Summerville Primary School

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

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Ms Joanne Jordan Headteacher Summerville Primary School Summerville Road Salford Greater Manchester M6 7HB

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Short inspection of Summerville Primary School

Following my visit to the school on 31 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 October 2012.

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Short inspection of Summerville Primary School

You and your leadership team have maintained the good quality of education in the school since the last inspection. You have established a clear and empowering ethos to which members of the school community enthusiastically subscribe. The leadership team has a clear understanding of the community you serve and you have ensured that staff share your unswerving commitment to provide a high- quality education for your pupils. The school’s values are nurturing and supportive, and you complement this with a clear ‘no excuses’ culture that ensures that staff do not see barriers to learning as insurmountable.

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Short inspection of Summerville Primary School

You have taken effective action to address the areas for improvement that were identified at the last inspection. Most impressively, you have raised standards in writing by transforming the approach to teaching this important aspect of the school’s work. You and your team have created a culture in which pupils’ writing for a variety of purposes is valued and celebrated. The impact of the school’s actions to improve teaching is clearly demonstrated in the rapid progress pupils make with their writing, particularly throughout key stage 2. You have also done a great deal to improve the teaching of reading, and pupils who find it challenging to read with fluency are supported effectively through a range of support. Despite this, some pupils have not been inspired to develop a love of reading, and this has led to pupils making slower progress with their reading compared to other areas. Pupils’ progress across subjects is improving in key stage 1, although their attainment is below the

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Short inspection of Summerville Primary School

national average. The school’s work to promote pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural understanding is exemplary, as is its promotion of fundamental British values. Pupils of different ages talk with passion about the school’s ‘no outsiders’ initiative that provides a focal point for the school community to explore different aspects of discrimination. Pupils are supported to look after their physical and mental health and the school’s counselling service helps ensure that the well-being of pupils is of paramount importance.

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Short inspection of Summerville Primary School

Leaders and governors have a strong understanding of the school’s strengths and what needs to be improved. You have enlarged the leadership team with a number of recent external appointments. This has increased the school’s capacity to more rapidly improve identified aspects of its work. Rates of attendance have improved every year for the last three years, although the proportion of pupils who are regularly absent from school remains above average. Children, particularly those who start the school in the Nursery Year, are making much quicker progress in the early years as a result of effective teaching and the improvement of the learning environment. The proportion of children achieving a good level of development in the early years is still below the national average, although children make good progress from low starting points.

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Short inspection of Summerville Primary School

The leadership team have secured improvements to the quality of teaching across the school. Teaching is particularly effective for low- and middle-ability pupils. There is clear evidence that you have started to raise teachers’ expectations of what the most able pupils are capable of achieving. Teaching in the foundation subjects helps pupils to further develop their reading and writing skills. Pupils’ progress in these subjects is not carefully tracked by leaders.

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Short inspection of Summerville Primary School

Your commitment to safeguarding contributes strongly to pupils’ sense of well- being. All members of staff receive regular safeguarding training and leaders ensure that staff have a thorough understanding of aspects of safeguarding that are particularly prevalent in the local area. Staff are vigilant and sensitive to signs of abuse and neglect. Record-keeping is precise and staff communicate concerns promptly. As a result, nothing is left to chance and leaders are tenacious in pursuit of the best outcomes for children. Your decision to employ a social worker at the school has further enhanced safeguarding arrangements.

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Short inspection of Summerville Primary School

The school supports pupils to keep themselves safe very effectively. Year 6 pupils benefit from participating in ‘crucial crew’ workshops that are run by a variety of agencies, including the emergency services, to increase awareness of risk. The school’s approach to keeping pupils safe online is particularly innovative. A number of pupils act as e-cadets and promote important messages about e-safety through assemblies and poster campaigns.

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Inspection findings

 Children arrive at the school with levels of development that are below those typical for their age. They make good progress over their time in school and leave the school having reached standards that are above the national average in writing, mathematics, science, and English, grammar, punctuation and spelling (EGPS).  Disadvantaged pupils make rapid progress. The school’s success in raising the achievement of disadvantaged pupils has been acknowledged nationally. Disadvantaged pupils make fast progress partly because the school’s spending of its pupil premium funding carefully addresses the barriers to achievement identified by staff at the school.  Pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities also make faster progress than the national average for all pupils.  Pupils make exceptionally fast progress across key stage 2. In recent years, children have not made as rapid progress in the early years and key stage 1,

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Inspection findings

although this is now changing and children are making faster progress from their relative starting points.  The most able pupils make the slowest progress in the school. This is particularly evident in key stage 1, with very few pupils exceeding national expectations in any subject. Leaders are addressing this issue and teachers now have higher expectations of the most able pupils. They are also starting to set them more challenging work.  Leaders have developed the early years provision significantly in recent years. Children play and learn cooperatively and they quickly become engrossed in different activities. Leaders have improved the outdoor provision, and the new facilities, such as the workshop, are very popular with the children. Staff involve parents in their children’s learning in a number of ways, such as weekly ‘stay and play’ sessions.  Teaching has continued to improve since the last inspection. Teachers take part

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Inspection findings

in a range of training opportunities to improve their practice and they are set individual targets that focus sharply on improving areas of the school’s performance that leaders have identified as requiring development.  Governors provide valuable support to school leaders. The skills and experience of governors are well matched to their areas of responsibility. They receive regular safeguarding training and support the school to great effect in this area. Governors have a clear and balanced understanding of the school’s effectiveness and they hold leaders to account for all aspects of the school’s performance.  Teachers have a very positive view of working at the school. They appreciate the high importance that is given to their own professional development and they feel well supported by colleagues and leaders. One teacher, for example, referred to the school community as her ‘Summerville family’. Responses to the pupil

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Inspection findings

questionnaire were also very positive, with the overwhelming majority agreeing that they enjoy learning at the school.  Pupils behave very well in lessons and during social times. Leaders have recently developed a provision for pupils who find it difficult to cope in all of their usual lessons. Pupils benefit from high levels of personalised support in the ‘Nest’ and make good progress.

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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

 an even greater focus is placed upon raising achievement in the early years and key stage 1  the most able pupils are consistently challenged in their learning throughout the school  members of staff promote a love of reading among pupils  pupils’ progress in the foundation subjects is carefully tracked.

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

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Information about the inspection

 The inspector made brief visits to lessons and observed teaching and learning in different subjects throughout the school.  Meetings took place with you, your deputy headteacher, members of staff, members of the governing body, a representative from the local authority and groups of pupils.  Informal discussions were held with pupils to gather their views on behaviour and learning.  The inspector scrutinised the work in pupils’ books.  The inspector examined a range of supporting documentation, such as the school’s self-evaluation and development plan.  The inspector took into account 18 responses to the staff questionnaire and 12 responses to the pupil questionnaire. He also took into account comments made by parents in response to Ofsted’s online questionnaire, Parent View.

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