South View Junior School

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

p.1

Mrs Sheila Pape Executive Headteacher South View Junior School Shooters Way Basingstoke Hampshire RG21 5LL

p.1

Short inspection of South View Junior School

Following my visit to the school on 21 March 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 December 2012.

p.1

Short inspection of South View Junior School

Leaders and governors have maintained the good quality of education in the school since the last inspection. You have successfully created an inclusive and ambitious culture. Your determination to provide the best for all pupils and their families is shared by staff and governors.

p.1

Short inspection of South View Junior School

Pupils are confident and self-assured. They told me they enjoy school because of the ‘fun learning’ and because, ‘everyone is nice here’. Pupils were keen to show me their work and explain the good progress they have made. The well-planned curriculum and the many extra-curricular activities, including residential trips, effectively support their spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. Pupils are enthusiastic about the responsibilities they can apply for, including the role of play leader and member of the school council. They are proud of the awards they have won, especially the certificates, medals and trophies for attendance, good effort or thinking of others.

p.1

Short inspection of South View Junior School

The pastoral provision is highly effective. Pupils and parents value the parent support adviser and emotional literacy support assistants, many commenting on the high-quality support they have received. A pupil told me that adults at the school, ‘always make time to listen’ and help to sort out any worries.

p.1

Short inspection of South View Junior School

Your high expectations for behaviour have successfully created a positive and purposeful atmosphere around the school. When pupils arrive in Year 3 they are well supported to develop their behaviour for learning. I saw enthusiastic and well- behaved learners in every classroom and around the school who were rightly proud of their work and the good progress they are making.

p.1

Short inspection of South View Junior School

You have maintained the strengths of the school identified in the previous inspection, although you are working to further improve pupils’ outcomes in reading, especially those of disadvantaged pupils. You made good use of the local authority’s specialist support and successfully addressed the recommendations for improvement. For example, in 2016 proportionally more Year 6 pupils attained at least the expected level in mathematics than pupils did nationally. You have also created effective systems so that teachers plan lessons jointly and support each other. This has helped to further raise the quality of teaching across the school.

p.2

Short inspection of South View Junior School

You have a good knowledge of the school and its priorities. The high-quality support from the local authority has effectively helped you refine your process for tracking pupils’ progress. You and your team carefully adapt your actions based on this information. You are rightly working to reduce the barriers to learning experienced by many of your disadvantaged pupils so that more can achieve the higher standards.

p.2

Short inspection of South View Junior School

In the past year governors and leaders have taken on extra responsibility and the school is now part of a federation. School leaders and governors have met these extra demands successfully. You have increased the leadership capacity of the school through ongoing training and support. The governing body has made good use of the move to a federation to carefully match governors’ skills to the needs of the school. Governors challenge school leaders and scrutinise spending decisions. However, they recognise they will be able to undertake these responsibilities more effectively if the written evaluations provided by leaders more closely measure the impact of leaders’ work against pupils’ progress.

p.2

Short inspection of South View Junior School

School leaders and governors have ensured that all safeguarding arrangements are fit for purpose, and records are detailed and of a high quality. Leaders make sure that, when recruiting staff, all appropriate checks are completed.

p.2

Short inspection of South View Junior School

You are passionate about keeping pupils safe. You ensure that all adults are trained so they fully understand their responsibilities and how to carry them out effectively. Your tenacity when tracking the actions and support provided for pupils means that their needs are met. Your ongoing work with external safeguarding agencies means that you make effective use of them when appropriate.

p.2

Short inspection of South View Junior School

Pupils like school and say they feel safe. They like the way there is always an adult to talk to if needed. They told me there is hardly any bullying, but if there is teachers sort it out quickly and effectively. Parents are also very happy with the way staff are accessible and provide practical support for any concern.

p.2

Inspection findings

 During this inspection, I considered how effectively leaders are improving pupils’ progress in reading. This is a school improvement priority. Leaders have used the information from their close analysis of pupils’ 2016 test papers to improve the teaching of reading. Teachers plan jointly and moderate pupils’ work to ensure consistency. Pupils enjoy the daily guided reading and the wide variety of high- quality texts. Pupils were keen to discuss the books they were reading and thoughtfully explained to me why they were good books. A group of pupils in the resource base provision relished the investigation into the use of powerful verbs, in the book they were reading. Pupils read to me with fluency and displayed good understanding. Pupils appreciate the well-resourced library and enjoy its engaging interactive displays. The school’s own performance information and pupils’ books show that they are now making good progress from their different

p.3

Inspection findings

starting points. You are rightly continuing to develop this work.  I looked at the steps you have taken to improve pupils’ progress and attainment in mathematics. Leaders worked with the local authority’s advisers effectively to establish a consistent approach to teaching mathematics throughout the school. Your team are highly motivated and work closely together to continually improve and develop their teaching. They responded well to the high-quality professional development leaders provided which has improved their skills and helped to improve outcomes for pupils. Pupils enjoy learning new skills and using them to solve mathematical problems. They are highly motivated to attempt the mastery challenges that are provided for all abilities. Pupils are making good progress, although you recognise that more need to reach the higher levels of attainment.  In 2016, pupils performed at national levels in writing, although attainment in

p.3

Inspection findings

English grammar, punctuation and spelling was lower than the national average for some groups of pupils. Leaders have addressed this throughout the school. Most pupils are making good progress, although Year 3 pupils had a slower start than other year groups. Pupils’ books show that they are making good progress. For example, Year 5 pupils explained to me how they could change the point of view of their writing to meet different requirements of purpose, intended audience or text type. Year 6 pupils explained the grammatical choices they had made and how these altered the meaning of their writing. Pupils carefully self- edit and correct their writing and aspects of grammar, punctuation and spelling. However, not all pupils learn successfully from this activity and some repeat errors. Embedding and developing this work remains a school focus.  I examined how leaders, including governors, ensure that additional funding for

p.3

Inspection findings

disadvantaged pupils is being used effectively. Leaders have a good understanding of the barriers to learning faced by disadvantaged pupils and have a wide range of support in place. Pupils and parents speak highly of the pastoral support available and make extensive use of it. Leaders quickly identify when external specialists are required and use them well. You are aware that some teachers are more successful in overcoming barriers to learning for these pupils than other teachers. You are working to improve the consistency of this work across the school. Disadvantaged pupils make good progress from their starting points and, by the time they leave the school, they achieve in line with other pupils nationally in writing and mathematics. The strategies you have in place for reading, for example intervention groups, are working well. Leaders track each pupil’s progress carefully and can explain why each strategy has been selected.

p.3

Inspection findings

However, the success of each different approach is not evaluated well enough. This means governors are not able to fully hold leaders to account for the use of this funding. You are aware of the need to sharpen this evaluation so you can make this work even more effective.

p.4

Next steps for the school

Leaders and those responsible for governance should ensure that they:

p.4

Next steps for the school

 further reduce the barriers to learning for disadvantaged pupils by embedding a consistent approach across the school  continue to improve pupils’ outcomes in reading, especially the outcomes of disadvantaged pupils  sharpen the strategic evaluation of their work. I am copying this letter to the chair of the governing body, the regional schools commissioner and the director of children’s services for Hampshire. This letter will be published on the Ofsted website.

p.4

Information about the inspection

I met with you, other members of school staff, members of the governing body and your leadership learning partner from the local authority. I also held a telephone call with the primary behaviour support service. Together, you and I planned the key lines of enquiry for the inspection. We jointly visited 14 lessons, including three intervention lessons and a nurture group, to observe pupils’ learning, speak with pupils and look in their books. I also spoke with pupils at break and lunchtime. I spoke with parents at the start of the school day and considered 11 responses to Ofsted’s online questionnaire, Parent View, including eight written contributions by parents. I spoke with staff and took account of 20 responses to the online staff questionnaire. I looked at a range of documentation including information about the work of governors, performance management and safeguarding. I also scrutinised and discussed the school’s tracking of pupils’ progress and attainment, and the

p.4

Information about the inspection

school’s self-evaluation and plans for improvement.

p.4