St Andrew's CofE Primary School

St Andrew's CofE Primary School Hopton Lane, Nesscliffe, Shrewsbury, SY4 1DB

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Overall effectiveness

Previous inspection: Good 2 This inspection: Requires improvement 3 Leadership and management Good 2 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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This is a school that requires improvement. It is not good because

 Pupils do not make consistently good progress across the school in reading, writing and mathematics. As a result, they leave with standards that are not as high as they should be.  Teaching requires improvement. Teachers do not use probing questions sufficiently to challenge pupils, including the most able, to make the rapid progress and reach the high standards they should.  Pupils do not always develop a love of reading because they do not have access to a wide variety of interesting and challenging books.  Pupils do not have enough opportunities to practise their problem solving skills in mathematics or to develop their writing at length.  Teachers do not always use support staff as effectively as they could to improve pupils’ progress in lessons.  The early years provision requires improvement. Systems are not yet securely in place for checking and promoting children’s progress in all areas of their development.

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The school has the following strengths

 The new executive headteacher is providing very effective and much needed leadership. The school now has a clear sense of direction that is shared by pupils, staff and parents.  The governing body bring expertise, experience and strategic planning to the newly formed school federation.  The recent changes in leadership and management have led to improvements in pupils’ behaviour and the quality of teaching. These, in turn, are beginning to raise achievement.  Pupils feel safe and are safe in this caring and friendly school.  The school provides good support for disadvantaged pupils, disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs. This enables them to make good progress.  Pupils have positive attitudes to their learning. They are well behaved in class and around the school. They make a significant contribution to the life of the school.  The school is successful in promoting pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development as

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Information about this inspection

 The inspector observed pupils’ learning in nine lessons, all of which were jointly observed with the executive headteacher. In addition, the inspector looked at pupils’ work in their books and listened to younger pupils read.  There were meetings with several groups of pupils, senior leaders, members of the governing body and a representative of the local authority.  The inspector took account of the 22 responses to the online questionnaire, Parent View, and considered the 12 responses to a staff questionnaire. The inspector also considered responses by staff to a recent questionnaire from the school.  The inspector examined the school’s own information on pupils’ recent and current progress; the school’s evaluation of how well it is doing and its records of the monitoring of the quality of teaching; records relating to behaviour and attendance; and documents relating to safeguarding.

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Inspection team

Richard Boswell, Lead inspector Additional Inspector

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Information about this school

 St Andrew’s CofE Primary School is considerably smaller than the average-sized primary school.  Almost all pupils are White British.  The percentage of disadvantaged pupils who are supported through the pupil premium (which provides additional funding for students in local authority care and those previously known to be eligible for free school meals) is below the national average.  The proportion of disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs is above average.  Pupils are taught in three mixed-age classes, including the very small number of children who start in the school’s Nursery. The early years provision is full time.  The school runs a breakfast club and an after-school club.  Since January 2015, the school has been federated with West Felton CofE Primary School as a member of the Westcliffe Federation. The executive headteacher of the Federation has been in post since January

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Information about this school

2015 and was acting headteacher from October 2014.  The school did not meet the government’s current floor standards in 2014, which set the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress.  The executive headteacher provides guidance and support to a number of local primary schools.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve the quality of teaching and so raise achievement by ensuring teachers:  provide pupils with sufficient opportunities to practise their problem solving skills in mathematics and to develop their writing skills by employing them in longer pieces of work  develop pupils’ love of reading by providing them with better access to a wide variety of interesting and challenging texts  ask probing questions of all pupils, but especially the most able, both in lessons and in their written comments in pupils’ work, so that pupils make rapid progress and attain higher standards  make more effective use of support staff to promote pupils’ learning during lessons.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve the early years provision by ensuring that there are regular and carefully recorded checks on the progress that children make in all areas of their development.

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The leadership and management are good

 Since the appointment of the new executive headteacher and the move to federation status under a new governing body, the school has taken a decisive turn for the better and begun to show clear signs of improvement. Leaders have created an ethos in which teaching has strongly improved and good behaviour flourishes. The clear impact of these recent improvements demonstrates that school leaders have a strong capacity to improve further.

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The leadership and management are good

 Leaders acknowledge that while there have been improvements in the progress of pupils in every year group, particularly in the last academic year, there is more to be done to raise standards, particularly for the most able and in reading.

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The leadership and management are good

 The recent improvements to teaching and achievement have been as a result of senior leaders’ close monitoring and evaluation of the quality of teaching. School leaders and governors have an accurate view of the school’s strengths and areas for improvement and have successfully shared their high expectations with pupils, staff and parents.

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The leadership and management are good

 Subject leadership in English is the responsibility of the executive headteacher in this small school. She leads developments in reading and writing effectively and has monitored teaching and pupils’ achievement carefully in both subjects. This is enabling pupils to achieve better standards across the school. In contrast, the leadership of the early years is relatively inexperienced and, until recently, there has been insufficient monitoring of children’s progress as they move through this setting, although the school analyses their entry and exit standards well. The executive headteacher and governors have recently appointed a very effective senior teacher who is now taking responsibility for key aspects of the school’s work, including mathematics.

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The leadership and management are good

 The school is currently reviewing the way in which it assesses pupils’ progress to reflect the recent changes to the National Curriculum. Leaders have put new systems in place across the school and staff, pupils and parents are becoming familiar with the criteria used to measure pupils’ attainment. Staff use their assessment skills well to ensure that pupils only move on to new topics once they have shown a deep understanding and mastery of the previous one.

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The leadership and management are good

 The school is using the pupil premium funding to good effect for the very small numbers of disadvantaged pupils in the school. Leaders check the achievement of different groups carefully to ensure they all make equally good progress. Provision for disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs is good because of very effective support provided for individuals. The school quickly identifies disadvantaged pupils’ needs and ensures the right support is in place. As a result, their progress is improving. The school’s effective work with these groups of pupils demonstrates senior leaders’ commitment to ensuring equality of opportunity and to tackling discrimination.

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The leadership and management are good

 The range of subjects taught is broad and balanced and covers all the requirements of the latest National Curriculum. Pupils are fully engaged by the topics they study because teachers encourage them to make links between different areas of knowledge and with the wider world. Pupils’ books show examples of literacy and, to a lesser extent, numeracy, skills being used accurately in scientific and historical investigations. Teachers promote pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development well through lessons and activities that require them to think hard about how other people have to live their lives, especially those less fortunate than themselves. This encourages pupils to show them compassion and understanding.

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The leadership and management are good

 This small school competes very successfully at a local level in a wide range of sports. The school makes excellent use of the additional primary sports funding to ensure all pupils are able to take full advantage of the opportunities on offer.

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The leadership and management are good

 Pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is a strength of the school. Pupils learn about a range of faiths and the school organises quiet times and thoughtful debates during which pupils contemplate spiritual and moral concerns. They celebrate Diwali, Hanukkah and the Chinese New Year. The pupils learn about British values through the school’s own set of values. Through taking on responsible roles in the school community and collaborative work, pupils learn about democracy, tolerance and respect for the rule of law. In this way, the school prepares them well for life in modern Britain.

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The leadership and management are good

 The school’s safeguarding arrangements are effective and fully meet statutory requirements. Staff are well trained and alert and this contributes to ensuring pupils feel safe.

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The leadership and management are good

 Transition into the school in the early years is sensitively and carefully handled to ensure the best start for younger children. The arrangements to support pupils as they prepare for moving on to secondary school are equally good, with visits and activities designed to build pupils’ confidence and enthusiasm for the next stage of their learning.

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The leadership and management are good

 Since recognising that the school required additional support after the last inspection, the local authority has provided good guidance and training. The local authority’s confidence in the skills and experience of the executive headteacher is demonstrated by the way they have asked her to give support to other local schools.

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The leadership and management are good

 The school’s most significant partnership is with West Felton CofE Primary School, which is the other school in The Westcliffe Federation. The school takes full advantage of the fact that both schools share the same executive headteacher and governing body to share resources and expertise. This has led to considerable benefits for both schools.

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The leadership and management are good

 The governance of the school:  Governance is effective. There has been a new governing body since January 2015, following the federation of the school with West Felton CofE Primary School. The experience and expertise of a large number of governors from the partner school, combined with that of a smaller number from St Andrew’s, ensure that governors possess the educational and business skills to hold the school to account. Governors visit the school frequently and have a good understanding of its performance. They know how well the school is doing and share with the executive headteacher the ambition to improve it further. They are aware of the school’s strengths and areas for improvement, following training and development of their skills. They understand about the importance of high quality teaching, check how teachers’ performance is managed and help to tackle any underperformance. They understand the

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The leadership and management are good

analysis of the school’s performance data and play their part in checking that school funding is used to achieve the best outcomes for pupils. This includes the use of the pupil premium and the additional primary sports and physical education funding.  Governors ensure that all legal requirements for safeguarding are met.

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Behaviour

 The behaviour of pupils is good. Pupils demonstrate positive attitudes to learning in their lessons. They are well motivated and stick at a task when they find it difficult. Pupils are clear, and school records confirm, that any low level disruption in lessons is very rare and swiftly dealt with by their teachers.

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Behaviour

 Pupils work and play well with each other. Their behaviour around the school and in the playground is good and they show respect for each other and for adults.

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Behaviour

 Attendance is in line with the national average. It is carefully monitored by leaders and the school works closely with families when necessary, meticulously follows up any absences. No pupils have had to be excluded from school either permanently or temporarily in recent years. When occasionally individual pupils demonstrate challenging behaviour, the skilful staff ensure it is well managed.

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Behaviour

 Pupils contribute well to the running of the school, and older pupils confidently and willingly take on responsibilities, showing particular care for younger pupils.

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Safety

 The school’s work to keep pupils safe and secure is good. The site is secure and pupils feel safe. Pupils can give examples of staff dealing promptly with their concerns.

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Safety

 Risk assessments, both for activities in school and for educational visits, are thorough. Pupils are given opportunities to learn how to manage their own safety throughout the school. Pupils are aware of the potential dangers when using the internet, and the school plans to strengthen their understanding further.

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Safety

 Pupils know about different types of bullying but are adamant that it is extremely rare. Very few say they have witnessed or experienced it during their time in the school. They are confident that every member of staff would respond promptly if they had any concerns.

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Safety

 Those pupils who arrive early, or who leave the school late in the day, receive good care in the breakfast and after school clubs.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 The quality of teaching is not consistently good enough in reading, writing and mathematics for pupils to make good progress through the school.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 Teachers’ use of questioning is not always sharp enough to promote rapid progress, particularly for the most-able pupils.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 Teachers do not always give pupils enough opportunities in mathematics to practise their problem solving skills. In writing, while pupils are knowledgeable about different types of writing, teachers do not always ensure they can sustain these skills in longer pieces as they move up the school. There is, however, evidence in pupils’ books of improved progress in the current school year in other aspects of writing, as well as in mathematics, across the school.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 Teachers have strong working relationships with their pupils and are developing higher expectations. Teachers ensure that there are no barriers to progress for disadvantaged pupils, disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs. While the one-to-one support that these pupils receive from support staff is of a high quality, teachers do not always make the best use of support staff when working with other pupils.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 The teaching of letters and the sounds they make (phonics) is good. Teachers and support staff work with small groups of different ability, ensuring that they move swiftly up to another group once they have gained the necessary proficiency in their learning. Teachers do not take full advantage, however, of the strong start younger pupils make in the development of their reading skills to develop older pupils’ love of reading. This is because pupils do not have enough ready access in classrooms to books that are both stimulating and demanding.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 Children generally enter the school with skills and understanding that are broadly typical for their age. In recent years, teachers’ expectations have not been high enough and they have left the school with standards that remain broadly in line with the national average. This means they have not made sufficiently rapid progress in their time in the school and that achievement therefore requires improvement.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 In recent years not enough children have made the progress they should in the early years. However, progress has improved for those currently in Reception and these children are now better prepared for starting Year 1. A very small number of very young children enter the school at the Nursery stage. Their progress by the time they move into Reception is good. This is because they are well supported and learn to develop their social skills as well as becoming familiar with numbers, letters and sounds.  The school has significantly improved its approach to teaching pupils about letters and the sounds they make (phonics) this year. Consequently, the proportion of pupils now reaching the expected level in the Year 1 phonics check compares favourably to the latest national average.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 Pupils reach standards at the end of Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2 that are broadly in line with those found nationally in reading, writing and mathematics. This is not always fully captured by nationally published statistics because of the small numbers of pupils in each year group, with each child representing a significant percentage. Nevertheless, for some pupils this degree of improvement does not represent sufficiently rapid progress from their secure starting points.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 The most-able pupils do not always make as much progress as they could. As a result, not enough attain the higher levels in reading, writing and mathematics. This is because not all teachers regularly challenge them to learn more. There are insufficient opportunities for all pupils, including the most able throughout the school, to advance their reading skills by tackling lively and demanding texts.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 The inspector’s own scrutiny of pupils’ work and the school’s information about pupils’ progress suggest that many current pupils are making improved progress in Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2. This is due to their receiving a better quality of teaching this year, following the raised expectations introduced by the new executive headteacher and new governing body.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 The school is successful in promoting the achievement of disadvantaged pupils, and the pupil premium funding is used well to support individuals. This group of pupils forms a very small part of the school population and insufficient numbers took the Year 6 national tests in 2014 to report on their attainment. Their progress, from the early years through to Year 6, is good; it is generally above that of other pupils in the school and compares favourably to that found nationally in reading, writing and mathematics.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 Disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs make similar and sometimes better progress than their peers from their starting points. This is because their individual needs are quickly identified and fully met. The school’s clear focus on improving the support for, and achievement of, this group of individual pupils is typical of its caring approach to equal opportunities and to tackling discrimination.

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The early years provision requires improvement

 Since the previous inspection, a lack of experience in the leadership of the early years has meant that children’s progress has not always been as rapid in all areas of their development as it could have been. Systems have only recently been put in place for rigorously checking and actively promoting children’s progress. As a result, leadership and management of the early years provision requires improvement.

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The early years provision requires improvement

 Children enter the Nursery and Reception with a range of basic skills and with levels of communication, language and mathematics that are broadly typical for their age. The teaching they receive requires improvement as not all activities, including those managed by support staff, are well matched to children’s needs and abilities and do not always ensure good rates of progress for all children. When staff question children, they do not always use sufficiently probing questions that would extend their knowledge and understanding. Although achievement is improving, over time, and is good in the Nursery, not enough children have made a good level of development overall; consequently, they have not always been as consistently well prepared for their future learning in Key Stage 1 as they should have been.

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The early years provision requires improvement

 Children have the opportunity to learn through a wide range of stimulating activities, both indoors and outside. Teachers make good use of play activities to encourage pupils to learn through investigation.

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The early years provision requires improvement

 Children, both in Nursery and Reception settle quickly into a welcoming and safe environment. They behave well, learning to take turns and to make positive and sensible choices in their work and their play. Secure safeguarding procedures are in place and appropriate risk assessments are carried out for all activities.

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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 123477 Local authority Shropshire Inspection number 456284

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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 Voluntary controlled Age range of pupils 3–11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 61 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Colin Jenno Headteacher (Executive) Nicola Maddocks Date of previous school inspection 12 October 2011 Telephone number 01743 741331 Fax number Not applicable Email address admin@st-andrews-nesscliffe.shropshire.sch.uk guidance ‘raising concerns and making complaints about Ofsted', which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ofsted. 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.gov.uk/government/organisations/ofsted

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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.gov.uk/government/organisations/ofsted

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