Broadfield Community Primary School

Broadfield Community Primary School Sparrow Hill, Rochdale, Lancashire, OL16 1QT

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Overall effectiveness

Previous inspection: Good 2 This inspection: Good 2 Leadership and management Good 2 Behaviour and safety of pupils Outstanding 1 Quality of teaching Good 2 Achievement of pupils Good 2 Early years provision Good 2

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

 Ambitious leadership at all levels is focussed on school improvement that results in good teaching across the school.  Behaviour is exemplary. The pupils are happy and enthusiastic learners who are proud of their achievements and of their school. They are excellent ambassadors for Broadfield Community Primary School.  Most groups of pupils across the school achieve well in reading, writing and mathematics. They also achieve well in other subjects such as art, religious education and science.  Teachers’ high quality feedback, skilful questioning and checks on pupils’ learning during lessons ensure that pupils make good progress across all subjects.  The vibrant curriculum, that challenges social and cultural stereotypes at every opportunity, inspires pupils and prepares them well for life in modern Britain.  Pupils’ good spiritual, moral, social and cultural development results in a cohesive school community where differences are celebrated.

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

 Children get off to a good start when they enter the early years. They make good progress and are well prepared to enter Year 1.  High quality teaching assistants make a strong contribution to pupils’ learning.  Pupils feel safe and are taught how to avoid danger. The work of the recently established ‘early help team’ plays a valuable role in ensuring that the school keeps pupils safe.

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It is not yet an outstanding school because

 The dip in achievement in 2014 means that over time, not all groups of pupils have sustained at least good progress in their learning.  Governors do not check thoroughly on the impact that the pupil premium funding is having on the achievement of disadvantaged pupils in the school.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors observed lessons in each class of the school.  Discussions were held with senior leaders, middle leaders, members of staff, groups of pupils, three representatives of the governing body and a representative of the local authority.  Inspectors examined a wide range of documentation, including that relating to safeguarding, behaviour and attendance and staff performance management.  Inspectors spoke to pupils informally during the school day and observed them during playtime, lunch and before and after school.  Inspectors heard a number of pupils read.  They took note of displays around the school and the work in the outdoor areas.  The school’s tracking of pupils’ progress data was examined alongside the work in pupils’ books.  Inspectors spoke to a small number of parents at the start of the day. There were insufficient responses logged on Parent view, the online questionnaire, for inspectors to analyse. However, inspectors took note

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Information about this inspection

of the responses to the school’s most recent parental questionnaire, as well as the 11 responses they received to the inspection questionnaire for school staff.

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Inspection team

Martin Bell, Lead inspector Her Majesty’s Inspector

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Information about this school

 Broadfield is a larger than average primary school.  The proportion of disadvantaged pupils supported by the pupil premium funding is almost double the national average. The pupil premium is additional funding for those pupils who are known to be eligible for free school meals, and those who are looked after by the local authority.  The proportion of pupils with special educational needs is above the national average.  Most pupils are of Pakistani ethnic heritage. The proportion of pupils for whom English is not or believed not to be their first language is well above the national average.  The school meets the government’s current floor standards, which are the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress in reading, writing and mathematics by the end of Year 6.  At the time of the inspection, no pupils had part-time timetables or were being educated in alternative provision.  The school has a full-time Reception class and a part-time Nursery class, which operates every day for a

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Information about this school

morning and an afternoon session.  More pupils join or leave the school throughout the school year than found nationally.  Some leaders provide support for other schools in the local authority.  The school has a number of awards including: Artsmark Gold and the Primary Science Silver Quality Mark. The school is also a UNICEF ‘Rights Respecting’ school.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Ensure that the governing body checks robustly on the impact of pupil premium funding on narrowing the gap between disadvantaged pupils in school and other pupils nationally.  Continue to improve the proportion of pupils in school who make above expected progress, so that a greater percentage of pupils reaches the highest levels in reading, writing and mathematics by the end of Key Stage 2.  Continue to raise the achievement of disadvantaged pupils, so that the gap between their achievement in reading, writing and mathematics and that of other pupils nationally narrows rapidly.

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The leadership and management are good

 The headteacher, adeptly supported by the high quality senior leadership team, has established a cohesive, vibrant and happy school community. Their leadership is characterised by a passion to achieve the highest standards and their high expectations ensure that good teaching and exemplary behaviour are a significant feature of the school.  Leaders frequently check on the quality of teaching by observing lessons, looking at pupils’ books and undertaking learning walks to drop into lessons. Questionnaires to gather the views of pupils and parents are also used effectively to check on the work of the school and inform further improvements. Leaders are astute at identifying the elements in lessons that can be improved. Their clear feedback, as well as their expert modelling of lessons and support with planning, has helped teachers to improve the quality of their teaching.  Leadership is distributed effectively across a wide range of staff who share accountability for school

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The leadership and management are good

improvement. For instance, two higher level teaching assistants lead the work of other support staff throughout the school. They organise and contribute to the delivery of training that helps to ensure that teaching assistants make a strong contribution to supporting pupils’ learning.  Middle leaders play an effective role in school improvement. They identify areas for improvement in their subjects accurately and use information from staff questionnaires and lesson observations to provide training that contributes to improving the quality of teaching across the school. Curriculum leaders consider carefully how their subjects join with one another, so that learning is linked and relevant. For instance, the religious education subject leader has designed the curriculum so that the study of different faiths is related to pupils’ own experiences and helps to develop respect and understanding.  The rich and vibrant curriculum, which is planned carefully to have relevance and meaning to the pupils’

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The leadership and management are good

own lives and experiences, underpins the strong British values of respect and tolerance observed throughout the school. Very high quality artwork by the pupils is displayed around the school and is used to explore and challenge social and cultural stereotypes. For example, some outstanding work displayed in the school corridor tackles the issue of unrealistic female images in the media. While other work highlights the struggle of Malala Yousafzai to campaign for the right for girls to receive an education. The high level of commitment to the arts in the curriculum has been recognised through the award of Artsmark Gold.  Opportunities to tackle issues of discrimination and promote equality of opportunity are planned well and are highly effective. For example, teachers in Year 5 use texts such as Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream to explore and challenge issues related to forced marriage. Girls are encouraged to become better

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The leadership and management are good

mathematicians through a display of female role models who use mathematics in their lives and jobs. Pupils are given opportunities in lessons to answer and discuss their own ‘ultimate questions’ such as ‘what is the purpose of life?’ Pupils say that these types of activity help them to value and respect each other’s opinions, religions and cultures. Through these activities, the curriculum promotes pupils’ good spiritual, moral and cultural development effectively.  There is a good choice of extra-curricular activities, such as dance, choir, writing and a parent and pupil science club. The school has used the primary physical education and sport funding to employ a teaching assistant with expertise in sports coaching. Teachers have enhanced their skills by working alongside the sports coach and there have been increased numbers of pupils participating in competitive sport.  The teacher who coordinates the school’s work with pupils who have special educational needs tracks their

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The leadership and management are good

progress effectively. This enables the early identification of any pupils who require extra support. A range of interventions is in place across the school to help this group of pupils make good progress. Strong links are made with parents who are involved in reviews of their children’s progress, helping them to contribute to the provision to support their child.  Senior leaders use pupil premium funding for a wide range of initiatives to support disadvantaged pupils. However, the impact on pupils’ achievement has been inconsistent, with the gap between their achievement and that of other pupils nationally growing at the end of Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2 in 2014. Disadvantaged pupils are generally making similar progress to other pupils within the school and other pupils nationally. Governors are not fully clear of their role to check on the impact of the use of this funding. Consequently, they have an over-generous view of the achievement of this group of pupils.

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The leadership and management are good

 Work to protect and keep pupils safe is given a high priority by the leaders. The headteacher has recently established an early help team to oversee and coordinate the school’s highly effective work to support a large number of families and keep children safe.  The local authority representative has provided light touch support to the school, offering advice when needed and accompanying leaders on learning walks and lesson observations to support judgements. The local authority representative has also utilised the strengths of middle and senior leaders to provide effective and valued support to other local schools.  The governance of the school:  The governors take their responsibilities seriously and share the high expectations of senior leaders throughout the school. Training delivered by the local authority has allowed the regular updating of skills that enables governors to have a generally accurate view of the strengths and weaknesses of the

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The leadership and management are good

school. However, they do not always check effectively on the achievement of groups of pupils and the effectiveness of the use of external funding. For example, governors’ view of the achievement of disadvantaged pupils is too positive as they have not challenged leaders robustly enough to demonstrate the impact of pupil premium funding on narrowing the gap between these pupils and other pupils nationally.  Governors have a good overview of the systems for monitoring performance and how these impact on rewarding good teaching and tackling underperformance. Regular visits to school, especially by the Chair, and reports by the headteacher also ensure that governors have an accurate view of the quality of teaching.  Governors’ astute oversight of the school finances has helped to allow the headteacher to establish an ‘early help’ team that helps ensure that statutory safeguarding responsibilities are met.

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Behaviour

 The behaviour of pupils is outstanding. Pupils come to school eager to learn and set about their work in class with a great deal of enthusiasm. Teachers’ high expectations and clear routines ensure that very little time is lost at the start of lessons as pupils settle to work and respond quickly and respectfully to instructions.  Pupils work well together, irrespective of age, gender or background, and share ideas that support their learning. For example, in Year 6, pupils shared their most treasured memories of school with one another in preparation for writing recounts. Pupils speak with pride about the quality of their work which is presented with care and attention. The firm focus placed by the school on developing pupils’ understanding of different faiths and cultures means that there is a very strong ethos of respect and tolerance shared by pupils throughout the school.  Pupils’ behaviour elsewhere in the school is also exemplary. Pupils play calmly in the playground and

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Behaviour

confirm that incidents of ‘falling out’ are rare. Activities planned by the school council or led by sports leaders at playtime help ensure that pupils can participate in a range of enjoyable activities.  Pupils are polite and respectful towards one another and to visitors. They confirm that incidents of bullying, including any related to differences in culture, religion or race, are very rare and that teachers deal with all incidents fairly, listening to both sides and resolving issues quickly. They display excellent manners and happily engage in articulate discussions with adults, eagerly sharing their pride in their school. For instance, a group of pupils told inspectors that that they couldn’t think of anything that would improve their school as it was ‘amazing’.

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Safety

 The school’s work to keep pupils safe and secure is outstanding. The work of the ‘early help’ team ensures that safeguarding concerns are followed up appropriately and that support for pupils and families is effective in keeping children safe. Staff undertake regular training, ensuring that they recognise potential risks to the safety of pupils. The headteacher is diligent in her determination to make sure that all pupils are kept safe from potential harm and that all statutory requirements are met.  Pupils are taught how to keep themselves safe and the school curriculum includes a focus on areas such as forced marriage, keeping safe from sexual abuse, digital safety and domestic violence. Assemblies that deal with issues of bullying and racism also contribute effectively to the safeguarding of pupils.  Systems to check on pupils’ absences are thorough and effective. The percentage of pupils who are

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Safety

persistently absent is half that seen nationally and overall attendance is above the national average.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Pupils say that they enjoy their lessons and that they ‘learn lots’. Teachers plan lessons that build on prior learning and use practical resources and activities to enhance pupils’ understanding and inspire their imagination. For example, in a Year 3 science lesson, pupils learned about the effect that exercise has on their bodies by measuring pulse rates before and after running in the playground. In Year 6, the teacher skilfully used a range of carefully selected photographs during a literacy lesson to inspire the pupils in her class to recall moments in their school life and to plan a written account.  Teachers use questioning effectively to focus pupils’ attention, to gauge their understanding, deepen their thinking and to help them improve their work. For instance, the deputy headteacher, while teaching her class, supported pupils to improve the quality of their sentence writing by asking a wide range of

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The quality of teaching is good

questions that encouraged them to review their own ideas in the light of what they had learnt in the past.  A key strength of teaching is the high quality feedback that helps to move pupils’ learning forward. Dialogue during lessons and constructive comments in pupils’ books encourage pupils to take on new challenges and help them to develop the skills and confidence to tackle misconception.  Teaching assistants play an important role in supporting the learning of pupils of all abilities throughout the school. Teachers plan their work carefully so that there is a consistent approach and a shared expectation of what pupils will achieve. They use their good subject knowledge to help explain difficult concepts clearly and consequently contribute to pupils’ good progress during lessons.  Teachers plan good opportunities for pupils to develop their conceptual understanding and apply their mathematical skills through interesting problem-solving activities, often linked to the wider curriculum. For

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The quality of teaching is good

example, pupils in one class made links to the Second World War by using their mental maths skills to crack codes. In another class, pupils interpreted data and used co-ordinates to find out more information about endangered animals.  Teachers provide a range of interesting opportunities for pupils to develop their writing skills across the curriculum. By focussing on improving sentence structure and planning opportunities to develop language, they help the pupils to improve their writing across a wide range of genres. Pupils enjoy writing and say that teachers work hard to help them improve. ‘Homework given by our teachers helps us prepare for writing the following week’ and ‘our teacher always makes sure we understand. She never moves on until we all get it’ are typical of comments shared with inspectors.  Teachers help pupils to develop a passion for reading across the school. The teaching of phonics (the

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The quality of teaching is good

sounds that letters make) is effective and pupils are able to apply their skills to help them read with fluency. Pupils have access to a well-stocked school library and are able to choose books that ignite their imagination. As a consequence, pupils think carefully about what they read and are able to make predictions about what may happen next.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Most pupils achieve well. In 2014, the proportion of pupils that made expected and above expected progress in reading, writing and mathematics was broadly similar to the national average.  The proportion of pupils reaching the expected level in reading, writing and mathematics by the end of Year 2 is below the national average. However, from starting points that are often well below those typically expected for their age, pupils make good progress across the Early Years and Key Stage 1.  Pupils who have special educational needs and those who previously achieved below expected levels at the end of Key Stage 1 make good progress. Teachers ensure that work is well matched to the needs of this group of pupils and careful tracking ensures that interventions are put in place to help pupils make good progress.  The standards that older pupils reached by the end of Key Stage 2 fell in 2014. However, there is

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The achievement of pupils is good

convincing evidence in the work in pupils’ mathematics and writing books and from the school’s data to confirm that this decline has been arrested. Pupils are now on target to achieve well in reading, writing and mathematics by the time they leave Year 6, with a greater percentage of pupils on track to make expected and above expected progress than that seen nationally.  Disadvantaged pupils make progress broadly similar to that of other pupils in school and other pupils nationally in reading, writing and mathematics. In 2014, as with other groups in school, achievement fell for disadvantaged pupils. Pupils left Key Stage 2 over two terms behind other pupils nationally in reading and writing and four terms behind in mathematics. Compared to other pupils in school they left Year 6 one term behind in mathematics, one term ahead in writing and nearly one and a half terms ahead in reading. Evidence gathered during the inspection shows that action taken by leaders to improve achievement for

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The achievement of pupils is good

disadvantaged pupils is impacting positively. The attainment gap to other pupils nationally is now on target to narrow in all subjects by the end of Year 6.  The achievement of the most able pupils in school is improving. Pupils in Year 6 for example, are encouraged by their teacher to constantly review and improve their writing so that they can attain higher levels. As a consequence the proportion of pupils who are working at the higher level 5 in writing is over twice that seen in school in 2014. Nonetheless, the proportion of pupils on track to attain higher levels in 2015 in reading, writing and mathematics is below that seen nationally.

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The early years provision is good

 As a result of effective teaching, children make a good start in the early years. A large proportion of children enter the school with skills and knowledge that are well below those which are typical for their age, particularly in the areas of listening and speaking. Children make good progress, but the proportion that achieves a good level of development by the time they leave Reception is below the national average.  The early years setting is led well. Leaders ensure that every effort is made to support children to join the school ready to make the most of their opportunities. Staff begin visiting children and families in their own home during the summer term to offer support and advice. Staff also run a wide range of parent workshops to support early reading, behaviour management, mathematics skills and phonics awareness.  The learning environment is planned well to ensure that children link their ideas and that learning is

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The early years provision is good

purposeful. In particular, the outdoor environment is rich in opportunities for children to develop their imagination. For example, a group of boys made use of boxes and materials to build a den to hide from the wolf linked to the story they had been reading in class.  Teachers and other adults make good use of children’s interests and use questions skilfully to encourage the development of language skills, assess knowledge and keep track of progress. In one lesson, children extended their vocabulary as they planted seeds and discussed with their teacher what they would need for the plants to grow. The pace of learning is not as strong when the organisation of the class results in some children not being given the adult support that they need in order to help progress as quickly as they are able.  The whole school ethos of respect and tolerance is fostered from an early stage in the early years department. Pupils’ behaviour is good and adults support pupils to resolve their differences by discussing

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The early years provision is good

the issues sensitively. This enables a growing number of children to manage their own feelings and develop their social and emotional skills so that they are well prepared for their transition into Key Stage 1.

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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 134220 Local authority Rochdale Inspection number 461720

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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 429 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Clive Entwistle Headteacher Kathryn Knight Date of previous school inspection 6 December 2011 Telephone number 01706 647580 Fax number 01706 5261155 Email address office@broadfield.rochdale.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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