Lockerley Church of England Endowed Primary School

Store Street Manchester M1 2WD T 0300 123 4234 www.gov.uk/ofsted

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Mr Jamie Dodson Headteacher Lockerley Church of England Endowed Primary School Butts Green Lockerley Romsey Hampshire SO51 0JG

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Short inspection of Lockerley Church of England Endowed Primary School

Following my visit to the school on 14 June 2016, I write on behalf of Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Education, Children’s Services and Skills to report the inspection findings. The visit was the first short inspection carried out since the school was judged to be good in November 2011.

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Context

There have been changes to the leadership, governance and staff at the school since the last inspection. Most notably, you took up your post as headteacher at the school in April 2013, and the assistant headteacher, chair of governors and mathematics leader all took up their posts in November 2015.

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Context

Leaders and governors have maintained a good quality of education in the school since the last inspection. You are recognised by parents, staff, governors and the local authority as a strong and effective leader. You have made a discernible difference to improving the quality of education at the school. Consequently, the quality of teaching has improved as have the overall standards that pupils achieve. This is particularly the case in reading and writing at key stages 1 and 2. Standards of reading across the school are high. Together with staff, you ensure that the school is fully inclusive and that staff and pupils are happy and feel valued. Many parents who spoke to me at the beginning of the school day told me how much their children enjoy coming to school and how happy they are with the good quality of teaching. They also spoke about how effectively the school communicates with them. At the time of the last inspection, the school was asked to improve teaching from

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Context

good to outstanding by: providing more opportunities for pupils to practise writing across the curriculum; strengthening pupils’ mental calculation skills; and making sure that pupils are clear about their next steps in learning, particularly in mathematics. Senior leaders use coaching and training effectively to improve the quality of teaching. This has led to an increase in aspects of teaching that are outstanding and improvements to any weaknesses in teaching. Teachers’ planning now identifies the different needs of pupils and provides an effective personalised approach to pupils’ learning. Teachers typically demonstrate strong subject knowledge of the teaching of reading, writing and mathematics. Pupils now receive regular opportunities to practise their mental calculation skills. However, the school recognises that this continues to be an area for development. Furthermore, senior leaders are aware that teachers need to ensure that pupils become more confident

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Context

in their knowledge and use of times tables. There are now planned opportunities for pupils to practise writing in subjects other than in English. Pupils spoke confidently about what they needed to do to improve their work in English and mathematics. You have correctly identified that that there is still more to be done to further raise standards in mathematics, improve provision in the early years and ensure that all, including the most able, make consistently strong progress. Together with your senior leaders, you are tackling these areas effectively. The pupils I spoke to said that they feel safe and happy at the school. Their responses to the questionnaire show that a large majority of pupils enjoy school and believe their teachers help them to do their best. Most pupils know that there is an adult to talk to should they have any concerns, and that the behaviour of other pupils in lessons and around the school is good.

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Context

Pupils reflect the school’s values of ‘compassion, respect and responsibility’ extremely well. Consequently, their behaviour in lessons and around the school, as seen at the time of this inspection, was exemplary. You have no misconduct recorded in the school’s behaviour log for this year. The school recently hosted a birthday lunch to celebrate the Queen's 90th birthday. You told me that the pupils were so well-behaved that your presence, in order to manage behaviour, was not required. Pupils enjoy the healthy options on offer at breakfast club and staff liaise well with parents to ensure they are fully aware of pupils’ dietary needs. The vast majority of parents who responded to the online questionnaire are overwhelmingly positive about the school. They are confident that their children are safe, happy and well cared for. Safeguarding is effective.

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Context

The leadership team ensure that safeguarding arrangements are fit for purpose and that records are typically detailed and of good quality. The school acts swiftly when concerns of a safeguarding nature arise. Staff have received training about child protection and safeguarding. All staff and governors have completed training to recognise signs that a pupil may be vulnerable to radicalisation. The school completes all the necessary checks about staff to ensure their suitability to work with children. Governors ensure that at least one person on any appointment panel has undergone safer recruitment training.

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Inspection findings

 Together with governors, you have ensured that school self-evaluation is thorough and detailed. As a result, you have an accurate and comprehensive view of the school’s strengths and areas for development. However, although school self-evaluation includes data and information about the proportion of pupils expected to reach age-related expectations, there is little analysis of those expected to exceed age-related expectations.  The quality of governance is strong and governors challenge the school effectively about many aspects of its work. A good example is the way governors held leaders to account for the slightly below average levels of attendance last year. As a result of your concerted efforts, as well as those of the teaching and administrative staff, attendance levels have improved this year and are currently above last year’s national average.  Governors recognise that they need to focus more sharply on how well

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Inspection findings

additional funding is used, such as for physical education and sports.  Whilst governors challenge senior leaders about standards and progress that are published each year, they do not interrogate school data rigorously enough to check the progress made by different groups of pupils during the course of the academic year.  You make effective use of data to track the progress and standards for most groups of pupils. This has highlighted the need to continue to close the gaps between some disadvantaged and other pupils as well as between boys and girls, particularly at key stage 2. You recognise the need to track the progress made by the most able pupils more closely, and that this should begin in the early years.  Leaders and managers have started to track the progress that pupils make across the curriculum, but this is in the early stages of development.  The impact of the work by leaders and managers, aimed at helping to

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Inspection findings

improve the quality of teaching, has helped staff to improve their practice.  You make very good use of specialists from the local authority and other schools to further improve the quality of teaching and learning in English and mathematics. You also ensure that staff have the opportunity to observe highly effective practice in other schools. This has already led to raised expectations of what pupils can achieve and is contributing very well to teachers’ professional development.  Pupils who have special educational needs or disability are provided with highly effective support from qualified and well-trained staff. These members of staff understand pupils’ needs and therefore provide them with appropriate support and resources. This helps pupils to understand what is expected of them and to use mental calculation to solve problems.  While there are pockets of good practice in providing challenge for pupils

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Inspection findings

across the school, this is not done consistently well in all classes, especially for the most able.   You recognise that not enough teaching is outstanding. You and the governors have also correctly identified that the current provision in the early years would benefit from improvement. You have already made plans to bring about the necessary improvements in these areas.  Following the decline in the proportion of pupils achieving the expected standard in the Year 1 phonics check (the sound that letters represent) last year, leaders analysed the results. This helped you and the staff to understand the aspects of teaching and learning within phonics that required additional attention. As a result of the subsequent work, all pupils have achieved the expected standard for the phonics screening check this year. This includes disadvantaged pupils and those who have special educational needs or disability.

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Inspection findings

 The school is currently developing effective strategies to improve boys’ enjoyment of reading; for example, through the use of technology and comics. In Year 1 this year, boys and girls are achieving equally as well and all are set to reach age-related expectations, particularly in reading and writing.  Younger pupils at key stage 2 are learning well. They use punctuation correctly. They recognise the difference between a closed and open question. Some pupils were observed undertaking research to help them write facts about the Tudors.  Good teaching has led to pupils developing greater levels of independence. There are good opportunities built into lessons for pupils to read, respond and reflect on the feedback from teachers and peers. This helps them to identify the next steps in their learning.  Pupils are provided with an increasing range of opportunities to write across the curriculum, especially in science, history and in design and technology.

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Inspection findings

Good examples include pupils writing instructions about how to construct a wooden bridge and undertaking research about the Tudors – producing clear and interesting written work to reflect their findings.  In mathematics, a relatively high proportion of pupils are currently on track to meet age-related expectations by the end of key stages 1 and 2 this year. More disadvantaged pupils than other pupils are set to achieve age-related expectations by the end of key stage 2; however, no disadvantaged pupils are set to exceed expectations by the end of Year 6.  The school recognises that improving the progress that pupils make in mathematics remains a key focus to help raise standards, and that there is also a need to increase the proportion of pupils who exceed age-related expectations. You are working closely with the mathematics subject leader to help bring about improvements in this area.  Pupils who have special educational needs or disability make steady

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Inspection findings

progress and are catching up with other pupils.  From the work seen in pupils’ books, many are making good progress in writing. Pupils take pride in their work and are developing the ability to write using cursive script from an early age. 

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Next steps for the school

Leaders and those responsible for governance should ensure that:

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Next steps for the school

 different groups of pupils make equally good progress  governors interrogate school data more rigorously to check the progress made by different groups of pupils during the course of the year  the quality of teaching continues to improve, including in the early years, so that more is outstanding and provides the most able pupils with consistently good levels of challenge.

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Next steps for the school

I am copying this letter to the chair of the governing body, the director of education for the Diocese of Winchester and the director of children’s services for Hampshire. This letter will be published on the Ofsted website.

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Information about the inspection

I met with you, your assistant headteacher, staff and six governors, including the chair of the governing body and vice-chair. I spoke with representatives of the local authority and diocese on the telephone. Together, we visited every class to observe teaching and learning. I spoke to pupils in lessons, at playtime and around the school. In addition to looking at pupils’ work in lessons, I scrutinised a sample of pupils’ books to evaluate rates of progress. I reviewed a range of documentation, including information about pupils’ current progress, minutes from governors’ meetings and the school’s monitoring of teaching and learning. I scrutinised the school’s safeguarding procedures, including policies, records of referrals made to children’s services and checks on staff employed in the school. I spoke to a small number of parents at the beginning of the school day. I took into account the 44 responses to the online Ofsted survey (Parent View), including a number of written

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Information about the inspection

comments sent to the inspection team. I also reviewed 14 responses to the questionnaire completed by staff and 60 responses to the questionnaire completed by pupils.

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