Setting

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

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Ms Catherine Thornton Executive Headteacher Samuel Barlow Primary and Nursery School Church Road Clipstone Mansfield Nottinghamshire NG21 9DF

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Primary and Nursery School

Following my visit with Mandy Wilding, Ofsted Inspector, to your school on 24 June 2016, I write on behalf of Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Education, Children’s Services and Skills to report the inspection findings. Thank you for the help you gave me and for the time you made available to discuss the actions you are taking to improve the school since the most recent section 5 inspection.

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Primary and Nursery School

The visit was the second monitoring inspection since the school was judged to require improvement following the section 5 inspection in December 2014. It was carried out under section 8 of the Education Act 2005. At its section 5 inspection before the one that took place in December 2014, the school was also judged to require improvement.

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Primary and Nursery School

Senior leaders and governors are not taking effective action to tackle the areas requiring improvement identified at the last section 5 inspection in order to become a good school.

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Evidence

During the visit, meetings were held with you and the head of school, other school leaders, three representatives of the governing body, a group of pupils and a representative of the local authority. I considered a range of documentation, including the school improvement plan, the latest self-evaluation document and the collaborative plan devised to support the formal federation between Samuel Barlow Primary and Thrumpton Primary. I also reviewed your most recent information on pupils’ progress and attainment. We conducted a tour of the school together and visited all classes to see pupils and staff at work. An inspector spoke with several parents at the beginning of the school day.

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Context

Since I visited the school in May 2015, there have been significant changes in leadership. Following a period of absence, the headteacher resigned her post in February 2016. The assistant headteacher, who was the acting headteacher for a period of time, has also left the school. You were appointed as the executive headteacher in February 2016 and a full-time non-teaching head of school was appointed in May 2016 as part of a formal collaboration with Thrumpton Primary. There has been some absenteeism among staff and several resignations. Consequently, the school is dependent on a number of temporary or supply teachers at the present time. The governing body is actively pursuing conversion to academy status.

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Main findings

At the time of the last monitoring visit in April 2015, senior leaders and governors were judged to be taking effective action to tackle the areas for improvement following the section 5 inspection in December 2014. However, the subsequent period of turbulence at senior leadership level resulted in a significant period of inaction and stalling of progress.

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Main findings

Since your appointment, your strong partnership working with the head of school and other senior leaders has ensured a sharp and renewed direction for improvement. You and the head of school know the school well and are acutely aware of the challenges the school faces to become a good school by the time of the next section 5 inspection.

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Main findings

There is a legacy of underachievement across the school. Since your appointment, you have introduced an urgent programme to improve the quality of teaching and pupils’ achievement throughout the school. However, it is too soon to see the impact of this because changes are very recent.

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Main findings

A comprehensive programme of training and support is ensuring that teaching is becoming more consistently effective in promoting better learning for all groups of pupils. Teachers have higher expectations of what pupils can achieve and plan interesting learning activities. However, you know that teaching is not consistently good enough across the school to make up for the legacy of previous underachievement. Consequently, too many pupils are still not making the progress of which they are capable. Assessment is becoming more accurate through the use of standardised tests, moderation of pupils’ work and effective training for all staff. Consequently, many teachers are beginning to use assessment information more effectively to pitch work at the correct level for individuals and groups. Nonetheless, you know that there is more to do to ensure that assessment consistently informs teachers’ planning more

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Main findings

precisely, and identifies those pupils in need of extra support more quickly to address attainment gaps and accelerate progress.

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Main findings

Results from the national tests in 2015 were extremely poor and reached an all-time low. The proportion of pupils who met the expected standard in the 2015 Year 1 phonics check was exceptionally low. Standards fell in all subjects by the end of key stage 1 and standards in writing were significantly below average. Outcomes at the end of key stage 2 fell to below floor targets.

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Main findings

The school’s most recent tracking information shows that pupils’ progress continues to be uneven across the school. You have rightly identified that this is often due to the poor quality teaching of temporary or supply teachers. Consequently, you have ensured that arrangements are in place for all classes to have a permanent teacher in September 2016.

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Main findings

Other leaders in school are beginning to provide better support to senior leaders in driving up standards in teaching and learning. They are effectively monitoring the quality of teaching and pupils’ learning in their subjects or areas of responsibility. As a result, they understand much more precisely how teaching must improve to make the necessary rapid gains in pupils’ progress.

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Main findings

Governors are committed and know the school well. However, they know that they need to strengthen their monitoring arrangements to ensure that they can check on the school’s work more effectively and increase their level of challenge to senior leaders.

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Main findings

The school’s arrangements for safeguarding pupils continue to meet current requirements.

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Main findings

Pupils who met with inspectors reported that they enjoy coming to school and feel safe. In lessons where teaching is good, pupils cooperate well together and are beginning to demonstrate an improving attitude to learning. However, when lessons are not planned well enough to meet the needs of pupils, they quickly go off-task and the pace of learning slows.

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Main findings

Ofsted may carry out further visits and, where necessary, provide further support and challenge to the school until its next section 5 inspection.

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External support

The local authority is working closely with the school to build its capacity to move forward quickly. For example, the local authority has brokered effective support from Thrumpton Primary and has carried out a full review of teaching and learning. The local authority officer is providing high-quality support and monitoring the school on a regular basis.

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External support

I am copying this letter to the chair of the governing body, the regional schools commissioner and the director of children’s services for Nottinghamshire. This letter will be published on the Ofsted website.

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