Tregadillett Primary School

School report Tregadillett Community Primary School Tregadillett, Launceston, Cornwall, PL15 7EU

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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

 Tregadillett Primary is an improving school where the pupils feel safe and well cared for.  The headteacher has a strong vision for the school. This is shared by staff and governors who have worked together successfully to improve pupils’ achievement.  Improvement is particularly evident in mathematics which has, rightly, been a focus for development.  Pupils make good progress in reading, writing and mathematics. Their achievement in writing is particularly strong.  Children make good progress in the early years. Their achievements are carefully recorded and used well in planning.  Pupils are proud of their school and the work that they do. They behave well in lessons and play together harmoniously at lunchtimes.  Teaching is good across the school. Staff value the support provided by the headteacher to help them to improve their teaching.  Discussion in lessons is frequent and gives opportunities for pupils to explain what they think.

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

Teachers use questions well to extend pupils’ understanding.  Leaders have robust systems for checking on how well the pupils are doing and to provide any additional support should it be necessary.  Governors ask challenging questions and hold leaders to account well.

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It is not yet an outstanding school because

 On occasions, pupils’ learning slows when pupils are not moved on quickly enough in their lessons to new and more challenging activities, particularly for the most able pupils.  Pupils are not always given time to respond to teachers’ marking and this means they are not consistently using this information to improve their work.  Some parents express concerns about how well the school is doing, including how effectively it communicates with them.

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Information about this inspection

 The inspector observed seven lessons, all of which were observed jointly with the headteacher.  The inspector held meetings with staff, members of the governing body, the pre-school leader and had telephone conversations with representatives from the local authority.  The inspector talked with groups of pupils, as well as individual pupils, during lessons and play times to find out their views about the school. He also listened to pupils read.  The inspector took account of the 72 responses to the Ofsted online parent questionnaire (Parent View), and responses to the school’s most recent questionnaire. Parents’ views were also gathered from written comments, informal discussion and meetings.  The views of staff were gathered through discussions and 16 returns to the Ofsted staff questionnaire.  The inspector observed the school’s work and looked at documents, including improvement plans, safeguarding documents, records relating to attendance, systems for tracking pupils’ progress and the

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Information about this inspection

school’s data on pupils’ attainment and progress .

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Inspection team

Peter Clifton, Lead inspector Additional Inspector

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Information about this school

 The school is smaller than the average-sized school.  The number of pupils on roll has increased considerably since the time of the previous inspection.  Almost all pupils are of White British heritage.  The proportion of disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs is average.  The proportion of pupils who are supported by the pupil premium is below average; there were very few in Year 6 in 2014. In this school, the pupil premium provides additional funding for pupils known to be eligible for free school meals and for those in care.  The school’s provision for pupils in the early years is full time.  The school meets the government’s current floor standards, which set the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress in reading, writing and mathematics.  Several staff have been recently appointed.  The headteacher took up his post in April 2013.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve the quality of teaching by:  ensuring that the pace of learning is always brisk so that pupils, particularly the most able, are moved on to more challenging work as appropriate  giving time for pupils to respond to marking.  Work more closely with parents to establish why they may have concerns about the school, including how well the school communicates with them, and rectify these.

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The leadership and management are good

 Leaders, staff and governors are committed to providing high levels of achievement and personal development for all pupils. Teamwork to put this commitment into practice is strong and led well by the headteacher. Subject leaders have worked effectively to drive through improvement.  Support for teaching is very effective. The headteacher has established robust procedures to ensure that teaching is strengthening pupils’ progress and promoting equality of opportunity well.  The headteacher regularly checks pupils’ work across the school to ensure that it meets high expectations.  Judgements made about the attainment of pupils are checked carefully to ensure that they are accurate, including using support from other local schools. As a result, the school is rightly confident about the attainment and progress being made by pupils.  Good use is made of pupil premium funding. Leaders review this regularly to ensure that it is making a

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The leadership and management are good

difference for individual pupils. Additional teaching and classroom support for disadvantaged pupils are well targeted.  There is conflicting evidence about the views of parents regarding the effectiveness of leadership and management and how well the school is doing, including how well school leaders communicate with them. The online questionnaire and a few written comments indicate an unusual degree of concern.  In contrast to this, the school’s own survey from March 2014, some highly positive written responses received during the inspection and informal discussions with parents indicate strong levels of satisfaction. Evidence from inspection shows that the school is well led and managed. This is because leaders enjoy the strong support of the current school staff, governors and pupils. The actions taken are improving pupils’ achievement and are reflected in samples of pupils’ work which demonstrate good teaching over

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The leadership and management are good

time.  The school uses its additional funding for school sport well. Specialist sports teaching has helped to raise the profile of sporting activities across the school. This includes outdoor education. This has improved pupils’ enjoyment and rates of participation in clubs and sporting activities.  Pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is promoted well, for example in assemblies. There are consistent messages about British values, including respect and tolerance, which foster good relationships. Pupils know that discrimination is not acceptable. The vicar is a regular visitor to the school and comments that there are several community events in the school. Overall, pupils are thoughtful, friendly and motivated to learn. They are prepared well for life in modern Britain.  The curriculum has a secure focus on developing pupils’ reading, literacy and mathematics skills. Topics

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The leadership and management are good

and activities promote different subjects and make meaningful links. There are some good examples of pupils using their writing skills in different subjects. For example, in science in Year 1, pupils write at length about habitats and, in Year 3, explain different types of rocks.  The local authority provides an appropriate level of support, for example in improving mathematics, managing change and moving the school forward.  Safeguarding requirements are met. This ensures that pupils feel safe and secure in school. Child protection training is up to date. All necessary checks on staff are carried out.

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The leadership and management are good

 The governance of the school:  The governing body has provided strong support to the headteacher to ensure that the quality of education provided is improving and that weaknesses, for example in mathematics, are fully addressed. Governors have a clear view of the school’s strengths and weaknesses, including the quality of teaching and how well pupils achieve, and receive good quality information from the headteacher about the progress of different groups. They use this information to ask searching questions. There is a secure link between teachers’ performance and salary progression. Governors have ensured that finances are managed well and planning future accommodation for the increase in numbers has been considered carefully. They are aware of the views of parents through regular school questionnaire responses and personal contact, which they say are mostly positive. Governors make sure that the statutory

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The leadership and management are good

requirements for safeguarding children are met fully.

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Behaviour

 The behaviour of pupils is good. The school is a harmonious community.  Pupils behave well around the school and at playtimes. They are polite and respectful. They say that they enjoy coming to school and that everyone is really friendly. There are always things to do at lunchtimes because older pupils take responsibility to lead play activities.  In lessons, pupils listen well and typically respond quickly to requests from teachers and other adults. As a result, lessons run smoothly and there is a very positive learning environment. Pupils work well together in groups, including when they are not directly supported by an adult. They enjoy helping each other.  Pupils’ books show that pupils take pride in their work and usually try their best to complete tasks. They understand the feedback they get through marking. Pupils in Year 6 spend extra time to make sure that they take on the advice given by teachers to help them improve.

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Behaviour

 A few pupils, mainly boys, occasionally find it difficult to maintain their concentration in lessons and need to be reminded by teachers to participate all of the time.

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Safety

 The school’s work to keep pupils safe and secure is good. Pupils and their parents are confident that they are safe in school and looked after well by the adults.  Pupils can identify who they would confide in should they have any concerns or personal worries.  Any pupil requiring first aid is cared for quickly by staff and the accident is recorded.  Pupils have a well developed understanding of the different types of bullying, including cyber bullying. Pupils comment that their understanding about this has been strengthened following the school’s anti- bullying week and that this has led to a reduction in the number of incidents of bullying or inappropriate behaviour. This is reflected in the school’s behaviour and bullying logs.  Attendance is above average and any absence is followed up quickly.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teaching is improving and, as a result, pupils’ progress and achievement in reading, writing and mathematics are good.  Reading is promoted well through guided reading sessions and the use of the library. Older pupils have good reading habits. They are critical readers. They choose books carefully and write reviews about what they particularly like or dislike.  Phonics (the sounds that letters make) is taught well. Younger pupils are developing early reading skills and beginning to gain pleasure from reading activities.  Literacy is taught well, including the use of grammar, punctuation and spelling. Pupils use their writing skills well in a range of different subjects. For some time, achievement in writing has been the strongest area of the school’s work.  Marking for improvement in writing and mathematics typically identifies what the pupils need to do to improve through the comments made and ‘steps to success’. This works best when pupils use these

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The quality of teaching is good

comments to improve their next piece of work. However, pupils are not consistently given the time to respond to these comments in lessons and this limits their progress.  Improving mathematics teaching has been a focus for school improvement, drawing on external expertise and professional development. This has led to improvements in teaching and strengthened pupils’ progress markedly. For example, pupils use a range of calculation skills in Year 6 to multiply two and three digit numbers confidently; in Year 5, they apply their understanding of different angles to solve problems.  Teachers use questioning and discussion well to develop pupils’ understanding. Pupils across the school are keen to respond to questions and enthusiastically discuss their ideas in small groups.  There are times in lessons when pupils’ learning slows, for example when teachers and other staff do not move pupils on rapidly enough to more challenging tasks. This includes the most able pupils when they

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The achievement of pupils is good

 The attainment of pupils currently in the school is above average in Year 2 and in Year 6, in reading, writing and mathematics.  Over time, attainment by the end of Year 2 has been above the national average in reading, writing and mathematics. In 2014, writing was the stronger area with one third of the most able pupils reaching the higher National Curriculum level.  Attainment by the end of Year 6 has been more variable but, overall, pupils achieve well. In 2014, standards by the end of Year 6 were average overall, with pupils performing best in writing.  The school’s records of progress and samples of work seen confirm that pupils across the school have made good progress from their different starting points and achieve well.  Overall, the most able pupils make good progress. The work of the current Year 6 pupils is impressive in both writing and mathematics, with several pupils working at the higher levels. Overall their attainment is

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The achievement of pupils is good

well above average. This is an improvement on previous years.  Disabled pupils and those with special educational needs make similar progress to their classmates in reading, writing and mathematics. They benefit from additional support which meets their needs well, for example to help them to develop their calculation skills in mathematics and to improve their sentences in literacy.  In the 2014 tests, the school had too few disadvantaged pupils to permit any reliable comparison of their achievement with national figures. However, because of the additional help they receive, these pupils, across the school, make progress which is at least as good as other pupils. Their progress is very regularly tracked and support adjusted to ensure that they do not fall behind.

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The early years provision is good

 Leadership and management of the early years provision are good. ‘Learning journeys’ map the children’s achievements in considerable detail. They show that different groups of children achieve well.  The headteacher regularly checks on the quality of provision and provides the support needed to improve the quality of teaching.  Links with the local pre-school are strong, and valued. This helps to ensure a smooth transition to school.  Classroom routines are well established; pupils help to tidy up and clear away.  The children like to share what they have done and talk confidently about their ideas, showing that they feel safe and secure. They make good gains in developing early reading and writing skills. The current topic on dinosaurs has captured children’s interest and enthusiasm. Children enjoy hunting for dinosaur footprints and models.  Teachers plan well to help the children to learn. Activities given are well matched to children’s individual

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The early years provision is good

needs. Children count with growing confidence and do simple sums. The most able write down different ways to make 10.  Children join Reception with levels of skill and knowledge that are broadly typical for their age. Their personal, social and emotional development is the weaker area on entry. They make at least good progress in all areas of learning. In 2014, above average proportions reached the goals expected by the end of Reception. They are prepared well for 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 111948 Local authority Cornwall Inspection number 444162

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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 Community Age range of pupils 4 − 11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 118 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Mary Tucker Headteacher Stuart Tulloch Date of previous school inspection 20 January 2010 Telephone number 01566 772944 Fax number 01566 773990 Email address admin@tregadillett.net 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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