The Manor CofE VC Primary School

The Manor CofE VC Primary School Ruskin Avenue, Melksham, Wiltshire SN12 7NG

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Inadequate

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Inadequate

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Personal development, behaviour and welfare Requires improvement

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Overall effectiveness at previous inspection Good

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

 Strategies to improve teaching and learning have not had sufficient impact. Leaders at all levels have failed to halt the decline in pupils’ achievement.  Pupils’ outcomes are inadequate. Too few pupils meet or exceed expected standards in reading, writing and mathematics.  The trust and local governing board have been too slow to address widespread weaknesses in the school. They have been too accepting that leaders have the capacity to turn the school’s weaknesses around.  Teaching is inadequate and does not meet pupils’ needs. Too often, teachers’ expectations are too low; they do not provide work that is sufficiently matched to pupils’ needs.  Teaching does not provide adequate challenge, particularly for middle-attaining and the most able pupils.  Teachers’ assessment practices are weak. They do not consistently plan work that builds on what pupils know, can do and understand.  Frequent staff changes and absence have

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

limited leaders’ capacity to improve the school.  Pupils’ behaviour in lessons is not good enough. Some learning time is wasted; this limits the progress pupils make.  The needs of pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities are not taken into account sufficiently when planning learning.  Staff changes and weak assessment practices have restricted children’s progress in the early years. Over time, provision in the early years has not prepared pupils well enough for Year 1.  Disadvantaged pupils underachieve. Some pupils do not attend regularly enough, and this impacts on the progress they make.  Rates of exclusion are high. Systems in place to manage challenging behaviour are inconsistent.

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

 Teaching in Year 6 is filling gaps in pupils’ learning, so these pupils are catching up.  Pupils feel safe and well supported at school.  As a result of leaders’ intervention and support, attendance has improved to average overall.

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Full report

In accordance with sections 44(1) and 13(3) of the Education Act 2005, Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector is of the opinion that this school requires special measures because it is failing to give its pupils an acceptable standard of education and the persons responsible for leading, managing or governing the school are not demonstrating the capacity to secure the necessary improvement in the school.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Rapidly improve the impact of leadership and management, including governance by: – ensuring that leaders at all levels tackle inadequate teaching and eradicate underachievement – developing the roles and responsibilities of middle leaders so that they fully contribute to ensuring that no groups of pupils underachieve – making sure leaders evaluate the quality of teaching and learning accurately to bring about swift improvement in pupils’ progress, particularly for those eligible for additional funding – sharpening the focus on raising standards across all subjects quickly, including in the early years – ensuring that the trust provides effective challenge and support to bring about rapid improvement in pupils’ outcomes, including those in the early years.  Rapidly improve the quality of teaching, learning and assessment by: – insisting that teachers use accurate assessments to provide work that is closely

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

matched to their pupils’ needs – ensuring that teachers assess pupils effectively during lessons so that teaching is adapted promptly to pupils’ needs and holds their attention to the task – improving the quality of the teaching of reading, writing and mathematics so that pupils’ residual underachievement is eradicated and pupils make strong progress from their different starting points – providing a curriculum that stretches and challenges pupils, particularly for middle- attaining and the most able pupils.  Improve the personal development, behaviour and welfare of pupils by: – reducing exclusions so that they are below national averages – further improving attendance so that persistent absence is minimised, particularly for disadvantaged pupils – enabling pupils to become determined learners and show resilience in their work – consistently applying the behaviour policy to eradicate low-level disruption in

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

lessons – improving the leadership systems to support the inclusion of pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities, so that behaviour plans for individuals are fit for purpose and systems to support pupils who attend alternative provision are strengthened. An external review of governance should be undertaken in order to assess how this aspect of leadership and management may be improved. An external review of the school’s use of the pupil premium funding should be undertaken in order to assess how this aspect of leadership and management may be improved.

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Inadequate

 Leadership has been ineffective. Weaknesses at this school are widespread. Leaders have been too accepting of pupils’ poor performance over an extended period. Their intervention has not halted entrenched underachievement at the school. The school is failing to provide an adequate education for its pupils.  Weak leadership of teaching is hampering improvement. While some teachers are trialling adaptations of the school’s agreed teaching methods, and some progress is evident in these classes, in other classes, weak assessment practices and poorly planned teaching impedes pupils’ progress. Leaders have not tackled this quickly enough. Consequently, their impact on improving teaching and raising pupils’ achievement is too limited.  The Academy Trust of Melksham (ATOM) has not acted quickly enough to support school improvement in the Manor Primary School. External support has been ineffective in improving the quality of teaching and raising pupils’ outcomes. Not all planned

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Inadequate

support has taken place because ATOM staff have not been available. This has hindered the effectiveness of external support for this school. As a result, inadequate teaching remains in a range of year groups and subjects and pupils’ progress is hampered.  The school’s internal development plan and additional improvement plan do not precisely address the weaknesses in the school. Success criteria are not precise and timely outcomes have not been set. These weaknesses limit governors’ ability to hold leaders to account and measure improvement successfully.  Until recently, leadership capacity was too limited to the headteacher. The trust has been slow to organise the recruitment of additional leaders, restricting the school’s capacity for improvement. Frequent changes in staffing and absence over the previous 18 months have also stalled the school’s improvement journey.  Leaders’ checks on teaching and learning are not bringing about improvement quickly

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Inadequate

enough. Leaders undertake a wide range of monitoring exercises to check on teaching, learning and assessment. However, checks do not focus sufficiently on tracking the progress that groups of pupils are making, nor do they take into account pupils’ prior attainment. As a result, teachers do not consistently make the necessary improvements to their practice and, as a direct consequence, pupils’ underachievement continues.  Leaders do not ensure that teachers routinely tackle low-level disruption in lessons. Pupils’ off-task behaviour is too readily accepted and this slows pupils’ progress over time.  Middle leaders are beginning to have a positive impact on assessment practice across the school. Day by day, middle leaders are providing increasing support for teachers in their phase teams. They accurately identify key aspects in whole-school teaching and learning that require urgent attention. However, middle leaders’ current impact on

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Inadequate

raising pupils’ achievement is too limited to turn the school’s widespread weaknesses around.  Leaders ensure that whole-school curriculum themes are completed by pupils. However, leaders’ monitoring has failed to identify pupils’ weak performance across the curriculum. As a result, activities planned are not challenging enough. Pupils are not prepared well enough for the next stage in their education.  Leaders’ management of additional funding for disadvantaged pupils has been ineffective. Work in books confirms that disadvantaged pupils are not making the progress they should. Often, work is unfinished and pupils’ limited exposure to challenging work results in too few previously middle- and high-attaining pupils exceeding the standards expected for their age.  Leaders have ensured that a wide range of extra-curricular clubs take place each week. The sport premium funding has enabled greater pupil participation in a wide range of

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Inadequate

sporting activities. Pupils enjoy the additional opportunities on offer.  Leadership of special educational needs and/or disabilities is not good enough. Additional funding is not used effectively to ensure that pupils have the resources they need to support their progress in lessons. The impact of additional interventions for these pupils is too inconsistent. Leaders have not ensured that these pupils get fair access to learning in some classes. This is because teaching for some pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities is poorly planned and too often fails to meet their needs.

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Governance of the school

 Members of the local governing board understand that the school’s performance has declined. However, the governing body has been ineffective in ensuring that pupils at the school receive a good standard of education.  Increasingly, governors better understand the progress the school is making towards its improvement targets. However, governors have been ineffective in holding the leaders to account for making the required improvements.  The trust has provided the school with additional support for the last two years. However, governors do not feel consistently informed about the impact of the support from the trust. They raise valid concerns because some planned support has not taken place.  Intervention by the trust has not led to sufficient improvement. The trust has failed to hold leaders to account for the decline in pupils’ performance.

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Safeguarding

 The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.  Staff training is up to date and in line with current legislation. Staff refer on any concerns appropriately and know that it is their duty to follow up any actions taken by safeguarding leaders.  School documentation confirms that when concerns are raised, action is swift. Leaders are tenacious in ensuring that external agencies fulfil their duties. Detailed records of concerns are kept in school. Safeguarding records meet requirements.  There have been occasions where leaders have not been aware of guidance set out for pupils who attend school part time. Inspectors are satisfied that these issues have been addressed appropriately and are now resolved.  Recruitment checks to ascertain staff’s suitability to work with children meet requirements. The school has responded appropriately to local authority safeguarding audits and actions have been addressed.

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Safeguarding

 The vast majority of parents support the view that their children are kept safe in school and the majority of those who responded to Parent View believe their child is well looked after at school. A small minority of parents feel that their children’s safety and well-being is compromised and leaders’ communication to parents is weak.

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Inadequate

 Current teaching is not eradicating the legacy of pupils’ underachievement. Many teachers demonstrate weak subject knowledge. As a result, teaching is too often poorly planned and fails to meet the needs of pupils well enough.  Teaching staff do not check pupils’ understanding or use assessment well to plan work that accurately meets pupils’ needs. Consequently, pupils still have considerable gaps in their knowledge, understanding and skills. This hampers the progress pupils make in meeting expected standards.  All too often, teachers provide learning activities that are too easy and do not deepen pupils’ understanding. They do not plan work that builds on what pupils already know, can do and understand and tasks lack appropriate challenge. Consequently, pupils’ progress slows and they do not achieve the standard of work of which they are capable. This has an adverse effect on pupils’ progress over time.

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Inadequate

 Teachers’ expectations are too low. Sometimes, pupils sit quietly but do not apply themselves well to the tasks in hand, and this goes unnoticed by teachers. As a result, learning time is not maximised. This is accepted in some classes as the norm.  The teaching of reading, writing and mathematics varies considerably from class to class. In some classes, work is left unfinished. In other classes, when pupils finish tasks early, additional activities are not routinely provided or do not build successfully on prior learning. This restricts the progress that pupils make.  While teaching in Year 6 is more effective, this does not compensate for the weak teaching pupils have received in previous years. As a result, too few pupils achieve the standards expected for their age, particularly the disadvantaged pupils and the most able.

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Personal development and welfare

 The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development requires improvement.  Teaching does not support pupils well enough to show determination in their learning and make good progress. As a result, pupils are not well prepared for their next stage of education.  When work does not demand enough of them, pupils get bored or lose concentration. Pupils do not take sufficient pride in their work. Poorly presented work is too readily accepted as the norm. This is not routinely picked up by teachers and has a negative impact on pupils’ learning and progress in some classes. Leaders’ expectations of teachers and pupils are too low in this respect.  Pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities benefit from positive care and support, but they too are not well prepared for the next stage of their education because their academic progress is too limited.  Pupils understand the different types of bullying. They say that adults sort things out

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Personal development and welfare

when pupils fall out with one another and have confidence that any issues will be followed up.  Pupils told inspectors that they feel safe and know to talk to adults if they have concerns. Supervision at lunchtime is adequate.  The breakfast club provides a safe and positive start for pupils, so that they are ready to learn.

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Behaviour

 The behaviour of pupils requires improvement.  Pupils understand the school rules and when and why sanctions are used. Leaders’ close monitoring of behaviour is resulting in a decrease in incidents across the school day and at lunchtimes. However, despite improvement, pupils’ behaviour is not consistently good.  Pupils’ attendance overall is broadly in line with the national average. However, some disadvantaged pupils are regularly absent from school. Reasons for persistent absence are tracked carefully and external agencies used to minimise risk. Leaders have ensured that any pupils who attend alternative providers are safe. However, leaders’ record-keeping in this regard requires further improvement.  Over a period of three years, exclusions have been consistently higher than the national averages. There have been no permanent exclusions this year. However, exclusion rates remain far too high. Individual behaviour plans for pupils who present

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Behaviour

challenging behaviour are not sufficiently detailed. As a result, their implementation is inconsistent and the progress that these pupils make is too limited.

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Outcomes for pupils Inadequate

 Pupils’ performance in the school has been consistently low. As a result, the school is assessed as ‘coasting’ by the Department of Education. The school has consistently failed to ensure that pupils achieve their potential over a three-year period. Over time, pupils’ progress across key stage 2 has been poor.  In 2016, less than one fifth of pupils reached the expected standard in reading, writing and mathematics at the end of key stage 2. This figure places the school in the bottom 5% of schools in the country. This represented poor progress from pupils’ different starting points. Outcomes in reading, mathematics, and spelling, punctuation and grammar were also significantly lower than that those seen for pupils with similar starting points nationally. Pupils do not achieve the standards of work of which they are capable. This is a key reason why the school is failing to provide an acceptable standard of education for its pupils.

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Outcomes for pupils Inadequate

 Pupils do not make sufficient progress from one key stage to the next. Work seen in books confirms that pupils’ achievement remains too low and too few pupils have the skills and knowledge to meet expected standards for their age. Middle-attaining pupils and the most able make insufficient progress in writing and mathematics. Those pupils who arrived with low starting points are not catching up quickly enough. Underachievement prevails.  Disadvantaged pupils do not make enough progress in writing and mathematics. Their underachievement is widespread as a result of weak teaching that does not meet pupils’ needs. Consequently, too few pupils meet the expected standards.  Pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities make inconsistent progress. In a number of classes, pupils find it hard to attempt the work because it is not matched to their needs, or they are not equipped with the resources they need to

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Outcomes for pupils Inadequate

learn successfully. This limits pupils’ progress over time.  The most able pupils do not receive work that helps them deepen their understanding. As a result, too few pupils have the skills and knowledge to exceed the expected standards.  The proportion of pupils meeting the required standard for the phonics screening check in Year 1 has been similar to the national average for the last two years. This has enabled more pupils to read with fluency. However, pupils’ application of phonics in their writing is inconsistent.  In key stage 1, outcomes in 2016 were broadly average in reading but below average in mathematics and writing. In previous years, the proportion of pupils meeting the standards expected nationally was consistently low in reading, writing and mathematics.

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Early years provision Inadequate

 Leadership of the early years is weak. Leaders’ actions are not bringing about desired outcomes in the early years. Considerable staff changes have affected the improvement journey in the early years. As a result, too few children currently have the skills and knowledge needed to reach the expected standards for their age.  Assessment practice in the early years has not been good enough. Senior leaders challenged teachers’ slow approach to making assessments of children’s learning and development when children start school. Until very recently, leaders have been unable to effectively monitor the impact of teaching and ensure the parity of provision across the two classrooms. As a result, variability remains.  Adults’ assessments are not used consistently to plan work based on children’s needs. This is because, all too often, children’s achievements are missed because adults do not take sufficient account of children’s experimentations and learning when working

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Early years provision Inadequate

independently.  Considerable fragility in the school’s assessment information in 2016 resulted in many children being ill-prepared for Year 1 this year. Published outcomes show that the proportions of children reaching a good level of development have been in line with national expectations for the last two years. However, many children started Year 1 without the levels of concentration, independence and learning required to access the Year 1 curriculum. As a result, the validity of teacher assessment in the early years cannot be substantiated. Considerable intervention has been needed so that current Year 1 pupils can access the appropriate curriculum.  Leaders’ work to accelerate children’s learning skills and knowledge is not yet fully effective. This is because activities planned do not consistently meet children’s needs. As a result, less than a quarter of children currently have the skills and knowledge to

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Early years provision Inadequate

reach a good level of development, to equip them well for Year 1. Less than a third have the skills and knowledge to meet the early learning goal in number and a smaller proportion in reading and writing.  Clear routines are being established now that consistent staffing is in place. Children are beginning to build good relationships with their peers and adults alike. They are keen to share their achievements and communicate with each other. However, planned activities do not consistently meet children’s needs and, consequently, their learning falters. This hinders their progress overall.  The breadth of the curriculum is increasing. However, at present, the curriculum is necessarily having to be tailored to support children to make up for the ground they lost in basic skills in the autumn term.

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School details

This inspection was carried out under section 8 of the Education Act 2005. The inspection was also deemed a section 5 inspection under the same Act.

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School details

Email address head@themanor.wilts.sch.uk

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School details

Date of previous inspection 12 April 2013

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Information about this school

 The Manor CofE VC Primary School is deemed a coasting school by the Department of Education. It has failed to ensure that pupils achieve their potential over a three-year period.  The school is part of the Academy Trust of Melksham (ATOM). The trust was formed in April 2015 and its work is overseen by a board of trustees. The trust is responsible for seven primary schools and one secondary school.  An additional assistant headteacher, centrally appointed by ATOM, has been providing additional leadership support to the school since July 2016.  The school meets the government’s current floor standards, which set the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress in English and mathematics.  There has been considerable turnover in staffing in the last three years. A temporary deputy headteacher is currently in post.  The school does not meet requirements on the publication of specified information

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Information about this school

about the pupil premium funding on its website.  The school does not comply with Department for Education guidance on what academies should publish about the trust’s scheme of delegation.  The proportion of pupils for whom the pupil premium provides support is above the national average.  The proportion of pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities is above the national average.  There is a breakfast club and an after-school club which are managed by the school.  Children in Reception attend full time.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors observed pupils’ learning across the school. Some learning was observed jointly with the headteacher.  Inspectors looked at pupils’ books to establish the quality of their current work and their progress over time. They listened to pupils read.  Inspectors scrutinised a variety of school documents to ascertain the school’s evaluation of its performance. Records relating to behaviour, safety, attendance and safeguarding were also reviewed.  Meetings were held with the headteacher, deputy headteacher, phase leaders and subject leaders. Meetings also took place with a representative of the trust and with three governors.  A telephone conversation took place with the head of school improvement from the trust. A further telephone conversation took place with the school’s independent school improvement adviser.  Inspectors observed pupils’ behaviour during their learning and at lunchtimes and

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Information about this inspection

breaktimes.  Inspectors met with some pupils to seek their views of the school and discuss how they feel about their learning and development.  An inspector visited the school’s before- and after-school provision.  Inspectors considered 23 responses to the online survey, Parent View. Inspectors also considered comments provided in parents’ text messages and spoke to parents during the inspection. An inspector considered staff and pupils’ views during the inspection and reviewed the electronic surveys completed.

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Inspection team

Julie Carrington, lead inspector Her Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Sarah Mascall Ofsted Inspector guidance ‘Raising concerns and making a complaint about Ofsted’, which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.gov.uk/government/publications/complaints-about-ofsted . If you would like Ofsted to send you a copy of the guidance, please telephone 0300 123 4234, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk .

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Inspection team

In the report, ‘disadvantaged pupils’ refers to those pupils who attract government pupil premium funding: pupils claiming free school meals at any point in the last six years and pupils in care or who left care through adoption or another formal route. www.gov.uk/pupil-premium-information-for-schools-and- alternative-provision-settings .

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Inspection team

You can use Parent View to give Ofsted your opinion on your child’s school. Ofsted will use the information parents and carers provide when deciding which schools to inspect and when and as part of the inspection.

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Inspection team

You can also use Parent View to find out what other parents and carers think about schools in England. You can visit www.parentview.ofsted.gov.uk , or look for the link on the main Ofsted website: www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ofsted .

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Inspection team

achieve excellence in the care of children and young people, and in education and skills for learners of all ages. It regulates and inspects childcare and children’s social care, and inspects the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (Cafcass), schools, colleges, initial teacher training, further education and skills, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It assesses council children’s services, and inspects services for children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspection team

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Inspection team

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Inspection team

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Inspection team

T: 0300 123 4234 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/ofsted

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