Holy Trinity CofE (C) Primary School

Holy Trinity CofE Primary School Wetmore Road, Burton-on-Trent, Staffordshire DE14 1SN

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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

 The headteacher provides strong and effective leadership. She has driven forward improvements in teaching and has put in place a curriculum that makes learning exciting and interesting for the pupils. She is well supported by an effective deputy headteacher.  Teaching, learning and assessment are now good across the school. Teachers and other staff share school leaders’ high expectations for what all pupils in school can and should achieve.  Learning support assistants make a valuable contribution in providing additional support to groups of pupils. This has helped to ensure that disadvantaged pupils and disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs make progress that is at least as good as other pupils in school.  Outcomes for pupils are good. From starting points which are below those that are typical for their age, pupils make good progress, particularly in reading and mathematics, and reach standards

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This is a good school

that are similar to the national averages by the time they leave the school.  Governors have developed their skills well since the last inspection and now have a clear understanding of how the school is doing. They effectively hold leaders to account and provide good levels of support and challenge.  Children in the early years settle in quickly and happily. Teaching is good and as a result children make good progress and are well prepared for when they start in Year 1.  Pupils are polite, well behaved and appreciative of the many opportunities that the school offers them. They feel safe in school and know how to keep themselves safe in a range of situations.  Provision for pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is good. This helps them to have a clear and strong understanding of what is right and wrong and to show respect and tolerance for the beliefs of other people.

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It is not yet an outstanding school because

 Progress in writing is not as good as in reading and mathematics.  Subject leaders are not yet all fully effective in raising the quality of teaching by holding other members of staff to account for pupil progress.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve further the quality of teaching to ensure consistently rapid rates of progress and the highest levels of pupils’ achievement in writing by: – ensuring that the school’s marking policy is strictly applied at all times and pupils are given clear guidance on how they can improve their work – providing the most able pupils with work that is always sufficiently challenging so that more achieve the highest levels of attainment in writing.  Further strengthen leadership in school by ensuring all subject leaders develop and apply their skills in holding other staff to account for pupil progress in the areas for which they are responsible.

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

 The headteacher has been the driving force in leading the improvements in teaching that have taken place since the last inspection. She has established a culture where high standards of behaviour are expected and achieved. The high expectations that she has for what pupils can and should achieve are now shared by all members of staff. This has led to pupils making much better progress and achieving higher standards, especially in reading and mathematics.  Well-planned, thorough and accurate monitoring and evaluation by school leaders is used effectively to identify how teaching can be improved. The headteacher has taken firm action to develop and implement clear policies and guidance for all aspects of school life that are followed by all staff. She has put in place an effective system to allow teachers and other staff to observe and learn from outstanding teaching both within school and through visits to other schools. Staff, including those that are relatively new to

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

teaching, are extremely positive about the impact that these professional development opportunities have had.  School leaders have been very successful in implementing the new national curriculum within school. It has been planned so that it is relevant to the needs and interests of the pupils at Holy Trinity and effectively supports pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. An example of this was seen during the inspection where Year 6 pupils had produced extremely well-considered and compassionate pieces of writing about the plight of refugees trying to leave war-torn countries such as Syria.  The school also prepares pupils well for life in modern Britain. They know about and demonstrate through their actions the key values of respect and tolerance. They develop a good understanding of other faiths and beliefs and these are supported through opportunities for reflection both within the curriculum and in

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

assemblies. They have a clear knowledge of democracy and put this into practice through elections to the school council.  The pupil premium funding is used extremely effectively to ensure that disadvantaged pupils can achieve as well as others in school and are able to participate fully in all aspects of school life. One-to-one tuition and small group work in mathematics, reading and writing, led by skilled and trained learning support assistants, have helped to ensure that these pupils make the same good progress as all other pupils and that there are no gaps in their attainment.  The PE and sport premium funding is used effectively and has increased the range of sporting opportunities available to pupils and has helped to develop staff confidence in teaching physical education. This has resulted in pupils successfully taking part in more competitions against other schools and a wider range and take-up by pupils of extra-curricular activities, including dance clubs, extreme

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

frisbee and archery.  The large majority of parents are supportive of the work that the school does with their children. Comments such as ‘My child has come on in leaps and bounds since starting at this school’ and ‘I feel extremely lucky that my children attend Holy Trinity’ emphasise their positive views about the school. A minority of parents expressed concerns over the information that the school provides to them about their children’s progress but evidence gathered during the inspection indicates that there is a wide range of detailed information that is provided on a regular basis.  Subject leaders have, since the last inspection, taken greater responsibility for observing teaching and monitoring pupil progress within the areas for which they are responsible. They have developed a clearer understanding of where teaching and learning can still improve and contribute to whole-school improvement planning. However, they are not yet all fully effective in holding other staff to account for

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

the standards that pupils should achieve and the progress that they should make.  The governance of the school – Governors now provide good levels of support and challenge. Since the last inspection, governors have undergone an external review of governance and have made significant changes to their organisation and the ways that they operate. This has resulted in them having a clear view of the strengths of the school and also areas where it can improve. Governors bring a wide range of skills and knowledge to their roles and use these to ask searching questions of school leaders. – Governors have a good understanding of the assessment information that is available to the school and use it to monitor and evaluate how well groups of pupils are achieving. Governors have a clear understanding about the quality of teaching and its impact on the outcomes for pupils. They have worked with the local authority to ensure that all governors receive appropriate training relevant to

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

their needs and to ensure that the school meets its statutory requirements. – Governors work alongside school leaders to monitor specific aspects of the school’s work and report back in detail to the full governing body. They ensure that teachers’ performance is well managed and that there are clear links between this and their pay progression. They manage the finance and resources that are available to the school, including the pupil premium, very well and measure the impact of spending on pupil achievement.  The arrangements for safeguarding are effective. Safeguarding is regarded as a high priority within school and is managed very effectively. All staff receive regular training and are aware of how to identify if pupils are at potential risk.

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment is good

 Teaching at Holy Trinity is now good. Strong action has been taken by the headteacher, supported by the governing body, to address any weaker teaching. Training has been planned and delivered to match the individual needs of all staff and to help them effectively support all pupils’ learning.  Teachers plan and deliver lessons that engage all pupils’ interest and allow them to apply skills that they have learnt in different subjects, including English and mathematics. For example, in the Year 4 and 5 class, all the pupils enthusiastically participated in a debate about the advantages and disadvantages of living in the Stone Age. They listened carefully to each other’s views and offered considered and reasoned arguments both for and against the case. The activity promoted their speaking and listening skills, allowed pupils of differing abilities an equal opportunity to participate and demonstrated their depth of

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment is good

learning about the subject. In a Year 6 mathematics lesson, pupils showed good skills in reasoning and problem-solving in matching fractions, decimals and percentages with the most-able pupils required to solve complex problems.  Effective use is made of small group and one-to-one tuition to ensure that teaching can be adjusted and matched to the specific needs of groups of pupils or individuals. This has helped disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs to make progress that is now in line with other pupils and to narrow any gaps in their attainment. Skilled learning support assistants work well alongside teachers in all classes and make a strong contribution to improving pupils’ learning.  The teaching of reading is particularly effective with a strong emphasis placed on this area of learning from the time that children start at school in the Nursery class. Younger pupils in Reception, Year 1 and

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment is good

Year 2 have a daily phonics (the sounds that letters make in words) lesson. Older pupils spoke enthusiastically about the book War Horse that they were reading and showed a deep understanding of the messages that the story conveyed.  The school has introduced a new system of assessing pupils’ progress matched to the expectations of what they should be able to do at different ages in all subjects. Assessment information is used effectively to ensure that teachers understand how well pupils are achieving and then use this information to plan lessons that are appropriate to the needs of all the pupils. Teachers meet together and with teachers from other schools to ensure that their assessments are accurate and consistent.  Homework is used well with pupils expected to maintain the same high standards of presentation that they demonstrate in their work within class. Parents are encouraged to support their children in these

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment is good

activities and the very large majority of parents who responded to the Parent View survey believed that the homework is used appropriately.  Teachers have good subject knowledge and a good understanding of the different stages of learning of the pupils in their class. However, there are occasions, particularly in written work, when the work set is not matched well enough to the needs of the pupils, especially the most able, so they are not sufficiently well challenged and this slows their progress.  Teachers mark pupils’ work regularly. Within mathematics, marking is used well to identify how well pupils have done and how they can improve their work. However, while there is a clear policy for marking pupils’ written work, this is not always followed accurately by all teachers with some mistakes not identified and the next steps in pupils’ learning not explained clearly.

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Personal development and welfare

 The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare is good.  Pupils show a good awareness of the safety and feelings of others. Pupils of different ages play together sensibly on the playground at lunchtime and recognise the need to act responsibly. Older pupils greatly value the additional responsibilities they are given. Pupils in Year 6 act as assistants to the office staff and help with a range of administrative tasks, including distributing information.  Additional lunchtime sports activities contribute to pupils’ health and well-being. Pupils lead a very popular and well-attended daily beat-box dance session on the playground. Pupils are also aware of the need for healthy eating and spoke appreciatively to the inspectors about the improvements in the school meals since they have been cooked in the school canteen.  Pupils have a good awareness of how to keep themselves safe in a range of situations, both within school

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Personal development and welfare

and when they are away from school. They recognise the potential dangers that the internet could pose to them and say that the school provides them with good information on how they can remain safe. Parents are very positive about how safe their children are at school.  Pupils have a good understanding of the different types of bullying, including homophobic bullying, and why all types of bullying are unacceptable. They say that bullying is extremely rare and this is confirmed by the detailed records that the school keeps. A small number of parents expressed some concerns about bullying, but inspection evidence showed that any such incidents and concerns are being managed appropriately.

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Behaviour

 The behaviour of pupils is good. Expectations of how everyone should behave are made clear and are understood by the pupils. They appreciate the incentives they get for positive behaviour, including earning marbles which are then rewarded with `Golden Break’. Pupils understand that there are consequences for unacceptable behaviour.  Pupils display positive attitudes to learning and listen carefully and with respect when either adults or other pupils are talking. They take pride in the presentation of their work and are keen to achieve high standards. They work together well and are keen to share ideas and suggestions.  Attendance is above the national average for all pupils, including disadvantaged pupils. This is as a result of the robust procedures that the school has in place to ensure that parents and their children understand the impact that good attendance has on the progress that pupils make in school.

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Behaviour

 In classrooms and around all areas of school, pupils’ conduct and behaviour are positive. Occasionally, a few pupils demonstrate behaviour in lessons that is not of the standard expected, but adults respond well and use effective strategies to engage the pupils in their learning.

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Outcomes for pupils are good

 Outcomes for pupils have improved since the last inspection with pupils now making good progress in all key stages and all subjects as they move through the school.  In 2015, the proportion of pupils achieving the expected levels in reading and mathematics in Year 6 was higher than in 2014 and assessment information and evidence gathered during the inspection indicates they will be above the national expectations in 2015. In writing, it was broadly the same as the previous year. In 2015, pupils in Year 2 attained standards in all subjects that were at least in line with national averages for 2014 and this indicated good progress from their previous starting point in school. Evidence gathered during the inspection, including work in pupils’ books, school assessment information and lesson observations, indicates that current pupils across all classes are making at least the expected progress and many are making better than expected progress.

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Outcomes for pupils are good

 The proportion of pupils who achieved the expected level in the Year 1 phonics check has been above the national average for the last two years. This is as a result of the consistent, accurate and effective teaching of phonics and additional support for any pupils who are at risk of falling behind. Pupils’ progress in reading is particularly strong across the school, due to the high priority it is given and the opportunity for pupils to read books that are appropriate to their age and interests.  Pupils make good progress in mathematics. This is a result of effective teaching of the key skills and knowledge and the opportunity to apply this knowledge in a range of relevant problem-solving activities, both within mathematics lessons and in their topic work.  In 2015, all pupils in Year 6 made at least expected progress in reading, writing and mathematics and this was above national averages for 2014, with a high proportion making better than expected progress in

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Outcomes for pupils are good

reading. This represents good progress from their starting points.  There has been an improvement in pupils’ spelling and punctuation in pieces of written work over the past two years. However, while they are given opportunities to write longer pieces of work, a lack of consistency in marking means that their progress in writing is still not as strong as in reading and mathematics.  Disadvantaged pupils make good progress. In most year groups in reading, writing and mathematics, the progress they make is typically in line with or above other pupils in school. They achieve the same levels of attainment as other pupils in school and nationally. This is due to the fact that the school closely monitors their progress and provides well-planned additional support where it is needed.  Disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs make good progress from their starting points to achieve levels of attainment that are broadly average in reading, writing and mathematics. They

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Outcomes for pupils are good

receive effective support from teachers and learning support assistants who adapt lessons well to allow them to fully understand what they are learning.  The most-able pupils make similar rates of progress to their peers. However, there are occasions when work does not always match the needs of the most-able pupils, particularly in writing, and they do not always achieve as highly as they might. Pupils also say that the work in mathematics and reading is often more challenging than in writing.

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Early years provision is good

 Most children start Nursery with skills which are typically below those for their age, particularly in language and communication. They make good progress from their starting points due to effective teaching that is based on accurate assessments of their individual needs and a warm and welcoming classroom. At the time of the inspection, children had only been in Nursery for four weeks but they were already very settled and responding well to each other and the adults who taught them. During a music session, children listened attentively to the instructions from the adults and then took turns to play a range of instruments such as drums and shakers.  Children continue to make good progress in the Reception class and are well prepared for the move to Year 1. In 2014, the proportion of children that achieved a good level of development was above the national average and assessment information for 2015 indicates that this will be the case again, with

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Early years provision is good

reading being a particular strength. While children make good progress in all areas of learning, their attainment in writing is not as high as in other subjects.  Teaching in both Nursery and Reception is good. There is a good balance of adult-led and independent activities where the children make sensible choices about what they wish to do. Teachers and other staff match questions well to the abilities of the children and encourage them to provide increasingly detailed answers. For example, in a lesson seen during the inspection, children were engrossed by the story Oliver’s Vegetables. They followed this up by writing about and painting a range of vegetables, including carrots and squashes. They used appropriate and accurate words to describe the shape and texture.  The leadership of the early years provision is good and has led to improvements in the opportunities children have across all the areas of learning, both in the indoor and outdoor classrooms. The strength of

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Early years provision is good

the leadership has been recognised by the local authority and the leader has been able to offer support and advice to other local schools.  Assessment information is used extremely well, with thorough procedures in place from when the children first start in Nursery to when they move to the next class at the end of the Reception year. The information that is gathered through assessment is used very effectively to match teaching accurately to the needs and abilities of all the children. Additional funding for disadvantaged children is used to provide individual support within classes to help these children to catch up, where required.  Children’s behaviour is good. They work and play well together and, despite having been in school for only a few weeks, know how to take turns, listen to what other people are saying and cooperate with each other.  Teachers and other adults ensure that children are safe and well cared for at all times. Staff have all had

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Early years provision is good

the appropriate training in safeguarding and are all suitably qualified to ensure that procedures for children’s welfare are fully in place.

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School details

Unique reference number 124294 Local authority Staffordshire Inspection number 10002479 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 Voluntary controlled Age range of pupils 3–11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 169 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Richard Winterton Headteacher Nicola Oliphant Telephone number 01283 239495 Website www.holytrinity.staffs.sch.uk Email address office@holytrinity.staffs.sch.uk Date of previous inspection 25–26 September 2013

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Information about this school

 Holy Trinity CofE Primary School is smaller than the average-sized primary school.  Children in the Nursery attend part time. Children in the Reception class attend full time.  The proportion of disadvantaged pupils – those who are supported by the pupil premium funding – is below average. The pupil premium provides additional funding for pupils known to be eligible for free school meals and those who are looked after.  Most pupils are White British. The proportion of pupils from minority ethnic backgrounds is below that in most schools.  The proportion of disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs is above average compared to similar schools nationally.  Pupils in Years 3, 4 and 5 are taught in two mixed-age classes.  The school runs a breakfast club and after-school club for its pupils.  The school meets the government’s current floor standards, which set the minimum expectations for

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Information about this school

pupils’ attainment and progress in reading, writing and mathematics by the end of Year 6.

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Information about this inspection

 The inspectors observed pupils’ learning in 15 lessons or parts of lessons. A number of lessons were observed jointly with the headteacher.  The inspectors looked at work in pupils’ books and listened to pupils read. They met a group of pupils to gain their views of the school. The inspectors observed pupils’ behaviour at breaktime, lunchtime and at the end of the school day, as well as in lessons. They attended an assembly.  The inspectors looked at a range of documentation, including: assessments and records of pupils’ progress, the school’s checks and records relating to safeguarding, child protection and attendance, records of how teaching is managed, and the school improvement plans.  Meetings were held with the headteacher, the deputy headteacher and two middle leaders. The lead inspector met with five governors, including the Chair, and Vice-Chair, of the Governing Body. He met with a representative of the local authority.

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Information about this inspection

 The inspectors took account of the 38 responses to the online questionnaire, Parent View, and talked to parents at the end of the school day. They also looked at the 17 responses to the staff questionnaire.

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Inspection team

Adam Hewett, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector Patrick Amieli 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

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Inspection team

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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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