Westfield Primary School

Westfield Primary School Ounsdale Road, Wombourne, Wolverhampton, WV5 8BH

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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 Outstanding 1

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

 The headteacher, senior leaders and governors have accurately identified what is working well in the school and they work effectively with staff to tackle any weaknesses in teaching or achievement.  Children in the early years receive outstanding teaching and support. As a result, they make excellent progress and are very well prepared for work in Year 1.  By the end of Key Stage 2, standards are typically above the national average in reading, writing and mathematics, and a high proportion of pupils reach the highest levels.  Teachers make effective use of high-quality resources and outdoor areas to encourage pupils to be active and interested in their learning.  Disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs receive effective support and make good progress.  The school’s work to keep pupils safe and secure is outstanding. Pupils say they enjoy school and they feel very safe. There are excellent systems in place

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

for child protection which are regularly updated and closely monitored by governors.  Pupils’ behaviour and attitudes to learning are good. They conduct themselves very well at all times, helping to create an orderly and harmonious atmosphere around the school.  Attendance is above average.  Governors provide considerable challenge to and support for the headteacher. Their effective involvement in, and understanding of, the school is contributing well to its well-focused improvement plan.

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It is not yet an outstanding school because

 In 2014, pupils in Year 6 did not attain as well in reading and mathematics as they did in writing.  Although much marking and feedback to pupils helps them to learn well, they are sometimes unsure about what they need to do to improve their work further.  Work is not always at the right level of difficulty to enable more pupils, particularly those who are disadvantaged, to reach the highest standards.  On a few occasions, pupils are not given enough to do to keep them busy in lessons, particularly those who are the most able. As a result, their learning is not always as rapid as it could be.

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Information about this inspection

 The inspectors observed teaching in all twelve classes. They were accompanied by members of the senior leadership team in five lessons. The inspectors examined pupils’ work, spoke with them in lessons and heard some pupils in Years 1 and 6 read. Inspectors also attended two assemblies, visited the playground and talked to pupils to gain their views.  The inspectors held meetings with groups of pupils, staff with leadership roles and the Chair and Vice- Chair of the Governing Body. The lead inspector also held a discussion with a representative of the local authority.  The inspectors reviewed a range of documents, including the school’s plans for improvement and policies about keeping pupils safe. They also examined a range of data about pupils’ progress.  The inspectors analysed the views of 55 parents and carers through their responses on the Parent View website. The inspectors also spoke with groups of parents during the inspection.

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Information about this inspection

 The inspectors took account of the 10 questionnaires returned by staff.

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Inspection team

Catherine Morgan, Lead inspector Additional Inspector

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Information about this school

 This school is much larger than the average-sized primary school.  The children in the Nursery attend part time and those in the Reception classes attend full time.  Most pupils are White British. Very few pupils speak English as an additional language.  The proportion of disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs is broadly average.  A below-average proportion of the pupils are disadvantaged and so eligible for additional funding, known as the pupil premium. This is additional government funding which supports pupils who are known to be eligible for free school meals and those children who are in care.  The school meets the government’s current floor standards, which set the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress in reading, writing and mathematics.  The school provides daily breakfast and after-school clubs for pupils.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve the quality of teaching in order to raise attainment in reading and mathematics and to close any remaining gaps in attainment between disadvantaged and other pupils by:  setting work more consistently at the right level of difficulty to enable more pupils who are disadvantaged to reach the highest standards in reading and mathematics  providing the most-able pupils with enough to do in lessons to keep them learning so that they make the best possible progress  ensuring that marking and verbal feedback makes clear to pupils what action is needed to improve their work.

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The leadership and management are good

 The very experienced headteacher leads the school well. She is ably supported by the deputy headteacher and assistant headteacher, staff and governors. Together they identify quickly what works effectively in the school and where improvements are needed. Priorities are tackled rigorously by well-planned actions which ensure that staff work together to improve their practice and raise the pupils’ achievement. Leaders focus relentlessly on improving teaching by checking on its quality and providing training to meet the challenging targets they set teachers. Salary progression depends on a teacher meeting these targets.

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The leadership and management are good

 All staff share the high expectations of the headteacher. Consequently, no one is complacent and there is a clear and effective drive to sustain the improvements seen this year in teaching and achievement. The success of each pupil is at the heart of all the school does and the deputy headteacher and assistant headteacher carry out extensive analyses of the progress made by all groups of pupils.

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The leadership and management are good

 School leaders reacted swiftly to address the dip in the attainment and rates of progress made by pupils in Year 6 in 2014 and to close the gap in outcomes between disadvantaged pupils and other pupils, which widened at the end of Key Stage 2 last year. This was due to some changes to classes and in staffing arrangements needed to cover sickness leave.

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The leadership and management are good

 Improvements have proven successful because they have enabled staff to more quickly identify pupils at risk of underachieving. Teachers meet each half-term with senior leaders to discuss these pupils and comprehensive plans are drawn up which set out how these pupils, particularly those who are disadvantaged, will be provided with the extra help they need. The support provided for pupils is effective and is improving their progress quickly.

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The leadership and management are good

 The school has introduced a new and effective system of assessing pupils’ progress that takes full account of recent changes to the National Curriculum. Staff and pupils contribute to the design and content of the broad range of topics so that they are exciting and engage the pupils more in their learning. Extensive use is made of the outdoor area for learning, including the ‘forest school’, and there are increasing opportunities for parents to work alongside their children. As a result, teaching is improving further and most pupils are making at least good progress in their learning. The school has good capacity to continue its improvement.

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The leadership and management are good

 All staff are committed to the promotion of equality of opportunity and discrimination of any kind is not tolerated. Pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is promoted well through, for example, art, music, the school radio station, newsletter and the belief in mutual respect and tolerance. This ensures that pupils are prepared well for life in modern Britain. They are taught about the main world religions and encouraged to understand and to respect the views and beliefs of others.

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The leadership and management are good

 Training has improved further the expertise and skills of subject and key stage leaders. They understand their roles and are active in holding staff to account for the achievement of pupils in their areas of responsibility. Leadership of the provision for disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs has recently been strengthened and more rigorous monitoring is improving the rates of progress of these pupils.

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The leadership and management are good

 Procedures for safeguarding all pupils are exceptional. All staff appointed to any role in the school immediately receive appropriate training, and senior leaders provide regular and informative updates. The majority of staff have undertaken first aid training and those in early years have acquired additional paediatric skills. Policies are rigorously implemented and adapted as requirements change. The Vice-Chair of the Governing Body is particularly skilled in this area and undertakes regular and rigorous checks to ensure that all documentation is informative and robust. All staff are vigilant in ensuring pupils are kept safe. They know vulnerable pupils well and work closely with their families and other agencies to help them.

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The leadership and management are good

 Pupils’ participation in a wider range of sports has increased as a result of the use of the primary schools’ sports premium. Teaching within the school has been supplemented by professional coaching in football, netball, tag rugby, golf and tennis. Sports leaders in Year 6 lead successful lunchtime clubs for younger children. The before and after-school clubs enable pupils to enjoy many activities which contribute to their learning.

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The leadership and management are good

 The local authority has provided effective support to the school and has increased its level of support in response to the results in national tests in 2014.

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The leadership and management are good

 The governance of the school:  Governors have taken effective steps to secure consistently good teaching and create a climate that encourages the high aspirations of pupils to enable them to achieve well. Exemplary safeguarding checks, such as the vetting of staff and child protection measures, are a direct result of the robust and informative involvement of the Vice–Chair of the Governing Body.  Governors make regular visits to classrooms and are linked to subjects and important aspects of the school’s work. They meet regularly with subject leaders to check on progress and they analyse data thoroughly. As a result, governors are well informed and have a very clear picture of pupils’ achievement and the quality of teaching. They are influential in identifying the solutions to problems and in challenging leaders to secure further improvement.  Governors carefully check the impact of spending decisions, including the additional funding for the

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The leadership and management are good

pupil premium and sport. They are actively involved in the rigorous evaluation of the impact of the pupil premium funding and ensure that it is carefully allocated. Their extensive evaluation in 2014 has led to stringent measures to ensure that gaps between the attainment of disadvantaged pupils and other pupils are closing.  Governors are highly supportive of the headteacher and are aware how the targets she sets for teachers link closely to salary progression. They make sure that teachers’ appraisals are carried out fairly and effectively, and that teachers receive pay awards only when they have successfully met their targets.

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Behaviour

 The behaviour of pupils is good. Their pride in themselves, their achievements and the school shine through, particularly during the weekly celebration assemblies. Pupils say that they enjoy school. They are attentive in lessons and they demonstrate positive attitudes to learning.

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Behaviour

 Pupils are extremely polite and considerate. The school often receives comments from visitors about pupils’ positive conduct. Inspectors saw many examples of pupils standing aside for each other and for adults as they moved along corridors and used the stairs. Pupils follow their ‘Golden Rules’ carefully and they understand the system of rewards and sanctions.

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Behaviour

 Pupils take on responsibilities such head boy, head girl and representatives on the school council very maturely. They make sensible and valuable suggestions, particularly in how to raise funds for various charities.

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Behaviour

 Almost all parents, pupils and staff were positive about pupils’ behaviour. The school’s records show that incidents of poor behaviour are few. On rare occasions, however, pupils become uninterested in their work in lessons or they finish their task and their attention wanes momentarily, which slows their learning.

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Behaviour

 Attendance and punctuality are above average. The small number of pupils who were persistently absent in the last academic year have significantly improved their attendance since September 2014. Currently, no pupils are persistently absent. This is because senior leaders and the school support officer monitor absence and punctuality rigorously.

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Safety

 The school’s work to keep pupils safe and secure is outstanding. The school’s ‘Friendship Policy’ ensures that staff are meticulous in making sure that pupils are safe while in their care and that pupils are taught well about keeping themselves safe.

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Safety

 Pupils say instances of bullying are rare and that staff are very helpful in ensuring that any issues are resolved amicably and quickly. School records confirm this. Pupils have a thorough understanding of bullying, including the potential dangers posed by the internet, and they are sensitive to the possible damage that cyber-bullying can cause. Pupils know about racism and say there is no racist bullying in school.

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Safety

 There are exceptionally thorough systems in place for child protection, risk assessments and health and safety which are regularly updated and closely monitored by governors. Arrangements to ensure that all adults are appropriately checked for working with young people are applied rigorously. Staff and governor training is kept up to date.

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Safety

 Provision for pupils’ personal, social and emotional development is highly effective. Staff understand that this level of care is essential for pupils to thrive academically and older pupils, in particular, are very appreciative of this support.

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Safety

 The school site is secure and well managed. Consequently, pupils say they enjoy school and they feel safe. All parents and carers responding to the Ofsted online questionnaire said that they felt the school keeps their children safe.

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The quality of teaching is good

 The teaching of literacy, reading and mathematics is good over time and in all key stages. Consequently, most pupils make good progress and achieve well. Teaching is outstanding in the Nursery and Reception classes. Teachers show that they have good knowledge of the subjects they teach, and visiting specialist teachers use their expertise well to improve pupils’ skills, particularly in music and physical education.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teachers give clear explanations at the start of lessons so pupils know exactly what they are learning and how they can achieve their ‘steps to success’. Excellent use is made of small recording devices in the early years to enable the youngest learners to hear instructions and understand exactly what is expected of them.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teachers promote pupils’ speaking and listening skills particularly well. Pupils are required to think carefully about their answers to questions and they make excellent use of their ‘talk and thought’ books to capture their own ideas, refine their thinking and to structure their work carefully before completing it.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teachers make good use of a wide range of high-quality resources, including computer technology, to encourage pupils to be active and this helps to maintain their interest. In Year 2, for example, pupils following the ‘beat, band, boogie’ theme were able to work together using a variety of instruments to create a lively and rhythmic tune to the song Hot Cross Buns. Video recording, using a tablet computer, enabled pupils to compare the performances of groups and select the most successful composition.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Increasingly, teachers are making work demanding for the most-able pupils. However, there are times when the work set is not hard enough for this group and, consequently, they do not attain as well as they could. For example, in one class, the majority of pupils observed, including those with special educational needs, quickly improved the precision of their handwriting but a small group of the most-able pupils were already able to form letters accurately and their tasks were not hard enough to enable them to improve further.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Strong teamwork between teachers and teaching assistants is central to the good progress made by disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs. Teaching assistants have developed a range of skills so that they can support learning well, in both lessons and small-group work. Disadvantaged pupils now have more opportunities to use and apply the knowledge and skills they develop during their small-group sessions, which is helping to further raise their standards in reading, writing and mathematics.  The marking of work is a focus for improvement across the school and much is regular, detailed, helpful and informative. The new symbols used by teachers are clearly understood by pupils and encourage them to assess and improve their own work. Occasionally, comments from teachers lack precision and this prevents pupils from making more rapid progress in their learning.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Staff teach phonics (linking letters and sounds) and develop pupils’ reading skills effectively. The new guided reading sessions for all pupils enrich their ability to read for enjoyment and develop their reading skills well. Pupils develop a love of reading and read often, particularly more-able readers. Pupils in Year 6 demonstrate clear understanding of a range of genres and styles which is enabling them to develop their reading to achieve higher standards.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Pupils make good progress in lessons in both Key Stages 1 and 2. This is reflected in the work in their books, and in that which is attractively displayed around the school. Pupils consistently reach above- average standards in Key Stage 1.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 By the end of Key Stage 2, standards are typically above the national average in reading, writing and mathematics, and a high proportion of pupils reach the highest levels. They dipped, however, in 2014.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Whilst all pupils made the progress expected in writing in Key Stage 2, fewer pupils than predicted made the progress they should in reading and mathematics. The school has reacted quickly to address this and the use of high-quality resources and specialist, targeted support have secured rapid improvements. Records of the current attainment and progress of pupils in Year 6 show that they are making at least good progress in all subjects.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Children make excellent progress in the Nursery and Reception Years. As a result, an above-average proportion of children reach a good level of development. The gap between disadvantaged children and others has now virtually closed in the Reception Year.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Pupils make particularly strong progress in learning to read and use phonics. In 2014, virtually all Year 1 pupils passed the phonics check. This is because teachers’ expertise in this area of learning is excellent.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 The most-able pupils achieve well because, usually, teachers set them challenging work that makes them think hard and enables them to reach the higher levels. This is not always the case, however, and their progress slows when the work is too easy or when they are not given enough to do to keep them busy.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs are well supported. Well-organised and carefully planned group and individual teaching ensures that these pupils are making good progress. High- quality resources, such as those designed to be dyslexia friendly, are used effectively to support the learning of these pupils.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 The attainment of disadvantaged pupils, at the end of Year 6, has varied over the last three years and this reflects the very different make-up of these three small groups of pupils. In 2014, the very small number of eligible pupils in Year 6 attained standards that were a term behind pupils nationally in writing, two terms behind in reading, and nearly four and a half terms behind in mathematics. The gap between disadvantaged pupils and their classmates was three terms in reading and writing, and five terms in mathematics.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Inspection findings indicate that disadvantaged pupils currently in the school are making good progress and the school’s data show that, throughout the school, the gap between the attainment of these pupils and others is narrowing. In some year groups, the gap has indeed already closed.

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The early years provision is outstanding

 The deputy headteacher provides outstanding leadership of the early years. Staff are supported effectively to develop their expertise and extend their subject knowledge. They are encouraged to continually look for ways to make things even more effective. Excellent teaching, stimulating and imaginative activities and high expectations ensure that children in the Nursery and Reception make rapid progress.

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The early years provision is outstanding

 Staff work skilfully with parents to extend their children’s learning in the home. For example, the use of ‘home school’ books and high-quality activity packs enable parents to make a positive contribution to the development of their children’s skills, particularly in reading, writing and number. Children’s work in their learning journals is of a high standard. The rigorous monitoring by staff ensures that clear targets for improvement are identified quickly and are used well to plan further learning.

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The early years provision is outstanding

 Children’s behaviour is excellent. They settle quickly into their daily routines and form excellent relationships with adults and each other. They are polite to adults and work well together. Staff are particularly successful in creating a very caring and positive environment where children feel secure to ask questions and explore activities for themselves. For example, an unplanned discussion about wildlife in Africa was expertly facilitated by a teacher to enable one child to talk freely and sensitively about aspects of poverty. This had a positive impact on children’s language and communication skills, and their understanding of the world.

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The early years provision is outstanding

 Staff monitor children’s health and well-being very closely. Children’s safety and security are a high priority and any child working outside is required to wear a cape so that staff can see where they are and ensure an appropriate staff:child ratio.

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The early years provision is outstanding

 Individual teachers and teaching assistants are assigned to a specific group of children, which enables highly effective monitoring of what children are doing inside and outside the classroom and ensures that children’s interests are followed up successfully.

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The early years provision is outstanding

 The regular teaching of phonics supports children very well in rapidly developing their reading and writing skills. Children show a great deal of interest in writing and are able to ‘sign in’ to all activities and write short sentences recounting stories they read. In one session observed, children demonstrated clear understanding of addition and subtraction and they created accurate number sentences using specialist terms such as ‘add and subtract’.

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The early years provision is outstanding

 Nursery children benefit greatly from the ‘transition area’ which has a very positive impact on their learning and prepares them well for entry to Reception.

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The early years provision is outstanding

 Children make good and often excellent progress in the Nursery and Reception classes. In 2014, children made particularly strong progress in technology, communication and language. By the end of the Reception Year, three-quarters of the children achieved a good level of development and were very well prepared for Year 1. Children currently in Reception are on target to achieve well in all areas of learning.

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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 124193 Local authority Staffordshire Inspection number 453207

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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 3–11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 426 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Linda Atkins Headteacher Karen Shaw Date of previous school inspection 1 February 2011 Telephone number 01902 892143 Fax number 01902 324987 Email address office@westfield.staff.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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