Parson Street Primary School

Parson Street Primary School Bedminster Road, Bedminster, Bristol, BS3 5NR

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Overall effectiveness

Previous inspection: Not previously inspected 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

 Teachers’ subject knowledge in reading is a strength of the school. Consequently, pupils become competent readers and standards of attainment in reading by the end of Year 6 are higher than those nationally.  Teachers’ good quality marking ensures that pupils have a clear understanding of how to improve their work.  Pupils’ attitudes towards their work are good. The work displayed around the school and in books demonstrates that pupils take great pride in the presentation and quality of their work.  Teachers’ meticulous tracking of pupils’ progress and a broad range of support for individual pupils result in disadvantaged pupils, those who are disabled and those who have special educational needs achieving as well as, and sometimes better than, other pupils.  Children get off to a good start in the Foundation Stage, where they benefit from a well-planned and nurturing learning environment.  The deployment of additional support staff meets

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

the needs of individual pupils. Support staff are well trained and their skilful use of questioning helps pupils to improve their work.  Pupils feel safe in school and their behaviour is good. Leaders place great emphasis on pupils’ social, moral, spiritual and cultural development and, as a result, pupils of all abilities are polite and confident. They wear their uniform with pride and speak with enthusiasm about their learning.  The school has used expertise from other schools effectively to improve the quality of middle leadership. As a result, middle leaders have improved the quality of teaching across the school.  Governors have an accurate understanding of the school’s strengths and weaknesses and skilfully check up on progress towards school improvement priorities. They are rigorous in their management of financial resources and hold leaders to account for continued improvement.

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It is not yet an outstanding school because

 Teachers do not always set activities that ensure all pupils make rapid progress.  Leaders do not always set sufficiently challenging targets to ensure that all pupils make the very best progress.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors observed 23 lessons, three of which were jointly carried out with senior leaders. In addition, inspectors observed two assemblies and breakfast club, and made short visits to classes.  Meetings were held with the headteacher, senior leaders, teachers with subject responsibilities, members of the governing body and a group of headteachers from the ‘Malago Learning Partnership’, which supports the work of local schools. A telephone conversation also took place between a local authority representative and a team inspector to discuss safeguarding arrangements.  Inspectors scrutinised a range of documents, including the school’s plans for improvement, records of lesson observations, governor records, information on pupils’ progress and work in pupils’ books. They also scrutinised records relating to behaviour, attendance and safeguarding.  Inspectors met with two groups of pupils as well as speaking with individual pupils during lessons and at

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Information about this inspection

play and lunchtimes. Inspectors and the mathematics leaderundertook a joint scrutiny of pupils’ books. Inspectors also heard individual pupils from Years 1, 2 and 6 read.  Inspectors took account of 62 responses to the online Parent View questionnaire, as well as three other written responses from parents. They checked information on the school’s website and took into consideration 56 questionnaires completed by staff.

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Inspection team

Tracy Hannon, Lead inspector Seconded Inspector

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Inspection team

Stuart Bellworthy, Team inspector Seconded Inspector

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Inspection team

Alison Botarelli, Team inspector Additional Inspector

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Information about this school

 Parson Street Primary School is a larger than average-sized primary school.  Parson Street Primary School converted to become an academy in November 2012. When its predecessor school was last inspected by Ofsted, it was judged to be good.  The proportions of pupils who are from minority ethnic backgrounds and who speak English as an additional language are both below average.  The proportion of pupils eligible for the pupil premium is well above the national average. This is extra government funding given to the school for children known to be eligible for free school meals and children looked after by the local authority.  There are a small number of children who are looked after by the local authority.  The proportion of disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs supported at school action is above average. The proportion supported at school action plus, or with a statement of special

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Information about this school

educational needs, is average.  Children in the Reception class attend full-time within three weeks of starting school.  The school runs a breakfast club and works in close partnership with an external after-school provider.  The school meets the government’s current floor standards which set the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress.  The school is a member of the Malago Learning Partnership which supports the work of the headteacher and other leaders in local schools. The headteacher serves as the Chair of this partnership.  The headteacher is currently an executive headteacher of this school and another school in the Malago Learning Partnership. The deputy and assistant headteachers play a significant role in the leadership of the school.  The headteacher is a Local Leader of Education.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Raise pupils’ achievement further by ensuring that leaders:  set even more challenging targets for pupils’ progress to ensure that a higher proportion of pupils make better than expected progress  Set the highest of expectations to raise pupils’ achievement further by ensuring that all teachers:  check pupils’ understanding in lessons and modify activities quickly to make sure all pupils make rapid progress.

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The leadership and management are good

 The headteacher and senior leaders are united in their drive for school improvement. The headteacher has created an environment where both pupils and staff are valued. A comprehensive range of training for staff ensures that teaching is continually improving; consequently, pupils’ achievement is improving. Staff work closely as a team, morale is high; in the staff questionnaire, the majority of staff reported that they are proud to be a part of the school. Most parents would recommend this school to other families.  The school has developed the skills of middle leaders and, as a result, they are improving the quality of teaching. For example, middle leaders regularly work with teachers to develop skills in supporting pupils who are underachieving in mathematics and writing. A higher number of pupils are now making better than expected progress in both literacy and mathematics than in the past.

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The leadership and management are good

 The support provided for pupils eligible for pupil premium funding is effective. By the end of Year 6, disadvantaged pupils make better progress than other pupils in the school across all subjects. Leaders also deploy funds to ensure that disadvantaged pupils attend extra-curricular activities and breakfast club. As a result, these pupils attend school on time and ready to learn.  Leaders have been unrelenting in their drive for improvement in reading. Teachers now quickly identify gaps in pupils’ learning and put support in place so that they make good progress. As a result of this quick and effective response, many pupils make better progress than that found nationally. Leadership and management are not yet outstanding because there are occasions where pupils’ targets in other areas of the curriculum are not challenging them enough to match the progress achieved in reading.  Alongside developing their subject knowledge within the new national curriculum, pupils also learn to

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The leadership and management are good

persevere with their work and develop their social skills. They apply themselves well to their learning, do not give up easily, and work collaboratively across all areas of learning. For example, in a lesson where pupils were designing a PowerPoint presentation, they were sharing ideas and helping each other to improve.  The school’s arrangements for safeguarding pupils meet statutory requirements. Many parents who spoke to inspectors praised the school’s caring and supportive environment and the approachability of staff. The learning mentor, parent support adviser and inclusion leader all work closely with external agencies to support vulnerable pupils and their families.  Staff are committed to ensuring equality of opportunity for pupils. The school has a strong tradition of promoting spiritual, moral, social and cultural development and makes good use of community and cultural links to ensure pupils are prepared for life in modern Britain. School council elections provide

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The leadership and management are good

pupils with an awareness of democracy and responsibility. Displays celebrate the links with, and visits made to, the Czech Republic and Spain. The pupils benefit from a wide group of volunteers, such as community artists, who provide a valuable addition to the staff team. For example, pupils design and build lanterns in preparation for taking part in a local festival. Pupils speak with enthusiasm about these rich experiences that help them to understand how they can contribute to the wider community. They take on various leadership responsibilities such as play leaders, sports leaders and computing heroes in the school. These roles build on their strengths and enable them to grow in confidence. For example, ‘Green committee leaders’ are active in educating their peers in environmental issues, including partners in the UK, Europe and China.  The headteacher and senior leaders regularly research best practice in schools across the country and link

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The leadership and management are good

with universities when planning for school improvement. Their self-evaluation is accurate and is made even more effective by the collaboration with local headteachers in the ‘Malago Learning Partnership’. For example, improvement in marking and feedback has accelerated pupils’ progress because they have a clear understanding of what they need to do to improve.  Leaders make good use of additional funding to improve pupils’ participation and ability in sport. They responded to information from a pupil survey by increasing the range of sports clubs on offer. Most are now offered free of charge and participation has vastly improved as a result. Some pupils are now attending external clubs as a result of the school inspiring them to take part in more sporting activities. The school makes good use of its swimming pool; the majority of pupils leaving the school can swim 25 metres. Leaders have employed an additional swimming coach to provide extra lessons for weaker

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The leadership and management are good

swimmers.  The school’s breakfast club provides a stimulating and caring environment for the pupils who attend. It is staffed by school support staff who are well trained and know the pupils well. This provides continuity of care. Pupils cooperate well and show respectful behaviour.  The governance of the school:  The governing body is well led and organised; governors are dedicated to improving their leadership and regularly attend training. They speak knowledgeably about the quality of teaching in the school. They have a sound understanding of the school’s performance data and closely check the effectiveness of spending on progress and achievement. For example, investment in a pastoral care team has helped the school support pupils and their families and has improved pupil attendance. Investment in a reading programme and the engagement of reading partners has given rise to high standards in reading. Governors have allocated additional resources for leadership and make regular

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The leadership and management are good

checks to ensure that this additional investment is effective in raising attainment.  Governors provide a good level of challenge and have very clear systems for ensuring that checks on teachers’ performance are robust. They have developed systems to reward the very best teaching and have put these to good use. Governors identified that they needed to improve communication with parents and have started to attend parents’ evenings and use a laptop-based survey system to gather views. Governors have responded to parent comments and are consulting on moving the provision of after-school care to the school building as a result.  Governors regularly check that the school’s safeguarding procedures are robust and speak knowledgeably about school procedures and recent changes to the safeguarding policy .

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Behaviour

 The behaviour of pupils is good. There is a calm and relaxed atmosphere in and around the school. Interactions between pupils and adults are very positive. In one-to-one and small group support in particular, pupils are totally engaged in the exciting and well-planned activities which support their good progress. In lessons, all pupils behave well and are eager to learn. In some classes, behaviour is outstanding, with pupils demonstrating a real desire to challenge themselves, but this is not yet consistent across the school.  At lunchtimes, there are high levels of supervision and adults are skilled in working with pupils to reduce some boisterous play. Play leaders have specific zones in the playground which help to promote good behaviour. A good range of activities is available at lunchtimes including football, tennis, netball, and climbing. These activities develop pupils’ social and physical skills.

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Behaviour

 The school deals with poor behaviour effectively and the number of incidents of poor behaviour is declining. Low-level disruption in lessons is very rare. Cultural diversity is celebrated. On the very few occasions where racist incidents occurred, records show that these incidents have been rigorously dealt with by school leaders and there is no reoccurrence.  The school’s pastoral team works closely with other agencies to ensure that when pupils or their families are struggling, they are well supported. Attendance has improved and is now in line with the national average.

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Safety

 The school’s work to keep pupils safe and secure is good.  Pupils have a good understanding of how to keep themselves safe. Pupils say that they feel safe in school and report that adults in school always sort out any friendship problems. Staff go to great lengths to ensure that any bullying issues are resolved.  The school’s work on e-safety has reduced the incidence of cyber-bullying. Good links with a local secondary school help pupils to learn about internet safety. Pupils speak knowledgeably and enthusiastically about what they have learnt from watching the plays performed by the older pupils.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teachers take into account the interests of pupils when planning the study focus and as a result, pupils are motivated, engaged in their learning, and achieve well. For example, after a visit to the local park, Year 6 wrote accurate and well-structured letters to the council articulating their concerns about the litter and poor maintenance of park equipment.  Teachers identify gaps in pupils’ learning and draw from a wide range of additional support activities to meet the needs of individuals. As a result, pupils make good progress in writing and mathematics. Some do exceptionally well in their reading, with many exceeding nationally expected rates of progress.  Well-deployed and highly trained teaching assistants play a key role in the pupils’ success. Staff use a nurturing and encouraging approach to engage and motivate pupils to do their best. For example, in a Year 3 handwriting lesson, adults asked questions sensitively to help pupils understand how to improve

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The quality of teaching is good

their handwriting to the high standard required by the teacher.  Teachers ensure that their classrooms are stimulating places in which to learn. Displays celebrate pupils’ learning and provide reminders and prompts for pupils to aim high and achieve success, particularly in writing.  The work in pupils’ books reflects a consistently high standard of marking and feedback. Teachers make their expectations clear through succinct pointers to what success looks like and pupils use this well to check their work. Where teaching is most effective, pupils are encouraged to add their own, even more challenging, success criteria. Consequently, their progress is accelerated. Teachers give pupils time to respond to marking and, as a result, all pupils make at least good progress.  Occasionally, teachers do not respond quickly enough to what pupils know, can do, and understand to ensure that all pupils make rapid progress. For example, work in mathematics books shows that some

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The quality of teaching is good

pupils are spending too long practising calculations that they have mastered. This unnecessary repetition is slowing progress. Pupils make better progress when they apply their calculation skills to problem solving.  Pupils speak positively about their teachers and their learning. An overwhelming majority of parents who responded to the online questionnaire, Parent View, feel that their children are taught well and that the school ensures that parents are well informed about their child’s progress. There are regular opportunities for parents to find out how their child is doing each term.  Teachers set homework regularly and display it on the school website for all year groups. The work set reinforces and extends the learning that takes place in the classroom. For example, Year 2 pupils were studying the Great Fire of London and, for their homework, they had researched, designed and made model houses from the era.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Pupil’s knowledge of letters and sounds is good. In the Year 1 check, pupils achieved above the national average. In Years 3, 4, 5 and 6, pupils’ spelling is not as good as it could be. Leaders are tackling this weakness by focusing on spelling in all classes.  Achievement in mathematics is good. Pupils develop good skills in calculation strategies.  Disadvantaged pupils play an active part in all lessons and their responses are carefully assessed to ensure that they make good progress. The proportion of disadvantaged pupils achieving expected or better progress is higher than the national average in all subjects. By the end of Year 6, disadvantaged pupils make better progress than other pupils in the school across all subjects. Disadvantaged pupils’ attainment in reading was higher than the national average for all pupils.  The more able pupils in the school achieve well. Pupils make good progress throughout the school so that

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The achievement of pupils is good

by the end of Year 6, nearly all of the more able pupils make at least expected progress, with a higher proportion than nationally making better than expected progress. A greater proportion of pupils in Year 6 achieved a higher level in the 2014 reading and writing tests than the national average. Not as many pupils achieved the higher levels in the grammar, punctuation and spelling tests at Year 6. The school has identified a weakness in the teaching of spelling and has acted swiftly to address this.  The school acts swiftly to ensure that pupils who use English as an additional language quickly settle into school. These pupils achieve well.  Close links with families and strong induction procedures ensure that all children new to the school settle quickly. Close partnerships with families ensure that staff have a thorough understanding of pupils’ strengths and weaknesses. These processes ensure that pupils make good progress.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs achieve well because teachers meticulously track their progress and provide thoroughly well-planned and executed support programmes. For example, one third of the pupils who received additional support in Years 1 and 2 went on to achieve above the national average for all pupils in reading. Improved early identification of learning difficulties has contributed to an increase in the number of pupils identified with speech, language and communication needs. Early action to provide support for these pupils in the Foundation Stage has been effective and many of these pupils have made better than expected progress.  Children looked after by the local authority are well supported. Personal plans demonstrate good use is made of funding and support to ensure that these pupils make at least expected progress.

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The early years provision is good

 Children get off to a very good start. They join the Early Years Foundation Stage with skills typically below the national average. Nursery teachers work closely with pre-schools to ensure that no time is lost in supporting the children to make good progress.  The proportion of pupils who achieve a good level of development by the end of the Foundation Stage has improved and most children now make good progress from their starting points. Attainment in writing is the weakest outcome at the end of Reception.  A few boys do not achieve as well as girls in writing. Leaders have acted swiftly to narrow this gap between girls’ and boys’ achievement. Specific activities have been planned to help the boys develop their writing grip as this is currently preventing them forming letters correctly when they write.  Teaching is consistently good, relationships are strong, and, as a result, children make good progress.

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The early years provision is good

Children enter Year 1 ready for the next stage in their education, particularly in reading and personal, social and emotional development. Speaking and reading are among the areas where outstanding progress is made.  The good range of activities on offer both inside and outside the classroom effectively support children’s progress. The skilled interaction and questioning by all adults ensures that children’s social skills are developed well.  A smaller proportion of disadvantaged pupils achieve a good level of development compared to their classmates in reading and writing.  Adult support ensures that children who are disabled or have special educational needs are able to access activities, feel successful and make good progress.  Learning diaries reflect high levels of parental engagement. Good links are made with families so that the school and parents work in partnership to capture their child’s achievements. Home visits take place and

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The early years provision is good

parents have regular opportunities to attend workshops. Parents and carers are overwhelmingly positive about the Early Years Foundation Stage.  The Early Years teachers work closely with the nursery and teaching assistants to share plans and expectations and good use is made of the children’s learning diaries to inform planning, which leads to good progress.  The work to keep pupils safe in the Early Years Foundation Stage is good. Both indoor and outdoor learning environments provide safe spaces for the children to explore and learn.  Children demonstrate good attitudes to learning. They focus on activities and enjoy sharing their learning with others. They cooperate well in Nursery and, by the time they join the Reception class, they are developing the skills to resolve conflicts.  The Early Years Leader has a good understanding of the strengths and areas for development in the Foundation Stage classes. Staff training is targeted to have a positive impact on achievement. For

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The early years provision is good

example, there has been a significant increase in the proportion of children achieving good progress in their number work.

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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 138904 Local authority Bristol City Inspection number 448641

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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 School Converter Age range of pupils 3–11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 486 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Joe Thompson Headteacher Mark Lacey Date of previous school inspection NA Telephone number 01179030226 Fax number 01179030230 Email address office@parsonstreet.com 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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