

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Safety

 The school’s work to keep pupils safe and secure is good. Pupils say they are safe and well looked after at school. They have a good understanding of how to keep themselves safe from potential dangers, for example, when using social media sites. Regular activities and discussions remind pupils of how to stay safe outside school including playing safely and not talking to strangers. Older pupils know the dangers of drug and alcohol abuse and smoking and obesity. They know that these habits pose serious health risks.  Pupils enjoy school and know that staff will help them if problems arise. For example, they know that bullying can take many forms but say that it is rare in school because staff sort it quickly. They say that it is unkind to ‘pick on people who are different to you because it could happen to you’. They also know that calling people ‘gay’ is not acceptable even though they sometimes hear it said outside school.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 While there is some good teaching in the school, the overall quality of teaching is not consistently good. Pupils, particularly those in Key Stage 2 who have experienced poor teaching in the past, have gaps in their knowledge and understanding and so do not achieve well when facing new work.  The work pupils are set is not always accurately matched to their ability. For some it is too easy and for others too hard. While pupils of lower ability often receive help to support and challenge them, those of average ability who are not always secure with applying what they have done previously in new situations sometimes struggle to make good progress. The most able pupils generally achieve well but are not always challenged sufficiently, for example, to work on their own before they seek help.  In Key Stage 2, pupils’ learning slows sometimes when their understanding is not sufficiently clarified by a

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

well-timed question or by further explanation. High-quality questioning that deepens and strengthens pupils’ learning is not routine across all teaching.  The school’s current assessment procedures are rigorous and reliable but not all teachers use the information from those assessments effectively to ensure pupils build successfully on what they have achieved previously. Expectations generally are not high enough to secure good achievement for all.  Expectations for pupils to always do their best and carefully check their work before handing it in are not sufficiently high. School policies on marking and feedback are not applied consistently to enable pupils to improve their subsequent work. In addition, pupils do not always respond to the feedback they receive through marking and so they continue to make the same errors, particularly in their spelling, grammar, punctuation and handwriting and so their work does not improve.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 Pupils learn basic literacy and numeracy skills in English and mathematics but often compartmentalise this learning when it comes to application in other subjects. For example, the quality of writing in science and topic books is not as good as that in English. Also, while the teaching of phonics (letters and the sounds they make) is good and standards in reading are above average at the end of Year 2, not all pupils read sufficiently, at home or school, to extend their skills sufficiently as they progress through Key Stage 2. Pupils, particularly those who are not confident readers, do not read enough to adults so that they have the help they need to improve their skills and so achieve well not only in their reading but in their written work too.  The teaching of pupils with special educational needs and those supported through the pupil premium has not always been good in the past but it is improving. Teaching assistants are now deployed more

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

effectively to support individuals and small groups so that more of these pupils are making at least expected progress and the progress of some is good.  Learning is effective and fun when pupils undertake activities that encourage them to think. For example, pupils in Year 6 were fascinated by how people discovered that planets were round and not flat and that ships did not fall off the edge! There are other examples of such ‘magic moments’ of learning and the design of the new curriculum lends itself well to increasing opportunities for pupils to learn and discover more as teaching improves further.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 Progress is not consistently good in every class, every subject and for all groups of pupils and this inconsistency results in too few making good progress, particularly as they move through Key Stage 2. While there is strong evidence progress is accelerating, overall standards are currently still below average, with reading being the weakest subject at the end of Year 6.  Pupils’ progress in both Key Stages 1 and 2 has not been consistently good since the previous inspection and standards declined as a result. They recovered slightly in 2014, particularly at Key Stage 1, where they are now above average again, but standards remain below average at the end of Key Stage 2, where in 2014, the school failed to secure the government’s floor targets. Not all pupils made the expected progress from their Key Stage 1 performance. Improvements made in the last year have begun to take effect but more so at Key Stage 1 and the early years than at Key Stage 2.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 Improvements in the teaching of writing since the previous inspection, particularly with greater emphasis on pupils’ writing at length, has resulted in more pupils making good progress in writing. However, pupils did not achieve well in relation to pupils’ nationally, in the accuracy of their spelling, punctuation and grammar and, therefore, overall literacy skills are not as good as they should be.  Standards in reading are not as high as those in writing and mathematics. Because of the good focus on teaching of phonics in the early years and Key Stage 1, a higher than average number of pupils attained above the expected standard in the national Year 1 phonics screening check in 2014. Pupils’ progress in reading slows in Key Stage 2.  The most able pupils sometimes make good progress when they receive additional work that stretches them appropriately. However, overall they make expected progress from their starting points because they

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

are not challenged consistently. For example, in mathematics, while the most able pupils in Year 6 are reasonably confident in their multiplication tables, they do not always identify patterns or the short cuts they might take to solve multi-step problems more speedily, convert fractions to decimals with ease or apply basic numeracy skills to divide their class into groups as equitably as possible.  Pupils of average ability do not always have sufficient opportunities to ask questions to clarify new learning before they move on to written tasks and so consequently some do not achieve as well as they could. A high turnover of teachers in the time pupils in Key Stage 2 have been at the school has not helped some to be more secure in their learning.  Disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs are supported well when they work in small groups and so often achieve well in these sessions. However, some find it difficult to retain information to

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

support subsequent work and so they do not always make good progress over time.  Disadvantaged pupils make good progress when they receive specific support to help them keep up with their classmates, but as these pupils often have significant gaps in their learning from the past, when extra support is not available, some struggle to understand their work and so occasionally lose confidence and hence their progress slows. The school has not always used its funding well enough in the past to narrow the gap between the attainment of these pupils and their peers as they progressed through the school. While this is being rectified urgently, currently the attainment of disadvantaged pupils in English and in mathematics is at least two terms behind other pupils in the school. Disadvantaged pupils’ attainment in comparison to other pupils nationally in both English and in mathematics is at least three terms behind at the end of Year 6.

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The early years provision requires improvement

 At the end of the Reception Year last year, the overall number reaching good levels of development was below that found nationally. Current children are making at least expected progress at present but with new staff and an improved curriculum, the early indications are that an increasing number of children are beginning to make good progress.  The early years leader is providing effective guidance and support to the new staff and the new children have settled in well and enjoy being at school. Relationships with parents are positive and arrangements to introduce children to school life before they start formally are good. Assessments of children’s ability and achievement are mostly accurate, although occasionally, children are further on than the assessments would suggest. Activities are planned effectively to address the needs of individual children and extend their skills quickly, although the level of challenge is not always sufficiently high for the most able children

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The early years provision requires improvement

who are capable of more.  In the happy, safe environment the school provides, children quickly adopt high levels of independence when they choose what they are going to do and explain what they have learnt. Their communication skills are often good. Most children learn to cooperate with others, for example when sharing toys and in role-play activities. Occasionally lapses do occur but these are quickly resolved because staff expect good behaviour at all times.  Children engage enthusiastically in the well organised activities that capture their interest but are equally happy to manage their own learning. For example, in a physical education lesson, children enjoyed being ‘fireworks’. They worked hard to ‘fizz’, ‘bang’ ‘crash’ and explode like rockets as they moved around the hall animatedly, taking care to avoid each other’s space. Similarly, children read enthusiastically, trying hard to recall the phonics they have learnt but equally happy to make up their own story when stuck.

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The early years provision requires improvement

 Children with special educational needs are identified early and planning to support their needs so that they participate fully in everything that their friends enjoy is good.  Routines are well established so that children settle quickly, gain confidence and feel safe and secure at school. Good home-school links and careful assessments ensure that children benefit fully from all that staff plan for them.

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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 121460 Local authority North Yorkshire Inspection number 448839

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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 204 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Arthur Adamson Headteacher Jan Elcock Date of previous school inspection 12 November 2009 Telephone number 01757 706841 Fax number Not applicable Email address headteacher@longmanshill.n-yorks.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

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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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