William Penn School

Brooks Green Road, Coolham, Horsham, West Sussex, RH13 8GR

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Overall effectiveness

Previous inspection: Good 2 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 leads a team, including senior leaders and managers, that is committed to continuous improvement.  Pupils achieve standards that are above the national average at the end of Key Stage 2.  Current pupils are making good progress in all subjects.  Teaching is consistently good and encourages pupils to apply their skills in reading, writing and mathematics.  The school’s core values underpin the curriculum. They ensure pupils are well prepared for the next stage of their education and for life in modern Britain.  Governors have a wide range of skills and expertise that they use effectively to support and challenge the school.  Middle leaders understand the strengths and weaknesses of the school and work well together to plan improvements.  Behaviour over time is good. Pupils value learning to work and play with their friends.  The school’s actions to keep pupils safe from harm of any kind are robust and effective.

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

 Children have a good start to their education in the early years provision.  Parents and carers are overwhelmingly positive about the education and care the school provides.

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It is not yet an outstanding school because:

 The quality of teaching is not yet outstanding.  Too few pupils make better than expected progress in Key Stage 1 and in mathematics in Key Stage 2 due to weaker teaching in the past.  There are a few occasions when teachers do not give pupils more challenging work quickly enough when they are ready to move on.

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Information about this inspection

 The inspector observed learning in all classes at least twice and also made shorter visits to classrooms to look at pupils’ workbooks. Nearly all of these observations took place jointly with the headteacher.  The inspector held a number of meetings with the headteacher, other school leaders and teachers. He had both formal and informal discussions with groups of pupils and heard some pupils in Year 2 and Year 6 read.  The inspector met with the Chair of the Governing Body and eight other governors and also had a discussion with a representative from the local authority.  The inspector looked at a range of school documentation relating to safeguarding, pupils’ achievement, the quality of teaching, school improvement, governance and teachers’ performance.  The inspector spoke to some parents at the end of the school day and considered 57 responses to the online Parent View questionnaire.  The inspector considered 14 responses to the staff questionnaire.

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Inspection team

Lee Selby, Lead inspector Additional Inspector

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Information about this school

 The school is much smaller than the average-size primary school. Over 60% of the pupils on roll are girls.  There are four mixed-age classes. Early years provision is full time in a mixed Reception and Year 1 class.  William Penn is the only maintained primary school in England with a Quaker foundation.  The vast majority of pupils are of White British heritage. The proportion of pupils from minority ethnic groups or for whom English is an additional language is well below average.  The proportion of disadvantaged pupils eligible for the pupil premium (additional government funding for pupils who are entitled to free school meals or are looked after children) is very low. There was only one disadvantaged child in Year 6 in 2014 and in 2013 there were two.  The proportion of pupils who are disabled or who have special educational needs is below the national average.  The school meets the current government floor standards, which set the minimum expectations for pupils’

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Information about this school

attainment and progress.  Nearly all of the teachers have joined the school since the last inspection; two teachers were on family leave during the inspection.  The school works closely with other schools in the Weald locality.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve teaching so that it is typically outstanding and ensures that more pupils make rapid progress, especially in Key Stage 1 and in mathematics in Key Stage 2, by:  embedding the new more robust systems of assessment throughout the school so teachers always plan challenging work  sharing the best practice within the school and learning from best practice within the locality  making sure that teachers always move pupils on to more challenging work when they are ready.

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The leadership and management are good

 The headteacher’s leadership style generates an atmosphere in which staff and governors help each other to improve every aspect of school life. Parents are overwhelmingly happy with the leadership of the school. As one parent commented, ‘The headteacher is superb and very caring. We are very lucky to have the school in the village.’  Leaders have created a culture in this unique school where teachers work successfully together so that all pupils can succeed. The promotion of the key value of friendship creates an atmosphere in which pupils get on well together and behaviour is good throughout the school.  Rigorous systems to check the quality of teaching are in place. The headteacher and other leaders ensure that any action points are followed up. As a result, teaching has remained good over time, despite a number of staff changes. However, teachers do not share the best practice within the school or with other

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The leadership and management are good

schools in the locality often enough to generate more outstanding learning.  Pupil premium funding is used effectively to ensure that the very few disadvantaged pupils currently in the school make better progress on average than their peers. This is due to the targeted support and challenge they receive from a specially employed intervention teacher.  The key value of equality permeates through the school ensuring that the opinions of all are valued; there is real equality of opportunity. This leads to good relationships between governors, staff, pupils and parents. There is no kind of discrimination in this school, nor would it be tolerated.  Other of the school’s fundamental values, such as friendship, simplicity, integrity, reflection and peace, fit well with modern British values. Pupils at William Penn are taught to be tolerant of others, welcome new friends from other cultures and nationalities and have real-life opportunities to see democracy in action,

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The leadership and management are good

for example when electing the school council.  The small nature of the school means that nearly every teacher has a middle leadership responsibility. Teachers understand what is working well and what could be improved further. They work together with integrity to plan the next steps in the school’s development.  The curriculum is appropriately broad and balanced. It gives pupils the skills, knowledge and qualities they need for the next stage of their education. Year 6 pupils who are about to leave the school say that they feel well prepared for secondary school.  The music provision is a particular strength within the curriculum. Effective use is also made of the school’s location and foundation to provide interesting learning opportunities, which include a link with a Quaker friends school in Kenya. Together these elements promote pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development well.

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The leadership and management are good

 Safeguarding procedures meet statutory requirements and are effective at protecting pupils from any harm.  The primary physical education and sport grant is used effectively to increase pupils’ participation in competitive sport and to improve teachers’ skills. However governors, parents and older pupils would like to see even more opportunities in this area.  The local authority provides light-touch support to the school.  The governance of the school:  Governors are effective because they have a wide range of skills, experience and expertise that allows them to support and challenge school leaders well. They lead a cohesive community where pupils and staff live, laugh and learn together.  Governors have a clear understanding of the quality of teaching and the achievements of different groups of pupils. They recognise the improvements that have been made in pupils’ achievement, for example, more pupils reaching higher standards at the end of Key Stage 2, but they are not

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The leadership and management are good

complacent.  In their discussions, governors have identified how the curriculum they oversee can promote the school’s core values and modern British values seamlessly.  Governors ensure that their financial responsibilities are carried out stringently. They check that additional funding through the pupil premium and primary sports grant is spent effectively, and make sure that performance management systems are robust and that pay progression for teachers is linked to good performance. They support the headteacher’s approach to dealing with any weaknesses in teaching.

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Behaviour

 The behaviour of pupils is good.  Pupils behave well around the school, including in assemblies, at playtime and in the hall at lunchtime. They are polite and respectful and demonstrate the key value of friendship well. They say that good behaviour is normal and that teachers deal sensitively with any very minor incidents. There have been no racist incidents or other serious behaviour issues in recent years.  Pupils have opportunities to take on responsibilities, such as school councillors, sports captains and, more recently, play leaders. They generally take pride in their appearance and take great care to present their work neatly.  Behaviour in lessons is universally good with pupils being interested and engaged in the learning. However, older pupils do not always take the initiative to explore topics in detail and sometimes lack confidence to discuss their thoughts about school life with the headteacher.

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Behaviour

 Attendance has continued to improve and is above the national average. Persistent absence is very low and reflects that pupils enjoy coming to school.  Parents who completed the online questionnaire agree that staff manage behaviour well.

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Safety

 The school’s work to keep pupils safe and secure is good.  Safeguarding procedures are robust. Regular training for all staff is up to date. It appropriately focuses on current issues and identifying behaviour, signs and symptoms that could potentially harm pupils.  The school carries out appropriate checks on staff and volunteers and has a comprehensive system to assess risks, for example when going on school trips. Parents overwhelmingly agree that their children are safe at school.  Pupils say that the school site is safe and that they know how to stay safe both in and out of school. For example, they know how to stay safe online when using the internet at school or at home. They welcomed the recent training to help them become safer when cycling. They are given all the safety information they need, but do not yet play an active role in promoting and sharing this information within the school and

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Safety

local community.  When asked, pupils said there was no bullying at the school, but could describe what it was and the different forms it can take. Incidents reported to the headteacher are few and far between and dealt with to the extreme satisfaction of parents.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teaching over time is consistently good. This is confirmed by the school’s robust monitoring of teaching that shows that teachers have high expectations of all their pupils.  Teaching is usually lively and interesting. It is pitched well to help pupils make good progress over time. Nearly all parents agree that teaching is good and that their children make good progress.  Pupils enjoy what they are learning and from a very young age know what is expected of them. For example, the youngest children in Reception tick off tasks on a list as they complete them while older children are given clear explanations about how they can show they have been successful in completing a task. As a result, they normally make good progress in lessons.  Teachers ask questions that make pupils think, and where necessary they provide support to help pupils build up and structure their answers, for example, when solving a problem involving proportions and

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The quality of teaching is good

percentages.  Teaching assistants work well with teachers to foster an atmosphere where students are happy to learn. They carry out helpful observations that contribute to teachers’ assessments and future planning.  Feedback and marking are effective at helping pupils to improve their work. This is especially so in KS2. They provide guidance where mistakes have been made, pose questions to challenge deeper thinking and understanding and celebrate successful new learning.  Assessment systems are well developed. Teachers moderate their judgements accurately with colleagues from other schools in the locality. The headteacher has implemented a robust system to assess pupils’ achievement after the removal of National Curriculum levels. He has plans to embed this system with all year groups from September.  There are many occasions when pupils apply their writing skills in other areas of the curriculum such as in

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The quality of teaching is good

science and history.  Pupils are given opportunities to use their mathematical reasoning and problem-solving skills in real-life situations, when map reading or drawing graphs of results from practical science experiments for example.  Teachers encourage pupils to read a wide range of books and for a wide range of purposes, meaning that on the whole, pupils are confident readers that make good progress. However, there are occasions when the books and other activities chosen for some Key Stage 1 pupils are too easy so they are not always challenged to practise their phonics (the sound that letters make) skills.  Teachers monitor the progress of pupils in lessons well, but sometimes pupils are not moved on to more challenging work soon enough.

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The achievement of pupils

 Standards at the end of Key Stage 2 are consistently above national averages in reading, writing and mathematics. More of the current Year 6 pupils attained higher levels in 2015 than in the past, especially in reading. As a result, pupils are well prepared for the next stage of their education.  Nearly all pupils make at least the expected progress through Key Stage 2 in reading, writing and mathematics. The proportions making more than expected progress in reading and writing fluctuate from year to year. However, in recent years, too few pupils have made the rapid progress needed in mathematics to overcome weaker teaching in the past.  Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1 is average. For the last two years, pupils have made good progress through the Key Stage from below average starting points. However, too few of them are encouraged to make even faster progress to reach higher than expected standards at the end of Year 2.

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The achievement of pupils

 Published data show that girls did better than boys at the end of Key Stage 1 in 2014. However, this data does not take in to account the specific needs of pupils. School data show that overall boys and girls are making similar progress throughout the school.  School assessment information and work seen in pupils’ books during the inspection show that pupils in all classes are currently making good progress in reading, writing and mathematics because of consistently good teaching.  There are too few disadvantaged pupils in the school to compare their performance to national standards. However the few disadvantaged pupils currently in the school are making better progress than their peers in the school due to well-targeted and effective support.  The most able pupils make similar progress to other pupils in the school because work, especially in mathematics and science, makes them think for themselves and solve problems.

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The achievement of pupils

 The few pupils who are disabled or who have special educational needs are making good progress. This is due to carefully planned provision, dedicated and capable support and an inclusive culture.  Achievement in music is a particular strength of the school. Many pupils learn to play a musical instrument. Current Year 6 pupils have exceeded the nationally expected standards in composition and performance.

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The early years provision

 Children enter the school with broadly typical skills, knowledge and understanding for their age and make good progress.  Children are well prepared for the next stage of their learning in Year 1 because achievement at the end of the early years has improved. The proportion of children achieving a good level of development is now above the national average. This has not been the case in recent years, which is the reason why early years provision is not yet outstanding.  There are no significant differences in achievement in the different areas of learning. The previous dip in achievement in the understanding of shape, space and measure has been well addressed by teachers and leaders.  Teaching for early years children is good. The teacher and teaching assistant work well together to provide focused activities that help children to make progress. The teaching of phonics and early writing is particularly effective.

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The early years provision

 Children sustain attention and interest in both adult-led and child-initiated activities. They enjoy learning and are enthused by the bright and well-organised environment that promotes good learning both inside and outside the classroom.  Children take turns with resources and almost always listen attentively to each other, showing that behaviour over time is good. They are happy to explain to visitors what they are doing and learning, for example when using the tablet computers.  There are good opportunities to develop physical well-being both through very effective teaching of physical development and through developing an understanding of healthy eating – discussed during snack time.  Leadership and management are good. Leaders understand the strengths and areas to develop for early years children. They ensure there are very good links with parents and pre-school providers. Parents are pleased by the way that children are helped to settle in to school life quickly.

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The early years provision

 Safeguarding procedures are robust and children are taught to play and learn safely and happily.

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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 126002 Local authority West Sussex Inspection number 449775

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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 4–11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 110 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Margaret King-Tours Headteacher Stephen Kear Date of previous school inspection 13–14 July 2010 Telephone number 01403 741274 Fax number 01403 741799 Email address office@williampenn.w-sussex.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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