Pocklington Community Junior School

Pocklington Community Junior School 65 Kirkland Street, Pocklington, York YO42 2BX

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Overall effectiveness Requires improvement

Effectiveness of leadership and management Requires improvement

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Overall effectiveness Requires improvement

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Requires improvement

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Overall effectiveness Requires improvement

Personal development, behaviour and welfare Good

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Overall effectiveness Requires improvement

Outcomes for pupils Requires improvement

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Overall effectiveness Requires improvement

Overall effectiveness at previous inspection Requires improvement

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This is a school that requires improvement

 Leaders, managers and governors have not taken appropriate steps, since the previous inspection, to improve sufficiently teaching and pupils’ outcomes.  Pupils are not making consistently good progress in writing and mathematics across Years 3 to 6.  The most-able pupils are not challenged sufficiently to write in detail, and to use fully the skills they acquire in mathematics.  Gaps are widening in some subjects between some disadvantaged pupils and their peers.  Teaching is not consistently good across Years 3 to 6. Not all teachers ensure that work is consistently well matched to pupils’ needs.  Some teachers do not provide pupils with enough time to practise their writing, and develop confidence in applying key mathematical skills.  Not all teachers check pupils’ learning carefully in lessons and adjust their work accordingly, especially for the most able.  Not all leaders and managers tackle shortfalls in

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This is a school that requires improvement

teaching and learning rigorously enough. Too much of this work is left to the headteacher.  Governors do not have an accurate view of how well the school is doing.  Governors do not check with sufficient rigour how effectively pupil premium and physical education and sports funding is spent.

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The school has the following strengths

 The newly appointed headteacher shows high expectations. He has quickly gained the respect of all staff. Morale across the school is good.  Provision for pupils’ personal development and welfare is good. Pupils are safe and well cared for.  Pupils enjoy coming to school. Attendance is above average.  The vast majority of pupils cooperate well with one another, and are respectful to all of the adults and visitors.  The teaching of reading across the school is now good.  Teaching is improving strongly in Years 5 and 6.  The governing body has revised its working practices, and is beginning to hold the school’s leaders and managers more rigorously to account.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve the quality of teaching, especially in Years 3 and 4, so that it is at least consistently good, to make sure that pupils make good progress, particularly in writing and mathematics, by: – matching work more carefully to pupils’ needs, especially the most able – planning more opportunities for all pupils to write at length in all subjects – increasing the time all pupils have in lessons to reason and justify the calculations they are using in mathematics, and to use them to solve problems more widely in different contexts and in different subjects – checking carefully how well all pupils are learning in lessons, before moving on to the next activities – adjusting activities to meet pupils’ changing needs in lessons, particularly those who are disadvantaged, to reduce further gaps in achievement with other pupils – ensuring that all adults demonstrate consistently high expectations to motivate all pupils to participate

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Ensure that all leaders, managers and governors support fully the headteacher in driving forwards urgently the necessary improvements in teaching and pupils’ outcomes, by: – providing further training for senior and middle leaders to develop the necessary skills and confidence required to assess accurately the effectiveness of teaching, over time, and to act quickly where it is good enough – ensuring that all teachers follow consistently the school’s policy on marking and assessing pupils’ work – ensuring that all governors have an accurate understanding of how well the school is doing, in particular the disadvantaged and the most-able pupils, so that they can hold all leaders and managers fully to account.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

External reviews of governance, and of the school’s use of the pupil premium and physical education and sports funding, should be undertaken, in order to assess how these aspects of leadership and governance may be improved.

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Effectiveness of leadership and management requires improvement

 School leaders and managers have not shown enough urgency in their desire to improve the quality of teaching and pupils’ outcomes since the previous inspection.  Governors have not challenged sufficiently senior leaders and managers, or questioned rigorously enough the accuracy and reliability of the information provided by them. As a consequence, the pace in improvement has not been rapid enough, and key areas for development from the previous inspection have not been successfully tackled.  The recent appointment of a new headteacher has brought a change in momentum in the school’s work. His high aspirations for all pupils have injected urgency into the school’s work. He has reorganised the roles of senior leaders, provided appropriate training and support for senior and middle leaders, and quickly developed positive morale across the school.  Much of this work is recent and has not yet had sufficient time to take full effect. For example, while

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Effectiveness of leadership and management requires improvement

senior and middle leaders understand their new roles in improving teaching and enhancing further pupils’ learning, arrangements to check the quality of the school’s work, and to hold staff more rigorously to account, are not yet fully embedded.  Leaders and managers, at all levels, have not yet fully developed the expertise and confidence to assess accurately the quality of teaching, learning and assessment across all years, and determine whether they are good enough. As a consequence, too much is left to the headteacher to address.  Good training has been commissioned by the headteacher from the Molescroft Teaching School Alliance and Welton Primary School. This training and support have yet to impact fully on the quality of teaching and pupils’ learning.  The headteacher has also strengthened performance management procedures to help to improve teaching. Individual teachers’ objectives have been heightened, and bespoke professional development

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Effectiveness of leadership and management requires improvement

linked to individual staff’s needs. While these actions demonstrate capacity for improvement, their implementation is only recent. Arrangements have the potential to link teachers’ pay progression more rigorously to their performance, and measure this performance more closely against the national teachers’ standards.  New assessment arrangements enable leaders and managers to track pupils’ progress with increasing regularity. Checks on pupils’ progress ensure that senior leaders and staff now identify quickly pupils who are not doing as well as they should. Additional support is put in place with increasing speed to help these pupils to make better progress. This demonstrates leaders’ increasing commitment to promoting equality of opportunity for pupils.  All adults tackle any rare instances of discriminatory or prejudiced behaviour robustly and successfully. These actions underpin the school’s strong sense of community and its positive environment.

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Effectiveness of leadership and management requires improvement

 The recently revised curriculum is already providing a wide range of interesting and thought-provoking opportunities for all pupils. It is making a strong contribution to pupils’ good behaviour across the school, and to promoting well their personal development and welfare. Visits by the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children, regular assemblies about internet safety, and extra-curricular gym, cheerleading, music and art clubs, all promote effectively pupils’ personal development. A love of reading is being successfully fostered, although there remains more scope to enhance writing and mathematical skills across all subjects.  Additional well-planned visits and experiences enrich pupils’ experiences further. They help to bring learning alive. Pupils say how much they enjoy learning about regional history and castles, experimenting with sauce bottles to paint in the style of local artist Edward Waite, and working together to raise money

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Effectiveness of leadership and management requires improvement

for national charities such as Sport Relief. They eagerly participate in sport teams and competitions, choir and orchestra activities, especially steel pan playing, that encourage teamwork.  Staff promote effectively pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. Pupils learn about the different cultures and faiths represented in modern Britain. British values are carefully promoted through, for example, pupils’ involvement in the democratic process of electing members of the school council and in the many contributions they make to school life as part of the ‘PocklingTEAM.’ As a result of this work, pupils are appropriately prepared for life in modern Britain. Pupils’ appreciation of music and art is increasingly well developed through their lessons from experts.  The school’s use of the primary physical education and sports premium funding has not significantly increased the range of sporting opportunities available to pupils. It has not yet resulted in sufficient

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Effectiveness of leadership and management requires improvement

improvement in staff confidence and expertise in teaching physical education.  Although the gaps between disadvantaged pupils’ outcomes and their peers have largely closed by the end of Year 6, since the previous inspection, leaders, including governors, have not fully evaluated which actions have had the most impact. They do not question sufficiently why gaps are now currently widening in some subjects, in some years, and whether historical patterns of support are making enough difference throughout the school.  Most parents responding to Ofsted’s online questionnaire are supportive of the school’s work. Parents believe that their children are safe and well cared for, and enjoy coming to school. Pupils and staff agree with them.  The governance of the school – The membership of the governing body has changed significantly as of late. Governors have reviewed their working practices. Present governors recognise that governance has not held school leaders

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Effectiveness of leadership and management requires improvement

sufficiently to account for improvements over time. As a consequence, they have taken recent steps to improve the rigour of their work. This has involved external training and support. – Governors now receive a wide range of information about the school’s work. They are increasingly regular visitors to school to find out things for themselves. – They are not yet entirely confident in holding senior leaders to account for the school’s performance and its safeguarding arrangements, because they do not compare sufficiently the quality of teaching in the school, and pupils’ outcomes, with national expectations. – As a result, governors cannot be fully confident that pupil premium funded interventions provide value for money. Governors are unaware of the impact of sport funding. – Governors know about the management of teachers’ performance and the links between this and teachers’ pay progression. They have put to place appropriate arrangements for evaluating the

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Effectiveness of leadership and management requires improvement

headteacher’s annual performance.  The arrangements for safeguarding are effective. Leaders, governors and staff work with a range of external agencies and individual families to ensure that pupils are safe. All staff receive regular training on safeguarding, and are aware of how to identify whether pupils are at risk and to report any concerns.

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment requires improvement

 Leaders, including governors, and managers have not improved the quality of teaching enough since the previous inspection. Teaching still requires improvement across Years 3 to 6, as it does not ensure that pupils make overall good progress, especially in writing and mathematics.  Not all teachers yet use carefully the information provided by the headteacher about individual pupils’ learning to plan lessons that are appropriate for their needs. This is especially so in Years 3 and 4.  Not all of the adults check carefully enough whether individual pupils’ needs are changing, and adjust their work accordingly, in lessons. As a result, gaps between disadvantaged pupils and their peers are widening, in some subjects, in some years.  Not all teachers provide the most-able pupils with additional challenges that deepen their learning. As a result, they do not always make enough progress.  Teachers are inconsistent in ensuring sufficient time for all pupils to write in detail, and fully develop key

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment requires improvement

mathematical concepts, before moving on to other activities. As a consequence, some pupils become frustrated, and their attention wavers. On occasions, this results in low-level chatter and off-task behaviour.  In mathematics, not all teachers provide sufficient opportunities for pupils, especially the most able, to test new knowledge and skills to the full in solving mathematical investigations and word problems.  There are similar inconsistencies in the teaching of writing. Not all teachers encourage pupils to write at length frequently enough. Opportunities are missed in some classes to support pupils sufficiently in sequencing ideas confidently, spelling accurately new words and phrases, and using a range of grammar to develop complex sentences.  Leaders and managers do not ensure that all teachers mark pupils’ work according to the school’s policy. The guidance given to pupils to enhance their work does not always result in improvement.

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment requires improvement

 These shortfalls are less evident in Years 5 and 6, where teaching is generally motivating and effective. Activities are introduced gradually, with degrees of difficulty matched closely to individual pupils’ aptitudes. Teachers’ guidance to pupils about how to improve their work is effective. As a consequence, most make good progress in all subjects.  The teaching of reading across all years in school is increasingly effective. The majority of pupils enjoy reading, and read fluently and with understanding. Regular reading opportunities in school, and constant encouragement by adults for pupils to read at home, are helping pupils to retrieve information efficiently, summarise confidently events in the books they read, and make inferences about characters and plot.  Relationships between adults and pupils are positive. Newly designed enquiry-based learning, such as natural disasters and the human body, provide increasingly interesting experiences that stimulate pupils’

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment requires improvement

curiosity, inspire them to ask questions, and enthuse them to learn.

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Personal development and welfare

 The school’s work to promote pupil’s personal development and welfare is good.  Pupils are proud of their school. They talk readily about the school’s six key values, and are respectful and caring of each other, and all of the adults.  Pupils enjoy the different responsibilities they are given within the ‘PocklingTEAM’. These include membership of the school council, helping in the dining hall and in assemblies, answering the telephone at lunchtimes, and making sure that no one is left out at playtimes.  Pupils say they feel safe in school and can approach a member of staff easily if they have any concerns about their safety. They are confident that staff will not tolerate any language or actions that may be offensive.  Pupils are taught well how to keep themselves safe, and know about, for example, the support offered through ‘ChildLine’, road and fire safety and how to keep safe when using the internet and mobile

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Personal development and welfare

phones.  Pupils have an equally good understanding of the importance of leading a healthy lifestyle, through their work on the importance of diet, nutrition and exercise.  Regular visits and visitors to school promote effectively pupils’ all-round spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. As a consequence, they are ready for their future learning in secondary school and for their roles as active citizens in the local community.

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Behaviour

 The behaviour of pupils is good.  Around school, the vast majority of pupils are polite and friendly, and conduct themselves well. In the playground and dining room, pupils are helpful and considerate towards one another.  Expectations of how everyone should behave are made clear in the school’s six key values, published in every corridor. These are understood by all pupils. They appreciate the rewards they get for positive behaviour and achievements, and understand that there are consequences for unacceptable behaviour.  Pupils have a good awareness of different types of bullying, including racist, homophobic and cyber bullying. Pupils say that bullying is rare. This is confirmed by the school’s behaviour records, which show few incidents of poor behaviour around the school.  The school’s leaders foster the importance of regular attendance and punctuality to school. Most pupils respond positively and, as a result, attendance is above the national average.

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Behaviour

 In most lessons pupils are attentive, persevere well with the planned activities, and cooperate readily with one another.  A small minority of pupils are slow to settle in some lessons, particularly in Years 3 and 4, where work is not challenging enough, or when some pupils have too little time to complete the planned activities, become frustrated and lose interest.

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Outcomes for pupils require improvement

 Pupils’ overall outcomes have not risen enough since the previous inspection, and still require improvement.  Pupils made no better than expected progress in reading, writing and mathematics, across 2013–2015. They attained average end of Key Stage 2 outcomes in all subjects, from average starting points in Year 3. Not enough of the most-able pupils reached the highest outcomes in all subjects.  Information gathered during the inspection indicates that current outcomes in writing and mathematics, across Years 3 to 6, remain too variable for many pupils. Not enough pupils make good progress in these subjects.  Outcomes in writing require improvement because not enough pupils, especially the most able, plan and write at length, and across different subjects and topics. Not all teachers, especially in Years 3 and 4, pay enough attention to widening pupils’ vocabulary, enhancing their accuracy in the use of grammar and

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Outcomes for pupils require improvement

developing confidence in sequencing their ideas in well-structured paragraphs.  Outcomes in mathematics require improvement because pupils, particularly the most-able learners, are not challenged enough in some classes to explain their approaches to individual calculations, or to apply mathematical knowledge in depth. They are also not stretched often enough in a range of relevant problem-solving activities.  In Years 5 and 6, however, many pupils make good progress and attain outcomes that are at least average in writing and mathematics. This is because most of the teaching in these years is consistently effective.  Regular reading sessions in school, together with strong promotion by adults of reading at home, are improving pupils’ reading skills. They are increasingly good across the school.  Since the previous inspection, gaps in the outcomes of disadvantaged pupils and other pupils nationally

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Outcomes for pupils require improvement

had closed. For example, in 2015 the end of Year 6 gap in reading and writing had closed to four months, and disadvantaged pupils were only eight months behind other pupils nationally in mathematics. However, information gathered during the inspection indicates that these gaps are widening, especially in writing and mathematics, in some year groups, across the school.  Pupils who have special educational needs or disability, as well as those who have fallen behind and need to catch up in their learning, generally make similar rates of progress in reading, writing and mathematics to their peers. This is because their progress is tracked regularly, and they receive appropriate individual support from staff.  Many pupils develop particularly good all-round knowledge and skills in music and art music, but less so in physical education and French.

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School details

Unique reference number 117863 Local authority East Riding of Yorkshire Inspection number 10002136

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School details

This inspection was carried out under section 5 of the Education Act 2005.

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School details

Type of school Junior School category Community Age range of pupils 7–11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 238 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Julia Thompson Headteacher Alex Reppold Telephone number 01759 302224 Website www.pocklingtonjuniors.co.uk Email address pcjs@eastriding.gov.uk Date of previous inspection 24–25 September 2013

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Information about this school

 This is an average-sized junior school.  The vast majority of pupils are of White British heritage, with a very small minority who speak English as an additional language.  The proportion of disadvantaged pupils who are supported through the pupil premium is below the national average. The pupil premium is additional government funding to support those pupils known to be eligible for free school meals and those who are looked after.  The proportion of pupils who have special educational needs or disability is below the national average.  The school meets the government’s current floor standards, which are the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress by the end of Year 6 in reading, writing and mathematics.  Since the previous inspection a new headteacher has been appointed. There have also been significant changes in the roles of senior and middle leaders and managers, and in teachers across the school. The

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Information about this school

governing body has been reconstituted, with new governors appointed, including a new chair and new chairs of committees.  The school receives support from the Molescroft Teaching School Alliance, Welton Primary School and the local authority. 

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors observed learning in a range of different classes, of which one class was visited jointly with the headteacher.  Pupils’ work was sampled informally in classes in a range of subjects. In addition, mathematics and writing from Years 3, 4 and 6 were sampled separately.  Inspectors reviewed a range of documents, including the school’s own information on current pupils’ progress, planning and monitoring documentation, minutes of the governing body’s meetings, records relating to behaviour and attendance, and documents pertaining to safeguarding.  Inspectors held meetings with pupils in Years 3 to 6, with governors and with school staff, including those with management responsibilities, and with a representative from the local authority.  Inspectors evaluated the 65 responses of parents to the Ofsted online questionnaire (Parent View). Inspectors also took into account the views of 15 members of the school’s staff, and of the 52 pupils

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Information about this inspection

who completed the Ofsted online questionnaires. Inspectors also evaluated staff views in response to recent school questionnaires.

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Inspection team

Andrew Swallow, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector Jennifer Cave 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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