Froxfield Church of England Primary and Pre-School

Froxfield Church of England Primary School High Cross, Petersfield, Hampshire GU32 1EG

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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

 The headteacher provides very strong leadership for the school. As a result, she has successfully improved the quality of teaching so that it is now consistently good. The governing body is effective at holding the school to account and ensuring that standards continue to improve.  The progress made by all groups of pupils across the school in reading, writing and mathematics is good.  The adults in school work successfully as a team to ensure that pupils make good progress and thoroughly enjoy coming to school.  School self-evaluation and action planning are accurate and rigorous. The headteacher knows the school very well and there is very strong capacity for further improvement.  The curriculum is stimulating and successfully meets the needs of the range of age groups in each class.  Additional adults are used very effectively to support individuals and groups of pupils, ensuring that they make effective progress.

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

 The school’s values of respect, love and courage underpin the school’s philosophy and the effective provision for spiritual, moral, social and cultural education for the pupils.  Pupils’ behaviour is good. Pupils are polite, well mannered and courteous. Pupils have great respect for the adults in their school.  New pupils joining the school are made to feel very welcome, are well supported if they have additional needs and, because of this, make good progress.  Pupils are safe and secure in school. Bullying is rare and pupils know that they could speak to any adult in school if they are concerned.  Provision in the early years is good. Children cooperate well, enjoy their learning and make rapid progress.  Senior and middle leaders successfully lead their areas of responsibility, giving support to their colleagues and ensuring that pupils make effective progress.

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It is not yet an outstanding school because

 Some teaching does not always help pupils to correct their work or make the improvements that their teachers suggest.  Occasionally, teaching does not always ensure that work for the most able pupils is hard enough to ensure they make the best progress.  Pupils are not always encouraged to work things out for themselves.

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Information about this inspection

 The inspector visited 10 lessons. Seven lessons were observed jointly with the headteacher.  The inspector heard pupils read, examined work in their books, attended an assembly in the local church and observed activities in the playground and dining room.  The inspector held discussions with pupils, the headteacher, senior and middle leaders and members of the governing body.  The inspector had a meeting with a representative of the local authority.  The inspector examined a range of documents, including a summary of the school’s self-evaluation, the school plans for improvement and the report the headteacher regularly provides for governors. He also looked at documents showing how the quality of teaching is evaluated, the school’s information on pupils’ progress, and records relating to pupils’ safety, behaviour and attendance.  The inspector analysed 46 returns to the on-line Parent View questionnaire and spoke informally to

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Information about this inspection

parents and carers to seek their views.  The inspector considered the views of the nine staff who returned questionnaires.

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Inspection team

Chris Chamberlain, Lead inspector Additional Inspector

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Information about this school

 This is a much smaller than average-size primary school.  The proportion of pupils for whom the school receives the pupil premium (additional government funding for children in the care of the local authority and pupils known to be eligible for free school meals) is much lower than the national average.  The proportion of disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs is below average.  Almost all pupils are from White British backgrounds.  Reception children attend full time.  There were too few pupils in Key Stage 2 to be able to report on whether the school meets the government’s floor standards, which set minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress in reading, writing and mathematics in Year 6.  The school has a breakfast club managed by the governing body.  The school has the option for pupils to attend Robin’s Oak Primary Behaviour Support for short periods of

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Information about this school

time to help with their behaviour.  Froxfield CofE Primary became a primary school on 1 September 2013. Previously, the school was Froxfield CofE Infant School. There are a very small number of pupils in each year group in Key Stage 2.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve teaching to outstanding levels by ensuring that:  pupils consistently remain focused on their work to help improve their learning  all pupils correct their work and make the improvements that their teachers suggest  there is consistently additional challenge for the most able pupils in all learning.

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The leadership and management are good

 The headteacher provides outstanding leadership for the school. Over the last 18 months she has provided the drive and vision that have enabled to school to continue to progress successfully. She has developed a strong teaching team who is focused primarily on all pupils making rapid progress in a stimulating, caring and effective learning environment.  The headteacher has successfully developed the role of middle and senior leaders in the school. They produce action plans for improvement, lead training, track pupil progress, and ensure consistency in teaching amongst colleagues.  Pupil premium funding is used effectively to accelerate the progress of pupils so that any gaps in attainment between those entitled to the pupil premium and other pupils are narrow.  The curriculum effectively meets the needs of all pupils. There is a strong emphasis on pupils developing a strong understanding of the core areas of reading, writing and mathematics, and then being given

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The leadership and management are good

opportunities to use these skills in other areas of the curriculum. Pupils say they enjoy the trips and the challenges that they are given in their learning.  Through its core values of love, respect and courage, alongside effective spiritual, moral, social and cultural curriculum, the school promotes good relationships, equality of opportunity and does not tolerate discrimination. This ensures that pupils are well prepared for the next stage in their education and life in democratic Britain.  The school’s arrangements for safeguarding meet statutory requirements. Governors and staff use an annual audit to ensure that the school has effective systems in place to promote safeguarding successfully.  The school uses the primary sport premium well to promote pupil engagement and improve standards in physical education. Recently the school has organised additional training in physical education and sport

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The leadership and management are good

for staff, purchased additional equipment particularly for gymnastics, funded two lunchtime sports clubs as well as specialist sports coaches from a local football team and has enabled pupils to take part in inter- school sports competitions.  The school tracks the progress of all pupils very effectively, including that of pupils who attend alternative provision. The tracking system is very well developed and includes academic progress, behaviour, attitudes to learning, punctuality and absence. If there is a concern about a pupil, the school communicates with parents to agree the support that will be put in place. After a short period of time the impact of the support is evaluated and parents are consulted again.  The school has worked hard to improve communication so that parents understand and are fully aware of decisions made by the school about class groupings, changes to the curriculum and staffing.

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The leadership and management are good

 The school has made effective links with other schools locally to extend and enhance curriculum opportunities. This has included borrowing a minibus so that pupils can go swimming regularly and take part in visits locally, as well as collaborative work in assessment and planning with other small primary schools.  The local authority provides a moderate level of support for this good school.  A very large majority of parents agree that the school is well led and managed.  The governance of the school:  Governors regularly undertake training and are therefore able to hold the headteacher to account for pupil achievement by comparing the achievement of pupils in the school to that of pupils nationally, the quality of teaching, pupil behaviour and safety.  Governors understand the school’s strengths and areas for development. They regularly spend time in school, either supporting specific events or finding out about their particular area of responsibility.

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The leadership and management are good

Governors have an overview of standards of teaching, know how underperformance is tackled, and the fact that teachers’ pay is directly related to their performance. They ensure that the headteacher’s annual objectives for improvement are focused on the main areas of improvement for the school.  Governors actively seek the views of parents informally or through regular questionnaires. They closely monitor the use and impact of budget including the pupil premium and sport grant to ensure that pupils benefit from this additional funding.  Governors fulfil their statutory responsibility for safeguarding.

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Behaviour

 The behaviour of pupils is good.  Pupils are courteous, polite and show respect towards the adults in school. They are proud of their school and enjoy talking about their learning.  Pupils are generally well focused in their learning. They listen carefully to instructions and explanations from adults, contribute enthusiastically and work hard on the tasks that they are given to complete.  Adults organise the pupils very effectively in the mixed age classes, so that movement between activities or classrooms is very well managed, pupils know the routines and no learning time is lost.  The school communicates well with parents and has effective systems in place to ensure that pupils have good attendance rates and are punctual. Absence has reduced recently and now is at least in line with the national average.  Pupils enthusiastically support the school by undertaking roles of responsibility, such as being house

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Behaviour

captains, emptying compost bins, looking after the bantams or keeping the classrooms tidy.  Pupils of all ages cooperate, including those who attend alternative provision. They support each other, are tolerant and respectful of each other’s needs. Adults are excellent role models.  Pupils enjoy the playground. They play well together, enjoy the resources which are provided to develop imaginative play, and look after each other when, on occasion, one of them is hurt.  Pupil records show that there are very few instances of poor behaviour. There have been no permanent exclusions for many years. There are a very low number of fixed term exclusions.  Behaviour is not yet outstanding because on a small number of occasion’s pupils lack the resilience and independence to stay focused on their activities in the classroom without regular reminders from adults.  A very large majority of parents are pleased with pupil behaviour in school and are happy with the way in

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Behaviour

which the school deals with any instances of bullying. Pupils say that behaviour is very good and understand the sanctions and rewards systems that the school has in place to manage pupil behaviour.

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Safety

 The school’s work to keep pupils safe and secure is good.  Adults in school work very hard to ensure that pupils are safe at all times. Pupils are taught to cross the road to the local church with great care. They are given clear guidance when on the minibus about remaining in their seats and checking that their seat belts are correctly fastened. Adults also make sure that pupils and visitors are aware of the fire safety procedures in school.  Pupils understand the importance of safety when using the internet. Adults in school monitor pupil use of email and have appropriate systems in place to ensure pupils are safe when using the internet to support their learning.  Staff are appropriately trained in child protection. The school has well developed systems in place to record and follow up concerns that may arise about a pupil’s welfare.  A very large majority of parents agree that their children are kept safe and are well looked after in school.

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The quality of teaching is good

 The quality of teaching is now consistently good. The judgements made by the inspector match those made over time by the school and local authority.  Teaching is now clearly focused on all pupils learning rapidly. The headteacher has established a culture where every opportunity for learning is used effectively. For example, teachers ensure that time is not wasted when moving from one activity to another. Adults are very well organised. As a result, all groups of pupils make good progress.  Pupils are given suggestions by adults about how they can improve their work. Although the advice is always useful, sometimes teaching does not ensure that pupils respond to the suggestions. Pupils do not consistently have a go at improving their work themselves. Homework is used effectively to support and extend the learning taking place in school. This work is marked regularly so that pupils understand the

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The quality of teaching is good

progress that they are making.  Teachers use effective questioning to check whether pupils have understood a new concept and to extend learning rapidly. For example, in Year 1, children’s knowledge of measuring was skilfully extended by questions about where to place cubes to measure the size of a child’s foot. In a Key Stage 2 mathematics lesson, adults skilfully encouraged pupils to make links between subtraction and addition when investigating the properties of numbers.  Pupils have regular one-to-one meetings with their teacher, where they discuss what they need to improve on in order to make additional progress. Pupils also value their learning journey boards which highlight the area which they need to improve next in their learning. These ensure that pupils are fully involved in their learning and make good progress. On a small number of occasions some pupils need reminders from adults to stay focused on their work.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Reading is well taught across the school. Adults track the progress of pupils and plan lessons which focus on the next steps in learning. Pupils are given a wide range of opportunities each day to develop their reading skills, including reading and sending emails to their partner school in Ghana, reading books online and working in small groups with an adult to develop comprehension and deduction skills.  The teaching of writing and mathematics is effectively organised so that pupils are given tasks that match their needs and understanding. On a small number of occasions, work for the most able pupils in mixed year group classes is too easy. Additional adults in classrooms are used very effectively to ensure that different groups of pupils are well supported within the three mixed age classes and therefore progress well.  The school uses its local environment successfully to support learning. Teachers frequently organise trips

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The quality of teaching is good

or activities outside to stimulate interest and enthusiasm for a project. For example, older pupils spent a morning in the nearby town meeting people from a range of different faiths, finding out about their customs and beliefs. Younger children enjoy talking to each other whilst investigating and experimenting in their mud kitchen, and pupils learn about how plants are grown in the school garden area.  All parents who spoke to the inspector during the inspection, and a very large majority of those who responded on the Parent View website, agreed that their child is taught well.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Children enter Reception with skills and knowledge that are typical for their age. They make good progress and leave the early years with attainment higher than the national average. The good progress continues across Key Stage 1, and by the time pupils reach the end of Year 2 attainment is significantly higher than the national average.  In Key Stage 2, pupils, many of whom have joined the school later than normal, continue to make good progress from their various starting points. It is clear from the quality of teaching, the individual level of support and guidance pupils receive, the work in pupils’ books and analysis of pupil tracking information, that pupils leaving the school are well prepared for the next stage in their education.  Groups of pupils, including those who spend some time away from the school in alternative provision and those with special educational needs or disabilities, make very good progress because of the support they

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The achievement of pupils is good

receive on a one-to-one basis or in small groups.  The most able pupils make good progress. However, on occasions, a very small number of pupils are not given work that is hard enough for them, so their progress slows down.  The small number of pupils who are entitled to the pupil premium funding make progress which is in line with, and often better than, other pupils in the school. This is also due to the additional well targeted support they receive. As they make such good progress, the pupils entitled to the pupil premium, in all year groups across the school, reach standards in reading, writing and mathematics which are very similar to those reached by their classmates. This is often better than the standards reached by all pupils nationally. There were too few pupils in the current Year 6 cohort to make a valid comparison between their performance and that of others at the end of Key Stage 2. This is the first year that the school has

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The achievement of pupils is good

had Year 6 pupils.  The teaching of phonics (the sounds letters make) is good. Adults are deployed effectively to meet the learning needs of pupils across the school to develop their phonic knowledge. The proportion of children who reach the expected standard in the Year 1 phonic check is well above the national average.  Reading is taught well and, because of this, pupil achievement in reading is very good. Pupils are encouraged to read widely and develop enthusiasm for different authors and types of books. Teachers plan projects for pupils of all ages with a specific focus on books and authors to develop pupils’ love and appreciation of reading.  All parents who spoke to the inspector during the inspection and a very large majority of those who responded on the Parent View website agreed that their child is making good progress.

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The early years provision is good

 ‘It’s a great place to be – just what we wanted.’ This is typical of parents’ views about their child starting school in Reception. Children make a good start to their education in the early years department at this successful school.  The progress that all groups of children make across the early years is good. Teachers plan exciting activities for the children which move their learning on rapidly. Adults skilfully question and encourage them to think carefully about their learning. Very occasionally, there could be more opportunities for the most able children to make more progress by extending the questions that they are asked.  The early years learning environment is stimulating and safe. Children are happy and enthusiastic to learn, they ask questions and participate well. Adults work hard to make learning engaging. For example, children were given the opportunity to create their own firework dance, using pompoms, to music on a

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The early years provision is good

compact disc player which they operated themselves. Others were involved in solving the mystery of the missing teddy using magnifying glasses to study footprints, writing about their findings in log books and talking to each other about where they should look next.  Behaviour is good. Children cooperate well with each other, are tolerant and show respect towards the adults in the learning environment.  Early years is well led and managed. The quality of teaching has improved since the last inspection and is now good, and sometimes outstanding. Adults have high expectations of what children can achieve. The effective deployment of adults in the early years ensures that children make rapid progress.  Children are given regular homework activities which build effectively on the learning undertaken in school.  Accurate and regular assessment of children’s progress is used well to inform teachers’ planning, so that

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The early years provision is good

activities available for the children meet their needs and ensure that they make rapid progress in their learning.  The very effective provision in the early years ensures that by the time children reach the end of the Reception year they are very well prepared for the next phase of their learning in Year 1.

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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 116289 Local authority Hampshire Inspection number 447757

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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 62 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Francis Usmar Headteacher Vickie Farrow Date of previous school inspection 3–4 July 2012 Telephone number 01730 827251 Email address adminoffice@froxfield.hants.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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