Peel Common Infant School and Nursery Unit

The Drive, Rowner, Gosport, Hampshire, PO13 0QD

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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

 This good and improving school is well led by an effective headteacher and leadership team, supported by a committed and enthusiastic governing body.  All groups of pupils make good progress, including pupils with disabilities or special educational needs and disadvantaged pupils.  Pupils reach standards in reading and writing that are above those found in most schools nationally.  Teaching is good and getting better because the school’s leaders and governors carefully monitor the quality of teaching and ensure that staff training reflects the school’s priorities.  Pupils are well prepared to move on to the junior school because they have well-developed social skills and high levels of literacy.  Pupils feel safe and secure in school and arrangements to keep them safe are good. They enjoy school, feel valued, behave well and get along with one another. They are confident that adults will look after them.

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

 Decisive actions by the school have led to an improvement in attendance which is now in line with the national average.  The school is successful at promoting pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development.  Children in the Nursery and Reception classes get pupils off to a good start. They enjoy well-planned activities which develop their skills and understanding.

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It is not yet an outstanding school because

 The standards in mathematics are not as high as for reading and writing.  The school does not always use effectively information on the pupils’ attainment and progress to plan for their next steps in learning.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors observed 20 lessons or parts of lessons, four of which were joint observations with a school leader.  Inspectors met three groups of pupils and talked to them about their work, about behaviour and safety and other aspects of school life. They observed pupils at lunchtimes and playtimes, and sought their views about the school.  Inspectors listened to pupils read and looked at work in their books and displayed around the school. One inspector toured the school with a group of pupils.  Pupils’ behaviour was observed in and around the school: when moving between activities, when working and playing, and during assembly time.  Meetings were held with subject and other leaders, governors and parents. An inspector spoke to a representative from the local authority.  The inspectors looked at a number of documents, including safeguarding arrangements, policies, records relating to behaviour and attendance, minutes of meetings, letters from parents and the school’s own self-

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Information about this inspection

evaluation.  Inspectors took account of 73 responses to Parent View and 21 questionnaires returned by staff.

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Inspection team

Janet Maul, Lead inspector Additional Inspector

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Information about this school

 Peel Common Nursery and Infant School is smaller than the average-sized primary school. There are six classes: two in each of Years 1 and 2, a Reception unit with 2 classes and a Nursery where children attend part-time.  A very large majority of pupils are from a White British heritage and speak English as their first language, with a small minority coming from a wide variety of ethnic groups.  The proportion of disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs is similar to the proportion found in most schools. There are a small number of pupils with complex needs.  The proportion of disadvantaged pupils known to be eligible for the pupil premium (additional government funding provided to support pupils known to be eligible for free school meals or children who are looked after by the local authority) is below average.  Nearly a third of all pupils have one or more parents serving in the armed forces.

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Information about this school

 There have been a large number of staff and governor changes since the last inspection.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Raise the standard of mathematics to match that of reading and writing by:  having a stronger focus on number work and shape, space and measures in the early years classes  increasing the quantity of recorded mathematics work in books so that pupils have useful records to which to refer  ensuring a high level of mathematics challenge for the most able pupils.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve the use of assessment data throughout the school so that:  teachers have an accurate picture of pupils’ current skills, and use this knowledge to plan for next steps in learning  the leadership team can intervene quickly and work with teachers to ensure a high level of challenge throughout the school.

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The leadership and management are good

 The school is well led by an effective headteacher, leadership team and governors. They have high expectations which are shared by the whole school community. Staff are committed to the school and supportive of the leadership team, who they consider to be doing a good job.  The school’s self-evaluation is accurate and there are plans in place to improve the school further.  The headteacher and leadership team regularly monitor the quality of teaching through lesson observations and examining the quality of pupils’ work. Joint lesson observations undertaken with the leadership team showed that senior leaders’ judgements of the quality of teaching are accurate and they know how good teaching could be even better.  Middle and subject leaders support their colleagues well. The English coordinator has been highly effective in training her colleagues in the teaching of phonics and the deputy headteacher has recently taken on the

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The leadership and management are good

role of mathematics leader in order to further raise standards. However, it is too soon for this to have had a measurable effect. All leaders are committed to ensuring equality of opportunity for all pupils, and that their educational and social needs are planned for.  The headteacher manages the performance of teachers well. Regular performance reviews identify areas for training and development which are closely matched to the needs of the school. Salary increases are only made if they are justified by performance.  The headteacher and deputy headteacher hold regular pupils’ progress meetings with staff to ensure that the individual needs of all pupils are met.  The leadership team monitor the effectiveness that the additional support given to disadvantaged pupils has on accelerating their progress. They ensure that financial and human resources are used to good effect.  Pupils with disabilities or special educational needs are well supported. The coordinator is very

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The leadership and management are good

knowledgeable and she ensures that pupils make good progress through well-targeted support.  The school follows the new national curriculum and plans effectively to provide a broad and balanced education that is linked to pupils’ interests. That this is effective was shown by the interest and excitement children showed when talking about their learning.  The school plans well for pupils’ social, moral, spiritual and cultural development and this is integrated throughout the curriculum. Pupils learn about cultures different from their own. They enjoyed exploring Aboriginal music with a music specialist and learning a Chinese dragon dance. The school organises interesting educational visits and pupils are taught ‘Philosophy for Children’, which helps them to become reflective about their life and work.  Pupils are taught about British values, such as having respect for different faiths, and they understand

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The leadership and management are good

that it is acceptable for people to hold views different from their own. Pupils regularly have the opportunity to vote on matters that arise in class, so are introduced at an early age to the concept of democracy.  Pupils’ attendance has improved and is now in line with the national average. This is due to actions taken by the school, such as working with outside agencies, developing good relationships with families and swiftly contacting families if a pupil is absent.  There are excellent arrangements to support pupils with parents serving in the armed forces. The school helps families to remain in close contact and gives children emotional support in difficult times. Children from forces families have their own school club, which they enjoy.  The school’s leaders ensure that safeguarding arrangements are good, and record-keeping is thorough.  The school works hard to foster good relationships with parents. Communication is good; the website is

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The leadership and management are good

up to date and provides valuable information.  The local authority provides only light touch support for this good school. However, the school has benefitted from purchasing additional expert support from the authority.  The primary sports funding is used effectively to promote partnership working with other schools, including increased participation in competitive events. Provision has been made to train staff, resulting in a wider range of sports being offered, including cricket and hockey. The school participates in activities run by the local secondary school, this includes additional training for for gifted and talented athletes.  School assessment data are collected rigorously, but the school’s leadership team does not always use the information from assessments to challenge teachers to raise expectations of their pupils to the highest levels, particularly in mathematics.  The governance of the school:

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The leadership and management are good

- Many of the school’s governors are new to their role but they are very committed and work well with the existing members of the governing body to lead the school. The governors know the school’s strengths and weaknesses, and how well the school is performing compared to other schools. They understand the school’s data and use this knowledge to hold the headteacher to account. They know how well different groups are progressing, including disadvantaged children, and are rigorous in their examination of how the pupil premium money is spent. The governors regularly receive reports about the quality of teaching, and middle and subject leaders attend meetings to keep the governors up to date with what is happening in school. The governing body is kept well informed about the quality of teaching, and it ensures that there is a close link between pay and performance. Governors’ self- evaluation is good. They recognise their lack of experience so they organised and paid for additional

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The leadership and management are good

expert advice from the local authority to ensure they were being sufficiently rigorous. The governing body offers the headteacher both support and challenge. For example, the headteacher was challenged to prove that the expensive interventions the school employs to support pupils are good value for money. Finances are well managed. All governors attend training regularly and appreciate the need to promote equality of opportunity, foster good relations and tackle discrimination. Designated governors have had additional training for special educational needs, safeguarding and safer recruitment.

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Behaviour

 The behaviour of pupils is good. This view is supported by staff, governors and a large majority of parents.  In response to a small number of parental concerns, the inspectors took every opportunity to speak to pupils, both formally and informally, throughout the inspection and they learnt that pupils also consider behaviour to be good throughout the school.  Pupils are proud of their school. They look smart and like their uniform. They take pride in the environment and are good at ‘tidying up’. Their attitudes to learning are positive as well-planned lessons and experiences engage their interest.  Pupils play well together at playtimes and lunchtimes and there is a high level of adult supervision.  Pupils understand about fairness, taking turns and sharing. They regularly vote for things in school, for example choosing how the class will spend additional playtime ‘earned’ for good behaviour.

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Behaviour

 Pupils are given clear guidance on behaviour and understand the consequences of poor behaviour.  The school has effective systems for recording and dealing with behavioural, racist or bullying incidents which are reported to the governing body.  The school has a positive ethos. Pupils are taught the difference between right and wrong, and opportunities are planned into the curriculum to discuss social, moral and cultural matters.

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Safety

 The school’s work to keep pupils safe and secure is good and pupils told the inspectors that they feel safe in school.  Attendance has improved and is now in line with the national average for primary schools.  There are effective systems in place to check that people who work with pupils are suitable to do so. All staff and governors are trained in safeguarding procedures and this training is updated regularly.  The site is kept safe and fire drills are held regularly.  Pupils know about the different types of bullying. They told the inspector that it is rare and they know that they must tell a grown-up if it occurs. The pupils have faith in the adults to look after them and keep them safe.  Pupils have a good awareness of ‘stranger danger’ but their understanding of e-safety is less good. The school has e-safety training for pupils planned, but this has not taken place yet.  A small proportion of parents expressed concerns about a small number of pupils with challenging

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Safety

behaviour. The school has managed this appropriately.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teaching is typically good or better. As a result, all groups of pupils make good progress, including pupils who have disabilities or special educational needs, disadvantaged pupils and the most able.  Good teaching helps to prepare pupils for the next stage of their education. Staff in the early years teach children the skills necessary for them to access the Key Stage 1 curriculum, and by the time pupils move on to the junior school, their literacy skills are well developed so they are not prevented from achieving well by not being able to read and write fluently.  Teaching in the nursery is of a high standard, with opportunities continually being taken to extend children’s learning. For example, staff taught children how to play ‘What’s the time, Mr Wolf?’ and the inspector saw children encouraged to listen to each other, negotiate and take turns as well as practising their counting. The children’s squeals of delight showed how much they were enjoying their learning.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Phonics (sounds letters make) is well taught throughout the school. This good start is built upon so that pupils become fluent readers, and the inspectors heard pupils using the skills of segmenting and blending letters to read words. Pupils have the opportunity to read widely and often, both individually and in groups.  Pupils in the early years benefit from a variety of practical mathematics experiences; for example, the inspector saw good learning taking place as pupils sang subtraction songs and counted toys. However, teachers do not plan enough opportunities for younger pupils to learn about mathematics, and older pupils do not have sufficient opportunities to record their mathematical learning.  The most able pupils are given challenging work to do in reading and writing, but in mathematics lessons the work does not always make them think hard.  The interaction between adults and pupils is good. Teachers listen to their pupils, and rephrase

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The quality of teaching is good

explanations or questions if the pupil has not understood.  Pupils who require additional help are quickly identified and support given, enabling them to catch up with the other children. The school is particularly good at ensuring that pupils who are having difficulties with their learning are not demoralised and do not feel that they are failing. Staff do this by ensuring that pupils who are having difficulty are given tasks that are achievable and closely tailored to their needs.  The quality of marking is good. Work is marked regularly and pupils look eagerly to see what their teachers have written. Pupils are often given the opportunity to respond to marking and improve their work.  Teachers assess their pupils’ work regularly, but they do not always use the information from assessments to plan work that challenges them.

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The achievement of pupils

 Progress in both the early years and Key Stage 1 is consistently good, and evidence from assessments and pupils’ work shows that they successfully acquire skills and knowledge and achieve well.  Children in the early years make better progress than most children nationally. The school is particularly successful in developing skills in the areas of communication and personal, social and emotional development, where many children exceed expectations. However, fewer children exceed expectations in writing and mathematics by the time they leave the Reception class.  The results of the phonics screening check at the end of Year 1 show that a greater proportion of pupils are achieving the expected standard than is found nationally.  Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1 is higher than the national average for reading and writing, and in line with the national figure for mathematics.  The most able pupils reach the highest levels for reading and writing, but again, the proportion of pupils

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The achievement of pupils

reaching the highest levels in mathematics is similar to the proportion found in most schools nationally.  Pupils with disabilities or special educational needs make good progress from their different starting points in reading, writing and mathematics because of the high quality support they receive.  Disadvantaged pupils make good progress and are closing the gap in achievement with other pupils in school. The tests taken at the end of Year 2 showed that disadvantaged pupils were working at a similar level to the other pupils in the year group, and they were ahead of other disadvantaged pupils nationally in reading, writing and mathematics.  Pupils from service families are also working at a similar level to their classmates in reading, writing and mathematics.  In other subjects, the standard of work is good, and pupils spoke with enthusiasm about their studies of Space and Australia.

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The early years provision

 Arrangements for children to settle into the Nursery are good. The staff quickly get to know children and their families, and parents are very welcome in the school to discuss their child’s progress and look at their records. A small number of children join the school a year later in the Reception class and do not attend nursery. These children settle quickly because their classmates are already familiar with the school and its routines.  Teaching is good, with adults engaging children in conversations that encourage them to think and respond with full answers. Because the adults listen to children and value what they say, children become confident learners who are keen to contribute their ideas.  Pupils who have disabilities or special educational needs are quickly identified and extra help is given to enable them to catch up.  The curriculum is well planned across the different areas of learning so that children have a wide variety

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The early years provision

of experiences. An inspector saw some excellent phonics work taking place in the Nursery class; children were looking at, and listening to, each other carefully as they made the letter sounds, and were concentrating hard. Phonics and early reading skills are taught regularly, but early mathematics skills are taught less frequently.  Staff teach pupils to be safe. For example, when children were playing on their scooters, staff had chalked a zebra crossing on the playground and children were able to tell the inspector what this was for. Another child reminded the inspector to lock the gate!  Children’s social skills are developed at snack time, where they are responsible for getting their own snack and drink and are encouraged to sit in groups and chat with each other.  The early years classrooms are bright, welcoming and well resourced. The two outdoor areas facilitate imaginative play.  Children’s behaviour in the early years is good. The inspector saw examples of children sharing toys and

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The early years provision

taking turns, with adults reinforcing this behaviour with praise.  The leadership and management of the early years are good. The staff know the children very well and plan for their next steps in learning. Early reading skills are taught well. There is a high ratio of adults to children, and children are kept safe. They are well prepared to move on to 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 116173 Local authority Hampshire Inspection number 443752

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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 Infant School category Maintained Age range of pupils 3–7 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 215 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Anne Evans Headteacher Lesley Spicer Date of previous school inspection 12–13 January 2010 Telephone number 01329 234878 Email address adminoffice@peelcommon-inf.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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