Miserden Church of England Primary School

Miserden Church of England Primary School Miserden, Stroud, Gloucestershire, GL6 7JA

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Overall effectiveness

Previous inspection: Requires improvement 3 This inspection: Good 2 Leadership and management Outstanding 1 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 leadership of the school is outstanding. The headteacher provides strong leadership and her focus on improving teaching has led to a raising of achievement for all pupils since the last inspection.  Governors provide very high levels of support and challenge for the headteacher. They have a very good understanding of the performance of the school and have high expectations for all pupils.  The progress of all groups of pupils is now at least good. The proportion of pupils making faster progress by the end of Year 6 in 2014 in reading, writing and mathematics was higher than the national average.  The quality of teaching is now good. Teachers have high expectations of all pupils. They plan interesting activities so that the pupils enjoy their learning and make good progress.  Pupils’ behaviour is exemplary in school. Pupils have very good attitudes to learning. They are polite and caring towards each other. They say that they feel

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

safe in school.  Children settle in quickly in Reception and make good progress due to teaching and provision that is carefully matched to meet their specific needs within the mixed-aged classes.  Parents are extremely supportive of the school. They recognise and appreciate the improvements that have taken place and feel valued as partners in their children’s education.  The curriculum is extremely well planned to engage pupils’ interest. Very good use is made of learning in the local and wider outdoor environment. The school places a very strong emphasis on supporting pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development, and this helps pupils develop a deep understanding of other people’s faiths and beliefs.

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It is not yet an outstanding school because

 There is not yet enough teaching that is outstanding. This is because in some lessons teachers do not make sure that pupils fully understand what they are expected to achieve.  Pupils do not have enough opportunities to learn about, and use, computers to support their learning across all subjects.  Pupils do not always understand why discriminatory language is unacceptable.

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Information about this inspection

 The inspector visited nine lessons or parts of lessons, two of them jointly with the headteacher.  The inspector looked at work in pupils’ books and listened to some pupils in Year 1 read. He met with a group of pupils to gain their views of the school. The inspector observed pupils’ behaviour at breaktime, lunchtime and at the end of the school day.  The inspector looked at a range of documentation including assessments and records of pupils’ progress, the school’s checks and records relating to safeguarding, child protection and attendance, records of how teaching is managed, and the school improvement plans showing how well the school is doing.  Meetings were held with the headteacher, other staff, three governors and a representative of the local education authority. The inspector also attended an assembly.  The inspector took account of the 26 responses to the online questionnaire, Parent View, and the five

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Information about this inspection

responses to the staff questionnaire. He also spoke to several parents at the end of the school day.

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Inspection team

Adam Hewett, Lead inspector Additional Inspector

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Information about this school

 This school is very much smaller than the average-sized primary school.  Children in the Early Years Foundation Stage attend full time.  Pupils are taught in three mixed-age classes. Pupils from Reception, Year 1 and Year 2 are taught in one class. Pupils from Year 3 and Year 4 in another, and pupils from Year 5 and Year 6 in the third class.  The proportion of pupils supported through the pupil premium is below the national average. This is additional government funding for pupils who are known to be eligible for free school meals and those who are looked after by the local authority. The pupil premium provides support for a twentieth of the pupils in school.  The proportion of pupils from minority ethnic backgrounds is below that in most schools. Almost all pupils are of White British background.  The proportion of disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs is one in twelve pupils,

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Information about this school

which is above the national average.  In 2014, there were too few pupils in Year 6 for the government’s floor standards, which set the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress, to be applicable.  A before- and after-school club, run by the school, operates every day.  The school was awarded Outdoor Learning Status in September 2014.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve teaching even further and increase the proportion of pupils making more rapid progress in all subjects by:  ensuring all teachers make clear to pupils what they are expected to achieve within lessons and check that they understand how this can be done  providing pupils with a wider range of opportunities to learn about and use computer technology.  Further strengthen pupils’ understanding about why any discriminatory language is unacceptable.

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The leadership and management are outstanding

 The headteacher provides outstanding leadership. She has a deep commitment to ensuring all pupils achieve high standards in all subjects and this is now shared by all members of the school community. She has focused on improving teaching by providing opportunities for staff to learn from outstanding teaching in other schools. She has established clear policies for teaching and learning. All teaching is now at least good, which has resulted in improvements in achievement for all pupils since the last inspection.  All teachers in this small school have leadership responsibility. They have been provided with good training opportunities for developing their subject leadership roles and are involved in regular monitoring and evaluation of the quality of provision. They check the quality of work in pupils’ books and monitor the progress that pupils are making. They work closely with governors and provide them with detailed

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The leadership and management are outstanding

information about their particular areas of responsibility.  The local authority has provided good support and challenge to the school over the past three years. It recognises that the school has improved significantly and the level and frequency of support has been consequently reduced during the last few months.  The school has developed an exciting curriculum that is very well matched to the needs of the pupils. Excellent use is made of the attractive school grounds and the local area, with pupils provided with hands- on opportunities to apply and extend their learning. A recent archaeological dig in the village was followed up with a series of lessons where pupils undertook their own surveys and exploration of what was hidden beneath the ground.  The pupil premium is used very effectively to support the small number of disadvantaged pupils in school. It has been used to ensure that these pupils are able to participate fully in all areas of school life and to

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The leadership and management are outstanding

support their emotional and academic well-being. The school has a strong commitment to equality of opportunity for all pupils and this is reflected in the way that pupils who join the school part way through the year settle very quickly and make good progress.  The promotion of pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is extremely well supported. The school promotes excellent relationships. Pupils demonstrate their clear understanding of what is right and wrong through their outstanding behaviour. They have a very good understanding of wider society and have developed strong links with a school in Kenya. Discrimination of any kind is not tolerated. They are provided with very good opportunities to develop their understanding of why democracy and compassion are important values and this is helping them to prepare for life as citizens in modern Britain.  The school has used the additional primary sport funding very well to develop teachers’ competence and

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The leadership and management are outstanding

confidence in teaching a wider range of physical activities, including dance and gymnastics. As a result, pupils’ skills have increased, as shown by their recent dance performance at the Everyman Theatre in Cheltenham.  Rigorous systems are in place for managing teachers’ performance, with challenging targets set for each teacher. Progress against these targets is closely monitored, and teachers’ pay progression is clearly linked to them being successfully achieved and to pupil achievement.  Safeguarding and pupils’ well-being are very high priorities for the school and strong procedures are in place to ensure that all legal requirements are fully met and are very effective.  The governance of the school:  Governors are a highly effective force in ensuring that the school continues to improve. They have a deep understanding of how the school is performing and know its strengths and areas for development,

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The leadership and management are outstanding

gained through detailed analysis of all the data and information that is available to them. They provide high levels of challenge for the headteacher and other staff and work closely alongside them. They make regular visits to the school and know about the quality of teaching. They have very good systems in place for sharing the information gathered from their visits across the whole governing body. Governors ensure that teachers’ performance is well managed and that there are clear links between performance and pay progression. They know about support being provided to improve teaching where it has been less strong. They manage the finance and resources that are available to the school, including the pupil premium, very well and measure the impact of spending on pupil achievement.

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Behaviour

 The behaviour of pupils is outstanding. Pupils’ behaviour, both in lessons and when they are out of classrooms, is of a consistently high standard. Pupils display extremely positive attitudes towards learning and participate enthusiastically in all lessons, and this helps them to make good progress. They take responsibility for their own behaviour and recognise that this benefits both themselves and others.  Pupils appreciate the opportunities to take on responsibility within the school and take these roles very seriously. Members of the Pupil Parliament identified how small changes in arrangements in the organisation of the dining room could make lunchtime an even more enjoyable time. These are now fully in place, resulting in a civilized social and eating environment for all pupils. Older pupils look after the younger pupils and act as play partners at breaktime.  Pupils, parents and staff all agree that there is no bullying. Pupils are confident that if were to occur that it

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Behaviour

would be swiftly and effectively dealt with.  Parents all have an extremely positive view of the school. They believe that their children are well looked after, safe and happy. They appreciate the openness and effectiveness of communication between the school and parents and carers.

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Safety

 The school’s work to keep pupils safe and secure is good. The school site is safe and secure. Pupils told the inspector that they felt safe in school and were confident that they could talk to an adult if they had any worries.  Attendance at the school is above average. The school has good systems in place to ensure that pupils attend regularly and arrive on time. The well-run before- and after-school club provides a safe and welcoming environment for the small number of pupils who attend.  Pupils are taught well about how to keep themselves safe in a wide range of situations, including road and e-safety. However, whilst all pupils show tolerance and respect for each other, they are not all as aware of the reasons for not using inappropriate words and phrases, including homophobic language.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teaching has improved since the last inspection and is now good. This is shown in pupils’ work, in the results pupils achieve through tests and assessments, and through the school’s own monitoring of teaching.  The teaching of reading, writing and mathematics is highly effective. Pupils are now provided with a wide range of opportunities to apply their writing skills across a range of subjects. Teachers place a high focus on ensuring that pupils are taught the necessary skills in spelling, punctuation and grammar and that these are then used accurately in independent pieces of writing.  A whole school approach to using mathematical skills to solve problems has been introduced and pupils are now able to use their knowledge to solve real life problems. An example of this was seen in a Years 5 and 6 lessons where the pupils worked in groups around the school grounds, measuring spaces, such as the car park, and then accurately calculated how much gravel would be required to resurface it to a

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The quality of teaching is good

required depth.  Reading is taught very well through a combination of daily phonics (the sounds that letters make) lessons for all pupils and regular opportunities to read to teachers and other adults. This results in pupils quickly developing a love of reading and high levels of attainment.  Teachers have high expectations of what pupils should achieve and plan lessons that are interesting and of relevance to the pupils. Work is matched well to the needs of different ages and abilities within the classes, including the most able, and is suitably challenging for all pupils. However, in some lessons, teachers do not always fully ensure that all pupils know what they are expected to achieve and this slows the pace of learning for some pupils.  Relationships between teachers and pupils are good and this results in an environment where pupils are confident to talk to adults and to ask questions related to their work.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Marking and feedback are used extremely well in all subjects to inform pupils about how well they are doing, and to indicate what they need to do next to improve their learning. This is linked to individual targets for pupils that they understand and use well to assess their own progress.  Assessment is accurate, thorough and used very well by staff to track pupils’ progress. The headteacher ensures that there are regular opportunities for teachers to work with staff from other schools to compare and discuss examples of pupils’ work to check that their assessments are accurate.  Teaching assistants work very effectively alongside teachers, supporting small groups and individuals. Disabled pupils, those with special educational needs and disadvantaged pupils are provided with individual support, as required, and tasks are adapted to ensure that they can fully access their learning. This helps to ensure that they make progress at the same rates as other pupils.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Pupils use computers for redrafting pieces of writing, researching information and for mathematical practice. However, opportunities for pupils to extend their skills in early programming, sending emails and digital recording are not as well developed and this limits their application across other subjects.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Most children start in Reception with skills and knowledge that are typical for their age. They make good progress across the school in reading, writing and mathematics.  Pupils acquire knowledge and skills quickly in all year groups. They use and apply phonic skills accurately in their reading and writing. The proportions of pupils who passed the Year 1 phonic screening check in both 2013 and 2014 were above average.  The attainment of pupils varies from year to year because of the very small number of pupils in each year group. In 2013, attainment in reading, writing and mathematics at the end of Year 2 was below national. However, in 2014, it was well above national.  Over the past two years, pupils in Year 6 have consistently attained high standards in reading, writing and mathematics. Current school data indicate that, in 2015, pupils in Year 6 are likely to attain very high standards and will have made good progress.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 The school challenges its most able pupils to reach the highest standards of attainment and an above average proportion achieve the higher Level 3 at the end of Year 2 and Level 5 at the end of Year 6.  Disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs make progress that is at least in line with the other pupils in school. This is because teachers have the same high expectations for these pupils and additional high quality support is provided where required.  The small number of disadvantaged pupils make progress that is at least in line with their peers in school in reading, writing and mathematics. In 2013 and 2014, there were too few pupils in the cohorts to compare their attainment without risk of identifying the individuals.

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The early years provision is good

 Teaching for children in Reception is good. Activities are planned to match their ages and abilities with different provision from the older pupils in the mixed-aged class. Children are provided with opportunities to make independent choices about what they are going to be involved in, and there is a good balance of adult led learning that is carefully matched to the needs of all pupils, including the most able and those with disabilities or special educational needs.  School data from 2014 show that the children had all made good progress from their starting points and that attainment was above average in most areas. Progress was strongest in physical development and creative activities.  Staff use assessment very well to build up a clear understanding of each child’s strengths and areas where children need extra support. Information gathered from parents before the children start in school is used

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The early years provision is good

alongside observations by the staff to ensure that learning begins as soon as the children are settled into the routine.  Parents are greatly valued as partners in their children’s education. They appreciate the information that is made available to them about their children’s progress and speak highly of how quickly the children settle into school.  Children’s behaviour is outstanding. Children relate very well to each other and understand how to take turns and to share. They respect the rules and know how to keep themselves safe  The leadership of the early years provision is good. The leader has taken advice from experienced colleagues in other schools and from the local authority to review the organisation of the outdoor learning classroom and to plan changes that will allow the children to have more opportunities for imaginative play and learning. The impact of this was seen through Reception children making mud cakes, counting how

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The early years provision is good

many there were and collecting the correct amount of grass candles from the garden to go on the cakes.

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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 115692 Local authority Gloucestershire Inspection number 449004

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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 Voluntary aided Age range of pupils 4–11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 51 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Denis Flavell Headteacher Jacqui Sollars Date of previous school inspection 13–14 November 2012 Telephone number 01285 821463 Email address admin@miserden.gloucs.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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