Leck St Peter's Church of England Primary School

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

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Mr Kerry Stafford-Roberts Executive Headteacher Leck St Peter’s Church of England Primary School Leck Carnforth Lancashire LA6 2JD

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Short inspection of Leck St Peter’s Church of England Primary School

Following my visit to the school on 24 May 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 September 2013.

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Short inspection of Leck St Peter’s Church of England Primary School

The leadership team has maintained the good quality of education in the school since the last inspection.

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Short inspection of Leck St Peter’s Church of England Primary School

As executive headteacher of two schools, you use the shared arrangements to benefit both. Joint work between the two schools enables teachers to check their assessments of pupils and contributes well to improvement planning. Your high levels of professionalism and organisation contribute to the smooth running of the school when you are not on site. Staff feel that they have increased their confidence and skills as a result of this arrangement.

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Short inspection of Leck St Peter’s Church of England Primary School

You and your governors have a strong vision for the school as a unique place within the rural community which it serves. You have taken effective action to tackle the areas for improvement from the last inspection. Teachers now use time in lessons more effectively so that little learning time is lost. Where this is not the case, teachers do not use pupils’ responses to move learning on. For example, when a group of older children were feeding back to the class, no links were made to the younger pupils’ work. As a result, younger pupils lost concentration.

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Short inspection of Leck St Peter’s Church of England Primary School

Teachers challenge the most able pupils in reading and, as a result, more pupils are working at the higher standards. You recognise that more could be done to increase the proportion of pupils reaching the higher standards in mathematics. The mathematics subject leader has already begun work on this. However, the impact of this is yet to be seen. You are not complacent and recognise that while standards of attainment are good, more can be achieved. You acknowledge that the most able pupils are not always challenged to reach their potential and that expectations of what these pupils can achieve should be raised. The most able pupils are not always given enough opportunities to work through problems for themselves.

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Short inspection of Leck St Peter’s Church of England Primary School

You have taken effective steps to ensure that there has been no disruption to learning following the retirement of your deputy headteacher. Staff are supported well in this caring, happy environment where everyone is valued. Parents too speak warmly of the family feel, where all children are known and their individual needs are catered for.

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Short inspection of Leck St Peter’s Church of England Primary School

Leaders make good use of the sport premium, which has resulted in pupils’ greater participation in sport and in their adoption of healthy lifestyles. There is a wide range of extra sporting activities which children take part in after school. This is the case for all pupils.

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Short inspection of Leck St Peter’s Church of England Primary School

Pupils are very well behaved. They are always polite and well mannered. Tolerance and respect for others are clear in pupils’ work and in their behaviour. Spiritual, moral, social, and cultural understanding are developed well through your church faith. Pupils are proud of their school and of their work. They talked excitedly about the opportunities they are given, including opportunities for visits to bring their learning to life. Pupils value the range of after-school activities on offer, including golf, cricket and movie club. Because of the well-planned and broad curriculum, pupils know how to keep themselves safe, including when they work and play online. Pupils value the care and support they receive, with one telling me that: ‘Teachers make learning fun and they help us and show us what to do.’ The curriculum ensures that pupils have a good understanding of British values and other faiths and cultures and are prepared well for life in modern Britain.

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Short inspection of Leck St Peter’s Church of England Primary School

All staff know individual pupils well and so any issues are quickly identified and addressed. Governors ensure that all policies and procedures are in place, including checks on teachers and governors. Training for staff is comprehensive and up to date. Consequently, all safeguarding arrangements are fit for purpose and records are detailed and of a high quality.

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Inspection findings

 Pupils make good progress from their starting points and achieve well across a range of subjects. The number of pupils in each year group varies from as few as one to as many as eight, so published information about pupils’ achievement varies greatly and is not comparable year on year.  A key line of enquiry for this inspection was about how well phonics is taught. All staff who teach phonics have good subject knowledge, which they use effectively. Pupils make rapid progress from the earliest stages and the majority of pupils are working at the standards expected for their age. Children in Reception are proud of their phonics skills and use these to read.  You have put new approaches in place to develop pupils’ spelling in Year 2 to Year 6. This is having a positive impact on pupils’ writing. However, teachers do not always expect the most able pupils to choose and use ambitious vocabulary. This limits progress towards the higher standards.

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Inspection findings

 Another area I looked at was about the actions taken to improve the progress of pupils so that more pupils reach the higher standards. Pupils make good progress in reading and the proportion of pupils working at the higher standards in reading is increasing. This is as a result of the clear structure to the teaching of phonics at key stage 1 and to the teaching of reading at key stage 2. Pupils read regularly and teachers check for understanding. Teachers ensure that the most able pupils look more deeply at their reading during reading comprehension lessons. As a result, pupils read fluently and with expression. Less-able pupils use their phonic strategies to help them when they struggle with a word. This does not disrupt their understanding and they are able to discuss characters and their feelings.  In mathematics, a clear focus on problem-solving is evident in lessons and in books. Teachers give pupils a wide range of problems of increasing difficulty and

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Inspection findings

teach pupils strategies to help them to solve these. Pupils investigate numbers and number patterns, including problems with missing numbers. However, this is not consistent across the school and there is little evidence of mathematical reasoning. As a result, while most pupils make good progress, few pupils are working at the higher standards in mathematics.  Teachers structure lessons for writing well. They ensure that grammar, punctuation and spelling are developed alongside the teaching of writing. Teachers make meaningful links to other areas of the curriculum where possible. Pupils make good progress in writing from their different starting points. Some pupils in Year 6 are beginning to write with flair. For example, one pupil wrote: ‘Rising in the East, the sun threw an array of colours over the hills.’ However, this high standard is not consistent across the school. There are opportunities for

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Inspection findings

pupils to practise their writing skills in some other areas of the curriculum. This is done most successfully in history at key stage 2 and following outdoor learning lessons at key stage 1. However, the opportunities to write in other areas of the curriculum are not consistent in different year groups. The quality of this writing is not as good as that seen when pupils write in English lessons. Teachers do not regularly correct grammar, punctuation and spelling errors and pupils do not write with the same degree of accuracy as they do in English work. As a result, few pupils are working at the higher standards.  I also looked at how well governors carry out their duties. Governance is highly effective. Governors are very ambitious for the school. They share the ambition of the leadership team to improve the school further. Governors receive high- quality information from all leaders about the work of the school and in particular

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Inspection findings

about pupils’ achievements. They appreciate the quality of this information.  Governors have a clear understanding of the strengths of the school and areas for further improvement. This is as a result of your clear plans for future development.  Governors constantly reflect on their own performance. As a result, they never stand still with their own development. They have a good understanding of their responsibilities and have taken steps to make sure that there are governors with the skills necessary to fulfil these duties. Governors use their wide range of skills to challenge leaders rigorously to ensure the very best outcomes for pupils.

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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 greater proportion of pupils reach the higher standards in mathematics and writing across the school by ensuring that: – teachers set ambitious targets based on previous assessments – teachers have consistently high expectations in lessons – pupils in all year groups are given opportunities to practise and apply their writing skills across the curriculum, particularly in science and geography – teachers have the same high expectations of grammar, punctuation and spelling in subjects other than English – pupils are given further opportunities to investigate numbers and explain their reasoning in mathematics.

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Next steps for the school

I am copying this letter to the chair of the governing body, the Director of Education for the diocese of Blackburn, the regional schools commissioner and the director of children’s services for Lancashire. This letter will be published on the Ofsted website.

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Information about the inspection

During this short inspection, I met with you, teachers and governors. I spoke with a representative of the local authority. I visited classes to observe learning and looked at work in pupils’ books. I met with pupils throughout the day and spoke with four parents in the playground before school. I considered the responses to the school’s own parent and pupil questionnaires. I heard several pupils read and observed pupils in the playground and in the dining hall.

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Information about the inspection

I conducted a detailed review of safeguarding, including checking on the school’s policies, procedures and record-keeping. I talked with you, other staff and governors about how the school ensures that children are kept safe. I also considered a range of other documentation, including school improvement planning and information about pupils’ progress and attainment.

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