Mayhill Junior School

Mayhill Junior School The Bury, Odiham, Hook, Hampshire RG29 1NB

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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 and governors share high expectations of staff and pupils. They have strong ambitions for the school and rigorous procedures to improve teaching and learning. Teaching has improved and pupils are making good progress in reading, writing and mathematics and attaining standards at least in line with national figures.  The headteacher, ably supported by other senior leaders, is very effective in improving the school’s performance. Governors provide a keen oversight of the school’s work and an effective balance of support and robust challenge. Teachers work well as a team and share the ambition to improve continually.  The new national curriculum has been successfully introduced. Pupils experience a good range of interesting activities and exciting events. Their spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is very well promoted.  Pupils who have special educational needs or disability and disadvantaged pupils are well

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This is a good school

supported by teachers and teaching assistants to make good progress in their learning.  Pupils have good attitudes to learning. They behave well and listen to their teachers and get on with their work. They have a good understanding of fundamental British values such as tolerance and respect.  Pupils like coming to school and attendance is above average. Pupils feel valued and safe. The school has developed robust and effective safeguarding procedures.  Parents recognise the great improvements made at the school. Almost all parents said that their children were happy, well behaved and making good progress. Engagement and communication with parents is good.

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It is not yet an outstanding school because

 Not all activities planned for the most-able pupils are challenging enough.  The accuracy of pupils’ spelling is not improving as quickly as it should.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve the quality of teaching further by:  ensuring that the most-able pupils are given work that is suitably challenging  making sure that teachers always challenge poor spelling in pupils’ writing and provide activities that promote more accurate spelling.

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

 Since his appointment last year, the headteacher has worked relentlessly to improve the quality of teaching and outcomes for pupils. Alongside a strong governing body, his determination and clear, focused approach have produced a skilled leadership team and an effective teaching force. Governors and staff have high expectations and there is a palpable team spirit in the school. Parents have spoken highly of the significant improvements at the school and the positive impact on their children’s progress. The headteacher has ensured that the areas identified for improvement in the previous inspection report have been tackled successfully. As a consequence, teaching has improved and pupils are making good progress.  School leaders, working with their local infant school and the local authority, have developed an effective system to assess pupils’ achievement. The headteacher has arranged for teachers within a cluster of local

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

schools to work together to ensure that they assess the standard of pupils’ work accurately. Senior leaders and subject leaders regularly check the quality of teaching and how well pupils are doing, holding teachers to account for their work.  Teachers are committed to improving the quality of their work. For example, teachers observe one another’s lessons, subject leaders coach and mentor others and there is regular focused training. Teachers new to the profession are well supported to develop the necessary teaching skills. Subject leaders are developing their roles well and are accountable for the development of their subjects and the achievement of pupils.  Senior leaders’ own evaluation of the school and what needs to improve is accurate. The corresponding improvement plan, based on four key priorities, is clear and concise. Subject leaders have individual action plans based on, and supporting, the main plan. School leaders regularly check that planned actions

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

are having the desired impact.  The introduction of the new national curriculum last year was well planned and provides an appropriate emphasis on reading, writing and mathematics. There is a good balance of other subjects within topics. Pupils are engaged with topics through exciting events, such as a visit to the space dome in a science topic. Parents have opportunities to celebrate pupils’ work. For example, parents of Year 6 pupils watched their children perform songs and dances from around the world and read their travel diaries.  Sporting opportunities are numerous, as are the chances to take part in sports competitions. Music is prominent in school. All pupils can try out musical instruments like the trumpet, drums or ukulele. French and art are taught. Pupils can attend early morning French club to improve their French speaking ability and investigate different painting styles, such as Tinga Tinga. A wide range of clubs and trips, such as

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

gardening, choir and fencing clubs and visits to museums and farms, enhance pupils’ experiences further.  The sports funding is used effectively to promote more physical activity for pupils. A specialist coaching group provides a wide range of sports and events for pupils and helps teachers to improve their own coaching skills.  Through assemblies, lessons and the general ethos, the school actively promotes pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. For example, Mayhill Junior is a ‘Rights Respecting School’. Trained peer mentors in Year 6 support friendships and help pupils make the right choices. Pupils learn about other cultures through such things as art, visits to Germany and to Parliament and the ‘Fight for freedom’ topic. Pupils behave well and work together harmoniously.  Staff are committed to equality of opportunity and ensure there is no discrimination. For example, leaders

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

ensure that the pupil premium benefits eligible pupils and that pupils with special educational needs or disability have effective support. Pupils learn about British values, such as democracy, tolerance and the rule of law. They are being well prepared to become responsible citizens.  The local authority has provided good support to the school since it was last inspected. Regular visits from consultants offering training and challenge to staff and governors have helped keep the school moving forwards while the new leadership was established. The authority, having recognised the much- improved level of performance in the school and its capacity to continue to improve, has reduced its level of support.  Almost all parents spoken to said that their children were happy and well looked after, made good progress and behaviour was good. They explained how effective communication was and how they were supported by the school to help their children at home. Parents agreed that teachers were easy to

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

approach and gave helpful information and guidance. Parents who had been associated with the school for longer said the school has improved greatly since the previous inspection. The responses on Parent View were similarly overwhelmingly positive.  The governance of the school Governance is a strength of the school. Following the previous inspection, governors moved quickly to recruit an effective headteacher and reorganise the structure of the governing body so that all governors deepened their understanding of the school’s performance. They have enhanced their own skills further with regular training. Governors are acutely aware of their responsibilities and carry them out well. They worked closely with school leaders to create the vision for the school, evaluate the school’s performance and to develop an effective improvement plan. Governors ensure they are kept well informed. Robust monitoring of the school and challenge are key

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

priorities, alongside providing strong support. Governors get regular reports from the headteacher and other school leaders and they make their own focused and well-planned visits. They ask probing questions and hold the school to account. They know how well the school is doing and where further improvements need to be made, particularly in the quality of teaching and the achievement of pupils. Governors ensure school finances are managed prudently and benefit pupils. For example, they ensure that teachers’ pay awards are deserved, that the pupil premium contributes effectively to the achievements of disadvantaged pupils and that the sports’ funding has a positive impact on pupils’ participation in sport.  The arrangements for safeguarding are effective. School leaders ensure that all safeguarding policies and procedures are effective. All staff and governors are well trained, including in the ‘Prevent’ duty, to

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

understand their roles and responsibilities in safeguarding pupils at school. The headteacher is tenacious in following up child protection concerns with the local authority.

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment is good

 The quality of teaching and learning has improved significantly since the previous inspection and is now good throughout the school. Weaker teaching practice has been addressed through effective support from school leaders.  There are good relationships between teachers and pupils. Teachers manage their groups well so that changeovers between activities and lessons run smoothly. Pupils respond promptly to instructions and settle down to work without any fuss. Classrooms are well organised and display key points about recent learning clearly.  Teachers’ explanations and instructions are clear, friendly and authoritative. They have secure subject knowledge, using technical vocabulary accurately and expecting pupils to do the same. Teachers use questioning well to make pupils think hard and explain their answers.  Teaching assistants play an important role in pupils’ learning. They are well trained and support identified

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment is good

pupils well, with an effective mix of instruction, encouragement and challenge. They work closely with teachers to share information on pupils’ achievements and help with planning. Consequently, disadvantaged and less-able pupils and those with special educational needs or disability are making good progress in their learning.  Pupils are given regular opportunities to explain their ideas and share them with a partner. They listen well and are learning the art of discussion, including respecting other people’s views.  Homework includes extended exercises in English, mathematics or a topic. It builds effectively on classroom work and makes pupils think and express their opinions. A homework club is available for any pupils who may not have ready access to a computer at home.  Teachers mark pupils’ written work regularly and give them feedback on their progress in line with the school’s marking policy. Pupils say that they understand the colour coded marking system and that

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment is good

teachers’ feedback helps them to improve their work.  Teachers’ planning is closely based on pupils’ earlier learning and, during lessons, teachers assess how well pupils are doing to reshape tasks and promote better progress. Teachers often give more support to a small group for a short time so they do not fall behind in a lesson. Sometimes, activities planned for the most-able pupils do not demand enough of them.

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Personal development and welfare

 The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare is good.  Pupils have good attitudes to learning. They engage readily with the work teachers set them and most present their written work well. They are happy to talk about the work they are doing. They show confidence, for example when talking in class explaining their ideas. Pupils are polite and tolerant of others. They listen to others and cooperate well in groups.  Pupils have a good range of responsibilities, which they handle sensibly and with pride, for example as house captain, librarian, peer mediator and play leader. Year 5 and 6 play leaders regularly organise games at the local infant school as well as for their schoolmates. The school council makes a difference and is listened to. For example, it has organised a community lunch and helped design the library and improve the dining facilities.  Pupils know how to stay healthy. They have learned the importance of a balanced diet and regular

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Personal development and welfare

exercise. They take part in sporting events and clubs alongside the regular physical education lessons. All Year 5 pupils are expected to be able to swim by the end of the year.  The site is secure and the areas that pupils play or work in are well supervised. Visitors are appropriately vetted and accompanied around the school. Staff ensure that pupils are safe at school and parents agree they are safe. Pupils are learning how to stay safe in other situations, such as when using the internet or when meeting strangers. Pupils have an adult they can turn to if they have any concerns and there is a ‘worry’ box they can post comments in. A counsellor is available to support any pupils with social and emotional issues.  Pupils understand the different forms of bullying, including cyberbullying. They know what to do if they experience or witness bullying. Pupils spoken to said bullying rarely happens and that teachers would sort

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Behaviour

 The behaviour of pupils is good.  Pupils know the behaviour expected of them and the rewards and sanctions available. They behave sensibly and responsibly around the school, for example when collecting and eating their school lunches. Pupils are considerate of others, holding doors open and saying ‘good day’. They conduct themselves well as they move between rooms and in the playground.  Some parents had felt bullying was an issue before the new headteacher had taken up his post. However, from school records, there have been very few incidents of misbehaviour, including bullying. The incidents were handled sensitively and effectively and involved parents. Logs of all incidents are detailed and record all the steps taken and their impact.  Pupils enjoy coming to school to learn and meet their friends. They say that teachers try to make lessons fun. Pupils attend school regularly. Attendance has been above the national average for the last two

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Behaviour

years. Current attendance is also above the national average. The attendance of pupils eligible for the pupil premium is also above average and the attendance of service children is even higher.  Some pupils spoke warmly about their class teachers and said pupils get on well with each other. They said that misbehaviour was rare in class and in the playground. Pupils are usually attentive in class and persevere with tasks. Occasionally, when activities become a little dull, a few pupils lose concentration and fidget.

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Outcomes for pupils are good

 Pupils in all years, currently in school, are making good progress in reading, writing and mathematics. A large proportion in each year group are on track to attain the standards expected for their age in these subjects and a good proportion show a deeper level of mastery. These good outcomes are evident in the school’s own assessment records and verified by work seen in pupils’ books.  This represents great improvement over last year, when attainment at the end of key stage 2, although average in writing and mathematics, was below average in reading and spelling, punctuation and grammar. Year 6 pupils made good progress in 2015 when significant changes had been made to leadership and staffing but the legacy of weaker teaching in the past had not been fully overcome.  In 2015, the group of disadvantaged pupils in Year 6 appeared to make less progress than others in school, though their numbers were small. Currently, in all years, disadvantaged pupils who do not also

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Outcomes for pupils are good

have special educational needs or disability do as well as their classmates in reading, writing and mathematics. The children of service personnel are well supported and are making good progress across the school.  The small number of pupils in each year who have special educational needs or disability are making good progress in their learning. The special educational needs coordinator has organised strong support by working closely with class teachers and teaching assistants to ensure extra help, whether in class or through one-to-one teaching, is well targeted and effective. The impact of support is checked regularly to make sure that each pupil meets their own specific targets for learning.  Pupils are making better progress in reading this year. Pupils record their regular reading sessions with an adult at home, and in school, and say they enjoy reading. Lessons to improve pupils’ reading skills are

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Outcomes for pupils are good

suitably challenging. Pupils in Year 5 were made to think deeply about what they were reading through the probing questions from the teacher and teaching assistant. Year 5 pupils had selected challenging novels, such as ‘Harry Potter’, for their independent reading. In addition, the attractive school library is well stocked and organised, pupils take part in reading competitions and there are new, richer texts to support learning in reading and writing.  Pupils say they like mathematics lessons, which are usually fun. Activities help them gain fluency in mathematics, particularly in calculation. They have good opportunities to explain how they worked things out and have developed a good grasp of mathematical vocabulary. A group of Year 3 pupils were seen developing a secure understanding of subtraction. They spoke enthusiastically about mathematics and could explain the Fibonacci series they had been investigating earlier.

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Outcomes for pupils are good

 Pupils have good opportunities to practise writing in a number of genres and in different subjects. Written work is generally well presented and pupils’ handwriting shows improvement over time. Teachers provide activities based on topic work and interesting texts that engage pupils’ interest so they persevere with tasks. Pupils are improving their use of punctuation and grammar, but their spelling is not improving as quickly. Teachers do not challenge spelling mistakes often enough.  The most-able pupils attain well. They make good progress in developing style, sentence structure and manipulating vocabulary for different audiences. They regularly tackle problem-solving exercises in mathematics, but reasoning activities to justify, prove or generalise are less common. There is little difference in the quality of work produced by boys and girls. Teachers often plan more challenging work for them, but the tasks do not always mean they have to think more deeply about their work; a few

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Outcomes for pupils are good

pupils commented that on occasions they find the work set easy.

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School details

Unique reference number 116075 Local authority Hampshire Inspection number 10012230

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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 Primary School category Community Age range of pupils 7−11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 203 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Jane Pratt Headteachers Tom May Telephone number 01256 702973 Website www.mayhill.hants.sch.uk Email address adminoffice@mayhill.hants.sch.uk Date of previous inspection 5–6 February 2014

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Information about this school

 The school is smaller than an average junior school. There are three classes for Year 3 and two classes for each of Years 4 to 6.  Most pupils are White British and the remainder come from a wide range of ethnic groups. The school serves the local community, which includes an RAF base.  The proportion of pupils supported by the pupil premium (extra government funding for pupils known to be eligible for free school meals or children who are looked after by the local authority) is below average. A significant minority of pupils are from service families and are eligible for the service pupil premium.  The proportion of pupils who have special educational needs or disability is below the national average.  The proportion of pupils who speak English as an additional language is small.  The school meets the government’s current floor standards, which set the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress in reading, writing and mathematics.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors, accompanied by the headteacher on occasions, observed pupils in all year groups engaged in a range of activities in different subjects. They looked at pupils’ written work in all years and spoke to pupils about their learning.  Inspectors held meetings with the headteacher and other school leaders, the chair of the governing body and four other governors. An inspector spoke to a representative of the local authority.  Inspectors spoke to a group of pupils and, informally, with other pupils in lessons and around the school. An inspector listened to pupils in Year 3 reading and spoke to them about their reading habits.  Inspectors examined several school documents. These included the school’s evaluation of its performance and its development plan, notes of governors’ meetings, information about pupils’ progress and attainment, evidence about the quality of teaching, and records relating to behaviour, safeguarding

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Information about this inspection

and attendance.  Inspectors took account of the 87 responses to the online questionnaire, Parent View, an email and one letter from two parents, the views expressed informally by parents as they arrived at school and 20 responses to the online questionnaire for staff.

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Inspection team

Jim McVeigh, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector Christine Bulmer 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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