Setting

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

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Mrs Rachael Peacock North Wingfield Primary and Nursery School 80 Chesterfield Road North Wingfield Chesterfield Derbyshire S42 5LE

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Primary and Nursery School

Following my visit to your school on 18 November 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 third monitoring inspection since the school was judged to require improvement following the section 5 inspection in February 2015. It was carried out under section 8 of the Education Act 2005.

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Primary and Nursery School

Senior leaders and governors are 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 inspection, meetings were held with the headteacher, the chair and vice- chair of the governing body and a representative of the local authority to discuss the actions taken since the last inspection. You and I visited all classes, speaking to pupils about their learning and looking in their books for evidence of progress. Leaders’ evaluation of the school’s performance and plans for improvement were evaluated and I looked at the school’s information on the progress and attainment of pupils.

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Context

Since the last monitoring visit in July 2016, three new teachers have joined the school and one teacher is currently absent through long-term illness. Two governors have resigned and a consultation has been completed to reconstitute the governing body with a smaller number of members.

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Main findings

Your enthusiasm, drive and determination are still in evidence and this continues to have a very positive effect on improving the school. You have responded promptly to the outcomes of the last monitoring visit and have not shied away from making difficult decisions to ensure that the pace of change has been maintained. There are increasing signs that the changes you are making are enabling pupils to make better progress than was the case previously. Although teaching, learning and assessment are improving, there are still pockets of inconsistency which you are addressing. Your evaluation of the school’s performance appears broadly accurate and this is ensuring that the plans for school improvement are well prioritised and having a positive impact.

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Main findings

You have introduced much higher expectations of the presentation of pupils’ work and what they are expected to achieve in each lesson. Senior and subject leaders support these initiatives by paying particular attention to them when they observe lessons and check the work in pupils’ books. In the majority of classes, this is helping pupils to have a clearer understanding of what they are learning and how they will know when they have been successful. Not all teachers are yet accurate enough about identifying the next steps in pupils’ learning. This means that pupils’ knowledge and understanding are not yet as well developed nor embedded as they should be in all year groups.

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Main findings

The systems for checking how well pupils are learning are much more effective than they were. This is allowing you and your leaders to hold colleagues to account more effectively. Where pupils underperform, this is identified promptly and the appropriate support put in place. Leaders monitor the impact of this support to ensure that it is effective. They keep detailed information on the progress and attainment of pupils, breaking this down into particular groups that have been at risk of underperformance in the past, such as disadvantaged pupils. Half-termly report cards to parents and regular meetings between each pupil and their teacher are helping to keep everyone focused on improving pupils’ outcomes.

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Main findings

Published information on pupils’ outcomes for 2016 shows that by the end of key stage 2 pupils achieved well in writing, having made good progress over time and attaining well as a result. Pupils’ progress and attainment in reading and mathematics were less strong. Outcomes at the end of key stage 1, and the Year 1 phonics screening check, were well below the national average. Leaders have identified that 2016 outcomes reflect past inconsistent quality of teaching and inaccurate, often overgenerous, teachers’ assessments of pupils’ outcomes. Leaders have taken appropriate steps to ensure that teachers’ assessments are now challenged and moderated, with additional scrutiny and support from local authority officers to ensure their accuracy. Current internal pupils’ progress tracking information shows that the majority of pupils are making progress in reading, writing and mathematics and this is supported by work seen in their books.

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Main findings

Following the last monitoring visit, governance has shown signs of improvement. Governors are clearer about their roles and responsibilities and the commitment expected from them. A skills audit has identified areas of strength and weakness within the governing body and there is a much more targeted approach to identifying and selecting new governors.

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Main findings

Increasingly effective procedures are allowing governors to check on the accuracy of what they are told by school leaders. Governors visit the school and meet with senior and subject leaders on a regular basis. Records show that governors use these visits to ask challenging questions of the school’s leadership team and to identify additional training needs for the governing body. Governors are also more active in seeking the views of pupils and their parents through interviews and a more obvious presence at events such as parent consultation evenings. As a result, they have a much more accurate picture of what is happening in the school.

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External support

The local authority has continued to provide significant levels of support to the school. Governors receive training and support that have raised their understanding of their role, while enabling them to offer greater challenge and support to school leaders. Local authority officers also help leaders to monitor the quality of teaching, learning and assessment in classrooms. They check the accuracy of the leaders’ judgements by looking at the quality of pupils’ work to ensure that there is progress, particularly in reading, writing and mathematics.

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External support

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

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