Stanton Primary School

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

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Mrs Carla Wright Headteacher Stanton Primary School Woodland Road Stanton Burton-on-Trent Staffordshire DE15 9TJ

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Short inspection of Stanton Primary School

Following my visit to the school on 24 January 2017, 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 February 2013.

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Short inspection of Stanton Primary School

The leadership team has maintained the good quality of education in the school since the last inspection. Since taking up your position last April, you have worked well with other staff to continue to improve the school.

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Short inspection of Stanton Primary School

Your evaluation of how well the school is doing is accurate. This is because you know every pupil well. The staff are supporting you well and together you are ensuring that this is a happy and welcoming school. Parents who I spoke to and those who completed the Parent View survey agree. They all said that they would have no hesitation in recommending the school to another parent. Parents appreciate and like the fact that this is a small school, where all pupils are treated as individuals. Governors know the school well. They take their roles seriously and provide school leaders with a high level of support.

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Short inspection of Stanton Primary School

You have ensured that staff understand the importance of the school’s policy of keeping ‘plates spinning’. This means that you are developing the school further, while not allowing previous improvements to drop. Parents feel that they now receive good communication from the school, an area that they felt was previously less strong. They also say that you are always happy to talk to them and they feel confident that you would respond to any concerns that they might have.

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Short inspection of Stanton Primary School

You have made sure that the expectations for behaviour around the school are clear and consistent. Pupils behave well as they move around the school, work well with each other and in small groups. You have focused successfully on improving the teaching of mathematics since the previous inspection. Pupils now receive clearer guidance about what they are aiming to achieve and are developing their skills and confidence well. This has resulted in them making good progress across all year groups.

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Short inspection of Stanton Primary School

The large majority of pupils are making good progress from their different starting points. The progress made by pupils in key stage 2 compares favourably with similar schools. The attainment of pupils at the end of the Reception Year, the Year 1 phonics check and Year 2 national tests is continuing to improve, following a dip in 2015. You were careful to analyse the reasons for this and are clear about the improvements made. You understand that a few of the most able pupils are still not achieving as well as they might and know that the progress made by pupils in science is a focus for the school.

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Short inspection of Stanton Primary School

You have carried out thorough checks to ensure that staff are suitably qualified and experienced. You have updated the safeguarding policy recently. Staff receive regular training on how to identify and respond to any concerns that they might have. They understand the school’s procedures well and the small size of the school, coupled with its friendly atmosphere, means that pupils are known by all staff. This contributes to pupils saying that they feel safe and are not worried about bullying. Parents appreciate this aspect of the school.

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Short inspection of Stanton Primary School

The governing body have received training to update their understanding of this aspect of their role and have ensured that a governor has responsibility for safeguarding. Some systems to manage safeguarding information are not organised well enough. Although all the necessary information is in place and requirements are met, you sometimes found it difficult to locate documents as quickly as you would like.

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Inspection findings

 The outcomes of the 2016 national key stage 2 tests demonstrate that pupils made good progress in English and mathematics. Current pupils are also making good progress.  The school has developed strong systems for checking the progress made by pupils across all year groups. Detailed assessments help to identify any gaps in pupils’ understanding and are used to plan learning in lessons to close these gaps.  You have ensured that checks on pupils’ previous learning are regular and effective. The organisation of groups of pupils in classrooms enables teaching assistants to make a strong contribution to learning.  Regular and accurate assessment helps you to understand how well pupils are doing. The pupils I spoke to said that teaching is often interesting and helps them to stay focused on their work.  Pupils are regularly organised into groups in order to provide additional support, help, or challenge. Teaching assistants have clear instructions on how they can

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Inspection findings

help pupils to catch up if they have fallen behind.  Pupils receive regular feedback about their work, in line with the school’s policy. You have ensured that the systems used are clear and consistent across different classes.  Expectations for behaviour are high. Pupils respond well to the friendly atmosphere of the school and get on well with each other.  You have an accurate understanding of the school’s strengths and areas that require further development. You are aware that more pupils, especially in key stage 2, need to work at a greater depth and achieve higher levels of attainment.  The teaching of science needs further improvement. You understand that not enough time is given to teaching science and the assessment of science is currently not as regular or thorough as it could be.  In most year groups the attendance of pupils is above average. In previous years a few pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities have not attended

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Inspection findings

regularly. There were particular circumstances that caused this and currently this group of pupils have above average attendance.

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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

 a higher proportion of pupils achieve greater depth in their learning, especially in key stage 2  the provision for science and the quality of assessment for this subject are strengthened so that the achievement of pupils improves further  leadership documentation for safeguarding is organised more systematically, so that information is easier for leaders to find and check.

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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 Derbyshire. This letter will be published on the Ofsted website.

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Information about the inspection

 progress made by pupils in Key Stage 2, especially for those who might be expected to attain greater depth in their learning  progress that pupils are making in mathematics and the improvements made since the previous inspection  the attendance and exclusions of pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities  effectiveness of your safeguarding procedures and the culture of the school. I met with you, the local authority’s school improvement partner and governors to review your evaluation of the school’s effectiveness. I accompanied you when we looked at learning in classrooms across the school. We evaluated a range of work in pupils’ books and matched this to the school’s records of progress made by pupils. I spoke to a group of pupils to gain their views about the school and I heard two pupils read. I looked at your attendance figures and records of behaviour. I considered the 27 responses on Parent View and spoke to some

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Information about the inspection

parents at the start of the school day. I checked the effectiveness of your policies and procedures for safeguarding, including information kept about the staff employed at the school.

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