Setting

Karen Hanson Headteacher Kingsbury Primary School Bromage Avenue Kingsbury Tamworth B78 2HW

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School

Following my visit to your school on 29 June 2015, I write on behalf of Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Education, Children’s Services and Skills to report the inspection findings. Thank you for the help you gave me and for the time you made available to discuss the actions you are taking to improve the school since the most recent section 5 inspection.

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School

The visit was the first monitoring inspection since the school was judged to require improvement following the section 5 inspection in March 2015. It was carried out under section 8 of the Education Act 2005. At its previous section 5 inspection in March 2013 the school was also judged to require improvement.

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School

Senior leaders and governors are taking effective action to tackle the areas requiring improvement identified at the recent section 5 inspection. The school should take further action to:

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School

 modify the school improvement plan so that it contains key actions determined by the range of information used by school leaders. The plan should have measurable milestones and clearly identify who is responsible for carrying out, monitoring and evaluating actions.

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Evidence

During the inspection, meetings were held with the headteacher, deputy headteacher, the Chair and Vice Chair of the Governing Body and a representative of the local authority to discuss the actions taken since the last inspection. The school improvement plan was evaluated and other documents, including the minutes of meetings of the governing body, school achievement data and information about Serco Inspections Colmore Plaza 20 Colmore Circus Queensway Birmingham B4 6AT T 0300 123 1231 Text Phone: 0161 6188524 enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk www.ofsted.gov.uk Direct T : 0121 679 9156 Direct email : emma.norwood@serco.com how the quality of teaching is monitored and evaluated, were scrutinised. Short visits were made to every classroom with the headteacher and the deputy headteacher. Brief discussions were held with pupils and work and displays were looked at during this time.

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Context

There have been no significant changes since the last section 5 inspection.

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Main findings

The school improvement plan covers all the areas for development identified by school leaders. These include those contained in the most recent Ofsted report and action has been taken to address all these areas. However, measurable milestones are not in place and it is not always clear who is responsible for the actions and how they will be held to account. In addition to this, the wide variety of information about all aspects of the school’s work has not yet been pulled together to inform a plan that will help to rapidly move the school to good.

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Main findings

During the short visits to every class, there was a focus on learning and pupils of a range of abilities, including the most able, were set work with the right level of challenge. The books looked at during the inspection had been marked regularly and spelling, punctuation and grammar were corrected in a range of subjects. Pupils had also acted upon targets that they had been set in order to improve their work.

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Main findings

Displays were used to help learning in many subjects and there was a particular focus upon improving mathematics. For example, mathematics challenges, placed on a number of walls around the building, had been attempted by pupils and words such as perimeter and area were stuck to doors. Displays in the Early Years Foundation Stage showed how the children had improved their writing over time and prompt boards were used effectively to support children as they explored new ideas and developed their skills independently.

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Main findings

Staff have benefited from a range of training to improve teaching and the management of teachers’ performance is used well to improve achievement. Lesson observations, work in pupils’ books, achievement data and interviews with pupils are all used to review teachers’ targets and to set new ones. This system, which has been further developed since the last inspection, has helped to improve teaching.

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Main findings

As a result of improving teaching, progress is also improving. The school data, which has been externally moderated, indicates better outcomes in the current Year 6 and improved progress in other year groups. As a result of a number of targeted activities, such as using numeracy skills in physical education, progress in mathematics is improving markedly.

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Main findings

School leaders effectively use information about pupils’ achievement to inform action. Reliable progress and attainment data is collected regularly, analysed and presented to staff and governors in a way which can be clearly understood. This system has been refined since the last inspection and, as it highlights groups and individuals who will benefit from intervention, it has contributed to improved progress.

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Main findings

Members of the governing body have a clear understanding of the strengths and areas for development of the school. They visit the school regularly and make a point of talking to pupils in order to understand their views about the school. They also have purposeful meetings with staff, and the headteacher and the Chair of the Governing Body are frequently in contact. Governors have the skills, knowledge and understanding to both support and hold senior leaders to close account. They receive appropriate information from a range of people and cover all the significant areas in their meetings. They will ask challenging questions when required.

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External support

School staff and governors are accessing effective support from groups of schools in north Warwickshire and other local authority areas. This has included training for subject leaders and the teachers with responsibility for disabled pupils and those with special educational needs, and input on assessment without levels. Teachers from the school have used Warwickshire local authority’s effective systems to moderate pupils’ work and the link officer visits the school regularly. She has a great deal of faith in the school leadership so the school have received ‘light touch’ support. However, the timescale for planned action is too long. For example, the early years' consultant has not yet visited and support in mathematics is planned to take place next term. Also, as a result of this monitoring inspection, the school review planned for this term has not taken place. The pace of delivery of local authority support needs to be quickened in order to complement the effective action

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External support

being taken by school leaders and governors.

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External support

I am copying this letter to the Chair of the Governing Body and the Head of Education and Learning for Warwickshire local authority.

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Her Majesty’s Inspector

 Chair of the Governing Body  Local authority

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