Hundon Community Primary School

School report Hundon Community Primary School North Street, Hundon, Sudbury, CO10 8EE

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Overall effectiveness

Previous inspection: Requires improvement 3 This inspection: Good 2 Leadership and management Good 2 Behaviour and safety of pupils Good 2 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

 The headteacher provides good leadership and, together with other leaders and managers, has been effective in improving the school since the last inspection.  The governing body provides appropriate challenge to senior leaders in their work to improve teaching and achievement. Its members have made a good contribution to the school’s development.  Links between Hundon Primary and Thurlow, the other school in the federation, have greatly assisted leaders in bringing about improvement and increasing teachers’ skills.  The quality of teaching is good, with particular strengths in mathematics and reading.  Provision for children in the early years has improved and is now good.  Progress is good in Key Stage 1. Attainment at the end of Year 2 is currently above national expectations in reading, writing and mathematics.  Pupils in Key Stage 2 are successfully filling previous gaps in their skills and knowledge. Almost

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

without exception, pupils currently in the school are making at least the expected amount of progress in all subjects. An increasing proportion are making good progress, especially in mathematics and reading.  Pupils appreciate the fact that this is a friendly school where everyone is known as an individual. They know they are very safe while in school, and most pupils behave well.  The school promotes pupils’ personal development and British values well.

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It is not yet an outstanding school because

 Teachers do not always challenge the most-able pupils as much as they could in the early years and at Key Stage 2.  The proportion of pupils reaching the higher levels is lower in writing than it is in reading or mathematics.  The school does not make full use of the special events that take place, including educational visits, as a stimulus for pupils’ work in literacy and numeracy.

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Information about this inspection

 The inspector visited 16 lessons and most observations were done jointly with the headteacher. In combination with the inspector’s review of the work in pupils’ books, her discussions with individual pupils and the data showing their progress over time, this provided a balance of evidence on teaching and learning. The inspector listened to some pupils at Key Stage 1 read, looked at arrangements at break times, observed an assembly and talked with a group of pupils.  Meetings were held with the headteacher, the deputy headteacher, and the literacy and the early years leaders. Interviews took place with a group of three governors and a representative of the local authority.  The inspector considered the 15 responses to the online survey, Parent View and looked at recent surveys of parents’ and pupils’ views conducted by the school. She also considered the 11 completed staff questionnaires.  The inspector observed the school’s work and looked at a range of documentation. This included: the

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Information about this inspection

school’s self-evaluation and development plan; records of pupils’ attainment, progress, behaviour and attendance; and systems for protecting and safeguarding pupils.

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Inspection team

Margaret Goodchild, Lead inspector Additional Inspector

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Information about this school

 The school is much smaller than the average-sized primary school.  Children in the early years attend full time.  With the exception of the Reception Year, pupils throughout the school are taught in mixed-age classes. These classes span Years 1 and 2, Years 3 and 4, and Years 5 and 6.  The vast majority of pupils are White British and very few speak English as an additional language.  The proportion of disadvantaged pupils for whom the school receives pupil premium funding is below average. This funding is for pupils in local authority care and those known to be eligible for free school meals.  The proportion of disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs is below average.  There are too few pupils to report their attainment and progress in reading, writing and mathematics in relation to the government’s current floor standards.  The school has been through a period of change since the last inspection. The headteacher who had been

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Information about this school

leading the school since January 2014 in a temporary capacity was made permanent headteacher in September 2014. At the same time, the school federated with the other school, Thurlow Voluntary Controlled CofE School, where she is also the headteacher. She shares her time equally between the two schools and they have a joint governing body.  A deputy headteacher was appointed at Hundon in September 2014. Leadership responsibilities, such as those for subjects and the early years, are shared across the two schools.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Raise achievement and increase the proportion of pupils reaching the higher levels, especially in writing, by the time they leave by ensuring that:  teachers in the early years and at Key Stage 2 always give the most-able pupils work that is appropriately challenging  all teachers consistently communicate high expectations to pupils about their writing and provide them with clear examples of how to achieve a good quality piece of writing  teachers make better use of the special events that take place, including educational visits, as a stimulus for pupils’ work in literacy and numeracy.

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The leadership and management are good

 The headteacher provides good leadership and has an accurate view of the school’s effectiveness. She has been successful in introducing a strong sense of purpose to the school, raising achievement and improving the quality of teaching since the last inspection. Senior leaders have established a culture in which relationships are positive, teaching can flourish and pupils are expected to behave well.

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The leadership and management are good

 The leadership of teaching is good and there are rigorous systems for managing teachers’ performance Links between Hundon Primary and Thurlow, the other school in the federation, have greatly assisted leaders in bringing about improvement and increasing teachers’ skills. Good links with other local schools are also supporting efforts to improve teaching and raise achievement.

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The leadership and management are good

 The arrangement whereby middle leaders, including those responsible for subjects and the early years, work across the two schools works very well. This ensures that teachers with the best subject knowledge are able to work to raise achievement in a particular subject in both schools. Middle leaders have been closely involved in checking teaching in their areas of responsibility and in efforts to raise achievement.

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The leadership and management are good

 Leaders collect a good amount of data and analyse this effectively to find out how much progress pupils have made and to identify gaps in their learning. They use half-termly progress meetings effectively to make sure that all pupils receive equal opportunities and that there is no discrimination. Joint assessment with teachers from Thurlow is ensuring that teachers’ assessments are now accurate and that leaders are in good position to judge pupils’ achievement and the school’s effectiveness.

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The leadership and management are good

 The school makes effective use of its pupil premium funding to support disadvantaged pupils. Leaders have spent the money to provide additional support for eligible pupils individually and in small groups. Leaders have put intensive support programmes in place in literacy and numeracy, and these are helping to make sure this group of pupils makes at least similar progress to their classmates.

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The leadership and management are good

 The school makes good use of its primary physical education and sport premium to increase pupils’ physical skills and expand the experiences available to them. It has used its funding to provide a sports coach and to pay for the use of high quality off-site provision. This has helped to raise the quality of learning for pupils. It has also led to an i ncrease in competitive sport, with the school taking part in football, cross country, netball, tennis and basketball competitions.

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The leadership and management are good

 The curriculum promotes pupils’ academic achievement well, and it is enriched by a good range of special events, residential trips, educational visits and visitors to the school. Pupils say that such events and the topics that they study make learning interesting. Teachers do not make as much use as they could, however, of these planned events and visits so that they act as a stimulus for pupils’ work in writing and mathematics.

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The leadership and management are good

 The school promotes pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development well. It provides appropriate opportunities for pupils to learn about British values and prepares them effectively for life in modern Britain. It does this through placing strong emphasis on the importance of qualities such as tolerance and honesty and by teaching them about democracy, through its personal, social and health education programme and in assemblies.

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The leadership and management are good

 The school works well in partnership with parents. They attend weekly assemblies and many parents voluntarily help in the school. The newly formed parent-teacher association works closely with the school to organise social events for the pupils. Although a very few parents were critical about aspects of the school’s work in their completion of the Ofsted survey, Parent View, the larger number who filled in the school’s own recent survey expressed almost entirely positive views.

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The leadership and management are good

 The school has good procedures for keeping pupils safe, and its safeguarding arrangements are effective and meet statutory requirements. Staff are fully trained, and the school conducts regular health and safety checks. Staff keep appropriate records in relation to safeguarding and child protection, and governors are appropriately involved in checking that all procedures are fully in place.

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The leadership and management are good

 The local authority has provided good support for the school, which has helped to raise achievement and improve teaching. It has provided support in the early years and in writing, as well as training governors and helping to ensure teachers’ assessments are accurate. The authority has worked with leaders to analyse pupils’ progress and to confirm their judgements about the school’s effectiveness.

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The leadership and management are good

 The governance of the school:  Governance is effective. The federation with Thurlow has led to a strengthening of the skills of the governing body.  Governors closely monitor the school’s progress against points on the improvement plan and meet regularly with senior leaders and teachers. They visit classes and look at pupils’ books to see how well they are doing. They have a good understanding of data and know how the school’s performance compares with that nationally. They receive reports on the use and impact of pupil premium funding. Governors know that teaching is good now. They make sure that the most effective teachers are recognised financially and that any underperformance is tackled appropriately.  Governors provide both support and challenge to senior leaders. They have a clear vision and are suitably ambitious for the school.

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Behaviour

 The behaviour of pupils is good. Pupils say that they enjoy school, and their attendance is above average.

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Behaviour

 School records and inspection findings show that behaviour in lessons is nearly always good, and when pupils come together as a whole school, for example, in assembly, they behave well. The school has a clear behaviour policy, and encourages pupils to maintain good behaviour through the systems of headteacher awards, team points and in-class rewards. Most parents believe that behaviour is managed well.

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Behaviour

 Pupils listen attentively to their teachers and to one another. There is very little disruption to learning from the behaviour of others. Pupils’ attitudes to learning are good: the vast majority of pupils are enthusiastic and engaged in their learning.

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Behaviour

 Pupils say that this is a friendly school and they like that fact that everyone is known as an individual. They are polite and courteous to the staff and get on well with one another. The school gives older pupils responsibilities, such as supporting with information and communication technology in assembly and as lunchtime helpers. Older pupils often take the initiative in supporting younger ones.

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Safety

 The school’s work to keep pupils safe and secure is good. Pupils say that they feel safe in school and they have a good understanding of how to avoid risks. E-Safety is taught every year and the school takes part in a ‘safer internet week’, which includes a parents’ information session. Pupils speak with enthusiasm about the opportunities they have to learn to ride their bicycles safely and appreciate the strong emphasis the school places on their safety and security.

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Safety

 Pupils know about different types of bullying and they say that ‘although there are some arguments, nothing ever properly splits people up’. Records indicate that incidents of bullying are rare and pupils are encouraged to talk to adults if they are unhappy.

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Safety

 The school ensures that the site is well maintained and carries out risk assessments thoroughly, both when pupils are moving around the site and when out of school on educational visits. Staff check the suitability of visitors to the school and procedures to ensure safe recruitment of new staff are good.

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The quality of teaching is good

 The quality of teaching has improved since the last inspection. The school’s own records of teaching, information about pupils’ progress, work in their books and lesson observations indicate that teaching is good, particularly in mathematics and reading. Joint planning with teachers at Thurlow has helped to improve the quality of teaching and learning throughout the school.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teachers have positive relationships with their pupils and their subject knowledge is usually good. They give pupils clear instructions about what they are meant to learn and ask incisive questions to check their understanding and probe their thinking. This was evident in a number of lessons observed during the inspection, where teachers successfully pushed pupils to deepen their understanding and fully explain their ideas.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teachers make good use of their teaching assistants. They are well trained and help to explain tasks to the pupils they work with. They make sure that pupils have practical equipment where necessary to support their learning. Disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs receive close support from the teaching assistants who are most experienced to support their development. The school liaises appropriately with outside agencies to inform provision for pupils with the most distinct needs.

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The quality of teaching is good

 The teaching of mathematics is good, and staff have benefitted from a substantial amount of training in teaching the subject since the last inspection. Teachers’ expectations are high in most lessons, and activities are matched well to the needs of different groups of pupils. As a result, they nearly always receive the right level of challenge. There are good opportunities for pupils to solve problems for themselves and to apply their existing skills in mathematics. The school is now working, rightly, to increase the frequency with which pupils can undertake these types of activities.

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The quality of teaching is good

 The teaching of reading is good. Improvements in the teaching of phonics (the sounds that letters represent) have led to raised standards in reading and spelling. Guided reading is planned effectively, and all groups of pupils undertake tasks that are matched well to the next steps in their learning.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Pupils’ books show that opportunities to write for a range of purposes have improved since the last inspection, and teachers are making better use of displays to inform pupils’ learning. They provide pupils with information about the various elements that need to be considered in a particular piece of writing and make good use other writers’ work as a stimulus for the development of pupils’ own ideas.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Marking has improved greatly since the last inspection. It successfully provides pupils with clear information about what they have done well and how they could improve their work. Pupils act on the advice they get from teachers’ marking, and their books show that it has a positive effect on their learning.

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The quality of teaching is good

 While teachers’ marking of pupils’ writing informs them about ways in which they could improve their work, they do not always convey clearly to pupils in their teaching what a high quality piece of work would look like. The school is aware that the teaching of writing is not yet as good as that in reading and mathematics. It is, therefore, already intending to introduce a more structured approach to writing next term.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Although teachers generally match tasks well to the learning of different groups of pupils or allow them to choose work at different levels of difficulty, there are occasions when they do not challenge the most-able pupils as much as they could. When this happens, more frequently in the early years and at Key Stage 2 1, pupils’ progress slows.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Information about pupils’ progress, work in their books and lesson observations show that achievement has improved since the last inspection. Standards are rising and nearly all pupils are making at least the expected amount of progress. An increasing proportion are making rapid progress.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Children join the school with skills that are typical of those normally found for their age. Although standards at the end of the Reception Year were below average in 2014, children currently in the early years are making good progress. There has been considerable improvement in their attainment and progress this year, and the proportion who are likely to reach a good level of development is above national expectations, including in literacy and numeracy.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 The school’s results in the Year 1 screening of phonics were well above average in 2014 and pupils have done equally well this year. Progress is good in Key Stage 1 and pupils’ books show that they produce a substantial amount of work. Attainment at the end of Year 2 has risen this year and is above national expectations in reading, writing and mathematics.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Attainment at the end of Year 6 in in 2014 was broadly average and published results indicated that progress was not as good across Key Stage 2 as it was in schools nationally, especially in writing.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 The improvements that teachers have made to their assessment, following the last inspection, have meant that leaders are now confident that information about pupils’ attainment and progress is accurate. Those currently in Key Stage 2 are successfully filling previous gaps in their skills and knowledge. Almost without exception, pupils in all year groups have made at least the expected amount of progress since the last inspection. An increasing proportion are making better than expected progress, especially in mathematics and reading.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 There are too few disadvantaged pupils to compare their attainment with that of their classmates or with pupils nationally without identifying individuals. The school’s own data indicate that they have made similar progress to other pupils in reading, writing and mathematics.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs are supported well and generally make good progress. The school has effective procedures in place to identify their needs and uses a variety of support programmes to help with their learning.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 The most-able pupils make good progress in some lessons, especially in mathematics where some are working at higher levels in Year 6. However, the most able are not always pushed to achieve as well as they could. While standards are rising, the proportion of pupils whose attainment exceeds national expectations is, therefore, not as high as it could be. This is the case at the end of the Reception Year and at Key Stage 2, where the school has been working to make up for past underachievement. Achievement in writing, though improving, is not yet as good as it is in reading and mathematics where more pupils are now making better than expected progress.

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The early years provision is good

 The early years leader, who is based at Thurlow, provides good leadership and management. By working closely with Hundon staff, she has brought about considerable improvement since the last inspection and the provision for children in the early years is now good.

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The early years provision is good

 The school has good systems for gathering information from parents and from pre-schools about what children can do when they join the Reception Year. Parents are appropriately involved in their children’s learning, and they are kept informed about how to help them at home. Procedures for tracking children’s progress are thorough

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The early years provision is good

 Children learn in a stimulating environment, and there is a good balance between tasks that are led by adults and those where children are free to choose for themselves. The quality of teaching is good, and children benefit from the small number in the Reception class as this means that they receive a considerable amount of adult attention. The children concentrate well on the activities provided and take a pride in their achievements. They behave well and clearly feel safe.

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The early years provision is good

 On the second day of the inspection, children were enjoying a day on the theme of ‘pirates’. As a small group of children worked together making a treasure chest, the teacher stimulated their thinking and promoted their language development well by asking a series of focused questions. She asked what their plans were for the treasure chest, how they would decorate it and what sort of treasure it would have inside it.  There has been considerable improvement in children’s attainment and progress this year and they are being prepared effectively for the move up to Year 1. However, staff do not always challenge the most able as well as they could and their progress slows when this happens.

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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 124538 Local authority Suffolk Inspection number 463852

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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 4–11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 84 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Rachel Cannon Headteacher Vicky Hogg Date of previous school inspection 19 June 2014 Telephone number 01440 786217 Fax number 01440 786217 Email address admin@hundonschool.co.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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