Setting

Mr A Blackmore Headteacher Beechview School Guinions Road High Wycombe HP13 7NT

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Special measures monitoring inspection of Beechview School

Following my visit to your school, with Mark Goode HMI, on 21–22 June 2016, I write on behalf of Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Education, Children’s Services and Skills to confirm the inspection findings. Thank you for the help you gave during the inspection and for the time you made available to discuss the actions which have been taken since the school’s previous monitoring inspection.

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Special measures monitoring inspection of Beechview School

The inspection was the fourth monitoring inspection since the school again became subject to special measures following the inspection which took place in December 2014. The full list of the areas for improvement which were identified during that inspection is set out in the annex to this letter. The monitoring inspection report is attached.

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Special measures monitoring inspection of Beechview School

Having considered all the evidence I am of the opinion that at this time:

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Special measures monitoring inspection of Beechview School

The school is taking effective action towards the removal of special measures.

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Special measures monitoring inspection of Beechview School

The school may appoint newly qualified teachers before the next monitoring inspection.

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Special measures monitoring inspection of Beechview School

This letter and monitoring inspection report will be published on the Ofsted website. I am copying this letter and the monitoring inspection report to the Secretary of State, the chair of the interim executive board and the Director of Children’s Services for Buckinghamshire.

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Her Majesty’s Inspector

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

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place in December 2014

 Improve the quality of teaching so that it is at least good or better by ensuring that teachers: – provide tasks that take full account of pupils’ prior learning and have enough challenge for pupils of varying abilities – plan lessons which inspire pupils to learn as well as they can and make regular checks to assess accurately how well pupils are learning – give pupils opportunities to respond to advice given in marking and feedback.

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place in December 2014

 Accelerate pupils’ progress in reading, writing and mathematics by making sure that they: – have more opportunities to apply mathematical skills to problem-solving activities – read more regularly to adults – have regular opportunities to write at length and put into practice the skills they are developing – always record and present their work accurately and with care.

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place in December 2014

 Improve the effectiveness of leadership and management, including governance, by: – including clear measures of success in plans, so that all leaders can more readily check the rate of improvement in teaching and learning – making sure that procedures for managing teachers’ performance are fully effective and staff are held to account for their impact on pupils’ achievement – ensuring that the checks that all leaders make on the quality of teaching take account of the progress pupils are making – broadening and deepening the curriculum so that it fully meets the needs of pupils and develops their spiritual, moral, social and cultural understanding – monitoring and evaluating the impact of pupil premium funding on raising pupils’ attainment ensuring that governors hold leaders to account for the performance of the school.

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place in December 2014

An external review of governance should be undertaken in order to assess how this aspect of leadership and management may be improved.

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place in December 2014

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

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Evidence

Her Majesty’s Inspectors (HMI) observed several lessons in each of the classes in the school, one jointly with the headteacher. They heard pupils read, talked with pupils and looked at their work. HMI met with the headteacher, deputy headteacher, members of staff and a representative of Buckinghamshire Learning Trust, which provides services to the school on behalf of the local authority. They also talked with the chair of the interim executive board and the headteacher of the school which will lead the multi-academy trust that Beechview is due to join. They evaluated key documentation, including minutes of meetings, information about pupils’ academic progress, and school plans. Close account was taken of parents’ opinions from the small number of responses on Parent View, Ofsted’s online questionnaire.

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Context

Since the previous monitoring inspection, a new headteacher has been appointed and taken up post. The school is scheduled to convert to academy status, within a small multi-academy trust, led by a local grammar school, from September 2016. Some classes continue to be taught by staff on temporary contracts.

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Outcomes for pupils

The improvements in pupils’ progress noted at the last monitoring visit in English and mathematics have been sustained. Across the school, pupils have made clear progress this year. However, the longer-term legacy of underachievement means that standards remain lower than they should be. In mathematics, pupils in Year 4 and above attain below the standards expected for their age. Pupils’ writing in Years 4 to 6 also does not meet national expectations. Pupils continue to make some basic grammatical errors, though this is notably less common than it was. Handwriting and presentation continue to show improvement, but are not yet as good as they should be in Years 4 to 6. Pupils’ writing nevertheless shows imagination and fitness for its purpose.

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Outcomes for pupils

The good start made by pupils in Year 3 has continued. These pupils are achieving well. The headteacher has helpfully increased the number of wall displays of pupils’ work in all year groups to show value to this work. The Year 3 work on display, and in the pupils’ books, is particularly impressive.

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Outcomes for pupils

Staff have continued to work to improve pupils’ reading. More such work is still needed. The pupils who read to HMI did so with confidence. There is some inconsistency about how often pupils change their books, are heard reading, and take their books home. Girls tend to show more interest in reading than do some boys.

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Outcomes for pupils

Pupils supported by the additional pupil premium funding make less good progress and do less well than the others in all year groups in the school. The same applies to pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities.

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Outcomes for pupils

Essentially, pupils do as well as the teaching and the curriculum allows. Because the school’s provision is improving, pupils’ learning is clearly better than it was a year ago. But there remain some limits. In a Year 4 science lesson, pupils worked on researching animal habitats. This was interesting to them; they worked independently and showed clear enjoyment. But teaching also lacked some challenge. The task allowed the pupils to learn some useful things, but it did not give them scope to take their research and learning further still, when they were ready for this. The constrained task ensured some learning but also limited it.

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Outcomes for pupils

The new headteacher is rightly very determined to ensure that pupils enjoy a wide- ranging curriculum. The opportunities for pupils in music, art and physical education have been sustained. In some cases, these lessons are provided by staff from the linked grammar school. The headteacher has quickly improved the specialist teaching areas for these subjects. There is rich evidence of positive learning in these subjects, though this is not yet fully coherently managed and the school does not yet analyse it sufficiently. Since the last monitoring visit, the headteacher has very determinedly added to pupils’ experiences. They all now have opportunities to visit the recently opened ‘secret garden’, and get closer to nature. Pupils routinely observe, measure and grow many crops including courgettes, herbs, celery, lettuce, radishes, beans and broccoli. They love this. These crops are increasingly used in

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Outcomes for pupils

newly revamped cooking lessons in the school’s excellent specialist room. All of these activities give pupils good opportunities to work independently, and use practical mathematical problem-solving skills, such as counting and measuring using different scales. Pupils cook for school events. One parent commented very happily that the children ‘want to cook dinner!’

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment

Teaching is improving. Teachers are clear with pupils about what is expected of them. They often explain things well. The content of lessons is appealing. Relationships between staff and pupils are very constructive. In some cases, teachers question pupils well to develop their thinking. However, teaching does not always ensure that pupils learn quickly enough. In an English lesson, for example, pupils were interested in lively teaching about Roald Dahl. They enjoyed active discussions and interesting role plays but these lacked very clear learning purposes. There was very little extra support or challenge for those who needed it. Teaching, therefore, motivated and engaged pupils but this did not lead to as much learning as it could have done. Teachers assess pupils regularly. They are increasing their confidence in doing this and in using assessments to support their planning. But there remains more to do.

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment

The work set for pupils in lessons continues to be not always challenging enough. The needed improvements here are helped by the school’s adoption, along with other local schools, of the same assessment system. This group of local schools, including the nearby infant school, is beginning to work helpfully together to moderate and check their assessments.

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Personal development, behaviour and welfare

Pupils behave well. They are polite, friendly and helpful. They are kind to each other, feel trusted by the staff, and consequently enjoy taking responsibility in different ways. They continue to feel safe and very well looked after. The improvements noted at the last inspection are embedded: pupils are happy, full of life and, often, laughter and joy. It is lovely to be among them.

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Personal development, behaviour and welfare

In lessons, pupils behave well. They concentrate properly and get on with things even when not directly supervised. In a music lesson, pupils concentrated hard on meeting some informal individualised or group targets, which they had often set themselves, for their basic recorder playing. In a Year 6 mathematics lesson, pupils did well when using the mathematical knowledge they have to solve real-life problems.

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Personal development, behaviour and welfare

Outside, pupils are kind to each other and play together positively. Better equipment, such as a new long skipping rope, and the proactive involvement of staff, are helpful to this. Where there are minor behaviour problems, pupils are clear that staff sort them out quickly. Older pupils, who remember the school’s past, speak positively about how much things have improved. The pastoral support leader, and the welfare and well-being leader, working with other staff, are adept at helping pupils who need it, in different circumstances. This can range from sorting out any playground falling-out to more serious matters such as referrals to social services and other external agencies. Year 6 pupils are helpfully prepared for transfer to Year 7.

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Effectiveness of leadership and management

The new headteacher has really hit the ground running. He is learning himself, while showing leadership. He has quickly won the backing and respect of staff and pupils and is readily available to all. He has already taken some necessary and decisive decisions about staffing for September, which is now almost entirely settled. The school community appreciates this and the very positive changes recently made in the school environment. Staff members say they feel valued and that ‘we get a thank you’. All these changes put the school in a better place to sustain and increase its improvement. The school still has some problems but it also has many emerging strengths. It is in a much better place than it was quite recently. The headteacher has quickly put in place a purposeful action plan for the rest of this school year. However, this plan does not identify what benefits or better outcomes should come to pupils, and it is only for the short term. The headteacher recognises

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Effectiveness of leadership and management

that this is one of a number of management systems which, while they exist in the school, need to be much more effective and far-reaching, to improve more radically the outcomes for pupils. These systems, which need considerable development, include:

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Effectiveness of leadership and management

 long-term school improvement planning  detailed school self-evaluation  assessments made of pupils and the way that these are used by staff to raise expectations  the management of provision, and analysis of outcomes, for pupils entitled to the support of the pupil premium  middle leadership, including the leadership of all subjects  having a clearly structured, progressive curriculum plan across all subjects.

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Effectiveness of leadership and management

The deputy headteacher models effective teaching well. His is a positive influence in the school. His leadership role, however, is not yet large enough. The headteacher has also rightly identified the need to increase the time given to the management of provision for pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities, as well as those entitled to the support of pupil premium funding. A new staff appointment, for these purposes, has been made for September. Much as pupils enjoy and benefit from the wide range of curriculum opportunities, these are not yet planned into a progressive, fully coherent whole.

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Effectiveness of leadership and management

The interim executive board continues to improve and sharpen its work. Its members have been very adept at ensuring that the move towards academy status is well managed and fair. They continue to ask suitably challenging questions of the school’s leaders.

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External support

The local authority, through the Buckinghamshire Learning Trust, continues to support the school well. It continues to support and advise the interim executive board and to monitor the school very usefully.

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