Chaddesley Corbett Endowed Primary School

Chaddesley Corbett Endowed Primary School Nethercroft Meadow, Lower Chaddesley, Kidderminster, DY10 4QN

p.1

Overall effectiveness

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

p.1

This is a school that requires improvement. It is not good because

 Improvements in leadership and management are too recent to have had a full impact on school improvement.  Although teaching has improved, progress is not consistently good enough because of remaining variations in the quality of teaching. Teachers’ expectations of pupils’ progress are not always high enough.  The work that teachers set in some lessons is not matched well enough to pupils’ abilities. In particular, the most-able pupils are not always given work that is hard enough.  Marking does not consistently show pupils the next steps they need to take to move their learning or identify their mistakes in spelling, punctuation and grammar.  There are not enough opportunities for pupils to develop their problem-solving and reasoning skills in mathematics. They do not practise their writing and mathematical skills often enough in other subjects.  Pupils do not always present their work neatly in their books and a few do not concentrate well

p.1

This is a school that requires improvement. It is not good because

enough on their learning.  Middle leaders have not had enough training and support to bring about improvements in their areas of responsibility.

p.1

The school has the following strengths

 The leadership and management of the early years is good and children achieve well.  Progress is improving in the current academic year, particularly in reading.  The newly appointed headteacher is determined to ensure that the school becomes the best it can be. She is ably supported by the deputy headteacher.  The school promotes pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development well.  The school provides a safe environment and pupils feel safe.  The governing body has been reconstituted and had a full review of its roles. As a result, governors are increasingly involved in checking the school’s work and holding the school to account.

p.1

Information about this inspection

 Inspectors observed pupils’ learning in 11 lessons or parts of lessons, four of these jointly with the headteacher. They heard a number of pupils read from Years 1 to 5 and scrutinised a range of pupils’ work from all year groups.  Pupils from Year 6 were on a residential visit to North Wales during the inspection.  The inspectors attended class worship and observed pupils’ behaviour at lunch and break times. They also checked the school’s records related to behaviour and safeguarding.  Discussions were held with pupils, the headteacher, deputy headteacher, subject leaders, governors, parents and a representative of the local authority.  Inspectors took account of 39 responses to the online Parent View questionnaire. Inspectors also conducted an analysis of the 16 responses to the staff questionnaire.  Inspectors looked at a range of documents, including the school’s own data on pupils’ attainment and

p.2

Information about this inspection

progress. They looked at the school’s evaluation of its performance, school development plan, planning and monitoring documents, reports on the quality of teaching over time, minutes of various meetings, including those of the governing body.

p.2

Inspection team

David Evans, Lead inspector Additional Inspector

p.2

Information about this school

 The school is smaller than the average-sized primary school.  Almost all pupils are of White British heritage.  The proportion of pupils who are disadvantaged and supported by the pupil premium is below average. The pupil premium is additional government funding for pupils known to be eligible for free school meals or children who are looked after by the local authority.  The proportion of disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs is below average.  The school meets the government’s current floor standards which are the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress in English and mathematics by the end of Year 6.  Children of Nursery age within the early years attend school on a part-time basis. Children in Reception are full time.  An acting headteacher was appointed in July 2014 during the headteacher’s sick leave. The headteacher resigned in the autumn term 2014 and the acting headteacher has led the school since then. She has now

p.3

Information about this school

been appointed the substantive headteacher. A new deputy headteacher commenced in September 2014. There have been significant staff changes over the last year.

p.3

What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Make teaching consistently good or better by ensuring that:  expectations of the progress that all pupils can make are raised and that work is well matched to pupils’ ability levels  pupils capable of reaching higher levels are given tasks that make them think and work harder  marking clearly helps pupils to improve their work  pupils always present work neatly in their books  all pupils behave well in classes and the small number of incidents of low-level disruptive behaviour are eliminated.

p.3

What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Raise achievement in writing and mathematics by ensuring that:  there is consistent attention to the development of literacy and numeracy skills in all subjects  pupils’ spelling, punctuation and grammar are always of a consistently high level in books  pupils develop their problem-solving and reasoning skills in mathematics.

p.3

What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve leadership and management by:  developing the skills of middle leaders so that they are better equipped to help staff improve their teaching  providing continued training for newly appointed teachers so that they can give full support to senior leaders to raise standards and improve the quality of teaching.

p.3

The leadership and management requires improvement

 Leadership and management require improvement because leaders have not carried out rigorous checks to ensure that teaching has been good enough to secure sustained improvement in pupils’ achievement. Weaknesses in teaching and declining standards have not been picked up quickly enough in the past. Actions taken to improve the school’s performance are too recent for the impact to be seen in pupils’ achievement.

p.4

The leadership and management requires improvement

 The leadership of mathematics and writing has not been strong enough over time to ensure that pupils do as well as they can in all aspects of both subjects. While the school recognises that there were weaknesses in the teaching of mathematics and writing, too little has been done until recently to tackle all of the weaknesses.

p.4

The leadership and management requires improvement

 The new headteacher’s relentless determination has been pivotal in rapidly addressing the quality of teaching and learning since her appointment as acting headteacher in July 2014. She has restructured the leadership of the school with a new senior and subject leadership team following a period of instability. Neither team has had sufficient time to have the full impact intended on improving the quality of teaching and pupils’ progress and standards.

p.4

The leadership and management requires improvement

 The headteacher is ably supported by the deputy headteacher, other leaders and governors. All share her vision and determination for the school to become the best that it can be.

p.4

The leadership and management requires improvement

 School self-evaluation is accurate and honest. School leaders, including governors, have improved their monitoring and evaluate school performance rigorously. They have acted swiftly to implement improvements where they are identified. As a result, the progress that pupils make in the early years and in reading is improving rapidly.

p.4

The leadership and management requires improvement

 School improvement plans are based on accurate evaluations of teaching and pupils’ progress, and identify the correct areas for improvement.

p.4

The leadership and management requires improvement

 Information from checks on teaching are helping to develop teachers’ skills and promote more good teaching. Teachers’ performance is linked to their pay and targets are set in line with the national Teachers’ Standards and priority areas of the school. Teachers and support staff confirm that they are well supported through training to improve their skills and achieve their targets. Leaders are aware that further improvement is needed if pupils are to achieve better levels of progress.

p.4

The leadership and management requires improvement

 Parents, staff and pupils have all commented on the positive ethos within the school that the headteacher and senior leaders have created in a relatively short time. This is already having a beneficial impact on teaching and behaviour.

p.4

The leadership and management requires improvement

 The leadership of the early years is a particular strength. The leader is experienced and passionate about the children’s learning. She has assessed children’s progress accurately, and developed a monitoring and evaluation programme to check on teaching and learning.

p.4

The leadership and management requires improvement

 Middle leaders are not fully effective in bringing about the improvements that are needed because they have not been not empowered to undertake their leadership roles in the past. They have not had the training and support necessary to make sure that teaching and learning in their subject areas are consistently effective.

p.4

The leadership and management requires improvement

 Extensive work has been done to ensure the accuracy of teachers’ assessments and measures of pupils’ progress. The headteacher has rapidly improved the assessment process and staff now have much more information about pupils’ performance. Staff are beginning to use assessment data more purposefully.

p.4

The leadership and management requires improvement

 Leaders have taken action to address inconsistencies in pupils’ presentation of their work by providing additional training for teachers, reviewing planning and routinely monitoring and evaluating the quality of work in books. It is too early to see the impact of this on pupils’ achievement.

p.4

The leadership and management requires improvement

 Pupil premium funding is being used effectively to provide extra staffing and teaching time to help eligible pupils close gaps in attainment.

p.5

The leadership and management requires improvement

 The primary school physical education and sport funding is spent appropriately and the school has engaged an external provider to improve the skills of staff. Pupils have access to a wide range of physical education activities and staff assess the impact of this input on pupils’ skills.

p.5

The leadership and management requires improvement

 Opportunities to develop pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development are successfully threaded throughout the curriculum. Pupils are well prepared for life in modern Britain. An extensive range of trips, visits and cultural experiences enhances learning in the classroom.

p.5

The leadership and management requires improvement

 The curriculum is broad and there is an appropriate emphasis on developing pupils’ skills in reading. The school successfully fosters its core values of cooperation, honesty, determination, responsibility, self-belief and respect for others. However, pupils do not always have sufficient opportunities to develop and practise their literacy and numeracy skills in other subjects.

p.5

The leadership and management requires improvement

 The school meets its statutory requirements for safeguarding pupils. Robust systems are in place which are monitored by the headteacher and governors to ensure the safety of pupils and staff. There is a strong emphasis on caring within the school.

p.5

The leadership and management requires improvement

 The local authority is working well with the school to bring about the necessary improvements in teaching and pupil achievement. Timely visits are supporting the improvements leaders are making. Weak teaching has been identified and actions swiftly put in place to tackle underperformance.

p.5

The leadership and management requires improvement

 The governance of the school:  In the past the governing body was far too reliant on the headteacher and accepted information on the quality of teaching and pupils’ achievement without challenging the school effectively. The governing body was initially slow to see the decline in the school’s performance. However, it shows great determination to get the school back on track and has the skills and commitment to do so. It is led strongly by a new Chair and Vice-Chair of Governors.  With support from the local authority and the guidance of the headteacher, the work of governors has been made more effective. All committees have clear terms of reference and more effective use is being made of governors’ expertise. Governors are now directly involved in monitoring the school’s performance and collecting independent evidence. Although at an early stage of development, governors are now better informed to challenge senior leaders about their effectiveness and the rate of

p.5

The leadership and management requires improvement

improvement.  Governors fully understand how pupils’ attainment and progress compare with performance in other schools. They carefully check the use of pupil premium spending and its impact on the progress of disadvantaged pupils. The governors know that teaching over time has not been strong enough for progress to be good and that the most-able pupils have not performed well enough.  Governors set and review the headteacher’s targets for improving the school. They have worked closely with the headteacher to put in place a robust system for managing the performance of staff. They draw on information from checks on the impact of teaching on pupils’ progress by school leaders and the local authority to guide decisions relating to teachers’ pay.  Governors have carried out detailed reviews of key policies in relation to the safety and safeguarding of pupils. They have ensured that the school’s arrangements for safeguarding and child protection meet

p.5

Behaviour

 The behaviour of pupils requires improvement. In a small minority of lesson, the low-level disruptive behaviour of a very small number of pupils detracts from the learning. In these classes, not all pupils respond quickly enough to instructions from staff.  Pupils do not always have sufficient pride in the presentation of their work.

p.5

Behaviour

 The school’s records over time show that the vast majority of pupils show respect for their peers, their teachers and other adults. They have good manners and behave courteously towards others. Pupils take care of the school environment and the resources. They take pride in wearing the school uniform.

p.6

Behaviour

 Much has recently been done to improve pupils’ behaviour. As a result, incidents of misbehaviour are now far less frequent.

p.6

Behaviour

 Attendance is slightly below average but improving and the overwhelming majority of pupils are punctual at the start of the day.

p.6

Safety

 The school’s work to keep pupils safe and secure is good.

p.6

Safety

 Parents are confident that their children are safe and happy at school. There are rigorous systems in place to ensure that this is the case with all adults offering highly effective and sensitive care to pupils.

p.6

Safety

 Pupils understand that bullying takes different forms, including physical and verbal. They know that they should speak up if they receive unpleasant text messages. Pupils report that bullying is rare and, if it does occur, it is dealt with effectively.

p.6

Safety

 Detailed and thorough case studies show that the school works effectively with external agencies to identify the needs of vulnerable pupils and to seek solutions towards overcoming them. Other documentation, such as risk assessments, demonstrates that the school anticipates possible hazards to pupils’ safety, for example on residential visits, and takes appropriate actions to guard against them.

p.6

The quality of teaching requires improvement

 Pupils have often not made the progress expected of them in recent years because of previous weaknesses in teaching and discontinuities in staffing at vital points in the school year. Too few have made the more rapid progress necessary to raise standards.

p.6

The quality of teaching requires improvement

 Teachers have not had high enough expectations of what pupils can achieve either in terms of the rate at which pupils can work or the degree of difficulty of the work that pupils are given. Although teaching is improving, its quality across Key Stages 1 and 2 is still too variable.

p.6

The quality of teaching requires improvement

 Teachers have been equipped recently with up-to-date class profiles of their pupils’ attainment and progress. They are not yet using this information consistently well to set their short-term targets for pupils or to focus lesson activities precisely on the knowledge and skills that groups need to acquire or practise next.

p.6

The quality of teaching requires improvement

 Work is not always pitched at the right level for pupils. At times, pupils find the work too easy or too hard. Progress slows and a few pupils’ attitudes to learning are then not as good as they should be as they become frustrated. Pupils, particularly the most able, are not moved on quickly enough to the more challenging work they need to do to ensure good progress.

p.6

The quality of teaching requires improvement

 The teaching of writing does not yet lead to pupils’ good learning and progress. Spelling, punctuation, grammar and handwriting are not always developed systematically. The presentation and care seen in pupils’ books are too variable across the school and between different subjects.

p.6

The quality of teaching requires improvement

 Reading skills are mostly taught well and this is having a positive impact on pupils’ achievement. The timetable has been adapted to provide more and better opportunities for pupils to develop their skills, for example, in guided reading lessons. This is enabling pupils in Key Stage 2 to build more securely on their better understanding of phonics.  In mathematics, pupils are not always given tasks which develop and apply their skills. They have not been given regular opportunities to apply their mathematical skills to problem-solving activities and they are not always encouraged to develop their reasoning skills fully.

p.6

The quality of teaching requires improvement

 The quality of the marking of pupils’ work is variable. Pupils’ work is regularly marked and often teachers provide written comments to help pupils improve. However, the approach is not consistent across the school or subjects; consequently, pupils do not always know what they must do to improve their work.

p.7

The quality of teaching requires improvement

 Since her arrival, the headteacher has taken rapid action to address weaknesses in teaching. Recent appointments are having a positive impact on the quality of teaching. Inspection evidence, including joint observations with the headteacher, discussions with pupils, staff and governors and an analysis of the school’s monitoring records, confirms this improving picture.

p.7

The quality of teaching requires improvement

 Effective learning is evident when teachers’ expectations are high and tasks are carefully planned to challenge pupils of different abilities. Examples were seen in two literacy lessons. This was because the teachers constantly asked pupils to explain their reasoning and checked that all understood before moving on.

p.7

The quality of teaching requires improvement

 The support provided for disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs, either individually or in small groups, is generally suitably matched to their needs.

p.7

The quality of teaching requires improvement

 Teaching assistants work well with disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs because they have a thorough knowledge and understanding of these pupils’ individual needs. They are particularly effective when they work with teachers to provide well-planned small-group activities, and when helping pupils learn through targeted questioning and by breaking down learning into smaller steps.

p.7

The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 Pupils’ progress across the school has been inconsistent over the last year or so because of unevenness in the quality of teaching and high rates of teacher turnover. As a result, standards are not as high as they should be and achievement requires improvement.

p.7

The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 Children arriving in the early years quickly settle into school life because of the high quality care and support provided by staff. They get off to a good start and, by the time they leave the Reception class, the proportion of children achieving a good level of development is above the national average.

p.7

The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 The number of pupils who reach the expected standard in the Year 1 phonics check was slightly below the national figure last year. Improved knowledge of letters and sounds to tackle unknown words is helping pupils to learn to read quickly. Most older pupils are able to read with fluency and understanding, and they achieve the expected standards in the national tests.

p.7

The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 Attainment at the end of Year 2 in 2014 declined in reading, writing and mathematics and was broadly average. The impact of changes are now starting to tackle this dip and evidence in pupils’ books and the school’s data show attainment is improving, especially in reading. Pupils are now well on the way to reaching the school’s more challenging targets by the end of Year 2, although as yet not enough reach the higher levels.

p.7

The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 Progress in Key Stage 2 requires improvement. In Year 6 progress was significantly below average in 2014, especially in mathematics. The proportion of pupils making more than expected progress in writing and mathematics was also not high enough. The dip can be explained by the gaps in pupils’ skills linked to weaker teaching in the past, which is now being resolved. School data and inspection evidence, including pupils’ work in books, show that the progress of pupils currently in Key Stage 2 has improved markedly.

p.7

The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 The most-able pupils are not given good enough opportunities to develop their knowledge, understanding and skills over a sustained period of time. Sometimes they work below their capabilities in lessons, partly because they have not been prepared well enough for the tasks which they undertake. They have not made rapid enough progress and their attainment has been average.  Pupils are not consistently reaching the standards and making the progress of which they are capable because their work does not always provide higher level challenge. This is the case in writing where teachers do not check pupils’ spelling, punctuation and grammar thoroughly. Pupils do not have enough opportunities to practise and apply their writing and mathematical skills in other subjects. In mathematics, although progress is improving rapidly, pupils are insecure in solving problems and they do not have enough opportunities to use their powers of reasoning.

p.7

The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 In 2014, disadvantaged pupils in Year 6 were working about three terms behind their classmates and four terms behind other pupils nationally in mathematics. They were working two terms behind their classmates and just over a term behind other pupils nationally in reading. In writing, they were a term and a half behind both their classmates and other pupils nationally. Currently, in Year 6 and across most year groups in Key Stage 2, the gaps in attainment are much reduced and these pupils are making similar progress to their peers.

p.8

The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 Disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs make expected progress. The support programmes are now having more impact and speeding up pupils’ achievement. Overall provision for these pupils is more effectively meeting their needs.

p.8

The early years provision is good

 Children enter the Nursery with knowledge, understanding and skills that are typically found for their age, including their communication, language, personal and social skills. Children make good progress from their starting points because of teaching which is typically good. This prepares them well to move into Year 1. However, teachers’ expectations are not always high enough to ensure that children make more than good progress.

p.8

The early years provision is good

 Children enjoy positive relationships with staff. This allows them to settle quickly into school life, grow in confidence and make good progress in developing their personal and social skills.

p.8

The early years provision is good

 Children behave well and respond positively to instructions. Whether playing indoors or outdoors, leaders have clear systems in place to ensure children are kept safe.

p.8

The early years provision is good

 The early years is well led. Teachers make early checks on what children can and cannot do when they first start school. This identifies strengths and weaknesses which teachers use to plan activities which are well matched to the individual needs of the children. Teachers observe learning closely to assess the needs of the children and to plan for new opportunities across all areas of learning.

p.8

The early years provision is good

 Adults typically provide good support for disadvantaged children and those identified with special educational needs so that most are working at the expected level for their age in all areas of learning. Vulnerable children are provided with high quality support. This helps them to be secure in their learning and make at least expected progress.

p.8

The early years provision is good

 Staff teach phonics systematically, using methods, resources and short activities which sustain children’s interest. Staff observe children’s articulation of separate sounds closely. They step in quickly with useful verbal feedback and guidance to help children blend sounds into words.

p.8

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

p.9

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.

p.9

School details

Unique reference number 135046 Local authority Worcestershire Inspection number 456296 This inspection of the school was carried out under section 5 of the Education Act 2005.

p.10

School details

Type of school Primary School category Voluntary aided Age range of pupils 3–11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 177 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Julie Cooper Headteacher Emma James Date of previous school inspection 13-14 September 2011 Telephone number 01562 777312 Fax number 01562 777412 Email address office@chaddesleycorbett.worcs.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 .

p.10

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.

p.11

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

p.11

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

p.11

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’.

p.11

School details

T: 0300 123 4234 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.ofsted.gov.uk

p.11