North Mundham Primary School

School report North Mundham Primary School School Lane, North Mundham, Chichester, West Sussex, PO20 1LA

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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

 Leaders and managers at all levels have worked successfully with the governors to build on the school’s strengths and to overcome its weaknesses. As a result, it has improved since its previous inspection.  Leaders have made sure that the quality of teaching and of teachers’ use of assessment is consistently at least good.  The breadth and quality of the school’s curriculum make a positive contribution both to pupils’ achievement and to their spiritual, moral, social and cultural development.  Governors are strongly committed to ensuring that the school continues to improve. They know how well pupils are achieving and why teaching makes this happen.  Pupils are polite, helpful and considerate of each other. They behave well in lessons and around the school.  Pupils feel safe in school and say that staff take good care of them. A very large majority of parents agree that this is the case.  Teachers usually plan activities which are well

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

suited to pupils’ interests.  Teachers mark pupils’ work regularly, correcting mistakes carefully. They give pupils detailed feedback which enables them to improve their work.  Pupils with different abilities make good progress in English, mathematics and a wide range of other subjects, including art, music and sport, and achieve well.  The skills that pupils gain and their positive attitudes to learning mean that they are well prepared for secondary education.  Children in the early years provision make a good start. Adults give children interesting and stimulating tasks to do. As a result, they make good progress in both their academic learning and in their personal and social development.

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It is not yet an outstanding school because

 Leaders have not yet ensured that teaching is regularly of the highest quality, so that it leads to outstanding achievement.  Teachers do not always check pupils’ progress thoroughly enough during lessons. They do not always adapt activities so that all pupils can make progress as fast as possible.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors observed pupils learning in eight lessons, observing all the classes in the school at least once. One of these observations took place together with the headteacher. The inspectors also made several short visits to a number of other lessons and school activities. They attended an assembly, examined samples of pupils’ written work together with senior leaders, and listened to pupils read.  Inspectors held meetings with groups of pupils, the Chair, the vice chair and three other members of the governing body, as well as members of staff, and a representative from the local authority. Inspectors also held informal discussions with a number of parents and carers.  Inspectors examined a variety of school documents, including records of pupils’ attainment and progress and records of attendance.  Inspectors looked at safeguarding procedures, the school’s self-evaluation, and its processes for setting

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Information about this inspection

targets for teachers and monitoring staff’s performance, as well as other school documents.  Inspectors considered 68 responses to the Ofsted online survey, Parent View, as well as a number of letters and messages from parents. They also took account of 19 questionnaires completed by members of staff.

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Inspection team

Robin Gaff, Lead inspector Additional Inspector

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Information about this school

 This school is smaller than the average-sized primary school.  The early years provision starts in the Reception class. All the children attend full time.  A well-below-average proportion of the school’s pupils is eligible for the pupil premium. This is additional government funding provided for disadvantaged children who are looked after or known to be eligible for free school meals. Only a very small number of pupils in Year 6 are eligible for the pupil premium. For this reason, their attainment is not reported upon in detail.  The proportion of disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs is below average.  The proportion of pupils who join or leave the school at other than the normal times for transfer is above the national average.  The school meets the government’s current floor standards, which set the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress in English and mathematics.

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Information about this school

 There have been several changes of staff since the school’s previous inspection, and the school has remodelled part of its building.  Since January 2015, the school has operated an after-school club for its own pupils on one day each week.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Provide more outstanding teaching so that pupils make consistently rapid and sustained progress.  Ensure that teachers check pupils’ progress during lessons in sufficient depth, so that they can modify tasks if pupils are making faster or slower progress than they had anticipated.

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The leadership and management are good

 The headteacher and her senior colleagues have successfully addressed the areas for improvement identified by the school’s previous inspection as well as consolidating the school’s strengths. Leaders have, for example, ensured that pupils appreciate the different traditions and cultures to be found in the United Kingdom and the wider world. As a result, pupils are well prepared for life in modern Britain.  The headteacher, working closely with her senior colleagues, has accurately assessed the school’s priorities for development. She has high expectations of pupils and of staff, and has united the staff behind her drive for improvement. This has led to the school providing pupils with a safe, orderly and harmonious environment in which good teaching, as well as good behaviour, is the norm.  Members of staff who have responsibility for particular areas of the school’s work, including individual

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The leadership and management are good

subjects, are knowledgeable and enthusiastic, and are increasingly effective in carrying out their roles.  Leaders have increased the frequency and the accuracy with which teachers formally assess pupils’ attainment. This has helped leaders to focus rigorously on overcoming weaknesses in teaching, including in mathematics and writing. They have improved the quality of teaching, which is consistently good and sometimes excellent.  The local authority, in providing this school with light-touch support, has a good knowledge and appreciation of its strengths and of leaders’ capacity to continue to improve its effectiveness. It has helped the school improve, for example by providing good quality training for teachers new to the school.  The school makes good use of the additional funding it receives to improve the achievement of disadvantaged pupils. As a result, gaps between these pupils’ attainment and that of other pupils have

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The leadership and management are good

narrowed. This, together with the good achievement of disabled pupils and those with special educational needs, demonstrates the school’s success in promoting equality of opportunity and tackling discrimination.  Leaders’ use of the extra money provided to help increase pupils’ participation in sport and physical activity has also been effective. Pupils now benefit from a greater variety of activities, as well as from an improvement in teachers’ expertise and confidence in teaching physical education.  The broad and balanced range of subjects from which pupils benefit is enhanced by the school’s imaginative use of its extensive outdoor area, and by a variety of special events and visits. These contribute well to pupils’ achievement and their personal development. For example, their recent visit to the House of Commons gave pupils a valuable insight into how Britain’s representative democracy operates. Pupils also have good opportunities to express and to debate their own views, for example when

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The leadership and management are good

school council members discussed the school’s expectations with regard to behaviour, ‘The Mundham Way’.  Inspectors were not able to judge the effectiveness of the after-school club as it has been operating for a very short time.  Most parents agree that the school provides them with valuable information about their children’s progress, and that staff respond well to any concerns they may have. A very large majority of those who completed the Parent View survey agreed that they would recommend the school to other parents.  Leadership and management are not outstanding. This is because leaders have not yet made sure that teachers receive the training and support they need to raise the quality of teaching to the highest level so that pupils make excellent progress.  The governance of the school:  Members of the governing body have an accurate, in-depth knowledge of how well pupils achieve in comparison with those in other schools. They know how senior leaders are improving teaching, because

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The leadership and management are good

they closely examine the regular reports they receive and visit the school often to see for themselves. They are prepared to challenge as well as to support school leaders. Governors make sure that any pay awards are closely related to teachers’ achievement of individual and school targets. They carefully examine how money is spent and ensure that the school’s resources are used effectively. This has, for example, enabled the school’s main building to be remodelled to create new teaching spaces. Governors also ensure that the school’s measures to keep pupils safe meet government requirements and that they are effective. They do this by regularly reviewing and updating the policies and procedures, and by ensuring that all those responsible for child protection are appropriately trained.

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Behaviour

 The behaviour of pupils is good.  Pupils report that, typically, they behave well in the classroom. They say that, for example, if one of them talks when the teacher is speaking to the class, this is dealt with quickly and effectively. Pupils understand and approve of the school’s system of rewards and sanctions.  Pupils’ pride in their work is shown by the care they take in making sure, for example, that written work is neat and well presented. Their positive attitudes to learning help them to make good progress. Occasionally, pupils’ effort slackens because teachers do not adapt tasks when pupils have finished early or find tasks too difficult.  Pupils behave sensibly and considerately in the dining hall and the playground. They take good care of one another, so that if a pupil is injured or upset, the others quickly aid and comfort them, seeking help from adults should this be necessary.  A small minority of parents do not agree that the school makes sure that its pupils are well behaved.

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Behaviour

Inspectors’ observations, the school’s records and pupils’ own accounts of what behaviour is typically like do not support their concerns.

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Safety

 The school’s work to keep pupils safe and secure is good.  Pupils say they feel safe in school and this view is shared by almost all parents. School leaders make sure that the premises and grounds are secure.  Pupils learn to keep themselves safe when using computers and when they are near the sea or its many local inlets.  Pupils benefit from the teaching they receive about bullying, including how to recognise and prevent it. They know about different types of bullying, such as persistent name-calling and cyber bullying, but report that it happens only rarely and that adults are quick to deal with it if it does occur.  Pupils’ attendance has been consistently above the national average and staff have succeeded in helping to reduce the absences of the few pupils whose attendance has been a cause of concern.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teachers make sure that their classrooms are orderly and attractive places in which to learn. They make good use of their regular assessment of pupils’ attainment and progress to plan work for pupils at the right level. This includes disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs, who also benefit from the support of well-trained and well-deployed teaching assistants.  Teachers succeed in communicating their knowledge of and enthusiasm for different subjects to pupils. This includes the most able pupils, for whom teachers set extra challenges, supporting them well so that most achieve their potential.  Teachers’ expertise enables them to give pupils a good grounding in phonics (the links between letters and the sounds they make), and in the rules of English grammar, spelling and punctuation. This results in pupils making good progress in both reading and writing.  Pupils are now achieving well in mathematics because teachers explain tasks clearly and effectively. They

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The quality of teaching is good

make sure that pupils can apply their understanding of, for example, multiplication and division to solve problems correctly. Teachers also ensure that pupils can explain how they have reached solutions.  Teachers mark pupils’ written work frequently, helping them to learn from mistakes they have made. Teachers give pupils detailed feedback, which enables them to know how to improve their work, and make sure that pupils have followed their advice. They do not, however, consistently check during lessons the progress being made by all pupils. This means that they do not always adapt lesson activities if some pupils are not working as hard as they could because tasks are too hard or not challenging enough.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 The standards pupils reach in English and mathematics, as shown by their performance in national tests at the end of Year 2, have risen over the last three years and their achievement is now good. In Key Stage 2, test results in reading, writing and mathematics have varied from year to year, and have been affected by particular factors relating to small numbers of pupils. However, results in recent years indicate that most pupils, including those who join the school during the course of their primary education, make good progress from their starting points and achieve well.  Pupils’ responses to teachers’ questions and to the tasks they complete, and the quality of their written and other work, demonstrate that current pupils are making good progress over time. This can be seen in subjects such as English and mathematics, but also in the creative arts, sport and physical education. For example, a high proportion of pupils learn to play a musical instrument to a good standard. The high

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The achievement of pupils is good

quality of pupils’ paintings, drawings and pottery show the good skills they are developing in these areas.  Pupils’ achievement is not outstanding because they are not yet consistently making rapid progress in all subjects throughout the school.  Pupils’ achievement in reading has been consistently strong. Pupils quickly learn to read confidently and accurately and with evident enjoyment. They speak enthusiastically and perceptively about the range of books they have read at school and at home.  Leaders have worked successfully to improve pupils’ standards in writing, especially for boys. As a result, both boys and girls show a good knowledge and understanding of spelling and grammar, and can write well in a variety of styles. This was evident, for example, in the quality of Year 4 pupils’ writing as they composed newspaper articles describing their recent visit to a local zoo.  The school has also focused strongly on improving the quality of mathematics teaching throughout the

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The achievement of pupils is good

school. This has resulted in pupils gaining a more secure grasp of mathematical principles and techniques, and has increased their ability to apply them successfully in solving problems.  The most able pupils achieve well in both English and mathematics, which represents an improvement since the school’s previous inspection. This is because teachers give these pupils work which provides them with an appropriate level of stretch and challenge.  Disabled pupils and those with special educational needs achieve well. The school quickly identifies any barriers to learning they may experience, using the expertise of outside professionals when appropriate. School leaders make sure that these pupils receive extra help from teachers and from teaching assistants, so that their additional needs are catered for well.  The number of disadvantaged pupils who attend the school is very small. It is not, therefore, possible to

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The achievement of pupils is good

make reliable comparisons between their progress and attainment in English and mathematics and those of pupils nationally. However, test results over time and the quality of current pupils’ work throughout the school confirm that gaps between the achievement of disadvantaged pupils and that of other pupils nationally and in the school are closing. This is because the school uses the additional funding well to ensure that pupils receive good quality support in the areas in which they need it.

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The early years provision is good

 Children join the school in the Reception class with levels of knowledge and skills which vary from year to year but overall are typical for their age. The communication skills of a number of children, however, are below those usually found in children of the same age.  Children, including disadvantaged and disabled children and those who have special educational needs, typically make good progress in their learning and development from their different starting points.  In 2014, the school’s reliable assessments showed that children had made good progress in, for example, mathematics, language and communication. The proportion of children who reached a good level of development was above the national average. This indicates children’s good preparation for the transition to Key Stage 1. It also shows that children whose skills were less advanced when they began school have been helped to catch up with others.

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The early years provision is good

 Children develop their ability to use phonics to recognise and to reproduce simple words and sentences in speaking and in writing. They enjoy the many opportunities they have to practise counting and measuring, when, for instance, they visit the class ‘shoe shop’.  Children behave well and know how to keep themselves safe, for example when playing on the outdoor equipment. They learn to work and play harmoniously together as they share toys and equipment, and to respond quickly to adults’ instructions and requests.  Teaching is good. Adults provide children with a good range of indoor and outdoor activities which stimulate their interest and make them keen to learn. They work closely with parents and with other early years providers to find out children’s interests and make the best use of them in planning tasks.  Adults carefully check and record children’s progress, and use their findings well to plan activities which

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The early years provision is good

build on what children have already learned. They also make sure that children who need extra help receive the support they require. Leaders recognise, however, that adults do not all use questioning as skilfully as they could to check in detail children’s understanding and to develop it still further.  Leaders have a good understanding of the characteristics and needs of this age group. They know the provision’s strengths and what needs to be developed further. This has enabled leaders to improve the quality of teaching and support and, as a result, children’s achievement.

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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 125847 Local authority West Sussex Inspection number 444270

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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 214 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Tony Atkins Headteacher Julia Carey Date of previous school inspection 16–17 September 2010 Telephone number 01243 785502 Fax number 01243 530654 Email address office@northmundham.w-sussex.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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