Compton CofE Primary School

Compton CofE VC Primary School Higher Compton Road, Plymouth Devon PL3 5JB

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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 Outstanding

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Overall effectiveness Good

Overall effectiveness at previous inspection Good

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This is a good school

 The headteacher has successfully created an environment in which pupils thrive in their personal development and learning. Other leaders and staff share his vision, enthusiasm and commitment to develop well-rounded individuals.  The curriculum provides extensive opportunities for pupils’ personal, spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. The school takes very good care of pupils and they behave exceptionally well.  Early years provision is innovative and enables the children to make good progress.  The quality of teaching is good overall. There are examples of outstanding practice where teachers set very high expectations, model the required skills and provide incisive feedback to enable all pupils to excel.  Since the last inspection in 2011, pupils have attained consistently high standards in reading, writing and mathematics by the end of key stage 2. They make particularly good progress in

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This is a good school

mathematics.  The previous gap in achievement between disadvantaged pupils and others in the school and nationally is closing rapidly.  Pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities make at least good progress due to very effective specialist provision and support.  Governors passionately support the school’s values and hold senior leaders to account to sustain high standards.

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It is not yet an outstanding school because

 Pupils’ progress and attainment across the early years and key stage 1 are not consistently strong, especially for the most able pupils.  Some teachers do not evaluate the progress of individual pupils and groups of pupils from their starting points and make sure they reach challenging standards. Some lessons do not get off to a prompt start.  Some leaders and managers do not check and evaluate the impact of teaching on the learning of individual pupils and groups of pupils. The most effective practice in teaching is not shared across key stages.  A few parents do not feel well informed about their children’s progress.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Ensure that all pupils, especially the most able, progress equally well throughout the school and that they make as much progress in reading and writing as they do in mathematics, by: increasing the proportion of outstanding teaching through sharing the most effective practice across the school developing teachers’ skills in evaluating the progress of individual pupils and groups of pupils from their starting points and in setting and modelling high expectations for all pupils, including the most able ensuring that all teachers provide equally incisive feedback so that pupils know precisely how to improve their work and make sure that pupils act on the feedback keeping parents well informed about their children’s progress and how they can support their learning making sure that no time is lost in lessons.  Extend the skills of all leaders and managers in monitoring and evaluating the impact of teaching on the

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

progress of individual pupils and groups of pupils and in using this information to improve the quality of teaching and learning in line with the best practice in the school.

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

 The headteacher’s dedication to providing a wealth of opportunities that enable pupils to excel in their personal development and learning is greatly appreciated by pupils, staff and parents. Pupils love their school. Staff are proud to work in it and parents are fulsome in their praise of the work of the headteacher and staff.  Many parents praised the way in which the staff know and care for their children, the mutual respect between staff and pupils, and the ‘happy and stimulating learning environment’. They value the extra- curricular activities that are available ‘every day of the week’ and the way that staff enable children to excel in activities such as sport, music and drama.  A special feature of the broad and balanced curriculum is the development of pupils’ computing skills. The school has been recognised internationally for its use of Chromebooks which, for example, enable pupils to view the same piece of work from different computers, and to see each other’s annotations and edits.

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

 Senior leaders make very effective use of the primary physical education and sports premium. This includes engaging pupils in a wide range of sport through the school’s membership of the local schools’ sports partnership and sports festivals. Pupils participate in activities such as cross-country, rugby and tennis. A high proportion of pupils attend extra-curricular sports activities.  The curriculum, together with the school’s values of perseverance, friendship, forgiveness, creativity and responsibility, makes a strong contribution to pupils’ exceptional personal, spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. Pupils learn to value diversity by studying countries in the United Kingdom and abroad, as well as major world faiths. This is an improvement on the last inspection.  Pupils develop a good understanding of the British values of respect, tolerance, the rule of law and democracy. They form class rules and elect members of the school council. Some pupils recently visited

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

the Houses of Parliament.  The headteacher promotes equality of opportunity appropriately by monitoring and evaluating pupils’ performance and holding staff to account through review meetings each term. Teachers identify the support they will provide for pupils who are supported by the pupil premium, those who have special educational needs and/or disabilities, children who are looked after by the local authority, and those who speak English as an additional language, to good effect. They do not always identify the most able pupils.  The reviews inform performance management targets for staff. Performance management leads to appropriate professional development, such as training in the teaching of reading, and has resulted in the good quality of teaching in the school.  Very effective use is made of the pupil premium to provide additional support from teaching assistants for disadvantaged pupils. In addition, a parent support adviser provides valued social and emotional support

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

for families. The impact of this, together with the good quality of teaching, is seen in the rapidly closing gap in achievement over time between disadvantaged pupils and others in the school and nationally.  Funding for children looked after and pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities is used highly effectively to meet their specific needs and to enable them to access lessons. Staff are trained to meet the different needs of the pupils, for example the whole staff are trained in teaching pupils with dyslexia and teaching assistants are trained in supporting pupils with attachment disorder. However, the pupils’ progress from their starting points is not evaluated robustly to ascertain how well they are progressing.  The school is in the process of developing a new system for monitoring pupils’ progress across the new national curriculum. Teachers are making summative assessments at the end of each term. Their

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

assessments are moderated rigorously to ensure they are accurate. However, starting points and targets have not been defined clearly in order to gauge the progress pupils are making.  Senior and middle leaders observe lessons and examine pupils’ books within their key stage or year teams. They are not using this information systematically alongside teachers’ assessments to evaluate the impact of teaching on the progress of individual pupils and groups of pupils. Records of the monitoring of teaching are not focused enough on pupils’ progress. This leads to some uneven progress across key stages, especially for the most able pupils.  School improvement planning identifies relevant priorities and is informed by regular surveys of the views of pupils and parents. However, it is not incisive enough to address the inconsistency in progress. The most effective practice in teaching is not being shared across key stages to increase the proportion of

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

outstanding teaching.  The governance of the school: has a good understanding of its strengths and priorities for further improvement holds senior leaders to account for the progress pupils make and for the impact of their use of the pupil premium, physical education and sports premium and funding for children looked after and pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities understands the decisions made regarding the performance management of staff supports the school’s values and ethos passionately and contributes well to its strategic direction makes good provision for leadership succession planning keeps up to date with training, especially regarding safeguarding ensures that statutory requirements are met.  The arrangements for safeguarding are effective. Staff are trained to identify when a pupil may be at risk of neglect, abuse or exploitation. They can explain how to report any concerns and how to record them

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

on the school’s electronic system. The learning development leader works effectively with external partners to support pupils who are at risk. Pupils are listened to and feel safe. They are protected from radicalisation and extremism. Staff are trained and are confident and competent to discuss issues with pupils.

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment is good

 Teachers typically have high expectations of what pupils can achieve and some have very high expectations. They plan lessons that interest pupils and develop their love of learning. They make very effective use of resources, especially information and communication technology, to engage all pupils.  Teaching assistants are well trained and deployed to support identified pupils in their learning. Teachers and teaching assistants question pupils skilfully to extend their thinking and responses. As a result, all pupils contribute confidently to lessons.  Teachers use their strong subject knowledge in mathematics to deepen pupils’ understanding and enable them to reach high standards by the end of key stage 2. Pupils say that they make most progress in mathematics because teachers demonstrate clearly what they are expected to achieve. Teachers constantly check pupils’ understanding and address any misconceptions.

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment is good

 Recent training by external providers is improving the teaching of reading and writing across the school. In particular, the introduction of a focus on an author in each class is encouraging pupils to read more widely. The successful teaching of phonics (the sounds that letters represent) enables pupils to tackle new books confidently.  Teachers provide a wide range of opportunities for pupils to apply their reading, writing and mathematical skills across subjects. A particular strength is the way in which they encourage pupils to communicate with them and with others, for example in discussion or in giving presentations to other pupils.  Some teachers set very high expectations and show pupils how they can reach them. They provide incisive feedback so that pupils know precisely what to do to improve their work. For example, in a lesson for pupils in Years 5 and 6 on Shakespeare’s ‘Romeo and Juliet’, pupils were taught how to analyse

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment is good

characters and to support their views by selecting appropriate quotations from the text. Pupils were inspired by film clips and engaged in role play which helped them to understand the way Shakespeare had portrayed the characters. They improved their work through discussing it with other pupils and by making good use of the teacher’s feedback. Teachers and teaching assistants asked probing questions to extend their responses and use of technical vocabulary.  Teachers make effective use of homework to extend the learning in lessons. For example, pupils used their research to contribute to a lesson on fairy-tale characters in a lesson for pupils in Years 3 and 4. The teacher made good use of the topic to challenge stereotypical views.  All teachers follow the school’s feedback and marking policy, although some do not provide precise feedback or check that pupils act on it. On occasions, time is not used productively throughout the lesson

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment is good

to deepen and consolidate pupils’ learning.  Some teachers do not evaluate the progress of individuals and groups of pupils from their starting points, especially the most able pupils, to ensure that they all make equally good progress.  A few parents do not agree that the school gives them valuable information about their child's progress. Senior leaders have identified the need to review school reports in line with the new system they are developing for assessing pupils' progress.

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Personal development and welfare

 The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare is outstanding.  Pupils are confident, enthusiastic learners. Their excellent attitudes to learning have a strong, positive impact on their progress. They take pride in their work, which is presented very neatly.  Pupils work and play together exceptionally well across the year groups, and many participate in whole- school events such as musical productions. They show respect for each other’s ideas and points of view, as seen in class assemblies.  Pupils take their responsibilities seriously, for example listening to younger pupils read or, as members of the school council, organising fund-raising for an orphanage in Africa.  Pupils enjoy school and rarely miss a day. The school has worked hard to improve attendance since the last inspection and it is now above average.

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Behaviour

 The behaviour of pupils is outstanding.  Pupils behave exceptionally well in lessons and around the school, reflecting the school’s behaviour policy. Incidents of low-level disruption of lessons are rare.  For individuals with particular needs, there is sustained improvement in their behaviour.  Pupils are considerate and polite, for example holding doors open for others.  Incidents of bullying are rare because pupils report any concerns to staff and are confident that they would be dealt with effectively. They learn how to keep safe from all kinds of bullying, including online bullying and prejudice. A pupil stated ‘Everyone is unique’.  Pupils say that they feel safe and well cared for in school. They can explain how to keep healthy, through healthy eating and participating in sport. They have an excellent understanding of how to stay safe online.  Parents, staff and pupils responded positively to the online surveys about the way in which the school

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Behaviour

ensures that pupils are well behaved and keeps them safe.  Pupils can explain the school’s values and how they work towards them. The values they learn, together with their exceptional spiritual, moral, social and cultural development, equip them to be thoughtful, caring and active citizens in school and beyond.

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Outcomes for pupils are good

 Pupils’ attainment in national tests at the end of key stage 2 has been significantly above average in reading, writing and especially in mathematics over several years, although it has not been consistently strong over time at key stage 1.  Current pupils are making good and often better progress in almost all year groups across the school in a wide range of subjects, including in reading, writing and mathematics.  Last year, from their different starting points, the proportions of pupils making and exceeding expected progress in mathematics and writing were above national figures. While all pupils made expected progress in reading, fewer made more than expected progress compared with the national figures. Progress in reading for current pupils is good due to improvements in teaching. Older pupils are now reading more widely and often with good comprehension. They talk eagerly about favourite books and

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Outcomes for pupils are good

 Pupils have achieved above-average results in the Year 1 national phonics check over time. Their ability to link letters and sounds enables them to tackle unfamiliar texts with increasing fluency.  Disadvantaged pupils, those who have special educational needs and/or disabilities and the few who speak English as an additional language are making good progress in all year groups. The previous gap in attainment between disadvantaged pupils and others has closed rapidly over the past three years. Their attainment is now in line with that of other pupils in the school and above others nationally.  The most able pupils are challenged in key stage 2 to make at least good progress. The school’s information indicates that more challenge is required for the most able pupils to secure their good progress by the end of key stage 1.  Pupils are well prepared for secondary school and the school has very effective procedures in place for

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Outcomes for pupils are good

their transition. Comments from parents include, ‘My older children have benefited hugely by attending this primary school and are now doing very well at their secondary school’. The Parent View survey shows that almost all parents would recommend the school to others.

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Early years provision is good

 Leaders and managers have an accurate understanding of the quality of the provision and use this to inform relevant priorities for improvement. For example, staff are focusing on raising the achievement of boys, which dipped last year, by ensuring that activities engage and interest them.  Leaders ensure that arrangements for safeguarding children, including child protection procedures, are effective and reviewed regularly. Children are well cared for and nurtured. Leaders work exceptionally well with external agencies to support vulnerable children.  The provision, including the outdoor area, is highly organised, with innovative and imaginatively well- resourced activities, such as a reading challenge board game. The activities enable children to progress towards all the early learning goals.  The quality of teaching is good, particularly in mathematics. Teachers have high expectations. For example, the children are encouraged to use the role-play area ‘bank’ to save their change from

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Early years provision is good

‘shopping’.  Teaching assistants are used very effectively to support the needs of identified children. As a result, disadvantaged children and those who have special educational needs and/or disabilities make as much progress as others.  The school’s records indicate that the proportion of children reaching a good level of development is likely to be well above the national average this year and stronger than the outcomes for the previous two years. This is because staff are using their observations and assessments more precisely to meet the needs of individuals. However, they are not evaluating the impact of their work on groups, such as boys, to ensure that it is securing rapid progress for all.  The children are keen to learn and eager to participate in the broad range of activities. They work with good levels of concentration and listen well to staff and each other.  Children demonstrate exceptionally positive behaviour and high levels of self-control, cooperation and

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Early years provision is good

respect for others. This shows that they feel safe. They learn to respect diversity, for example through celebrating Diwali.  The children are well prepared socially, emotionally and in their learning to start Year 1.  Parents speak highly of the early years team. The team is well regarded by, and shares its expertise with, schools across the local authority and local initial teacher training providers.

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School details

Unique reference number 113416 Local authority Plymouth Inspection number 10011154

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School details

This inspection was carried out under section 8 of the Education Act 2005. The inspection was also deemed a section 5 inspection under the same Act.

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School details

Type of school Primary School category Voluntary controlled Age range of pupils 4–11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 420 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Catherine Smith Headteacher Steve Cleave Telephone number 01752 771539 Website www.compton-cofe-primary.org Email address scleave@compton.plymouth.sch.uk Date of previous inspection 11–12 January 2011

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Information about this school

 The school is larger than most primary schools.  The proportion of pupils eligible for support from the pupil premium is well below average. The pupil premium is additional government funding provided for pupils who are known to be eligible for free school meals or who are looked after by the local authority.  The proportion of pupils from minority ethnic backgrounds is well below average, as is the number of pupils who speak English as an additional language.  The proportion of pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities is below average.  Children in the early years are taught full time in the Reception classes.  The school meets requirements on the publication of specified information on its website.  The school meets the government’s current floor standards, which are the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress.

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Information about this inspection

 The inspectors observed 25 lessons taught by 14 teachers. Some of the lessons were observed jointly with the headteacher, the headteacher designate and the deputy headteacher.  The inspectors looked extensively at pupils’ work in books, observed some support provided by teaching assistants and listened to small groups of pupils reading.  The inspectors held meetings with a group of pupils, senior and middle leaders, the headteacher, members of the governing body and a representative from the local authority. They also met informally with some parents.  The inspectors observed the school’s work. They examined a range of documents, including those relating to the school’s evaluation of its own performance, development planning and the safeguarding of pupils, and information on the monitoring and evaluation of pupils’ progress, attendance and behaviour.  The inspectors took account of 96 responses to Ofsted’s online Parent View survey and the many

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Information about this inspection

comments posted online by parents, together with questionnaires completed by 33 members of staff and 106 pupils.

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Inspection team

Sue Frater, lead inspector Her Majesty’s Inspector Claire Fortey Ofsted Inspector Simon Green Ofsted Inspector Adrian Massey Ofsted Inspector Roy Souter 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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