Windmill Primary School

Windmill Primary School Windmill Lane, Raunds, Wellingborough, NN9 6LA

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Overall effectiveness

Previous inspection: Not previously inspected as an academy 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

 The headteacher, leaders and managers provide good leadership. They receive effective support from the academy trust and the academy advisory board in raising achievement and improving teaching.  Pupils behave well and rightly feel safe in the academy. They are aware of how much the academy has improved and realise that this is helping them to make better progress now.  Provision in the early years is good and children make good progress. The proportion reaching a good level of development is above average so that children are prepared well for the move to Year 1.  Most pupils are making at least the expected amount of progress at Key Stages 1 and 2.  Good teaching has enabled many pupils to make rapid progress in filling previous gaps in their learning. This has enabled them to reach broadly average standards by the end of Year 6.  The curriculum is good. It promotes pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development and their

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It is not yet an outstanding school because

 Teachers do not always communicate high enough expectations to pupils about their written work, particularly when they work in pairs at Key Stage 2. Some pupils’ handwriting reduces the overall quality of their work.  In guided reading sessions at Key Stage 2, pupils who work with the teacher or a teaching assistant sometimes make more progress than those whose work is not directly supervised.  Teachers have not all had the opportunity to observe outstanding teaching and learning in order to improve their own practice.  Children in Reception do not have such good learning opportunities when they are in the mixed- age class with pupils in Year 1 as when they are in the class with children of their own age.

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Information about this inspection

 The inspection team visited 28 lessons across all the classes. In combination with looking at pupils’ books, talking to them about their work and checking their progress over time, this provided a balance of evidence on teaching and learning. An inspector heard some pupils at Key Stage 1 read, looked at lunchtime and playtime arrangements, talked with a group of pupils and observed an assembly.  Meetings were held with the headteacher, the deputy headteacher, teachers with specific responsibilities including for English, mathematics and the early years. Discussions took place with the representatives of The Education Fellowship, the academy sponsor, and of the academy advisory board.  The inspection team considered the 36 responses to the online survey, Parent View, and took into account the 29 completed staff questionnaires.  The inspection team observed the academy’s work and looked at a range of documentation. This included:

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Information about this inspection

the academy’s self-evaluation and development plan; records of pupils’ attainment, progress, behaviour and attendance; and systems for protecting and safeguarding pupils.

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Inspection team

Margaret Goodchild, Lead inspector Additional Inspector

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Information about this school

 Windmill Primary School became an academy on 1 May 2013. It is sponsored by The Education Fellowship.  The academy is an average-sized primary school.  Children in the Reception Year attend full time.  Most pupils are of White British heritage and very few pupils speak English as an additional language.  The proportion of disadvantaged pupils eligible for pupil premium funding is average. This funding is for pupils in the care of the local authority and those known to be eligible for free school meals.  The proportion of disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs is average.  The academy meets the government’s current floor standards, which set minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress in reading, writing and mathematics at the end of Year 6.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Raise standards and build on existing strengths in teaching by:  providing increased opportunities for pupils to write at length, especially at Key Stage 2  making sure that teachers always communicate high expectations about the written work that pupils produce and that they challenge them to think more for themselves  placing greater emphasis on developing pupils’ handwriting skills  reviewing guided reading sessions at Key Stage 2 and making sure that all pupils make as much progress as they could  ensuring that all children in the Reception Year have equally good learning opportunities  providing all teachers with opportunities to observe outstanding teaching and learning so that they are clear about how to improve their own practice.

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The leadership and management are good

 The academy is led and managed well. It is improving continuously and leaders are working well with the academy trust to raise achievement. Leaders have established a culture in which relationships are positive and teaching can flourish, and where pupils are expected to behave well.

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The leadership and management are good

 The leadership of teaching is good, and there are effective systems for managing teachers’ performance. Since becoming an academy, senior leaders have tackled some underperformance and improved the quality of teaching. They have worked with other schools to increase teachers’ skills in assessing pupils’ work, as this was known to be an area needing development. The academy now has accurate assessment information from which to make judgements about pupils’ progress.

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The leadership and management are good

 Leaders with responsibility for English, mathematics and special educational needs provide good leadership and take an active part in the academy’s development. The early years is led and managed well, and teachers with responsibility for other aspects of the academy’s work have appropriate opportunities to develop their roles.

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The leadership and management are good

 Senior leaders produce a wealth of data and use this to track pupils’ progress six times a year. They meet regularly with teachers to check pupils’ progress. This helps them to identify pupils who need extra help in order to ensure all receive equal opportunities and to prevent any discrimination.

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The leadership and management are good

 The academy uses its pupil premium funding well to support disadvantaged pupils. It provides individual tuition and support in small groups in literacy and numeracy. It has used the funding to purchase a new programme for supporting pupils in reading and writing, to fund a learning mentor to support targeted pupils and their families, and to provide opportunities for eligible pupils to have additional artistic, musical and sporting experiences.

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The leadership and management are good

 The academy makes effective use of its primary physical education and sport premium to increase pupils’ physical skills and well-being. It has used the funding to hire sports coaches and increase the skills of staff in teaching physical education. Pupils have been able to take on new sports, attend more after-school clubs and take part in an increasing number of competitions with other schools.

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The leadership and management are good

 The curriculum promotes pupils’ academic and personal development well. There is a strong focus on developing pupils’ basic skills. They learn about various topics and take part in special events such as science and mathematical enquiry days. Enterprise activities help to foster pupils’ economic and financial understanding, and visits and visitors enrich their learning.

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The leadership and management are good

 The academy promotes pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development well, and British values underpin daily practices. Pupils follow a theme entitled ‘We are British’, and external speakers contribute to raising pupils’ awareness. The academy recognises that there is a lack of diversity within its own and the local community. It provides pupils with a range of experiences to counteract this and to prepare them for life in modern Britain.

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The leadership and management are good

 Parents are kept well informed and encouraged to take an active part in their children’s learning. Almost all parents who expressed their views are satisfied with most aspects of the academy's work and would recommend it to others.

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The leadership and management are good

 The academy has thorough systems for keeping pupils safe, and its arrangements meet statutory requirements. It carries out careful checks on all adults who work with pupils, makes sure staff are well trained and has rigorous procedures for recording and following up any concerns.

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The leadership and management are good

 The academy trust is currently researching new assessment methods following the removal of National Curriculum levels, as it wishes all its academies to adopt the same methods. Windmill Primary is able to work with other academies run by the sponsor to support aspects of its development. Staff have good opportunities to increase their skills through training, much of which is provided through the academy trust. However, teachers have not all had the chance to observe outstanding teaching and learning to raise their expectations and increase their awareness of how to improve their own practice.

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The leadership and management are good

 The governance of the school:  Governance is effective and there is a shared commitment to improving the academy. The trust and the academy advisory board work closely together to support and challenge senior leaders. The trust conducts a detailed review of the academy’s work four times a year, which includes an evaluation of how well it is improving against its stated development targets.  The academy advisory board keeps a close check on data, including the impact of pupil premium funding on the progress of eligible pupils. It is well informed about teaching through visits to the academy, checks on pupils’ work and discussions with them about their learning. Members carefully consider the impact of teachers’ work on pupils’ achievement when making decisions about their pay. They have supported the headteacher in tackling past underperformance.

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Behaviour

 The behaviour of pupils is good. Attitudes to learning are positive, and pupils respond quickly to teachers’ instructions and requests. They are mostly eager to learn and take pride in their work. There is a positive atmosphere outside lessons, for instance, in assembly, the dining hall and in the playground. Pupils conduct themselves well and are polite, courteous, and respectful.

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Behaviour

 The academy promotes good behaviour, and records show that there are few behavioural incidents. When these occur, staff deal with them effectively. Pupils say that there have been significant improvements in behaviour since the introduction of ‘golden time’.

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Behaviour

 The rate of attendance is above average. Rewarding pupils for being in class and ready to work five minutes early in the mornings has encouraged them to be punctual.

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Behaviour

 Low-level disruption is rare. Occasionally, pupils become noisy when moving from one activity to another or restless in some lessons so that they need to be reminded about the importance of concentrating.

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Safety

 The academy’s work to keep pupils safe and secure is good. Nearly all parents believe that the academy looks after their children well and say that they feel safe there. Pupils learn about how to keep themselves safe in the outside world, and they are well informed about how to keep risks to a minimum when using computers.

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Safety

 Pupils have a good awareness of different types of bullying, and they say that there has been a reduction in the amount that takes place. Pupils say that when bullying is reported, it is dealt with effectively, and there are few instances of bullying recorded.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teaching is good. Pupils say that teaching has improved greatly and that extra help is more readily available now for those who need it.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teachers have established good routines, and lessons are usually well structured. Relationships between teachers and their pupils are positive, and staff capture pupils’ interest well.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teachers’ good subject knowledge means that they usually provide clear explanations for pupils and communicate well with them about what they are meant to learn. They often share with them detailed information about what they need to do to succeed, and pay careful attention to teaching accurate subject vocabulary.  Teachers make good use of information about pupils’ previous learning and use questioning well in most lessons to check their understanding. They encourage pupils to answer fully and to express themselves clearly. There were good examples during the inspection of teachers checking pupils’ grasp of new material, and then drawing pupils together to address any misconceptions.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teaching assistants usually make a good contribution to pupils’ learning. When they are working with disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs, they often use practical resources effectively to support their learning. For instance, a teaching assistant used plastic letters of the alphabet to enable younger pupils to combine letters to make words and then sound them out.

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The quality of teaching is good

 The teaching of mathematics is good. Teachers provide pupils with good opportunities to solve problems and to explain their thinking. Pupils made outstanding progress in a lesson in Years 5 and 6 as a result of the teacher’s high expectations. Pupils’ books in Key Stage 1 show that the most able are challenged to produce high-quality work.

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The quality of teaching is good

 The teaching of reading is good, and phonics sessions (where pupils learn about the sounds that letters make) are matched well to the next steps in their development. In guided reading sessions at Key Stage 2, pupils who work with the teacher or a teaching assistant make good progress. Although teachers set activities for the rest of the class that have the potential to develop valuable skills, pupils who are not directly supervised sometimes make slower progress than the rest of the class.

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The quality of teaching is good

 The teaching of writing is good in some classes, and the academy places strong emphasis on teaching grammar, punctuation and spelling. Teachers use some good stimuli as a starting point for pupils’ writing, such as images and sound recordings. However, pupils are not often pushed to think deeply enough or challenged to write at length. This is particularly the case when they work in pairs, often producing a limited amount of written work between them.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Children join the early years with skills that are broadly characteristic for their age, though some have weaker skills in speaking, reading and in shape, space, and measures. Children achieve well and they made good progress to reach above average standards by the end of the Reception Year in 2014. Children currently in the Reception Year are making good progress.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Results in the screening of phonics at the end of Year 1 were average in 2014, and the academy met with an above-average level of success for pupils who retook the test. Standards at the end of Year 2 last year were above average in reading and mathematics and broadly average in writing.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Standards at the end of Year 6 in 2014 were average in reading, writing, and mathematics, and in English grammar, punctuation and spelling. Pupils made good progress in reading at Key Stage 2, and the proportion who made the expected amount of progress in mathematics and writing was a slightly above the national average. Fewer pupils made more than expected progress in mathematics and writing than in schools nationally, though the academy suggests this reflected past underachievement for these pupils in early Key Stage 2.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Disadvantaged pupils were a term behind their classmates in mathematics in 2014, half a term behind them in writing and two terms behind in reading. They were two terms behind pupils nationally in mathematics, two and a half terms behind them in reading, and one and half terms behind in writing. Disadvantaged pupils made better progress than the rest of their class and pupils nationally in mathematics, similar progress to their classmates and pupils nationally in reading, and marginally better progress than both in writing.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Data show that most pupils currently in the academy have made at least the expected amount of progress at Key Stages 1 and 2 and many have made rapid progress in filling previous gaps in their learning. Since the school became an academy, progress across both key stages has been particularly rapid in reading and mathematics in most year groups. Progress is good in science throughout the academy.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Progress for disadvantaged pupils currently in the academy has been good and, in some instances, they have made more rapid gains than their classmates so that the attainment gap is narrowing. Disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs are making good progress and they generally receive effective support in lessons. Support for pupils who are at early stages in learning to speak English as an additional language helps them to grasp the language quickly and to make good progress.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 The most able pupils make similar progress to their classmates in the majority of lessons. At Key Stage 1, pupils’ books show that some have made outstanding progress in mathematics, learning to work with large numbers such as taking away 507 from 4619, doing calculations involving multiplication, division, and fractions, and solving word problems. At times, the most able pupils make less progress than they could in English at Key Stage 2 through lack of opportunity to write at length, although they often come up with imaginative word combinations.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 In the early years and in Years 1 to 4, pupils make good progress in learning about phonics. Progress in reading is generally good across the academy, though occasionally less so when some pupils’ work is not directly supervised in guided reading lessons.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Pupils’ books at Key Stage 1 show that they are making good progress in mathematics and at least the expected amount of progress in writing. Pupils make good progress in mathematics at Key Stage 2 and they have good opportunities to practise their writing in a range of subjects. They learn to organise information for a range of purposes, but some pieces of written work at Key Stage 2 are brief and not developed as fully as they could be. This is particularly the case where pupils work in pairs to discuss and record their ideas.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 At both key stages, there is wide variation in the quality of pupils’ handwriting. The academy has rightly identified this as an area where some pupils need support.

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The early years provision is good

 The early years is led and managed well. The academy has effective systems for gathering information about what children can already do when they join the Reception Year. There are good opportunities for parents to contribute to their children’s learning, and staff keep them well informed.

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The early years provision is good

 Achievement in the early years is good and children are well prepared for moving up to Key Stage 1. They gain a wide range of skills, and their attainment is above average by the end of the Reception Year.

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The early years provision is good

 Teaching is good and progress is outstanding in some lessons in the class that is solely for Reception-aged children. In mathematics, the teacher’s expectations were high and she skilfully questioned the children to move their learning on. They were nearly all able to count to over 30 and showed a good awareness of the properties of geometric shapes. A group of children quickly identified and talked about shapes in the playground, while some others attempted to draw them.

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The early years provision is good

 Children behave well and feel safe. They are very eager to learn and focus readily on activities. Teaching assistants promote children’s language development well, and the outdoor area makes a good contribution to their learning.

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The early years provision is good

 Activities in the Reception class are well planned to provide plenty of opportunity for learning. In the mixed-age class, where some Reception children learn for some of their time alongside pupils in Year 1, the activities and the teaching do not always promote learning so well.

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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 139552 Local authority Northamptonshire Inspection number 449917

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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 Academy sponsor-led Age range of pupils 4–11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 242 Appropriate authority The academy advisory board Chair Julie Bowles Headteacher Michelle Ginn Date of previous school inspection Not previously inspected Telephone number 01933 623121 Fax number 01933 460961 Email address head@windmillprimary.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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