Setting

Ann Bashir-Pugh Acting Headteacher Moor Green Primary School Moor Green Lane Moseley Birmingham B13 8QP

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Special measures monitoring inspection of Moor Green Primary School

Following my visit to your academy on 16 December 2014, I write on behalf of Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Education, Children’s Services and Skills to confirm the inspection findings. Thank you for the help you gave during the inspection and for the time you made available to discuss the actions which have been taken since the academy’s recent section 5 inspection.

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Special measures monitoring inspection of Moor Green Primary School

The inspection was the first monitoring inspection since the academy became subject to special measures following the inspection which took place in September 2014.

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Evidence

During this inspection, meetings were held with you, the acting deputy headteacher, the Chair of the Governing Body and two other governors. Telephone conversations were held with two representatives from the sponsor. During this inspection you and the acting deputy headteacher joined me on brief visits to some classrooms. We spoke with pupils about their learning and looked at examples of pupils’ work. The sponsor’s statement of action and the academy’s improvement plan were evaluated.

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Context

The academy is part of the Headteachers, Teachers and Industry Trust (HTI). You and the acting deputy headteacher took up your roles September 2014. At the same time a new Chair of the Governing Body was appointed. The academy was inspected 24–25 September 2014. From September to October 2014, the headteacher of Saint Serco Inspections Colmore Plaza 20 Colmore Circus Queensway Birmingham B4 6AT T 0300 123 1231 Text Phone: 0161 6188524 enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk www.ofsted.gov.uk Direct T : 0121 679 9146 Direct email : clare.benson@serco.com Barnabas Church of England Primary School worked with senior leaders at Moor Green. The headteacher from Saint Barnabas is a National Leader in Education (NLE). In collaboration with the Department for Education, preparations have started to rebroker the academy sponsorship arrangement. The governing body is currently seeking a new sponsor.

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The quality of leadership and management at the school

The academy’s improvement plan is suitably focused on tackling the weaknesses identified in the recent section 5 inspection. The plan makes clear who will lead the actions within the plan and how progress will be checked. However, it does not always specify who will evaluate the impact of the actions taken by academy leaders.

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The quality of leadership and management at the school

The headteacher from Saint Barnabus has provided you with some helpful advice on setting up systems to check the work of teachers. You and the acting deputy headteacher have worked together well to strengthen the systems for managing the performance of staff. For instance, teachers’ targets for improvement have been closely linked to raising the achievement of different groups of pupils in their class. Each teacher has been given a ‘Raising Standards Tracker’. This identifies the specific actions that will be taken to help pupils make better progress. Nevertheless, the criteria for measuring the success of the actions within the tracker are not sufficiently measurable.

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The quality of leadership and management at the school

Actions taken to improve pupils’ writing are beginning to make a difference to pupils’ achievement. During our brief visits to some classes, pupils described their writing activities as ‘fun’ and ‘enjoyable’. Work in pupils’ writing books showed pupils increasingly using punctuation and grammar correctly. This is because staff are placing a stronger emphasis on these aspects. In some of the classes we visited, the activities for disabled pupils and those with special educational needs were too difficult. As a result these pupils were not always able to complete their work without the support of a teaching assistant. You acknowledge that further action is required to help pupils make quicker progress in mathematics. Work in pupils’ mathematics books showed that the activities for the most-able pupils are not always challenging enough. Teachers are starting to use ‘green and pink highlighters’ to acknowledge

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The quality of leadership and management at the school

pupils’ achievements and to identify what could be even better when marking pupils’ work. We found pupils correcting their errors and improving their work in response to the ‘pink highlighting’. The presentation of pupils’ work remains variable. In some classes, pupils continue to scribble and reverse their letters and numbers. Although pupils’ attendance has improved, it remains below the national average for primary schools.

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The quality of leadership and management at the school

Members of the governing body have arranged for an external review of governance. The acting headteacher has arranged for an external review of the use of pupil premium. Both reviews are expected to take place next term. Governors have a clearer understanding of their roles and responsibilities. They are visiting the academy regularly, asking pertinent questions of senior leaders and checking the work of the academy for themselves. Consequently they are aware of the academy’s emerging strengths and areas of weakness. The governors have rightly prioritised the need to appoint a permanent headteacher, secure the services of an effective teacher to support the existing teachers in the academy, arrange for another NLE to work with academy leaders, and to ensure a smooth transition from one sponsor to the next.

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The quality of leadership and management at the school

The partnership between the academy and the academy trust remains ineffective. Communication between the two is weak. The sponsor’s statement of action does not meet requirements. The statement of action does not make clear how teaching will be improved or how pupils will be helped to make better progress in writing and mathematics. Neither does the statement of action make clear how parents will be informed of any proposed actions or how the views of parents will be taken into account.

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The quality of leadership and management at the school

Following the monitoring inspection the following judgements were made:

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The quality of leadership and management at the school

The sponsor’s statement of action is not fit for purpose.

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The quality of leadership and management at the school

The academy’s improvement plan is fit for purpose.

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The quality of leadership and management at the school

I strongly recommend that the academy does not seek to appoint NQTs.

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The quality of leadership and management at the school

I am copying this letter to the Secretary of State, the Chair of the Governing Body, and the Director of Children’s Services for Birmingham. This letter will be published on the Ofsted website.

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