Summerfields Primary Academy

School report Summerfields Primary Academy

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Haigh Croft Summer Lane, Barnsley, South Yorkshire, S71 4SF

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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 make good progress from their different starting points. They reach above average standards in reading and average standards in writing and mathematics.  Pupils are taught to read well. They read a wide range of texts with confidence.  Pupils’ behaviour and safety are good. They say they feel safe in the academy and behaviour is typically good in and around the building.  The quality of teaching is good with some that is outstanding.  Parents indicate that they are very satisfied with the quality of education and care their children receive at the academy.  The Principal and head of academy lead well and have the support of staff. As a result, teaching and achievement are good and improving and staff morale is high.  The curriculum is carefully planned through a range of interesting topics and promotes well pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development.  Governors are firmly committed to the development

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

of the academy and offer suitable challenge and support to senior leaders.  The effectiveness of the early years provision is good. Children achieve well from their different starting points because they are taught and looked after well.

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It is not yet an outstanding school because

 In some classes, marking in mathematics and writing does not clearly identify how pupils can improve their work.  The skills pupils learn in mathematics lessons are not applied sufficiently well in other subjects.  Sometimes the most able pupils are not given work that is challenging quickly enough.  The new middle leaders have not had sufficient opportunity to drive improvements in their subjects or areas.

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Information about this inspection

 The inspectors observed 10 parts of lessons, including two joint observations with the head of academy. In addition, inspectors conducted shorter visits to classes to look at the quality of the curriculum and observed staff teaching pupils in small groups. Inspectors looked at pupils’ work in books and on display around the academy and examined records of their attainment and progress. They also listened to pupils read in Years 2 and 6 and discussed with them their views about reading.  The inspectors observed the academy’s work and reviewed a wide range of documentation, including the academy’s view of its performance, the academy improvement plan and documents related to pupils’ behaviour, attendance and safeguarding.  The inspectors met with groups of pupils, teachers and senior leaders, directors of the Pioneer Academy Co-operative Trust and local governing body, including the Chair of the Trust. A telephone conversation

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Information about this inspection

was also held with the academy’s improvement partner who joined the board of directors in April 2014.  Inspectors took account of seven staff questionnaires and 19 responses to the on-line questionnaire (Parent view).

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Inspection team

Liam Trippier, Lead inspector Additional Inspector

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Information about this school

 This academy is smaller than the average-sized primary school.  Nearly all pupils are White British and speak English as their first language.  The proportion of pupils supported by the pupil premium is broadly average. The pupil premium is additional funding for pupils known to be eligible for free school meals or looked after by the local authority. These pupils are referred to in the rest of the report as ‘disadvantaged’.  The proportion of pupils requiring support for their special educational needs is slightly above average and the proportion of pupils supported with a statement of special educational needs is average.  The academy meets the government’s current floor standard, which is the minimum expectation for pupils’ attainment and progress in English and mathematics by the end of Year 6.  Summerfields Primary Academy converted to become an academy on 1 December 2012. When its predecessor school, Royston Summer Fields Primary School, was last inspected by Ofsted, it was judged

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Information about this school

to be good overall.  The academy is part of the Pioneer Academy Co-operative Trust, a Multi-Academy trust of three local academies sharing a board of directors. The academy has a local governing body that reports to the board of directors.  The academy is led and managed by a Principal and a head of academy. The Principal is a local leader of education.  The leadership team has recently been restructured and several members, including the head of academy are new to role.  The academy provides a breakfast club.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve the quality and consistency of teaching further so that achievement is outstanding and standards in writing and mathematics are above average at the end of Key Stage 2 by:  marking all pupils’ workbooks with clear next steps and giving pupils the time to address them  quickly challenging the most able pupils in lessons so that they all reach the highest levels of which they are capable  using well the skills learned in mathematics lessons in other subjects and in homework  providing sufficient opportunities for the new middle leaders to check and improve the quality and consistency of teaching in their areas and subjects.

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The leadership and management are good

 The recently appointed head of academy, the Principal and other senior leaders work hard and effectively to ensure that teaching and achievement are good and improving. They are committed to their roles and work with sensitivity to ensure pupils are kept safe and behave well. Nearly all middle leaders are new to role or have additional or new subjects to develop. They have checked key aspects of the academy’s work and know important strengths and areas for improvement but have not yet had the time to improve the quality of teaching in their new areas or subjects.  The Principal is a local leader of education. She has helped to support schools across the area including those in the trust to successfully aid their development and has provided effective support for new leaders in the academy.  Through careful checks on teaching, the right priorities for the development of the academy have been identified in the academy improvement plan and are clearly linked to pupils’ achievement. Development

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The leadership and management are good

points are reviewed regularly so that the academy is able to further fine-tune and modify teaching to meet pupils’ needs well. The leaders’ recent review of teaching recognised that the most able pupils should be challenged further in lessons and pupils’ workbooks should be better marked but these issues have not been fully addressed in all classes.  Teachers are held to account by leaders for their pupils’ achievement and arrangements to check their performance are effective to support and challenge staff well. Staff are well trained and learn together in small groups through joint professional development time as well attending a range of courses tailored to the academy’s or teachers’ individual needs.  The primary sports funding is used well. Increasing numbers of pupils are involved in sports and games through a range of in-school and after-school activities. Staff receive training in physical education from

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The leadership and management are good

coaches and experts in key aspects of games, gymnastics and dance.  The curriculum is good and pupils say they enjoy the range of relevant and interesting topics they are taught such as the Stone Age, World War 1, and through stories for younger pupils such as ‘The Owl Who Was Afraid of the Dark’. Topics are used effectively to promote literacy across a range of subjects. Mathematical skills are taught well in mathematics lessons but are inconsistently promoted through topic work. Pupils appreciate the trips and visits to places of interest and younger pupils like the residential visits in lower Key Stage 2. The academy has made useful links with relevant organisations to enhance the curriculum through, for example, the Groundwork Trust to help develop the outdoor classroom, where pupils successfully grow and sell fruit and vegetables.  Through the academy trust’s values, pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development are promoted

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The leadership and management are good

effectively. A good range of assemblies promote key values of democracy and equality and a suitable range of religious and cultural backgrounds are explored in religious education lessons. Pupils have a good sense of right and wrong and know that staff are on hand to support them with any difficulties. As a result, pupils are suitably prepared for life in modern Britain.  The academy promotes equality of opportunity and tackles discrimination effectively.  The academy’s procedures for safeguarding are effective and meet statutory requirements.  The academy trust ensures the academy makes good use of its improvement partner who regularly visits to check the effectiveness of senior leaders’ actions.  The governance of the school: - Governors understand the academy’s current position, including its strengths and areas for improvement because they regularly receive and understand good quality information about teaching,

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The leadership and management are good

pupils’ behaviour, safety and achievement. They ensure senior leaders are regularly held to account and challenge them through their questions in meetings of the governing body. Governors have a good range of professional knowledge and skills that they bring to the academy including expertise in safeguarding and education which are used effectively to improve pupils’ achievement, well-being and safety. - Governors know that the additional funding to support disadvantaged pupils is used effectively so that they make good progress and are cared for well. Financial resources are used appropriately and governors discharge their duties with regard to teachers’ performance with care and rigour.

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Behaviour

 The behaviour of pupils is good. Pupils are proud of their academy and speak highly of it. They play well together at playtimes and show consideration towards each other in the dining hall and on corridors. Pupils’ behaviour in the breakfast club is respectful and calm. Relationships between pupils and staff are warm and all adults make sure pupils are well cared for.  Pupils typically behave well in lessons especially when the teaching is lively and involves them in activities. Nearly all workbooks are presented neatly and with pride but pupils are not given sufficient time to respond to their teachers’ marking in all classes which sometimes reduces their involvement in their learning.  Pupils are courteous to visitors. They open doors for adults and greet them in a friendly manner without prompting. Pupils and adults say this is usual conduct and it is effectively encouraged through the good

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Behaviour

range of awards such as The Jubilee Crystal and the Queen’s Cup which are awarded fortnightly for good behaviour and citizenship.  Attendance rates are broadly average. The academy works effectively to improve the attendance of most pupils with lower than average rates of attendance but some families still take their children on holiday in term time, which interrupts learning. The academy is working closely with the education welfare officer to reduce this type of absence. Pupils are punctual and lateness is not a problem.

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Safety

 The academy’s work to keep pupils safe and secure is good. Pupils say they feel safe and attend good quality training to stay safe in school and out of school near roads and railways. Pupils know how to keep themselves safe when using the internet.  Pupils say there is little bullying and know that racist or homophobic name-calling is wrong. They say if there are any problems they are sorted out fully and to their satisfaction by staff who look after them very well.  Older pupils support younger pupils well at lunchtimes as play leaders. They take their roles seriously arranging activities and organising games. Some play leaders are promoted to become ambassadors, training any new play leaders in their roles.

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The quality of teaching is good

 The quality of teaching is typically good and some is outstanding. Adults have suitably high expectations of pupils and this is reflected in good achievement in pupils’ workbooks. Pupils work hard in lessons and they say tasks are appropriately hard enough.  Teachers plan lessons effectively and set work at the right level by using the information from tests and assessments to help them choose activities and ensure the correct level of difficulty. Pupils know what to do in lessons, learn well and can explain their thinking with precision because tasks are explained clearly using the correct technical vocabulary.  In lessons, teachers check the progress and learning of pupils effectively. They spend the right amount of time with the pupils who need additional support and make sure work is hard enough during group work for those who need it. However, sometimes the most able pupils have to complete work they can do easily

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The quality of teaching is good

before they are challenged in a lesson and this slows down their progress.  Numeracy skills are taught effectively in mathematics lessons. For example, in a Key Stage 2 lesson pupils accurately calculated percentages, then applied this knowledge successfully to real-life situations. The teacher used his good subject knowledge to expertly question pupils about their work to make it harder so that the pupils had to think carefully about their answers. However, in other subjects in the curriculum, mathematics is not used frequently enough, taught as effectively or hard as it should be.  Teaching assistants make a good contribution to pupils’ learning in classes and small groups. They provide careful support to identified pupils in class and deliver the academy’s ‘Soundabout’ programme sensitively and well to help pupils quickly improve their reading and spelling skills.  Good quality homework is set regularly for all pupils and promotes effective links between home and the

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The quality of teaching is good

academy. Parents and their children work effectively together to improve skills, knowledge and understanding in activities linked to current or future learning. The quality of homework in mathematics is more variable than in English, however, and tasks set could be harder in some year groups.  Pupils’ workbooks are regularly marked so that good work is celebrated and mistakes are identified. In some classes, the pupils are not given time to address mistakes and teachers do not routinely identify the next steps that pupils should take to improve their work. As a result, some pupils are unclear about how to improve their work and this contributes to the uneven rate of progress.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Standards reached in reading, writing and mathematics at the end of Key Stage 1 are broadly average. A greater than average proportion of pupils reach the higher levels in reading and writing but not in mathematics. Pupils make good progress in Key Stage 1.  Overall attainment at the end of Key Stage 2 is rising. Since the academy was formed standards in reading and mathematics have been rising, but in 2014 standards in writing fell a little and a few pupils just missed reaching the higher levels. Inspection evidence indicates standards in writing are quickly improving and many more pupils are on track to reach the expected and higher levels this year.  Pupils’ achievement in writing is good. They usually write neatly and well across a range of subjects and are taught the appropriate spellings, grammar and punctuation for their age. On a display of writing where pupils imagine they are sending letters to or from soldiers in the First World War, their work shows

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The achievement of pupils is good

empathy and great sensitivity, as well as writing to a high standard. Leaders recognise that in a few classes pupils should practise their writing skills more often.  Achievement in reading is a strength because children are taught to read well throughout the school. Children learn letter sounds and their combinations to read words successfully in the Reception Year and Key Stage 1, and throughout the school pupils are guided well by staff to understand the meaning of the books they read. Pupils say they enjoy reading and read a good range of fiction and non-fiction texts. They have a good knowledge of authors. Parents are provided with valuable advice to help their children read at home.  In 2014, a few Year 6 pupils narrowly missed making expected and more than expected progress in their end of Key Stage 2 assessments in mathematics and writing. The school’s accurate assessments and pupils’ current work clearly show achievement is good in all subjects in Key Stage 2.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 At the end of Key Stage 2 in 2014, a greater than average proportion of the most able pupils reached the higher levels in reading. The proportion reaching the higher level in mathematics improved rapidly from 2013 and was in line with national figures. Currently the most able pupils are on track to achieve well and reach the higher levels in reading, writing and mathematics at the end of each key stage.  Disadvantaged pupils in the academy make good progress in line with those who are not disadvantaged. In 2014, they made better progress over time than non-disadvantaged pupils did nationally in reading but not in mathematics and writing. In 2014, disadvantaged pupils’ attainment in English was about a term behind other pupils in the academy and non-disadvantaged pupils nationally. In mathematics, the gap was wider and disadvantaged pupils were about a year behind their non-disadvantaged peers and four terms

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The achievement of pupils is good

behind compared to non-disadvantaged pupils nationally. Some of the disadvantaged pupils also had special educational needs.  Disabled pupils and those with special educational needs make good progress because their individual needs are well met in lessons and in small groups.

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The early years provision is good

 Children start in the early years with a wide range of skills, knowledge and understanding that varies from year-to-year. More children start with strengths in their physical and personal development than in communication, literacy and numeracy skills.  Teaching is good and children, including those with special educational needs and those who are disadvantaged, make good progress. In 2014, the proportion of children at the end of the early years that were ready for learning in Key Stage 1 was slightly higher than average and this proportion is increasing over time.  All adults in the early years expertly question children so that responses are carefully considered and relate to the interesting experiences the children have in and out of the academy. They plan and develop a wide range of activities that effectively promote the development of children’s communication, writing, reading and mathematical skills. For example, the very attractive autumn area is well equipped with

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The early years provision is good

books, opportunities for talk, writing and counting tasks that are of great interest to the children so that they practise their skills well through play.  Staff check children’s learning regularly and systematically to identify strengths and next steps. As a result, children make good progress over time. A few children find the work easy and they could be challenged more quickly during activities. Staff effectively ensure children are safe and behave well.  Parents report that they are very satisfied with how the early years staff communicate with them about their children’s well-being and achievement. Staff explain to parents each child’s strengths and areas for improvement.  The staff make effective links to the nurseries, organisations and families that feed in to the Reception class. Each organisation is visited so that important information is shared about each child. As a result, children settle quickly into the Reception class and make progress quickly. Channels of communication are

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The early years provision is good

clear and effective.  The early years provision is well led. Staff are regularly trained in areas of need that are highlighted from assessments of children’s work, such as improving writing and communication skills. Careful attention is paid to ensure staff are up to date with the latest safeguarding training and guidance. Staff have a clear understanding of the strengths and the areas for development of the early years.

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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 139085 Local authority Barnsley Inspection number 449255

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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 4–11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 195 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Paul Smedley Principal Margaret Fretwell Date of previous school inspection Not previously inspected as an academy Telephone number 01226 722480 Fax number 01226 701638 Email address m.fretwell1@PioneerACT.org.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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