Setting

Mrs Sophie McGeoch Headteacher Meadlands Primary School Broughton Avenue Ham Richmond Surrey TW10 7TS

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School

Following my visit to your school on 25 November 2014, I write on behalf of Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Education, Children’s Services and Skills to report the inspection findings. Thank you for the help you gave me and for the time you made available to discuss the actions you are taking to improve the school since the most recent section 5 inspection.

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School

The visit was the first monitoring inspection since the school was judged to require improvement following the section 5 inspection in September 2014. It was carried out under section 8 of the Education Act 2005.

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School

Senior leaders, governors and the sponsor are taking effective action to tackle the areas requiring improvement identified at the recent section 5 inspection. The school should take further action to:

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School

Sharpen the school’s action plan by setting out the key dates when you will check how well the key priorities are improving

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Evidence

During the inspection, I held meetings with you, your deputy and assistant headteachers and three teachers responsible for areas of the curriculum. I also met with the Chair of the Governing Body, two governors and the school improvement partner representing the local authority, to discuss the actions being taken to improve the school. I spoke with pupils during the school day and in a meeting at Tribal Kings Orchard One Queen Street Bristol BS2 0HQ T 0300 123 1231 Text Phone: 0161 6188524 enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk www.ofsted.gov.uk Direct T 0117 311 5323 Email : suzy.smith@tribalgroup.com lunchtime to discuss their work and the feedback they are given by teachers. I made brief visits to all classrooms with you; we looked at a range of pupils’ work and observed pupils working in lessons. I evaluated your post-Ofsted action plan and a range of other documentation, including records of monitoring of the quality of

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Evidence

teaching and the external review of the governing body.

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Context

Since the last inspection two teaching assistants have joined the school. One teacher is currently on term long absence and is being covered by a supply teacher. The management responsibilities for this teacher are being covered this year by another permanent member of the teaching staff.

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Main findings

You and your senior leaders have acted swiftly and decisively to ensure that no time is wasted in securing improvements since the last inspection. You have galvanised staff to work as a cohesive team and with determination to tackle the areas for improvement. Leaders and governors are highly ambitious for the school and for all pupils to achieve as well as they can. One pupil summed up the change in the school culture saying, ‘Last year we were rewarded for deeds, since the inspection we celebrate our achievements’.

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Main findings

You have set clear and challenging expectations for the pace of improvement. As a result, pupils’ achievement is showing strong improvement. Pupils spoke passionately about their work, explaining that staff have higher expectations of what they can achieve; ‘Teachers give us greater challenge now’. Pupils could show the improvements they have experienced since the inspection, for example, how their individualised targets for mathematics and English are helping them improve their learning. There has been a greater emphasis on ensuring that progress of pupils is monitored and feedback to teachers is used to help them improve their teaching. Monitoring from senior leaders is sharply focused on ensuring that teachers are consistently applying school policies and practices so that all pupils make at least good progress.

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Main findings

In partnership with yourself and senior leaders, your subject leaders are improving the consistency of teaching in classrooms. Information from their monitoring is shared with all leaders and staff. This means they all understand the key priorities for improving teaching and how this links to the school’s action plan. This plan is used well and is continually referred to by all leaders, including governors. However, leaders and governors accept that they now need to build in clearer steps to assess how well the plan is improving the school’s work with pupils.

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Main findings

Key improvements in teaching have been secured by a consistent expectation of quality. You have ensured that there are challenging conversations when staff do not meet expectations. Monitoring is now more frequent and includes scrutiny of pupils’ books, meetings to discuss pupil progress and observations of teaching. High quality feedback is given to teachers and action points are monitored to check how well teachers are improving. Rigorous moderation of English and mathematics work and assessment across the school is helping to ensure work for pupils is now consistently challenging.

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Main findings

Governors are much better at leading improvements and are quickly developing the effectiveness of the governing body. They quickly put in place a review of governance and as a result they have a good understanding of the knowledge and skills they need to improve. The Chair of the Governing Body has reinvigorated the governing body by using new governors and restructuring to give a much sharper focus on pupil achievement. Meetings are scheduled to link with the school’s half termly assessment and monitoring cycle. This means governors receive timely and accurate information and governors are more challenging of leaders. They are using the external review and additional training to check how well they are improving their work. In particular they understand the need to monitor progress regularly and adapt the school’s action plan according to the developing needs of pupils, staff and parents.

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Main findings

Ofsted may carry out further visits and, where necessary, provide further support and challenge to the school until its next section 5 inspection.

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External support

The local authority has acted urgently to help the school to in tackle the areas for improvement. The school’s leaders are playing a key role in identifying the support necessary and this has been provided quickly.

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External support

A range of external consultants have been brokered by the school improvement partner. Effective links with other schools are helping to improve leadership and the quality of teaching. A notable example of the impact is the much improved marking and guidance to pupils on how to improve their work. During my visit we agreed that the headteacher would now welcome and benefit from a greater degree of external challenge from the local authority to ensure the rate of improvements is maintained.

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External support

I am copying this letter to the Chair of the Governing Body and the Director of Children’s Services for Richmond upon Thames.

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