Boyton Community Primary School

Boyton Primary School Boyton, Launceston, Cornwall PL15 9RJ

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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 Not previously inspected

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This is a good school

 The head of school, with the unanimous support of staff and parents, has rapidly improved all aspects of the school during the past 18 months. He is well supported by the executive headteacher and an active governing body, which has high expectations of the school.  Improvements in teaching and behaviour have resulted in higher attainment in all subjects.  All groups of pupils make good progress, including disadvantaged pupils and those who have special needs. Previous gaps between their achievement and other pupils’ have narrowed significantly. Children in the early years achieve well.  The head of school, in conjunction with senior staff in the other academy schools, checks the quality of teaching and learning rigorously.  The quality of writing has improved significantly. Pupils’ good writing shows through in a range of subjects.  Teaching is good. Teachers mark pupils’ work thoroughly and make sure pupils respond to the

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This is a good school

marking so that their work improves.  Pupils behave well and feel very safe and well cared for in school.  Pupils enjoy the range of subjects and additional activities outside the classroom.  The school makes very good provision for pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. Leaders also ensure that pupils gain a good understanding of British values and the nature of life in modern Britain.  Parents recognise the considerable improvements that have been made in the school. They are very supportive and appreciative of what the school provides for pupils.

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It is not yet an outstanding school because

 Teachers do not always provide enough opportunities for pupils to apply their skills and knowledge, so they do not achieve as well as they might.  Attendance remains just below average, although staff work with parents to improve the poor attendance of a small number of pupils.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve teaching by making sure that pupils always have enough opportunities to apply their skills, knowledge and understanding, so that more of the good teaching becomes outstanding.  Make sure that all parents understand the need for pupils’ regular attendance at school, and continue to follow up all persistent absences rigorously to further increase the rate of attendance.

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

 The head of school has brought about significant improvements in all aspects of the school since he took up his post. Supported well by the executive of the Duchy Academy Trust and by staff from other schools in the Trust, he has been particularly successful in improving teaching and achievement.  The school has considerably reduced the gaps in attainment and progress between disadvantaged pupils and others.  Teachers are new in post but all staff fully support the drive to achieve excellence. Staff welcome their accountability for the progress their pupils make. They also recognise the benefits for their professional practice that have come from close liaison with staff in the other schools in the Duchy Academy Trust.  The head of school rigorously checks the quality of teaching and learning. Leaders and the board of governors have made it clear that pay increases and responsibilities are linked closely to pupils’ progress.

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

 Leaders have used extra resources, such as pupil premium funding, very effectively to improve the achievement of disadvantaged pupils, disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs. For example, additional staff help disadvantaged pupils to improve their work in English and mathematics. Staff also make sure that these pupils have equal access with other pupils to activities such as clubs and visits. The benefits are seen in improved enjoyment of school, an improvement in attendance and faster progress.  Pupils know that school includes everyone and there is no discrimination. All pupils have the same opportunity to do well.  There is a full range of classroom subjects for all pupils and a good range of other activities for such a small school. For example, pupils link up with their peers from the other schools in the Trust to take part in joint visits and competitions. The school has used additional primary sport funding to invest in high-

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

quality coaching, provide transport to sports events, improve staff expertise and offer more opportunities for social and competitive sport.  The school’s provision for pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural education is good. Pupils’ work in books includes thoughtful writing about Doctor Barnardo and Martin Luther King. Pupils identify differing beliefs and what they themselves value. They consider issues such as ‘Is life fair?’ Their social development is very good, with pupils getting on well together in the classroom, working productively in pairs and small groups.  Leaders give a high priority to helping pupils understand British values and what life in modern Britain is like. The inspector saw this during the inspection in an assembly, when pupils were asked to consider what made them proud about living in Britain. There was a brief discussion about aspects such as tolerance and cultural diversity, with several pupils confident in expressing their ideas.

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

 Pupils told the inspector how they were taught to understand and appreciate concepts such as democracy, and how this can operate at different levels in society.  Leaders show the capacity to improve the school further. There is already a track record of evaluating the school’s own performance accurately and planning in detail for further improvement. Parents and staff are unanimously positive about the high quality of the school’s leadership.  Leadership is not yet outstanding because some of the improvements, while impressive, have not had the time needed to achieve the best possible outcomes. Leaders also recognise that, as the school grows further in size and the new staff become more experienced, there is scope to devolve more responsibility to other staff.  The governance of the school - The governing body has changed in its personnel in recent months. It now carries out its responsibilities skilfully and enthusiastically. Governors know the school well. They understand how

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

the various groups of pupils, including disadvantaged pupils, progress in relation to other pupils. They understand the strengths and areas for development in teaching. Like the head of school, they are committed to excellence. - Governors visit school to liaise with teachers and see pupils’ progress. They receive up-to-date training in crucial areas like safeguarding. The governing body also supervises the system of appraisal. It evaluates the effectiveness of steps that have been taken to improve provision for pupils. For example, the governing body has evaluated how the PE and sport premium has been used to raise achievement and improve opportunities in physical education. Governors are effective, both in supporting the school and challenging the leadership constructively in order to sustain and build on recent improvements.  The arrangements for safeguarding are effective and meet statutory requirements. Leaders and

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

governors review policies regularly and have updated them recently. For example, child protection policies and procedures now include information on recognising and dealing with sexual exploitation. The school teaches pupils about e-safety and also advises parents. The school provides excellent welfare for pupils, some of whom are vulnerable. Attendance is checked thoroughly. The school operates safer recruitment procedures. Staff are well trained and know their responsibilities in all aspects of child protection.

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment is good

 The quality of teaching has improved during the past 18 months. This is partly because staff receive good training, often through collaborating with staff in the Academy Trust’s other schools. Joint work in areas such as assessment and checking the accuracy of pupils’ work has improved staff confidence in teaching key subjects such as English and mathematics.  The school’s checks on the quality of teaching show how improvements have resulted in corresponding gains in pupils’ achievement.  Staff have been able to improve their expertise in teaching physical education through the support of sports specialists.  A particular strength in the teaching is the quality of marking of pupils’ work. Teachers make detailed comments on how well pupils have done and how they can improve their work further. Teachers encourage pupils to respond to the marking, in order to improve their future learning. Older pupils told

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment is good

the inspector about their targets and how they found them helpful to their progress.  Additional staff support has helped disadvantaged pupils, disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs to make good progress. Teachers also teach the most-able pupils well most of the time.  There are very good relationships in lessons. Staff know all the pupils well and make them feel secure and keen to learn.  Pupils and their parents both recognise the improvements in teaching.  Teaching assistants provide valuable support to those pupils with particular learning needs. The inspector saw support being given to pupils, both in lessons and on a one-to-one basis outside the classroom. As a result, pupils gained in understanding and confidence, for example in their reading.  Pupils’ work, particularly in their English books and their science and topic work, shows that teachers have high expectations most of the time. However, teaching is not yet outstanding. Teachers do not

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment is good

always give pupils the time early enough in lessons to apply their knowledge, understanding and skills to the high level of which they are capable. Consequently, although pupils are motivated to learn and have increasingly achieved well over time, their learning in lessons is not always as rapid as it could be.

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Personal development and welfare

 The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare is good .  The school puts a lot of emphasis on personal, social and health education. Pupils are made to feel very safe in school. Pupils confirmed this to the inspector. Parents were unanimous that their children are safe and happy in school. The school site is secure.  Rigorous procedures have helped to improve attendance and it is now just below average. The school celebrates high attendance in weekly assemblies.  However, a small number of parents do not recognise the importance of regular attendance. The school works to involve these parents, but the small size of the school means that the very small number of pupils who do not attend as well as others has a big effect on attendance statistics.  Pupils enjoy opportunities to take on responsibility. The school council is active, meeting regularly and managing its own budget. Pupils raise money for good causes. Older pupils enjoy helping younger pupils

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Personal development and welfare

and children in the Reception Year, for example with their reading. Pupils deliver an assembly each week.  Pupils enjoy the range of subjects in lessons and are very enthusiastic about visits, including the residential visits to France and places nearer to home. Pupils are also very enthusiastic about activities like sport. They often do these jointly with pupils from other schools in the Academy Trust.  Pupils benefit in other ways from the extra primary sport funding. For example, all pupils get free swimming lessons from a qualified instructor.  Older pupils, in particular, develop as well-rounded individuals. Many of them talk articulately about their experiences in school. For example, they understand the debate about ‘values’ and what it means to be British. They also understand the potential dangers of extremism and why tolerance is regarded as so important. The school prepares pupils well for the next stage of their education.

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Personal development and welfare

 The breakfast club provides an enjoyable and healthy start to the school day. Parents are encouraged to attend with their children.

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Behaviour

 The behaviour of pupils is good.  Pupils are keen to learn and show their enthusiasm to contribute to debates and answer questions in lessons.  Behaviour is very good in lessons and around the school, although it is not outstanding because the behaviour of a few pupils still has to be managed carefully. The school has built up good procedures for this, so that there have been no recent exclusions. School records confirm that there have been no major incidents of any kind for some time.  Pupils understand that bullying can take various forms. However, they are insistent that bullying is not an issue in the school. They understand the rules clearly.

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Outcomes for pupils are good

 Attainment has risen during the last 18 months. It was below average in 2014. However, the results in national assessments and tests in Years 2 and 6 were based on such a small number of pupils, several of whom had special educational needs, that the results were not statistically significant and did not constitute a trend. Results for 2015 were still based on very small numbers of pupils, and several of these were pupils who had very recently joined the school. There was an increase in the school roll of over 60% between 2014 and 2015. Many of the newcomers were older pupils who were joining the school near the end of Key Stage 2. These pupils did not always show the same rate of progress as those pupils who had been in the school since the Reception Year.  Current assessment information shows that many more pupils are now making better than expected progress, not just in the core subjects of reading, writing and mathematics, but in all subjects.

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Outcomes for pupils are good

 The gap between the few disadvantaged pupils and others in the school has narrowed considerably, mostly due to the extra support and resources from which these pupils have benefited. There is no meaningful comparison with other pupils nationally, because the numbers involved are so small.  Disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs make good and sometimes excellent progress. These pupils benefit from very good support both in lessons and from individual and small group work outside lessons.  Pupils do not make outstanding progress because there are still some gaps in the rate of progress, with girls outperforming boys. However, the gaps have narrowed significantly, at the same time as overall achievement has improved.  Pupils make good progress in reading. Pupils were heard reading during the inspection. They increasingly read with good levels of confidence, accuracy and fluency for their ages. Teachers organise regular

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Outcomes for pupils are good

reading sessions well.  Previously, pupils in Year 1 did not do as well as expected in the yearly phonics check. However, the teaching of phonics (letters and the sounds they make) has improved during the last 18 months.  Attainment and progress in mathematics has risen, as teachers have become more proficient and confident in the subject.  Progress in writing has improved considerably. The inspector saw many examples of written work done over an extended period during the last 18 months. Pupils write at length, and in a variety of styles, in English. Pupils also write well in science, for example in writing up experiments, and in other subjects like history and geography. Most pupils take pride in presenting their work well.  Because of the improvements that have been made and continue to be made, pupils are making faster progress and the school is on track to meet its challenging targets for the current school year and

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Outcomes for pupils are good

beyond.  The quality of their work and assessment information show that the most-able pupils, who had underachieved in the past, are now making good progress. However, occasionally in lessons, they do not achieve to their best. This happens when teachers do not provide them, along with other pupils, with the opportunity to apply their knowledge and skills as thoroughly as they might.  Parents believe that pupils make good progress now, compared with in the past, and the inspector agrees with their perceptions.

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Early years provision is good

 Numbers in the Reception Year vary considerably from year to year. For example, there are far fewer in the current school year compared with last year. Ability levels also vary considerably on entry and this has been reflected in children’s levels of attainment when joining Year 1.  Achievement is now good, with a majority of children making good progress and attaining or exceeding the goals expected for their age, in a range of skills, knowledge and personal development.  The good progress being made was evident even very early in the school year when the inspection took place. Communication and language skills still vary at this stage but the children have grown in confidence quickly. They were observed making good progress in a phonics session and responded enthusiastically to the lively teaching.  Children are settling into routines quickly. They are taught for part of the time with pupils in Key Stage 1.

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Early years provision is good

When this happens, the children concentrate well and have a good relationship with the older pupils.  Children are already making good progress in their number skills, their creativity and their personal development. They play sensibly with each other and clearly enjoy activities in a safe environment.  Teaching in the early years is good. Staff assess children’s progress regularly and the learning journals show evidence of the good progress made by children of all abilities.  There are good links with the on-site nursery. Children from the nursery meet weekly with children from the Reception Year.  Good leadership ensures that the children in the Reception Year are integrated well in the mixed-age class, but also get a good share of individual attention, for example often working with a teaching assistant.  Parents greatly appreciate the early years environment and are welcome in the school.

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School details

Unique reference number 140576 Local authority Cornwall Inspection number 10001604 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 Academy converter Age range of pupils 4–11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 50 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Darren Humphries Headteacher Antony Fugill (Head of School) Matthew Shirley (Executive Headteacher) Telephone number 01566 772484 Website www.boyton.cornwall.sch.uk Email address head@boyton.cornwall.sch.uk Date of previous inspection Not previously inspected as an academy

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Information about this school

 Boyton Primary School converted to become an academy on 1 February 2014. When its predecessor school, Boyton Community Primary School, was last inspected by Ofsted it was judged to be inadequate overall.  Boyton Primary School is part of the Duchy Academy Trust, which also includes Callington Primary School and Lewannick Primary School.  Boyton Primary School is much smaller than the average-sized primary school, even though during the last 18 months the number of pupils on the school roll has increased by over 60%.  The great majority of pupils are of White British heritage.  The proportion of pupils supported through pupil premium funding is above average but there are very few of these pupils in this small school. The pupil premium is additional government funding to help pupils who are known to be eligible for free school meals and looked after pupils.  The proportion of disabled pupils and those with special educational needs is close to average.

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Information about this school

 The school meets the government’s floor standards, which set the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress in reading, writing and mathematics.  There are two classes in the school. One comprises the children in Reception, together with pupils in Years 1 and 2. The other class contains pupils in Years 3, 4, 5 and 6.  The head of school was appointed shortly before the school became an academy. Since then, there have been several changes in staffing and in the governing body.  The school provides a breakfast club which operates before the start of the school day.  The independently run Kingfisher Nursery shares the school site. The nursery is inspected separately.

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Information about this inspection

 The inspector observed learning in four lessons. He carried out three of these observations jointly with the head of school. The inspector also made short visits to other lessons, heard pupils read and observed support staff working with pupils outside of classrooms.  The inspector held meetings with the head of school, with other staff, with pupils, with two governors and with the executive head of the school.  The inspector looked at a range of documentation, including the school’s development plan, records relating to safeguarding, information about pupils’ attainment and progress and records of pupils' behaviour and attendance.  The inspector attended a school assembly and observed pupils at lunchtime, breaktime and when moving around the school.  The inspector took account of the 11 responses to the Parent View online questionnaire. He also took account of the school’s own surveys of parents’ and pupils’ views, and considered the nine responses to

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Information about this inspection

the staff questionnaire completed during the inspection.

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Inspection team

John Laver, lead inspector 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

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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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