Corrie Primary School

Corrie Primary and Nursery School Cemetery Road, Denton, Manchester M34 6FG

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Overall effectiveness Good

Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

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Overall effectiveness Good

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Good

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Overall effectiveness Good

Personal development, behaviour and welfare Good

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Overall effectiveness Good

Overall effectiveness at previous inspection Requires improvement

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This is a good school

 Pupils achieve well and are well prepared for the next stage in their education as a result of good teaching.  From their starting points, pupils make good progress across a wide range of subjects. Pupils’ progress in writing is particularly strong.  Since the last inspection, improvements made to teaching and to strategies used to check on what pupils know and can do have improved pupils’ learning and progress. Teachers frequently evaluate what pupils do not know and successfully target their teaching to fill these gaps in learning.  Children in the early years settle into school well, make good progress and, by the end of the Reception Year, have the skills to ensure that they are ready to start Year 1.  Leaders and governors are effective in driving improvements through staff training and making regular checks on the quality of teaching and learning. This school is improving and standards have risen since the last inspection.

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This is a good school

 Pupils behave well in lessons and around the school. The curriculum makes a good contribution to pupils’ personal development and welfare and to their spiritual, moral, social and cultural development  Leaders and governors are ambitious for the school and are relentless in working to improve the quality of teaching and learning for pupils. The governing body holds the school to account well for the progress pupils make.

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It is not yet an outstanding school because

 Although good and improving, pupils’ attainment and progress in mathematics is not as good as it is in reading and writing.  Not all of the most-able pupils’ progress in mathematics is as good as that of other groups. Fewer reach above-average standards than found nationally.  There are some slight variations in the quality of teaching across the school and across subjects, such as mathematics.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Raise attainment further and increase pupils’ progress in mathematics by: raising teachers’ expectations of the progress that pupils should make so even more pupils make better than expected progress giving pupils more opportunities to apply their mathematical skills to solve problems providing more mathematical activities in the early years to develop children’s skills in number demanding more of the most-able pupils through more challenging activities so that the proportion that achieve above-average standards is at least in line with the national figure.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Reduce the variation in the quality of teaching by: checking and evaluating the effective teaching strategies and sharing these with others so that all teaching is equally successful carefully identifying aspects of teaching which are less successful, giving detailed feedback to staff and checking that improvements have been made.

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

 Leaders and governors are ambitious for pupils in this school and strive to ensure that they receive the best education possible. Strategies to improve the school since the last inspection have been successful. The very effective headteacher has an accurate view of the school’s performance and is well supported by highly capable senior leaders. Subject leaders are well chosen as each has a passion for the subject that they lead. They assess and check on pupils’ progress in their subjects and ensure that pupils have a broad and balanced curriculum.  Leaders set high expectations and these are communicated through a number of strategies. One which works well is encouraging pupils of middle and lower ability to choose to tackle a more challenging level of work. Pupils often have the opportunity to choose the level of difficulty in their work and regularly move on to more difficult work when they feel that they are ready for the additional challenge. They

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

speak positively about this strategy and say that they try to do their best.  Senior leaders ensure that staff are well trained. A very good example of this is recent training for staff in teaching writing, which has raised standards. This demonstrates leaders’ capacity to bring about improvement. Systems to hold staff to account are effective, as shown in the improvement in pupils’ progress and attainment across the school.  Pupils are familiar with British values and know what these mean. For example, they understand and can talk about democracy and know how this works in practice. This helps to prepare them for life in modern Britain.  The school works well to engage with parents and carers and annual written reports are comprehensive, detailed, explain what pupils know and can do and state how they can improve further.  The curriculum makes a good contribution to pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development.

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

Pupils develop a love of art, have taken part in achieving an art award and some have had work displayed in a local art gallery. Pupils learn well about different faiths and cultures and displays around school show the good quality of this work. Visitors to school and visits to places of worship, such as a mosque, have contributed well to these activities.  The rich curriculum, along with a range of extra-curricular activities, makes a good contribution to pupils’ personal development and progress. In particular, activities to develop pupils’ physical skills and health are extensive. Pupils regularly participate in a range of sports and a ‘sports and health week’ gave much wider opportunities for pupils to try other activities, such as lacrosse, climbing and circus skills. In addition, there is a strong focus on health with pupils learning about first aid, healthy cooking and dental hygiene. Pupils say that they appreciate and enjoy these activities.

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

 Leaders and governors have utilised the physical education (PE) and sports funding well to raise standards in sport and to increase pupils’ participation in extra-curricular sporting activities. In addition, teachers have received training from PE specialists to improve teaching skills and raise confidence.  Leaders and governors have evaluated the spending of the pupil premium funding to ensure that disadvantaged pupils achieve well. This has been successful in raising standards for this group of pupils across the school. School assessment information shows that this group makes progress at least broadly in line with others in school and that any gaps in attainment narrow as pupils move through the school.  Leaders and governors make regular checks on pupils’ attainment and progress and evaluate the performance of different groups. Groups such as disabled pupils, pupils with special educational needs

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

and those who need to catch up are given additional support, which includes carefully deployed teaching assistants to work with individuals and small groups. The effectiveness of the support for these groups is checked and shows that they make good progress in line with other pupils in school. These checks are not as effective in ensuring that all of the most-able pupils make as good progress in mathematics as in reading and writing.  Leaders ensure that the quality of teaching is good, but there are some slight variations in quality across subjects and classes. For example, teaching in mathematics is not as effective in helping pupils to progress as well as they do in reading and writing. This is why the effectiveness of leadership and management is good rather than outstanding.  The governance of the school Governance is of a very high quality. The Chair of the Governing Body is a determined force to be

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

reckoned with and, under her leadership, governors are relentless in their pursuit of improvement and better outcomes for pupils. Through an interim strategic group, which meets frequently, the governing body drives improvements and provides excellent challenge to the school. High expectations are placed on governors by the Chair of the Governing Body and all have made an agreed commitment to attend meetings regularly and to take part in training. As a result of very effective governance arrangements, school leaders are questioned closely about the impact of their work. Queries, if not resolved, are returned to shortly until all questions are answered.  The arrangements for safeguarding are effective. Leaders have created a culture where pupils feel safe and secure. Pupils are well supported and staff are trained to ensure that safeguarding is good. There is good communication with parents, who are welcome to come into school to speak to staff.

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment is good

 The quality of teaching is good and improving and, as a result, pupils make good progress in each key stage across the curriculum.  There has been a marked improvement in the quality of teaching of writing as the result of staff training in a new approach to teaching this subject. Pupils’ writing shows that they are able to use a range of interesting vocabulary in well-structured written work. Most present their work well and use grammar and punctuation at a level at least in line with what is expected for their age.  The teaching of phonics (letters and the sounds that they make) is particularly effective in Year 1 and pupils make rapid progress as a result. This effective teaching was exemplified in a session observed by inspectors when pupils made excellent progress in using their phonics skills to blend sounds to read words. In addition, the discussion around which words were real and which were not real (nonsense)

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment is good

words was very effective. This helped children to determine the difference between the two and extended their understanding of the meaning of words, especially those with more than one meaning. Pupils pronounced the sounds in words clearly and correctly following the teacher’s excellent example and this helped them to read accurately.  Pupils learn to read well through various reading activities in groups and individually. There is a well- stocked library which pupils enjoy using. Their good reading skills help them to write well too, and the language and vocabulary from books they have studied is evident in their own writing.  The feedback teachers give to pupils both verbally and through marking is most effective in supporting their learning. The school’s marking policy is consistently followed across the school and helps pupils to improve their work.  There are some slight variations in the quality of teaching across all classes and subjects, which is why

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment is good

this area is not yet outstanding. For example, the teaching of mathematics is less effective than that of reading and writing and pupils do not make quite as much progress, particularly the most able. Pupils are given lots of opportunities to talk about their strategies and to reason the answers for themselves; however, opportunities to apply their skills to problem-solving activities are less frequent. Although the most-able pupils are directed towards more demanding work than other pupils, the level of challenge could be higher still, as many can complete this work without too much difficulty.

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Personal development and welfare

 The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare is good. Pupils talk about what it takes to be a successful learner. They say that the way teachers give feedback verbally and through marking makes them reflect on what they have done well in their work and what they can do to improve.  Staff are encouraging and use praise to develop pupils’ confidence. Pupils show confidence in their activities and even the youngest pupils in the Nursery class talk and play with confidence, as seen in the role play area ‘pet shop’. Children talked enthusiastically to an inspector about visiting their pet shop and about the pets (cuddly toys). Pupils throughout the school are used to working in small groups and say that working cooperatively with their classmates helps them to learn better than on their own.  There are many different activities within the curriculum that develop pupils’ physical skills and good

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Personal development and welfare

health. The school has some sports and health ambassadors and a recent assembly was held to inform pupils about healthy lunch choices. Pupils know about the choices which ensure a healthy lifestyle. Play leaders from Key Stage 2 are trained and work with other pupils to organise games and encourage them to play cooperatively at lunchtimes.  Pupils understand about different types of bullying and are fully aware of what types of language are inappropriate and derogatory. Pupils have studied books which challenge stereotypes and have undertaken activities which further challenge the notion of a ‘typical boy’ or ‘typical girl’. As a result, they show respect and tolerance and are aware that many different types of people make up the world in which they live.  The school has undertaken work to ensure that pupils know how to keep themselves safe, for example when using the internet. Pupils know how to do this safely, taking care not to reveal personal details and

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Behaviour

 The behaviour of pupils is good. Pupils move around the school building sensibly and are well motivated and keen to learn in lessons. The school environment is tidy and pupils show a sense of pride through their neat presentation of work.  Pupils enjoy coming to school, and this is shown in their above-average attendance. Senior leaders and governors have high expectations for pupils’ attendance, which is closely monitored. Few pupils are persistently absent.  In lessons, pupils behave well and this was seen by inspectors. Pupils say that routinely there is little disruption to learning, but that it does occur very occasionally from a very small minority of pupils. This is why pupils’ behaviour has been judged as good, rather than outstanding.

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Outcomes for pupils are good

 From starting points on entry to the school which are below those typical for most children, pupils make good and improving progress and they are well prepared for their next stage of education. In 2015, an above-average proportion achieved the expected level in the Year 6 national tests in reading and mathematics and in teachers’ assessment of writing.  Standards are rising and good outcomes for pupils are evident in the school’s own assessment information and in the work in pupils’ books.  In the Key Stage 2 national tests in 2015, the proportion of most-able pupils that achieved above-average standards was broadly in line with the national figures in reading and writing. However, a smaller proportion achieved the higher standards in mathematics, because progress in this subject was not as good as in reading and writing.  In 2015, the proportion of pupils making expected progress from Key Stage 1 to Key Stage 2 was above

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Outcomes for pupils are good

average in reading and writing and the proportion making better progress than this was considerably above average. Although the proportion of pupils that made expected progress was the same as the national figure in mathematics, the proportion that made better progress than this was below the national figure.  Standards in reading, writing and mathematics at the end of Key Stage 1 are broadly average and this represents good progress for pupils from their starting points at the end of the early years. In 2015, a slightly greater proportion of the most-able pupils achieved above-average standards in reading and writing. The proportion that achieved above-average standards in mathematics was average.  A broadly average proportion of pupils reaches the required standard in the Year 1 phonics screening check. This represents good progress from below-average starting points.  Disadvantaged pupils achieve as well or better than other pupils in school and, as pupils progress through

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Outcomes for pupils are good

the school, the gap narrows between their attainment and that of the others. In 2015, the proportion of disadvantaged pupils that achieved the expected level in reading, writing and mathematics was broadly in line with the proportion for other pupils nationally.  Disabled pupils, pupils with special educational needs and those who need to catch up make similar progress to other pupils. As with other pupils, their progress is better in reading and writing than it is in mathematics.  Progress is good across the range of subjects in the curriculum, as shown by the school’s own assessment records kept by each subject leader.

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Early years provision is good

 Children enter the early years with levels of skills and knowledge that are below those expected for their age, particularly in communication and language. From these starting points they make good progress and in 2015, the proportion of children with the skills to ensure that they were ready to start Year 1 was average. This was an improvement on the attainment of previous cohorts of children. Disadvantaged children achieve in line with, or better than, other children across the areas of learning as a result of the effective use of the additional funding to support their needs.  Good leadership and teaching ensure that children make good progress. More effective systems have been used in the last year to check on what children know and can do. Regular checks are used to identify which skills children need to work on to make more rapid progress. This system has resulted in higher standards of achievement by the end of the Reception Year than previously.

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Early years provision is good

 The quality of teaching is good and opportunities are provided for pupils to develop the skills to work independently. For example, a group of Nursery children was observed organising themselves into a band playing a variety of instruments. The ‘band leader’ counted to three to ensure they all started playing at the same time. Their delight and enthusiasm for music was evident by the smiles on their faces!  A range of effective activities is always available for children and these help them to learn well. These include activities to develop children’s literacy, artistic, physical and practical skills. Although there are activities to develop children’s mathematical skills, there are fewer than those provided for developing pupils’ writing and literacy skills. Children develop their skills outdoors, but there are fewer opportunities to do so than indoors.  Children behave well and settle down quickly to listen to adults when required. They follow rules and

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Early years provision is good

well-embedded routines ensure that children know what is expected of them. They are developing their confidence and language skills successfully and several children were keen to talk to an inspector about their activities.  Appropriate policies and procedures are in place to ensure that children are safe and happy.  Staff liaise well with other agencies and professionals to support children’s needs. For example, a speech therapist is employed by the school on a part-time basis and this helps to develop children’s language and speech. There is good liaison with parents in person and through the weekly posts on the school website, to tell parents about the children’s activities for the forthcoming week.

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School details

Unique reference number 106214 Local authority Tameside Inspection number 10002197 This inspection was carried out under section 5 of the Education Act 2005.

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School details

Type of school Primary School category Community Age range of pupils 3–11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 335 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Mrs Lynne Smith Headteacher Mrs Naomi Cartledge Telephone number 0161 336 4265 Website http://corrie.tameside.sch.uk Email address admin@corrie.tameside.sch.uk Date of previous inspection 23–24 October 2013

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Information about this school

 This is a larger than average-sized primary school.  The proportion of disabled pupils and those with special educational needs is above average.  The proportion of pupils known to be eligible for support through the pupil premium (additional funding for those pupils known to be eligible for free school meals and for looked after children) is above average.  Most pupils are of White British heritage and a very small minority of pupils speak English as an additional language.  The school meets the government’s current floor standards, which are the minimum expectations for pupils’ progress and attainment in reading, writing and mathematics by the end of Year 6.  The school has been supported by a national leader of education (NLE) from Lime Tree Primary Academy with a focus on raising standards and in writing in particular.

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Information about this inspection

 The inspectors gathered a range of evidence from the school’s documentation, assessment information relating to pupils’ progress and attainment, work in pupils’ books and observing lessons. Documents examined included safeguarding records, the improvement plan, school policies and external reports from the local authority.  Inspectors observed teaching and learning across a range of lessons and subjects and four of these were made jointly with the headteacher. In addition, the inspector observed the headteacher giving feedback to staff.  Three groups of pupils met with inspectors, who also talked to pupils informally at break and lunchtime while observing their activities.  The teaching of phonics and reading was observed and one inspector heard some Key Stage 1 pupils read.  A meeting was held with the governing body, including the Chair of the Governing Body. Meetings were also held with the headteacher, senior leaders, teachers and subject leaders.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors took account of 27 responses to the online questionnaire Parent View and several parent questionnaires on the school website. In addition, one inspector talked to a group of 12 parents at the start of the school day and the lead inspector spoke to a parent who had requested an appointment.  Inspectors also took account of 27 responses to the online pupil questionnaire and of the five responses to the staff online questionnaire.

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Inspection team

Andrée Coleman, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector Clare McGarey Ofsted Inspector Jonathan Ashley Ofsted Inspector guidance 'Raising concerns and making a complaint about Ofsted', which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.gov.uk/government/publications/complaints-about-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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Inspection team

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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Inspection team

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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Inspection team

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, further education and skills, 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. If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk . You may reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence , write to the Information Policy Team,

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Inspection team

The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk .

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Inspection team

Interested in our work? You can subscribe to our monthly newsletter for more information and updates: http://eepurl.com/iTrDn .

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Inspection team

T: 0300 123 4234 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.ofsted.gov.uk

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