Hareclive Academy

Hareclive Academy Moxham Drive, Hartcliffe, Bristol BS13 0HP

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Overall effectiveness Inadequate

Effectiveness of leadership and management Inadequate

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Overall effectiveness Inadequate

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Inadequate

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Overall effectiveness Inadequate

Personal development, behaviour and welfare Requires improvement

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Overall effectiveness Inadequate

Overall effectiveness at previous inspection Requires improvement

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This is an inadequate school

 Pupils’ attainment and progress have declined since the last inspection. Progress in reading, writing and mathematics is inadequate. Over time, school leaders and governors have not ensured that assessment information is accurate.  Teaching does not support or inspire pupils to achieve as well as they can. Teachers’ subject knowledge is weak and too many do not know how well pupils are achieving.  The leadership of teaching is weak. Teachers do not know how to improve their teaching or how to meet the requirements of the new curriculum.  Children looked after, pupils who have special educational needs or disability and the most able pupils have not been given the support they are entitled to. As a result, their achievement has been hampered.  Children make inadequate progress in the reception classes and are not well prepared to move into Year 1.  Disadvantaged pupils make inadequate progress across all areas of the curriculum.

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This is an inadequate school

 Governors have failed to provide the school with the support and challenge needed to bring about improvement. For too long, they were unable to stem the declining standards and improve the quality of teaching.  Until very recently, leaders and managers could not guarantee a safe and secure environment for pupils.  Parents say that the academy’s communication with them is poor. The school’s website does not provide all the information that it should.

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The school has the following strengths

 Recently appointed senior leaders have an accurate view of the school’s performance.  Pupils are well mannered and courteous. They say that they enjoy school.

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Full report

In accordance with the Education Act 2005, Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector is of the opinion that this school requires special measures because it is failing to give its pupils an acceptable standard of education and the persons responsible for leading, managing or governing the school are not demonstrating the capacity to secure the necessary improvement in the school.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve the quality of leadership and management by ensuring that: – the interim executive board provides robust challenge and support to leaders to accelerate the rate of improvement – leaders establish a consistent system for accurately checking and tracking pupils’ knowledge, understanding and skills – leaders establish robust systems to check and evaluate the school’s work and ensure that the outcomes are used to make rapid improvement – inequality is eliminated and that all groups of pupils have the support they need to make good progress – funding for the most vulnerable pupils is used effectively and the success of individual or small-group support is regularly monitored – the new curriculum is planned well throughout the school and prepares pupils for the next stage in their education – the statutory Department for Education requirements are kept up to date and available for parents on the school’s website.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Urgently improve the quality of teaching, learning and assessment, including in the early years, so that it leads to better outcomes by ensuring that teachers: – improve their subject knowledge and raise their expectations of what pupils can achieve – gain an accurate understanding of what pupils can and cannot do and use this information to better meet the learning needs of pupils, including the most vulnerable – develop their skills in using questioning to check pupils’ understanding – follow the school’s marking and feedback policy consistently.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve pupils’ personal development, behaviour and welfare by: – working closely with parents to improve pupils’ attendance, especially pupils who are persistently absent – planning lessons which inspire and motivate the pupils to do their best.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

An external review of the school’s use of the pupil premium should be undertaken in order to assess how to improve this aspect of leadership and management.

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is inadequate

 The school has rapidly declined since the previous inspection. Senior leaders and governors have not successfully tackled the weaknesses identified then and, as a consequence, pupils achieve poorly and the quality of teaching, learning and assessment is inadequate.  The quality of external support provided by the Brunel Academy Trust was inadequate. The trust systematically failed to improve the school at all levels.  Leaders and managers have failed to create an ambitious culture for teachers and pupils to do as well as they can. A history of staff turbulence combined with low staff expectations and aspirations for pupils has contributed to a steady decline in the standards pupils achieve.  Over time, leaders and managers have failed to promote equality of opportunity for pupils and staff. Pupils looked after and pupils who have special educational needs or disability have not received the additional support they are entitled to. Senior leaders do not know the impact that the additional pupil

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is inadequate

premium funding is having. Teachers new to the profession have not received regular and up-to-date training to develop their teaching. Recent actions taken by new leaders to support newly qualified teachers have not have time to embed.  Leadership for pupils who have special educational needs or disability is inadequate. Statutory paperwork has not been completed effectively and this has prevented extra help, support and resources being offered to pupils in a timely manner. Parents who responded to the online questionnaire and those who spoke to inspectors expressed well-founded concerns about provision for pupils who have special educational needs or disability.  Leaders have not provided clear criteria for the identification of pupils with special educational needs. Inaccurate assessment information and too much weak teaching has resulted in a significant proportion of low-attaining pupils being identified incorrectly as having special educational needs. Very recent

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is inadequate

assessments are helping leaders to identify pupils’ needs but it is too soon to see an impact of this work.  The school’s assessment information is wholly inaccurate. School leaders have no effective means of identifying the most able pupils. There is no policy or provision in place to cater for these pupils. Since the previous inspection, leaders and governors failed to focus on consistently improving outcomes for all pupils. Leaders have failed to hold teachers to account for pupils’ progress and achievement. Teachers’ assessments of how well pupils are achieving has been inaccurate. There is no evidence to suggest that until recently leaders have challenged the overinflated views. The limited information that the school has about what pupils know, understand and can do has not been used well to plan suitable activities for pupils to make good gains in their learning. The new senior leadership team have worked quickly to

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is inadequate

attend to this weakness. However, it is too soon to see any impact of this work.  Relationships within the school and the wider community have become fractured over time. This has had a direct impact on the quality of pupils’ education in the school. Currently, the interim principal and her team are working to restore good relationships. As a result the school is re-establishing arrangements that benefit young children and sharing play space with the local children’s centre.  The curriculum is disorganised. Leaders have not systematically planned for the implementation of the new national curriculum. Consequently, pupils are not developing key literacy and numeracy skills across a wide range of subjects. The current approach to curriculum planning does not provide pupils with sufficient opportunities to practise their skills in writing and mathematics. As a result, pupils’ skills are poorly developed and they make insufficient progress.

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is inadequate

 There are no records or evaluations to show how the additional physical education and sports funding has been used. Therefore, it is not clear if this funding has been well spent or how much impact it has had. Sports coaches are used at play and lunchtimes to engage pupils in a variety of sporting activities such as skipping, football and team games. Pupils say that they enjoy these activities.  The school does not prepare pupils sufficiently well for life in modern Britain. Pupils do not receive enough support to ensure that their views are not swayed by others. However, very recent assemblies have provided some basic support in developing pupils’ understanding of democracy and the rule of law. Recently introduced art topics and themes promote pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. For example, in the topic ‘knowing me and knowing you’ pupils learn about the similarities and differences of different cultures. This helps them to gain an understanding of different viewpoints.

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is inadequate

 The work of a national leader in education has been important in tackling the failure of governance. She has unpicked the school’s finances to ensure that financial records are accurate. The trust has been disbanded and the governing body has resigned. Statutory policies are now in place. New leaders have been recruited to help the school move forward. A new interim executive board has ensured that all statutory policies are in place. Appointments of the current interim principal and the two permanent assistant principals have been made to improve leadership capacity.  The current interim principal has been resolute in addressing inadequate teaching. External reports from local authority advisers from October and January reflect an improving picture in the quality of teaching, learning and assessment. There is evidence that where support has been precisely focused, the quality of teaching, learning and assessment improves. It is too soon to see any significant improvements in pupils’

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is inadequate

skills, knowledge and understanding. Parents report that ‘things have started to get better’ since new leaders have been in place.  Inadequate leadership and management have resulted in a high number of incidents of poor behaviour and a decline in pupils’ attendance. However, pupils and parents are positive about the new system for managing behaviour. Although initially there was an increase in exclusions of pupils, the number of incidents is reducing significantly.  The before- and after-school clubs are well led and managed. The breakfast club is popular and provides a calm and supportive start to the school day. The club provides a wide range of healthy breakfast options. Club leaders ensure that the pupils are happy, safe and ready to learn. They listen to pupils read and talk to them about their learning. The after-school club provides childcare for all schools in the surrounding area.  It is recommended that the school should not seek to appoint newly qualified teachers.

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is inadequate

 The governance of the school – Over time, governance did not ensure that pupils were adequately safeguarded. – Governors did not take into account the needs of the school when recruiting new teaching staff. A significant proportion of newly qualified teachers were appointed without due regard to the support and training they would require. – Governors failed to hold the senior leadership team to account for the decline in both pupil outcomes and associated poor behaviour. – Minutes of meetings show that the governing body was ineffective. Many meetings were not quorate. Governors did not always request detailed information, challenge leaders effectively or follow up concerns at subsequent meetings. – Governors failed to meet legal requirements in relation to the management of financial records such as the pupil premium expenditure, or with regard to the school’s website and the publication of policies

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is inadequate

and procedures. – In April 2016, the governing body was replaced by an interim executive board at the formal request of the regional school’s commissioner. The school’s interim board is highly experienced and has a strong track record of improvement. It is not necessary to have a review of governance at this point.  Improvements have been made to safeguarding arrangements since the arrival of the current interim principal. Staff training records and current practice reflect that necessary actions have been taken to ensure the safety of pupils. Recent local authority reports in February identify that the school’s procedures and record keeping are of better quality. The checks made on staff working at the school are comprehensive. The interim headteacher has now completed the necessary paperwork to obtain funding to provide the support that vulnerable pupils and their families are entitled to. All staff have very recently

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is inadequate

completed ‘Prevent’ duty training – a government programme to help raise awareness of the dangers of radicalisation.

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment is inadequate

 The high staff turnover and a turbulent environment have led to a significant decline in the quality of teaching, learning and assessment since the last inspection. Teachers have an inaccurate view of what pupils can and cannot do. As a result, teachers’ expectations are not matched to the needs of the pupils. As a result, pupils make inadequate progress.  Teachers’ subject knowledge is weak. They do not question pupils well to ascertain their prior knowledge or to extend their understanding of skills and concepts. Planning is not closely matched to pupils’ individual needs. In particular, the most able pupils are not challenged to make the progress they are capable of making.  Teachers’ planning does not meet the needs of all pupils. Teachers do not use assessment information adequately to plan activities to help pupils to improve. The most able pupils, lower-attaining pupils and those who have special educational needs or disability do not receive the support they need to improve.

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment is inadequate

Consequently, they make inadequate progress.  Too much inconsistency exists across the school in providing marking and feedback to pupils to help them to improve. As a result, pupils’ efforts to do their best are not rewarded and they make inadequate progress.  Pupils’ literacy skills are not well developed. Teachers do not check pupils’ progress regularly enough and so do not challenge pupils to apply what they have been taught in reading and writing. As a result, not enough pupils reach the expected standard. Work in books demonstrates poor spelling, punctuation and grammar. With the exception of some of the pupils in Year 6, pupils’ handwriting is untidy and poorly formed. There is no evidence to suggest clear expectations across the school.  The teaching of mathematics across the school is inadequate. Teachers’ planning does not enable pupils to develop their prior knowledge or build further upon understanding of new concepts. Consequently,

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment is inadequate

outcomes for mathematics appear to be declining rapidly.  Activities are not closely matched to pupils’ needs and do not interest and engage pupils. Too often the inappropriate match of work results in low-level disruption because pupils lose interest in their learning.  In the teaching of phonics (letters and the sounds that they make) teachers do not adapt lessons to meet the needs of the children. Nor do they encourage the children to apply their skills in other writing. Under the new leadership, the teaching of phonics is beginning to improve. Teachers’ plans are better matched to age-related expectations for younger pupils but poor use of assessment information still severely hinders pupils’ progress.  Leaders are quick to recognise that pupils have not been encouraged to read frequently enough. There has been a recent concerted effort to increase the proportion of children reading at home. Parent

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment is inadequate

meetings have been well attended in the early years and the newly introduced ‘book worm’ records are showing that more children are reading more frequently.

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Personal development and welfare

 The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare requires improvement.  Pupils were not safe in the past and not all of them felt safe. However, since the interim principal has been in place, there are fewer incidents of poor behaviour. Leaders’ actions have ensured that the risk of harm has been minimised. For example, all staff have received safeguarding training. Play and lunchtimes have been reorganised to ensure that there is sufficient supervision of pupils to keep pupils safe.  Pupils have a clear understanding of what bullying is. They say bullying is rare and they are able to articulate the school’s clear procedures for talking to an adult if they feel unsafe or unhappy. They know how to keep safe when using mobile phones and computers.  Relationships between pupils and teachers are generally positive. Adults take care to nurture and support the emotional needs of the pupils. In a small number of classes, support staff have a clear understanding

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Personal development and welfare

of the children’s social and emotional needs and work carefully to develop pupils’ confidence.  Pupils speak with enthusiasm about the range of physical activities they take part in which keep them fit. They are proud of the school’s extensive grounds, which they enjoy using. They are appreciative of the adults who organise games and activities at play and lunchtimes.

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Behaviour

 The behaviour of pupils requires improvement.  Pupils’ attendance is below the national average. Leaders are now rigorously applying the attendance policy but it is too soon to see any remarkable improvement. A closer checking of timekeeping has resulted in more pupils identified as arriving late for school. The proportion of pupils who are persistently absent from school has reduced slightly in the current academic year.  Where pupils attend alternative provision off-site, their safeguarding and welfare is carefully checked by senior leaders and external agencies.  A scrutiny of pupils’ work over time shows that some pupils do not take enough care when presenting their work. Year 6 pupils’ most recent work in books indicates that they are taking greater care in presenting their work.  Some teachers do not have high enough expectations of what pupils can achieve in lessons. When this happens, pupils do not show positive attitudes towards their learning. Their concentration wanders and

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Behaviour

their progress stops. This is not always noticed or dealt with by the teaching staff at the time.  The new behaviour policy is supporting improvement. The school’s records show, and pupils and parents confirm, that incidents of very poor behaviour are rare now. Pupils speak positively about the rewards for good behaviour and say that the rewards help them to do the right thing. Some staff who responded to the questionnaire do not support this view.

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Outcomes for pupils are inadequate

 School leaders do not have accurate or robust information about pupils’ performance. Since the previous inspection, standards at key stages 1 and 2 have fallen. The proportion achieving age-related expectations in reading, writing and mathematics continues to be significantly below the national average.  Limited assessment procedures reflect that teachers do not know about pupils’ progress in subjects other than in English and mathematics. Work in pupils’ books confirms that pupils have not made sufficient progress over time. The school’s senior leaders have identified that assessment information is not accurate.  Work over time indicates that there are no discernible differences between those pupils who are disadvantaged and those who are not. This is because all groups of pupils are making too little progress.  Pupils who have special educational needs or disability are making inadequate progress. This is due to

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Outcomes for pupils are inadequate

their needs not being clearly identified or catered for.  The most able pupils are not currently identified in the school. Published data suggests that, by the end of Years 2 and 6, there are significantly fewer higher-achieving pupils than nationally in reading, writing and mathematics. Work in books shows that there are some higher achievers in mathematics in Year 6.  Clearly targeted plans have only been in place since September 2015 for children looked after. Records show that careful checks are being made by the school’s new leadership on the progress of these pupils. Leaders have made teachers aware of the expectations for supporting these pupils.  Overall, pupils in Years 1 and 2 have made inadequate progress in literacy and mathematics since the end of the Reception Year. The proportion of children at the end of Reception who achieve a good level of development was close to the national average in 2014 and above in 2015. However, scrutiny of these

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Outcomes for pupils are inadequate

pupils’ achievements in Years 1 and 2 indicates a legacy of inaccurate and overinflated teacher assessment.  In the Year 1 phonics screening check, the proportion achieving the expected standard is below the national average. Currently, Year 1 pupils are well below the expected standard for this point in the school year. Pupils who do not meet the expected standard do not go on to catch up in Year 2. Insufficient use is made of assessment to help pupils make the progress of which they are capable.  Current standards in Reception indicate that attainment is well below that expected for this time of the year. The new leadership team has invested time in supporting teachers rapidly to improve teaching. Observations and external checking of the quality of teaching, learning and assessment are showing encouraging signs but not yet enough to make the significant difference needed for this group of children.

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Outcomes for pupils are inadequate

 The levels of progress in reading writing and mathematics for those year groups taking the national tests this year are still too low. This reflects a continued decline in the outcomes pupils in Years 2 and 6 achieve in reading, writing and mathematics.

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Early years provision is inadequate

 Over time, the early years has suffered from a lack of leadership and a lack of direction. There is little evidence of training and development for staff in the three Reception classes until January 2016, when one of the new assistant principals took on the leadership of this role as an interim measure.  Children are not making enough progress. They are not on track to be ready for Year 1.  This poor progress is a result of a lack of understanding among teachers about what children know, understand and can do. This has been compounded by the fact that there has been a breakdown in relationships with one of the main pre-school providers. This has resulted in the school not making the best use of information transferred to the school. The information on children’s starting points is confusing and inaccurate. Information suggests that teachers have no clear understanding of children’s abilities when they joined the school. Consequently, children do not make a rapid start.

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Early years provision is inadequate

 Most of the daily activities do not support children in thinking critically and creatively. Children lose focus easily. When this happens they demand the attention of adults, which hinders the learning of the children adults are working with.  The indoor and outdoor areas are safely organised for imaginative play. When children are engaged in choosing their activities, adults do not model how to use these areas or engage in dialogue to extend or reinforce the learning taking place. As a result, children lose interest quickly and do not make sufficient gains in their understanding.  Children’s progress is inadequate. Activities in the reception classes are not matched to children’s needs and abilities. Teachers complete observations but have not been supported to make the best use of their assessments to help children to make progress.  The teaching of phonics is not sharply focused enough to enable children to retain knowledge and apply

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Early years provision is inadequate

their skills. Consequently, too few children demonstrate good early reading and writing skills.  Children are friendly and polite. They cooperate well with each other. Most parents of Reception children are happy with the provision in the early years. They say that staff are approachable and that their child is happy and enjoy school. Very recent reading workshops were well attended by parents. Reading records show an increase in the number of pupils reading at home as a result.

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School details

Unique reference number 138546 Local authority Bristol Inspection number 10017411

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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 Academy converter Age range of pupils 4 to 11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 383 Appropriate authority The interim executive board Chair Claire Emery Interim principal Kirsteen Craig Telephone number 0117 903 0425 Website www.harecliveacademy.co.uk Email address admin@harecliveacademy.co.uk Date of previous inspection 17–18 September 2014

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Information about this school

 Hareclive Academy converted to become an academy in September 2012. It formed part of the Brunel Academy Trust along with Barton Hill Academy. The trust has recently disbanded and an interim executive board was appointed in April 2016.  The academy is larger than the average-sized primary school.  The vast majority of pupils come from White British backgrounds. Very few pupils speak English as an additional language.  Two pupils currently attend an alternative provision at a local school with a specialist unit.  The proportion of pupils who require special educational needs support is above the national average. The proportion of pupils who have disability or have a special educational needs statement or an education, health and care plan is in line with the national average.  The school does not meet requirements on the publication of information on its website about the pupil premium, sports premium and the curriculum.

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Information about this school

 The proportion of pupils who are disadvantaged and supported by the pupil premium is well above the national average. The pupil premium is additional funding for those pupils who are known to be eligible for free school meals and those children who are looked after by the local authority.  There is a before- and after-school club, which is run by the school and was included in this inspection.  Until very recently the school has received support from a national leader of education who is the executive headteacher of Corsham Primary School.  The school meets the government’s current floor standards, which set the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress in English and mathematics.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors observed pupils’ learning in 22 lessons or parts of lessons, 12 of which were observed jointly with newly appointed senior leaders.  Discussions took place with the interim principal, assistant principals, teaching staff, an external adviser and the very recently appointed interim executive board.  Inspectors scrutinised a number of documents, including minutes from governors’ meetings, school improvement plans and records relating to behaviour, attendance and safeguarding.  Telephone calls were made to the national leader of education who had worked with the school and to providers of alternate provision to check safeguarding requirements.  The inspection team scrutinised the quality of pupils’ work over time and listened to what pupils had to say about their learning.  Inspectors spoke to a group of pupils to seek their views about the school. The views of other pupils were gathered during lessons, playtimes and lunchtimes. An inspector listened to pupils reading.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors observed pupils behaviour at lunchtimes, breaktimes, in the breakfast club and around the school.  Inspectors conducted a walk around the school to look at curriculum displays and the promotion of British values.  Inspectors spoke to groups of parents and considered three responses to the online survey, Parent View. Questionnaire responses from 18 members of staff were also analysed.

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Inspection team

Tracy Hannon, lead inspector Her Majesty’s Inspector Matthew Cottrell Ofsted Inspector Matthew Middlemore 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

Interested in our work? You can subscribe to our monthly newsletter for more information and updates: http://eepurl.com/iTrDn .

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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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