Setting

Mr James Tee Berridge Primary School Bobbers Mill Road Hyson Green Nottingham NG7 5GY

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School

Following my visit to your school on 26 February 2015, 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 November 2014. It was carried out under section 8 of the Education Act 2005.

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School

Senior leaders and governors are taking effective action to tackle the areas requiring improvement identified at the recent section 5 inspection.

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Evidence

During the inspection, meetings were held with you, other senior leaders, subject leaders and representatives from the governing body, to discuss the action taken since the last inspection. I also had a telephone conversation with a representative from the local authority. I evaluated your plans for improvement. I visited classes on both school sites and observed lessons with the headteacher. I spoke with a group of pupils from a range of year groups and looked at work in pupils’ books. I looked at the school’s documentation relating to safeguarding.

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Context

Since the last inspection there have been several staff changes. Four teachers have left and three new teachers have started. The leadership team has been restructured 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 9154 Direct email : aidan.dunne@serco.com and four leaders with subject and year group responsibilities are new to their positions since January 2015.

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Main findings

You have worked hard to make sure that all teachers now follow the agreed marking policy and, as a result, pupils are much clearer about how to improve their work. Pupils told me that one of the best changes in their school has been the way in which teachers mark their books. They have a good understanding of what teachers expect them to do when they are given a correction and, as a result, the quality of written work across the school is improving. Pupils were also particularly enthusiastic about the new rainbow grammar programme. Pupils said that the information displayed on the rainbow wall in each of their classrooms helps them to, ‘remember what you need to put in your sentence’.

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Main findings

There is evidence that most teachers have increasingly high expectations of pupils. The majority of teachers are making sure that the most-able pupils are given work which challenges and stretches them. During a Year 6 mathematics lesson a boy told me that the work he was doing was ‘tricky’ but that he was really enjoying it. He went on to say that it is important that he is good at mathematics because, ‘I want to be an architect’. Your commitment to raising aspirations is beginning to reap rewards, although you recognise that this is not consistent across all of the staff.

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Main findings

Your school improvement plans do include the necessary actions to bring about the changes and improvements needed. However, the success criteria are not clear enough or linked closely enough to improved outcomes for pupils’ achievement. It is important that all staff are absolutely clear that the drive for all actions in school is that of accelerating pupils’ progress.

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Main findings

You have improved the systems for checking children’s work and for monitoring the quality of teaching so that they are more rigorous and happen much more frequently. Subject and phase leaders were able to tell me very clearly about their individual responsibilities for scrutinising books and observing teachers. Staff use electronic tracking and data systems very effectively to collate the key information from all monitoring activities. As a result, all leaders have access to an accurate and detailed picture of all monitoring actions that have been carried out and of the targets that have been identified for individual members of staff. Staff feel that the systems are fair and that they are now given practical help to improve areas of their practice which need developing. However, the current cycle for monitoring and assessment is not well enough developed in relation to the work of staff in the Reception unit and, as a result, it is difficult for leaders to have a clear view of the

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Main findings

impact of the many changes that have been introduced.

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Main findings

Leaders and members of the early years team are working hard to bring about improvements in the Reception unit. The current phase leader has worked in close partnership with the headteacher of an outstanding nursery school to implement a new system for tracking children’s progress. There has also been a strong focus on improving the language interactions of staff. While there is evidence of some improvement, the quality of adult communication and the skilled and appropriate use of questions are still too variable. It is crucial that systems for monitoring the impact of recent changes in this part of the school are introduced as a priority so that the pace of improvement is quickened.

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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 provided effective support to the school. School governors have recently requested an external review of governance and the local authority has agreed to carry this out later this term. The school has received effective support for its newly qualified teachers through the local authority’s mentor programme.

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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 Nottingham.

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Her Majesty’s Inspector

The letter should be copied to the following:

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Her Majesty’s Inspector

 Appropriate authority - Chair of the Governing Body/Interim Executive Board  Local authority – including where the school is an academy

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