Gorringe Park Primary School

School report Gorringe Park Primary School

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Sandy Lane, Figges Marsh, Mitcham, Surrey, CR4 2YA

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Inspection dates 13–14 May 2015 and 22–23 September 2015

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Overall effectiveness

Previous inspection: Requires improvement 3 This inspection: Requires improvement 3 Leadership and management

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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

 Standards of attainment and progress in reading, writing and mathematics are too low. Leaders and managers have not tackled weaknesses in teaching effectively enough over time.  Teaching over time has not ensured pupils make the academic progress of which they are capable.  Pupils’ progress in mathematics has been delayed because of limitations in teachers’ subject knowledge and ineffective use of resources.  Teachers in the Early Years Foundation Stage do not make effective use of assessments to plan challenging activities for children.  Teachers have not helped pupils acquire early reading skills well enough, which has limited their progress.  Pupils’ progress in developing skills in some subjects covered by the curriculum are not assessed or tracked well enough.  Over time, disadvantaged pupils have not achieved as well as others in the school and nationally. Senior leaders and governors have only recently

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This is a school that requires improvement. It is not good because

made sure additional funding is addressing this more effectively.  Attendance is not high enough. It is below average.

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The school has the following strengths

 The new headteacher has taken prompt, decisive actions to improve the school since his appointment. As a result, the quality of teaching is improving and pupils’ progress is now more rapid.  Many disadvantaged pupils are now making better than expected progress and are catching up with other pupils in the school.  The capacity of the senior leadership team has improved with the appointment of new staff.  Pupils say they feel safe in the school. Concerns about behaviour and safety are tackled promptly and thoroughly by senior leaders. Behaviour is good in the early years provision.  Partnerships with parents are strengthening.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors observed learning in all classes and spent a good proportion of the time scrutinising pupils’ work. Some of these observations were carried out jointly with the headteacher.  Meetings were held with pupils, the headteacher, staff with leadership responsibilities, members of the governing body and a representative from the local authority.  Inspectors listened to pupils read in Years 1, 2 and 6.  Inspectors looked at a range of documentation including: the school’s information on pupils’ progress; minutes of governing body meetings; records of checks on the quality of teaching by leaders; and information in relation to behaviour, safeguarding and child protection.  Inspectors took account of 29 parental responses to Ofsted’s online questionnaire, Parent View. They spoke to parents at the start of the school day.  Inspectors considered the 17 responses to a staff questionnaire.  Two of Her Majesty’s Inspectors revisited the school on 22 and 23 September 2015 in order to gather

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Information about this inspection

further evidence to complete this inspection. A meeting was held with a National Lead for Education who has provided external support to the school.

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Inspection team

Sharona Semlali, Lead inspector Additional Inspector (13–14 May 2015)

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Inspection team

Martin Marsh Additional Inspector (13–14 May 2015)

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Inspection team

Robert Eyre-Brook Additional Inspector (13–14 May 2015)

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Inspection team

Andrew Wright Her Majesty’s Inspector (22–23 September 2015)

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Inspection team

Carmen Rodney Her Majesty’s Inspector (22–23 September 2015)

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Information about this school

 Gorringe Park is a larger-than-average-sized primary school. It is a growing school. It has three forms of entry from Reception to Year 3. There are two forms of entry in Years 4 to 6.  The early years provision consists of a part-time morning and afternoon Nursery class and three full-time Reception classes.  The proportion of pupils who speak English as an additional language and those from minority ethnic groups is significantly above average.  The proportion of disabled pupils and those with special educational needs is above average.  The school meets the government’s current floor standards, which are the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress in English and mathematics at the end of Year 6.  The proportion of disadvantaged pupils supported through the pupil premium is broadly average. The pupil premium is additional government funding which supports pupils who are known to be eligible for

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Information about this school

free school meals or children who are looked after by the local authority.  The school manages its own breakfast and after-school club.  A new headteacher joined the school at the beginning of January 2015.  There have been significant changes to staff and the leadership team since the school was last inspected.  The school receives support from a National Leader in Education and from Aragon Primary School.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve teaching so that all groups of pupils, including disadvantaged pupils, make at least good progress by ensuring that teachers: − have good subject knowledge in mathematics and use agreed schemes of work effectively to provide appropriate challenge for pupils of all abilities − adopt a consistent approach to the teaching of reading which enables pupils to build on prior learning and broaden their interest in books − develop pupils’ confidence and ability in speaking and listening in all subjects, but particularly in connection with their writing.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve the early years provision by: − ensuring that teachers use assessments effectively to provide activities which extend children’s learning and skills as soon as they are ready.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve the effectiveness of leadership, management and governance by: – developing the skills of middle leaders further so they are less dependent on senior leaders when holding others to account and helping to sustain the pace of improvement. – ensuring that the curriculum provides opportunities for pupils to make progress in skills specific to every subject taught. – further developing the skills of governors in understanding and using a wide range of information to gain an accurate view of the quality of provision. – working closely with parents to improve attendance.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

An external review of governance should be undertaken in order to assess how this aspect of leadership and management may be improved.

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The leadership and management require improvement

 The recently appointed headteacher has communicated a clear message that standards need to improve rapidly. He has been courageous in persuading the whole school community to face up to some difficult truths about previous weaknesses in provision. He has sensibly sought external verification for his initial findings. His strategies and plans have ensured that this is now an improving school. The new, revised, senior leadership team is committed to ensuring that all pupils have an equal chance to succeed.  The headteacher promptly realised that the quality of teaching is not consistently good. He rightly placed a priority on its rapid improvement and wasted no time in tackling the weakest teaching. He made effective decisions about staff training. Better teaching is now leading to improved rates of pupil progress. Nearly all of the weakest teaching has been eradicated.  The curriculum provides a suitably broad and balanced range of learning opportunities. Displays show that

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The leadership and management require improvement

pupils enjoy taking part in performances using the steel drums. The school runs a Polish club which is helping to develop pupils’ understanding of the similarities and differences between cultures. However, the curriculum has not enabled pupils to make good progress. Leaders have not ensured pupils’ skills across the whole range of subjects taught are assessed and tracked effectively. The curriculum is successful in promoting British values.  Leaders ensure pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is developed adequately. The headteacher’s determination to ensure the school’s core values are upheld by everyone, and the strong work ethic he has established, is helping develop these aspects of pupils’ learning more rapidly.  The pupil premium funding is now being used effectively to close the gaps between disadvantaged pupils and others, both in the school and nationally.  The headteacher is currently reviewing the appraisal process for teachers. This is because teachers’

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The leadership and management require improvement

targets lack sufficient challenge. Teachers are now becoming more accountable for pupils’ achievement. Governors are receiving more reliable and extensive information to help them determine teachers’ pay.  Senior leaders are taking effective steps to help middle leaders broaden their skills. However, some are quite new to their roles. They still rely too much on senior leaders to help them hold others to account and sustain the impact of agreed actions.  The primary sports funding is enabling more pupils to take part in an appropriate range of after-school activities, particularly those pupils who are not very active. As a result, they are starting to develop a healthier lifestyle.  Leaders and governors have ensured that all statutory duties for safeguarding are met.  Parents appreciate the improvements which the new headteacher has brought about. They express confidence in the work of the school to keep their children safe. Leaders have reached out to parents to

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The leadership and management require improvement

encourage their participation and offered opportunities for them to develop their knowledge of important issues such as e-safety.  Since the appointment of the headteacher, the local authority has worked closely with the school to support its improvement. For example, it has recently carried out a full review of teaching and learning. This has been helpful in providing senior leaders with verification of their findings.  The National Leader in Education who works with the school has been effective in providing rigorous challenge and support to the new leadership team.

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The leadership and management require improvement

 The governance of the school:  A governing body review took place shortly after the previous inspection. This has helped governors to understand their roles better. For example, it has enabled them to provide the headteacher with resolute support as he tackles weaker performance. Governors have attended training to help them understand information about the school’s performance better. They are aware of the impact of additional funding on the achievement of disadvantaged pupils. However, they do not always probe this information deeply enough. Governors make regular visits to the school and now have a more accurate view of the quality of teaching. They use this information to pose challenging questions to leaders. There is a designated governor for safeguarding who monitors this aspect of the school’s work regularly and thoroughly. Governors are being provided with more extensive and accurate information to help

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The leadership and management require improvement

them make decisions about giving teachers an increase in their salaries.

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Behaviour

 The behaviour of pupils requires improvement. Instances when pupils disrupt learning are still too common, particularly when teaching is weaker. Pupils say that behaviour is not always good. However, these instances have declined since the headteacher introduced a new behaviour policy and made sure it was consistently applied. Staff and parents agree that behaviour is improving.  The headteacher has insisted that records are kept of all instances when pupils’ behaviour falls short of expected standards. Senior leaders use these well to provide effective guidance which is improving the attitudes of pupils who repeatedly misbehave. Records show that bullying is uncommon and dealt with robustly when it is suspected.  Pupils’ behaviour around the school is orderly. They are polite and respectful towards one other. Pupils understand the school rules and appreciate the praise they receive for good behaviour. Some pupils who

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Behaviour

wore tracksuits to school before the new headteacher arrived told inspectors they are now proud to wear a uniform.  Attendance is improving, but is below the national average. Senior leaders are insisting that parents play their part in ensuring pupils attend well. They have made sure parents have someone to talk to if there are problems with attendance.  The breakfast club provides pupils with a healthy and settled start to the day.

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Safety

 The school’s work to keep pupils safe and secure requires improvement. The headteacher took steps on his arrival to make sure safeguarding procedures met statutory requirements, including those related to the suitability of staff.  Senior leaders have ensured, with governors, that staff have received appropriate training to help them keep pupils safe. However, staff have not received sufficient breadth in training to help them recognise and understand a wide enough range of threats to the well-being of children.  When concerns are raised about the well-being of a pupil or a potential risk to their safety, the school responds rapidly and involves the right people.  Pupils say they feel safe. They have some knowledge about the different types of bullying. Pupils say bullying does happen, but this has declined. Pupils also have some knowledge of how to keep themselves safe when they use the internet. Leaders are also taking steps to help parents understand e-safety better.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 Teaching requires improvement. The quality of teaching over time has not been good enough to ensure pupils make the progress they are capable of in reading, writing and mathematics. Recent actions taken to tackle weak teaching are beginning to improve outcomes for pupils.  The teaching of mathematics requires improvement. Teachers do not use resources, tasks and activities effectively enough to help pupils master the basic concepts in mathematics or to fully stretch the more- able. Senior leaders have taken the decision to introduce revised schemes of work with the aim of helping teachers plan and assess learning more effectively. However, it is too soon to see the impact of this.  Senior leaders have insisted that teachers provide more opportunities for pupils to learn to write at length and for a variety of purposes. Teachers are providing more precise and detailed feedback to help pupils improve their grammar and spelling as they write. As a result, standards in writing are rising, but are not

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

yet good.  Pupils do not always have enough opportunities to develop their speaking and listening skills. As a result, they lack confidence in discussing their work and are given insufficient opportunity to develop their ideas before they write.  The teaching of reading is not always effective enough. There are weaknesses in the teaching of phonics (the sounds that letters make) in some classes. As a result, some pupils at the early stages of reading have not acquired the skills needed to work out unfamiliar words. Staff have had recent training in this area, which is helping pupils catch up. Senior leaders have recognised that more work needs to be done to ensure all teachers have the necessary skills to teach reading well.  Recent work in pupils’ books shows that the written feedback teachers provide is more helpful to pupils. This is since the introduction of a new marking policy. Teachers are now giving pupils more time at the

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

start of the day to come into class and respond to the teachers’ comments.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 Pupils’ achievement in reading, writing and mathematics requires improvement. Their progress over time has not been good enough. Teachers’ assessments were often unreliable before the new headteacher arrived. As a result, pupils’ attainment is not good. However, recent rapid improvements in the quality of teaching have resulted in better progress and more accurate assessment. This is evident in recent work seen in pupils’ books.  In 2014, pupils’ progress was significantly below average for most groups of pupils. Overall, pupils’ attainment was broadly in line with the national average at the end of Year 6, which showed improvements on 2013.  The results of the phonic screening checks at the end of Year 1 in 2014 were below average and showed a decline from the previous year. The school’s own evidence indicates that more of the current Year 1 pupils are on track to reach the expected standard.  Pupils from minority ethnic backgrounds and those who speak English as an additional language make

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

similar progress to other pupils. Their rate of progress is recovering as rapidly as it is for others in the school.  The progress of disabled pupils and those with special educational needs is too variable. The checks made on their learning by school leaders and teachers are not effective enough in addressing these inconsistencies. However, evidence from a scrutiny of pupils’ work indicates that their progress is slightly better than other pupils in the school.  Insufficient numbers of more-able pupils reach the higher levels of attainment at the end of Key Stages 1 and 2. Recent improvements to tracking the progress rates of these pupils and better quality teaching indicate that their rate of academic progress is improving.  In 2014, the attainment of disadvantaged pupils by the end of Key Stage 2 was not as good as that for other pupils both within the school and nationally. Their academic progress was weaker than other pupils

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

so that gaps in achievement had widened. They were just under three terms behind in reading and writing when compared to other pupils nationally. They were around two terms behind in mathematics. Disadvantaged pupils were three terms behind others in the school in mathematics and reading, and around two terms behind in writing. However, the headteacher has taken effective action to improve the progress of disadvantaged pupils currently in the school. The school’s own evidence shows that nearly all disadvantaged pupils are now exceeding expected progress so that gaps in attainment are now narrowing.

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The early years provision requires improvement

 Most children start the early years with skills that are below those typical for their age. By the time they leave at the end of the Reception Year, most are ready to join Year 1. In the Nursery and Reception classes they make the progress expected of them. This is evident in their ‘learning profiles’, which keep a detailed record of each child’s learning experiences.  The leaders of the early years know the children well. They have ensured that all adults work well together to provide the support needed for disabled children and those with special educational needs. Leaders work closely with external agencies to get the support needed.  Teaching requires improvement. Teachers do not use assessments effectively enough to plan challenging activities for children, particularly the most able. They do not always check that children are making the best use of the time and resources available.  Teachers generally provide activities appropriate to the children’s different interests. This was seen during

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The early years provision requires improvement

the inspection when children enjoyed being in role as scientists, writing letters. Outside, a group enjoyed making different types of mud cakes. However, the outdoor area is not as well developed as the indoor learning areas.  All adults interact well with children, particularly when working with small focused groups. They promote children’s speaking and listening skills well during these sessions.  Behaviour in the early years is good. Children share a good range of resources and play together well. Occasionally, children become disengaged in their learning when teaching is weaker. They demonstrate that they feel safe as they confidently go to adults when they are upset. Safeguarding arrangements in the early years meet statutory requirements.  Adults in the setting work closely with parents to help them to support their children. For example, parents write comments in the children’s books about their learning. Parents are encouraged to stay with their

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The early years provision requires improvement

children to support them with their early morning work.

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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 102654 Local authority Merton Inspection number 462142

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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 3−11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 617 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Richard Stocker Headteacher Simon Elledge Date of previous school inspection 22–23 May 2013 Telephone number 020 86481451 Fax number 020 86467539 Email address office@gorringepark.merton.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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