Wynndale Primary School

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

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Mrs Jayne Gibbons Headteacher Wynndale Primary School Wynndale Drive Mansfield Nottinghamshire NG18 3NY

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Short inspection of Wynndale Primary School

Following my visit to the school on 6 October 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 October 2011.

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Short inspection of Wynndale Primary School

The leadership team has maintained the good quality of education in the school since the last inspection. As a local leader in education who has also supported other schools in the county to improve, you are highly respected. You have sustained a united team of staff who work together in effective ways for the benefit of all pupils. All those who responded to Ofsted’s online staff questionnaire believed that the school was an aspirational one and that expectations for outcomes, and pupils’ behaviour, are high. They believe strongly that you lead and manage them well, giving them a clear idea of the aims of the school and the approaches they must take in their work.

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Short inspection of Wynndale Primary School

You also have the strong support of parents. A very large majority of those who responded to Parent View gave very positive responses to all aspects of the school, believing that your staff teach their children well and that, as a result, they make good progress. As one parent explained, ‘I am happy to send my child every day, safe in the knowledge that he is enjoying school. He is happy; being taught engaging, varied lessons which will enable him to achieve his full potential.’

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Short inspection of Wynndale Primary School

You have correctly judged your school as good and improving. The school’s self- evaluation document is a detailed and considered one that describes the school’s strengths. The school development plan sets out the actions to adjust the things you, your staff and governors have identified to need further improvement. This document is fit for purpose and addresses the correct priorities. While giving all necessary emphasis to ensuring that pupils make good progress in English and mathematics, you have ensured that the curriculum does not become narrowed. Pupils receive ample learning across the width of subjects in the national curriculum, particularly in the arts. This has resulted in the school gaining a number of prestigious awards, such as the Gold Arts mark and the Arts Ambassador School award, along with the International Schools Award. Pupils I met during my visit told me that, in addition to their lessons, they greatly enjoy the wide variety of clubs and

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Short inspection of Wynndale Primary School

activities that you and your staff provide for them. These include art, football, film making, Irish dancing, world games, gardening, and a school choir.

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Short inspection of Wynndale Primary School

You have addressed well almost all of the areas for improvement identified at the last inspection. At the last inspection, inspectors asked you to develop pupils’ understanding of cultural diversity in Britain. Following this, you invited the local authority to your school to conduct an audit of your curriculum and, as a result, you adjusted this effectively. Pupils now have a good understanding of the different beliefs and cultures in our country. They are reflective and respectful towards others, proudly making artwork for the school hall which challenges stereotypes and negative attitudes to minorities with messages such as, ‘it’s ok for a boy to be a ballet dancer’, ‘it’s ok to love the same gender’ and ‘it’s ok for your family to speak a different language’.

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Short inspection of Wynndale Primary School

Pupils now get better opportunities to work independently and I saw many examples of this during my visit. Learning also moves on at a good and appropriate pace. Pupils explained that teachers expected them to work quickly and complete a considerable amount of work in a lesson. Mathematics books that I looked at during my visit also show that pupils are industrious, completing good amounts of work with pride, and in a neat and careful manner. In addition, most pupils are given work that challenges them. Those who need to catch up are given good levels of effective support so that they improve their confidence and skills. However, when the most able pupils write, teachers do not consistently challenge them sufficiently. Too often, many of these pupils receive work that is very similar, or identical, to that given to other pupils. As a result, not enough of the most able pupils learn as quickly as they should and therefore reach higher than the standards expected for

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Short inspection of Wynndale Primary School

Children enter the school in the Reception Year with skills broadly in line with those typically found in children of the same age, except in reading, where around seven in 10 children are below this level. Approximately half are below this level in writing. By the time that they enter Year 1, a slightly higher proportion than the national average achieves a good level of development. Over time, attainment at the end of key stage 1 has been broadly in line with the national average, but is improving. The proportion of pupils achieving the standards expected this year is above the national average, though a smaller number of pupils than is found nationally achieve the higher standards. Progress is also good across the school. While in writing progress is in the middle 25% of all schools nationally, in mathematics it is in the upper 40% and for reading in the top 25%. Pupils overall make less progress

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Short inspection of Wynndale Primary School

in writing than in other subjects because, while teaching remains good overall, teachers do not give pupils sufficient opportunities for extended writing. Although pupils are given opportunities to write in different styles and for different purposes across the curriculum, they do not have regular occasions when they can practise their skills at writing longer pieces of work.

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Short inspection of Wynndale Primary School

Because of good overall teaching, however, pupils leave the school with overall levels of attainment that are above those found nationally. In both 2014 and 2015, pupils left the school with skills approximately one term ahead of other pupils nationally. This year, the proportions making both the expected and the higher than expected standard were above the national average.

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Short inspection of Wynndale Primary School

All your staff receive regular and thorough training in safeguarding, and you ensure that new staff are given an effective induction in this area when they begin. As a result, staff are very clear about the different forms of abuse, and fully understand their responsibility to report to you any concerns they have about a pupil, and how to do this. You have ensured that all safeguarding arrangements are fit for purpose, and records are detailed and of high quality. You make brisk referrals to external agencies, including social care, whenever this is required. Pupils say that they feel very safe in school. While one parent who responded to Parent View believed that staff did not deal with bullying effectively, I found no evidence for this. Pupils I met were very keen to explain that there is very little bullying or name-calling at Wynndale, because everyone gets on well. On the rare occasions when it does occur, they told me that adults at your school deal with it

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Short inspection of Wynndale Primary School

quickly and properly. They said that they trusted your staff very much, and could easily approach them if they were concerned about an issue.

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Inspection findings

 Governors challenge you and senior leaders to ensure that all pupils are making good or better progress. They are able to do this because you have given them highly detailed reports that set out the improvements that different groups of pupils in different year groups are making.  Middle leaders have a clear understanding of the strengths of their subjects and monitor their subjects effectively, passing on valuable information about teaching and pupils’ outcomes to you and to the governors.  In addition, middle leaders ensure that those pupils who are disadvantaged receive additional support through the pupil premium. Published information shows that the differences in the attainment of disadvantaged pupils and others nationally are diminishing over time, apart from in mathematics.  Workbooks from these pupils that I examined during my visit show that disadvantaged pupils are making strong progress overall, and are attaining well

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Inspection findings

in all subjects, including in mathematics. They are able to calculate sums fluently, reason effectively and solve the problems that they are given. Disadvantaged pupils are also learning to write creatively with flair. For example, one Year 6 pupil had written, ‘The dark moon glistening down as it glares down on earth, spreading misery everywhere. Three cackles dancing to the cauldron in the pouring rain.’  Middle leaders also check that their colleagues are giving the most able disadvantaged pupils appropriate and challenging help so that they reach the higher standards for their ages.  You have ensured that your school is a bright and attractive place for pupils to learn. Classrooms are orderly learning environments where pupils listen respectfully to teachers and complete their work diligently.  You ensure that teachers ask children good questions that make them think. For example, in the Reception Year, when children were making a necklace using

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Inspection findings

coloured pasta, staff were asking them, ‘is this one longer or shorter?’ and ‘can you count on to make five more?’  Pupils enjoy coming to school to learn. Pupils I met explained to me that this was because their lessons are interesting, and because teachers make them fun. They told me how they are encouraged to persist if they find work difficult, trying to solve it on their own first before asking for help from adults. As a result, pupils become independent learners who are self-motivated, and, in line with the school’s motto, take pride in their achievements.  Attendance is above the national average. You work well with the very small number of families whose children do not attend as regularly, to ensure that the absence of these pupils reduces quickly.  The large number of pupils’ workbooks I examined from different year groups convincingly showed that progress is good overall in both English and

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Inspection findings

mathematics. However, it is less brisk in writing because teachers do not give pupils regular chances to write longer pieces of work. In addition, the most able pupils do not make rapid enough progress in their writing, because teachers do not consistently expect them to achieve the standards of which they are capable.  Pupils’ work shows that their progress in other subjects, such as history, is good. From an early age, pupils develop a good understanding of the sequences of important historical events. For instance, pupils in Year 3 studied how better trains succeeded Richard Trevithick’s locomotive in 1804, until the invention of George Stephenson’s Rocket in 1829. Teachers asked pupils searching questions, such as ‘why do you think trains changed over time’?, which helped pupils to understand how new inventions were superior to earlier versions.  Teachers bring learning to life by giving pupils opportunities to, for example,

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Inspection findings

visit the local Holocaust Centre, so that pupils can understand the experience of Jewish children and their parents during the second world war.  Teachers teach reading effectively and ensure that pupils develop an early love of books. Pupils I heard read during my visit explained to me how much they enjoyed books. They made good attempts to read aloud words they found difficult, and were able to describe and explain well what they were reading.  You and your staff teach pupils about a range of risks to their safety. For example, classrooms have a ‘keeping safe’ wall display that tells pupils about the risks of fire, along with seasonal advice about how to keep safe in the summer sun, or when the evenings become dark in winter. Pupils have also written a code of conduct to help them keep safe when online, and know that they must not give their details to other people unless they know them personally.

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Inspection findings

 You are keen for as many pupils as possible to make decisions. For example, all pupils take part in ‘pupil voice’ sessions, working alongside others of different ages to discuss different issues. Pupils explained how this had resulted in, for instance, a school tuck shop that sells healthy snacks.  The school meets requirements on the publication of specified information on its website.

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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

 pupils’ progress in writing improves by ensuring that teachers give pupils regular opportunities to write at greater length  the most able pupils are given greater challenge in their writing so that a higher proportion of these pupils achieve beyond the expectations for their age.

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Next steps for the school

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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Information about the inspection

My inspection focused on a number of key lines of enquiry. These were whether:  the areas for improvement identified at the last inspection had been addressed effectively  pupils in cohorts other than those included in published information were making good progress in English and mathematics  differences in attainment were diminishing for disadvantaged pupils  pupils are making good progress, and achieving well, in other areas of the curriculum, such as history  the quality of leadership remains effective  staff are doing all they can to ensure that pupils remain safe.

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Information about the inspection

During the inspection I met with you, representatives of the governing body and the subject leaders for English and mathematics, and the coordinator for pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities. We visited classes in all key stages to observe teaching and learning. I looked at pupils’ work across the school. I observed pupils’ behaviour in lessons and met with groups of them at breaktime. I considered the views of 32 parents posted on Ofsted’s online survey, Parent View, alongside the school’s most recent questionnaire. I read a range of documents, including the school’s self-evaluation, your school development plan and information on outcomes for pupils currently in the school. I visited the breakfast club, which is maintained by the governing body, to check that pupils were safe. I studied information related to attendance and examined safeguarding records and policies. I examined the school’s website to check that it meets requirements on the

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Information about the inspection

publication of specified information. I looked at the range of views expressed by staff, through Ofsted’s questionnaire.

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