Kingsbury Primary School

Kingsbury Primary School Bromage Avenue, Kingsbury, Tamworth, B78 2HW

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Overall effectiveness

Previous inspection: Requires improvement 3 This inspection: Requires improvement 3 Leadership and management Requires improvement 3 Behaviour and safety of pupils Good 2 Quality of teaching Requires improvement 3 Achievement of pupils Requires improvement 3 Early years provision Requires improvement 3

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

This is a school that requires improvement.

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

 Leaders and governors have not ensured that pupils’ achievement and the quality of teaching are consistently good.  Pupils’ achievement has been too varied since the previous inspection.  By the end of Year 6 in 2014, attainment was below average in mathematics. Pupils had made too little progress in this subject.  Pupils’ progress is not consistently good in all classes.  At times, the learning intended in lessons is not made clear and pupils do not fully understand what they are expected to learn.  Learning time is not always maximised in lessons and pupils can spend too long on activities when they are ready for more demanding work.  Work is not always set at the right level of difficulty for pupils.  Children’s learning in Reception is not consistently good in all areas.  Subject leaders, especially those new to their posts, are not fully effective in checking performance and leading improvement within their areas of

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

responsibility.  Observations of teaching and learning by leaders are not sufficiently focused on how well pupils learn and so reports lack specific guidance on how learning could be improved.

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The school has the following strengths

 Positive steps are being taken by leaders to improve teaching and raise pupils’ achievement in mathematics.  Pupils now make good progress in writing and attainment by Year 6 was much higher than in previous years in 2014. They apply their writing skills well in a range of subjects.  The teaching of phonics (letters and the sounds they make) is effective and pupils make good progress in this area of reading.  Pupils enjoy the school and their attendance is consistently above average.  Pupils are courteous and show consideration and respect for others. Their behaviour is good in lessons and around the school. They are well prepared for life in modern Britain.  Procedures to ensure that pupils are safe are effective. Pupils feel safe and looked after well.  Governors are supportive and provide increased challenge, thus contributing to improvements in teaching and achievement.

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Information about this inspection

 The inspectors observed teaching and learning in all classes. Some lessons were seen jointly with the headteacher or the deputy headteacher.  Pupils’ work was scrutinised and the information about their attainment and progress was analysed.  Discussions were held with the headteacher, other staff, a representative from the local authority, governors and pupils.  The inspectors took account of the 29 responses to the Ofsted online survey, Parent View.  The inspectors examined a range of documents, including: school policies; safeguarding procedures; and the school’s self-evaluation and improvement planning.

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Inspection team

Derek Watts, Lead inspector Additional Inspector

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Information about this school

 This is a larger than average-sized primary school.  Most of the pupils are White British.  The proportion of disabled pupils and those with special educational needs is below average.  An average proportion of pupils are eligible for the pupil premium. The pupil premium is additional funding for looked-after children and those known to be eligible for free school meals.  Children in Reception attend full time.  The school met the current government floor standards in 2014, which set the minimum expectations for pupils' attainment and progress in reading, writing and mathematics.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve teaching so that most children in Reception and pupils make good or better progress over time and raise pupils’ attainment by the end of Year 6, particularly in mathematics, by:  making sure that all learning activities have a clear purpose so that children and pupils fully understand what they are expected to learn,  ensuring that all work set is at the right level of challenge for children and pupils, especially for the most able  ensure that time is used well in all lessons to maximise learning and so that children and pupils learn at a fast rate.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Strengthen leadership and management by:  building on the development and training of subject leaders so they play a full part in checking performance and improving their areas of responsibility  taking swift action to improve teaching which is less than good  ensuring that classroom observations by leaders focus on how well pupils are learning.

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The leadership and management requires improvement

 Leaders and managers have not been effective enough since the previous inspection in ensuring that pupils achieve consistently well and that teaching is securely good across the school. The school therefore still requires improvement.

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The leadership and management requires improvement

 Pupils’ achievement has been too varied. By the end of Year 6 in 2014, pupils’ attainment was lower in mathematics than in reading and writing and these pupils had not made enough progress in mathematics. By contrast, pupils made faster progress in writing and attained standards that were higher than those in recent years.

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The leadership and management requires improvement

 Leaders and staff are taking positive action to improve teaching and raise pupils’ achievement. This action is working and pupils are making faster progress. The underachievement in mathematics has been arrested but pupils’ progress is not consistently good in all classes.

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The leadership and management requires improvement

 The headteacher and deputy headteacher are striving to improve teaching. Teaching is now stronger, but not consistently good and some weaknesses remain. In classroom observations by senior leaders, there is not enough emphasis on the impact of teaching on pupils’ learning. Reports from lesson observation lack specific guidance about how pupils’ progress can be better. As a result, teaching sometimes does not improve as rapidly as it could.

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The leadership and management requires improvement

 There are appropriate arrangements for the management of teachers’ performance. The targets set to improve teachers’ skills appropriately link to the priorities of the improvement plan and to pupils’ progress.

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The leadership and management requires improvement

 The role of subject leaders is not fully developed and, therefore, requires improvement. Some leaders are new to their posts but other have held key positions for a number of years. Appropriate support and training are being provided to enable leaders to be engaged fully in checking performance and driving improvement within their areas of responsibility.

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The leadership and management requires improvement

 The school has a positive and friendly atmosphere where pupils can learn and develop. All leaders and staff promote good behaviour and ensure that all pupils are safe. Safeguarding arrangements meet requirements and are effective and robust. Staff successfully foster positive qualities such as consideration for others, kindness, respect, responsibility and tolerance. Pupils are gaining an appreciation and clear understanding of different cultures and faiths. They are well prepared for life in modern Britain.

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The leadership and management requires improvement

 The school provides an interesting range of subjects and topics. These are enriched by additional activities such as clubs, educational visits and sporting opportunities. All pupils have full and equal access to the activities on offer. Kingsbury promotes equality of opportunity well, fosters good relations and effectively tackles all forms of discrimination.

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The leadership and management requires improvement

 Pupils in danger of falling behind in their learning are identified and provided for well. The pupil premium is used properly to provide eligible pupils with additional help, particularly in literacy and numeracy. These include well-planned programmes of extra and specific support; as a result gaps in the attainment of these pupils are minimal in reading and writing and closing in mathematics.

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The leadership and management requires improvement

 The primary school physical education and sport premium is used effectively to promote pupils’ physical development and to extend their sporting opportunities. Specialist coaches are employed, such as in gymnastics, to provide good quality teaching for pupils and training to develop the skills of staff. Pupils’ participation in extra-curricular sporting activities and competitions has increased.

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The leadership and management requires improvement

 The local authority’s advice and support have increased recently. A review of the school’s performance in November 2014 provided clear pointers for improvement. A further review began on 9 March but was cut short with the announcement of the inspection. The school works well with other schools in the area in the sharing of good practice. These partnerships are helping to improve the provision and pupils’ achievements at Kingsbury.

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The leadership and management requires improvement

 The governance of the school:  Governance has improved since the previous inspection and is effective.  Members of the governing body are supportive and have been more challenging about the school’s performance and the rate of improvement.  They have an accurate overview of the school’s performance. Governors analyse the data and have a good understanding of pupils’ attainment and progress.  Governors have a clear view of the quality of teaching and check its impact on pupils’ progress. They understand requirements relating to the management of staff performance and ensure that promotion and salary increases are based on the progress that pupils make. They check that effective action is taken to improve any teaching that is less than good.  Governors ensure that additional funding for disadvantaged pupils is used correctly and question the impact of spending on pupils’ achievement.  The governors ensure that all safeguarding procedures are robust and meet requirements.

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Behaviour

 In lessons, pupils show a keen interest in their learning. They are attentive and cooperative, and participate well in the activities provided. Occasionally, behaviour is a little less positive when work is not sufficiently challenging or the rate of learning is not quick enough.

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Behaviour

 Behaviour is good in assemblies, in the dining hall, in the playground and when pupils are moving around the school. The school’s records show that behaviour is typically good over time.

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Behaviour

 Pupils are courteous, cooperative, kind and respectful to others. They show an appreciation and a clear understanding of different cultures and faiths. They help others who are less well off than themselves by raising funds for different charities.

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Behaviour

 Pupils willingly take on additional responsibilities, such as serving on the school council or on the eco council. Play leaders in Years 5 and 6 organise games for younger pupils.

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Behaviour

 There are effective systems for checking and promoting good attendance. Attendance levels are consistently above average.

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Safety

 The school’s work to keep pupils safe and secure is good. All the parents who completed the online survey stated that their child is happy at school, feels safe and is well looked after. The inspection findings reflect these positive views.

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Safety

 Leaders and staff take effective measures to ensure that all pupils are well cared for and protected. All staff have had recent training in child protection and safeguarding. The systems for checking and recording safety matters ensure that any concerns are quickly dealt with. All staff are security checked before being appointed to the school.

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Safety

 Adults establish positive relationships with pupils. Pupils know they can turn to trusted adults if they are worried or upset. Pupils say with confidence that they feel safe at school and are well looked after by the staff.

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Safety

 Pupils show a clear understanding of bullying and the different forms it can take. Discussions with them, and the school’s records of incidents, confirm that bullying in the school is very rare. Pupils told the inspectors that any incidents of bullying are dealt with swiftly.  Pupils know how to keep themselves safe at school, at home and in the local community. They demonstrate a good understanding of how to stay safe when using computers and the internet.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 The quality of teaching has not been consistently strong enough to promote good progress for pupils over time, especially in mathematics. Teaching is improving because of the action taken by school leaders, but there are still some weaknesses to be tackled before the overall quality of teaching is securely good throughout the school.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 Teachers do not always set work at the right level of difficulty for pupils, particularly for the most able. When this happens, pupils do not make the progress they should because tasks are too easy for some or too difficult for others.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 In some lessons, time is not used to maximise pupils’ learning. Pupils can sometimes spend too long going over learning which is already secure rather than being moved on to more demanding work. Occasionally, the purpose of the lesson is not made sufficiently clear and so pupils do not know exactly what they are expected to learn.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 Teachers establish positive relationships with pupils and manage them well. Questioning is used effectively to check that pupils have understood the work.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 The teaching of phonics (letters and the sounds they make) is strong and pupils make good progress in this area of reading. Teachers provide good opportunities for pupils to apply their reading skills. For example, in finding information in topic work.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 The teaching of writing has been an improvement priority since the previous inspection. This action has been effective and pupils make good progress. Pupils are given good opportunities to write for different purposes. Teachers provide clear guidance and demonstration to help pupils improve their writing skills in English and in other subjects. Teachers are well focused on developing pupils’ grammar, punctuation and spelling.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 Improvements to the teaching of mathematics are having a positive impact on pupils’ achievement. The teaching of calculation methods is effective. Most teachers clearly explain and demonstrate mathematical operations. Teachers are increasing opportunities for pupils to apply knowledge and skills to solve relevant problems. At times, the work provided is not challenging enough to enable pupils’ to acquire a deeper understanding of mathematical ideas.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 The marking of pupils’ work is effective. Teachers identify good work and provide constructive comments to guide improvement. As a result, pupils know when they have done well and what they need to do to improve their work.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 Pupils’ achievement requires improvement because it has been too varied since the previous inspection. By the end of Year 6 in 2014, pupils’ attainment was broadly average overall, but was lowest in mathematics and highest in writing. This group of pupils made good progress from their starting points in Year 2 in writing. However, their progress in mathematics was inadequate.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 The headteacher, key leaders and staff are taking positive steps to raise pupils’ achievement, particularly in mathematics. The school’s assessments and pupils’ work show that pupils are making faster progress but it is not consistently good in all classes. However, pupils in the current Year 6 are on course to attain higher standards in mathematics.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 In 2014, the Year 6 pupils supported by the pupil premium attained similar standards to the others in the school in reading and made similar progress. However, these pupils were about one term behind the others in writing and mathematics. Other pupils made good progress in writing and those supported by the pupil premium made expected progress. Both groups made inadequate progress in mathematics.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 When compared to other pupils nationally, disadvantaged pupils at Kingsbury attained similar standards in reading and writing and made similar progress in these areas. However, they were about three terms behind in mathematics and their progress was much less than other pupils nationally. Well-planned support is helping to ensure that disadvantaged pupils are making faster progress. As a result, the gap is closing rapidly. Most recent assessment data for current year groups show little difference in attainment between the two groups.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 The achievement of the most able is improving but is not consistently good. In 2014, an average proportion of Year 2 pupils attained the higher levels in reading, writing and mathematics. In Year 6, an above average proportion of pupils attained the higher levels in reading and writing. However, the proportion reaching the higher levels in mathematics was below average. The most able pupils made good progress in reading and writing but not enough progress in mathematics. In the current Year 6, more pupils are on track to attain the higher levels in mathematics. However, there are occasions in some lessons where tasks are not sufficiently demanding to extend their learning.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 The progress of disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs is improving because of better teaching, although teaching and learning are not consistently good in all classes. Pupils usually receive well-focused and specific support that meets their needs.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 The proportion of pupils that reached the required standard in the Year 1 phonics check was above average in 2013 and in 2014. Older pupils acquire and apply more advanced reading skills such as deduction and inference. Pupils apply reading skills well to find useful information about the topics being studied.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 Pupils’ achieve well in writing. They write for a range of purposes and use different styles. Their grammar, punctuation and spelling are developing well. They apply their writing skills well in English lessons and in a range of subjects. For example, pupils in Year 4 wrote a persuasive argument as to where the treasures of Tutankhamen should be kept. Pupils in Years 5 and 6 wrote accurate and interesting accounts of the symptoms of plague. In role, they wrote diary entries of how the plague affected peoples’ lives.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 Pupils’ progress in mathematics is improving. Most pupils show clear knowledge and understanding of how to make calculations and carry out mathematical operations. Occasionally, work is not challenging enough to enable pupils to deepen their understanding of mathematical ideas. Increasingly, pupils are applying their knowledge and skills competently to solve problems.

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The early years provision requires improvement

 The early years provision requires improvement because not all groups of children make consistently good progress in all areas of learning. In 2014, an average proportion of children achieved a good level of development. However, the proportion exceeding the expected levels of learning was lower than average in areas such as communication and language, and physical development.

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The early years provision requires improvement

 The quality of teaching requires improvement. Children receive clear guidance from adults in areas such as phonics and early writing skills. However, some other learning activities lack a clear purpose and so children do not know what they are expected to learn. Learning activities are not always sufficiently demanding, especially for the most able, and the children do not always learn at a fast enough rate.

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The early years provision requires improvement

 Children make good progress in their personal and social development. Adults establish positive relationships with them and convey clear expectations. The children feel safe and relate well to adults and to their peers. Children are well behaved in the Reception classes.

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The early years provision requires improvement

 Leadership and management of the early years requires improvement. Leaders have made improvements to the early years setting but provision and children’s progress are not consistently good.

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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 134924 Local authority Warwickshire Inspection number 453454

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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 Maintained Age range of pupils 4–11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 300 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Lee Greatorex Headteacher Karen Hanson Date of previous school inspection 14 March 2013 Telephone number 01827 872275 Fax number 01827 872275 Email address admin3596@welearn365.com 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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