Goldfinch Primary School

Eardley School Cunliffe Street, Streatham, London SW16 6DS

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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

 The school has not maintained a good standard of education since the previous inspection. Frequent changes to leadership and staff have resulted in the quality of teaching and achievement of groups across the school lacking consistency.  Lower attaining pupils and those who have special educational needs and/or disabilities make inadequate progress in most year groups. This is because teaching does not meet their needs. The progress disadvantaged pupils make in most year groups is weak.  Pupils express concerns about the lack of play and social times at school. Pupils in some year groups lack confidence when talking about their learning.  The quality of teaching, learning and assessment varies widely across the school. Teaching does not typically capture pupils’ interest or inspire them to do well.  Senior leaders have secured some recent improvements to attendance, but it remains below the national average. The attendance of

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

disadvantaged pupils is well below average.  Leaders’ understanding and judgements of children’s starting points and progress in the early years are inaccurate.  Governors do not hold leaders to account effectively for spending or for pupils’ outcomes.  Behaviour is inconsistent in classrooms and in the playground. In some year groups, low-level disruption in lessons is frequent.

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

 In 2016, the proportion of pupils achieving a good level of development at the end of the Reception Year was in line with the national average for the first time in three years.  Pupils are kept safe at school and parents agree that this is the case.  Year 6 pupils who left the school in 2016 made good progress in reading and writing.  The executive headteacher and head of school have an accurate view of the school’s strengths and weaknesses. Their actions have led to some improvements in key aspects of the school’s work.  In 2016, pupils in Year 2 made strong progress in reading, writing and mathematics.

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Full report

In accordance with section 44(1) 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?

 Improve the effectiveness of leadership and management by: – securing and sustaining effective leadership at all levels to improve teaching, learning and assessment, so that all groups of pupils across the school make at least good progress – ensuring that provision for pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities is effective across all year groups – ensuring that assessment information is accurate and is used to support teachers in identifying appropriate next steps for learners in reading, writing and mathematics – further improving attendance, so that it is at least in line with the national average, particularly for those pupils who are disadvantaged – ensuring that governors rigorously hold leaders to account for pupil premium funding spending, so that outcomes for disadvantaged pupils improve in all year groups – ensuring that actions are taken to increase the playtime and social time that pupils

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

are given.  Improve the quality of teaching, learning and assessment by ensuring that: – the good practice that leads to stronger progress for pupils in Years 5 and 6 is shared across other year groups – teachers use their knowledge of the progress pupils make, so that pupils, regardless of their year group, make good progress – teachers have higher expectations of what pupils can achieve, and that they meet the needs of the lowest attaining pupils and those who have special educational needs and/or disabilities – teachers provide tasks which interest and inspire pupils so that incidents of low- level disruption or unfocused behaviour become rare – teachers in all year groups implement all aspects of the school’s mathematics curriculum, including problem solving and reasoning – all staff responsible for teaching phonics have the necessary training and subject knowledge to help pupils make good progress and apply their phonics skills

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

confidently to reading and writing tasks.  Improve the early years provision by: – securing effective leadership to help teachers improve their skills, so that children are able to enjoy their learning and achieve well – ensuring that teachers in the Reception classes use the indoor and outdoor provision effectively to promote and support children’s learning across the curriculum – making sure that the information gathered about the progress children make from their varying starting points is accurate.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

An external review of the school’s use of the pupil premium should be undertaken in order to ascertain how this aspect of leadership and management may be improved.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

An external review of governance is recommended in order to ascertain how this aspect of leadership and management may be improved.

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Inadequate

 There has been a great deal of turbulence in leadership since the time of the previous inspection. School leaders and governors have not sustained a good quality of education for pupils. The majority of leaders in the school have been seconded from other schools by the local authority on a temporary basis. Leaders over time have been unable to secure consistent or sustainable improvements to teaching, learning and assessment. As a result, the quality of teaching has become inconsistent.  The seconded part-time executive headteacher and the head of school have taken action to improve aspects of the school’s work. They have ensured that safeguarding is effective. They have been successful in improving attendance and behaviour, with the help of a local authority consultant. They are accurate in the judgements they make about the quality of teaching and learning. They are rigorous in their performance

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Inadequate

management and in their approach to tackling inadequate teaching. The leadership of mathematics has recently been strengthened. Leaders provide good support to teachers who are new to the profession. The headteachers have set high expectations for pupils’ behaviour and for their achievements. However, not all teachers share these high expectations.  The impact of the leaders who have fixed short-term contracts is variable. Leaders have ensured that teachers have received good guidance to develop their teaching of writing. The impact of this is clear in pupils’ books. Leaders responsible for assessment have had little impact on school improvement. Assessment systems do not provide accurate information on how well pupils are doing to help teachers plan appropriate next steps in learning. Leaders and governors have failed to check that this information about pupils’ progress and attainment is accurate and reflective of the work in pupils’

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Inadequate

books. It is not. Information presented is inaccurate and gives an inflated picture of achievement.  The spending of pupil premium funding to support the achievement of disadvantaged pupils has had minimal impact on pupils’ progress, with the exception of Year 6 pupils, who benefit from good teaching. Upper key stage 2 teachers are working tirelessly to fill gaps in learning which have not been addressed earlier. Interventions and additional teaching sessions, aimed at helping disadvantaged pupils in Year 6 achieve good standards at the end of the year, are having an impact and are accelerating pupils’ progress. However, the teaching they have received over time has been inadequate. This means that they do not make the progress of which they are capable.  The funding for pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities is not managed effectively. Leadership of the provision for pupils who have special

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Inadequate

educational needs and/or disabilities is inadequate. Leaders do not ensure that pupils benefit from work that recognises or builds on their starting points. A new temporary special educational needs coordinator has been appointed to address this area of weakness until a permanent member of staff is recruited.  The physical education and sport premium funding is spent on employing sports coaches, to buy equipment and to increase after-school sports provision. Pupils benefit from and enjoy high-quality dance lessons provided by a dance teacher who works two days a week at the school.  Leaders have put plans in place to ensure that all areas of the curriculum are taught and that school trips are organised to enhance learning experiences. Leaders recognise that pupils’ awareness and understanding of British values are weak in some year groups. They also agree that the school is at the early stages of promoting pupils’

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Inadequate

spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. Pupils are not typically asked to work collaboratively and learning is rarely a social experience for most pupils. Pupils are very unhappy with the 10 minutes of playtime they are given each day. This limits their opportunities to play together and hampers their personal, social and emotional development. Pupils generally understand the difference between right and wrong and are aware of the sanctions placed on pupils who misbehave.  Most of the 16 parents who responded to the online questionnaire are happy with the school and would recommend it. Parents who spoke to inspectors were supportive of the school, but they also acknowledged that the school needs further improvement.  Newly qualified teachers may be appointed by the school.

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Governance of the school

 School records show that governors accept too readily the views of leaders about the effectiveness of the school. The questions they ask leaders are focused on clarifying operational aspects of the school’s work, rather than challenging leaders on the impact they are making.  Governors do not monitor the impact of the pupil premium funding effectively. They provide insufficient challenge to leaders. As a result, governors have a general impression that the funding is improving pupils’ attendance and outcomes, but are not aware of specific details.  Governors show no awareness that they should hold leaders to account for the spending of the physical education and sport premium funding.  Governors have worked effectively with the local authority to try to secure permanent leadership for the school.  Governors are committed to improving the school and are ambitious for its future. New, enthusiastic governors have recently been recruited. They acknowledge that

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Governance of the school

there was a ‘dip’ in the school’s effectiveness following the previous inspection. The governing body has been reconstituted since the previous inspection and a new chair took up post in 2016. They have committed to undertaking a skills audit and participating in appropriate training to ensure that they develop effective skills of governance.  Governors understand their duties with regard to the safeguarding of children. Two governors have worked very positively with leaders to ensure that safeguarding is effective.

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Safeguarding

 The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.  Robust systems are in place to record and monitor referrals relating to child protection issues.  Staff training on all aspects of safeguarding is up to date, and both governors and staff are fully aware of all their statutory responsibilities. This includes staff who are new to the school. The head of school has ensured that staff remain up to date with safeguarding information, for example by providing quizzes during staff meetings.  A safeguarding audit has been undertaken to identify further training needs. There are weekly briefings to ensure that all relevant staff are informed about any emerging issues with pupils who are vulnerable or at risk. Senior leaders ensure that staff understand and use procedures effectively.  Pupils and parents express confidence in the school’s ability to keep children safe.

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Inadequate

 Overall, the quality of teaching is inadequate because it is inconsistent and leads to variability in the progress that pupils make. Over half the teaching staff are temporary supply teachers or on short-term contracts. Pupils in some classes have had several different class teachers over the past year. This has had a negative impact on their progress, and their attitude towards and confidence in learning.  The teaching of phonics in the early years and in Year 1 is inadequate. Some support staff who are given responsibility for leading phonics groups have poor subject knowledge. These staff are often deployed to work with the less able pupils who are in need of the strongest teaching. As a result, the progress made by this group is inadequate. Adults are not effective in helping pupils to apply the sounds and letters they have learned to reading and writing.  The strongest teaching in the school is in upper key stage 2. In these year groups,

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Inadequate

most pupils are making progress in reading, writing and mathematics because skilled teaching meets their needs. Year 6 teachers work hard to address the gaps in pupils’ learning which have resulted from weak teaching in the past.  Teachers in Year 2 work well as a team and are creating a positive climate for learning in their classrooms. As a result, pupils’ outcomes are improving in this year group.  In the Reception classes, Year 1, Year 3 and Year 4, there are significant weaknesses in teaching, learning and assessment. Assessment information does not help teachers to pinpoint next steps in pupils’ learning. The less able pupils in English and mathematics are not set work that meets their needs. They struggle with tasks that are too difficult or get frustrated with uninspiring work that fails to capture their interest or help them make progress. As a result, progress overall for this group of pupils is

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Inadequate

inadequate.  Provision for pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities is inadequate. The support they receive fails to take account of what they know and can do; strategies used by staff to support pupils who have specific needs are not consistently effective. The support for pupils in upper key stage 2 results in better progress than elsewhere in the school. However, pupils’ specific needs are not always met because the process of identifying their needs has been slow as a result of inadequate leadership.  Teachers have made good use of the recent professional development and guidance about writing provided by leaders. As a result, there is consistency in the approach to teaching writing for a range of purposes and audiences. However, resources in place to support early letter formation and handwriting skills do not meet the needs of the youngest children, the less able or those who have special educational needs and/or

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Inadequate

disabilities.  Leaders have secured strong teaching of mathematics in upper key stage 2. Leaders have an accurate view of the areas for improvement within this subject. Leaders have identified that, in most year groups, pupils do not benefit from the complete mathematics curriculum. They have little opportunity to develop reasoning and problem-solving skills.  Teachers have ensured that pupils in Year 2 and Year 6 are confident readers who read widely at school and enjoy reading at home. The less able readers are keen to read, but are not consistent in their use of phonics skills when they have difficulty with a word. The most able readers use a range of strategies to help them read and understand the texts they enjoy.

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Personal development and welfare

 The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare requires improvement. Constant changes to staff have left pupils without a sense of stability or consistency in some year groups. They lack confidence or pride when talking about their learning or their achievements.  Pupils feel safe in school and parents agree that they are kept safe.  Although there have been recent improvements in attendance as a result of strategies put in place by leaders, attendance remains just below the 2016 national average. The attendance of disadvantaged pupils and disadvantaged boys remains well below average. The very high rate of persistent absence in 2016 has reduced significantly this year.

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Behaviour

 The behaviour of pupils requires improvement.  Parents and pupils report that behaviour has improved significantly over the past year. School records indicate that there has been a significant reduction in the incidence of poor and often aggressive behaviour. The internal facility for supporting pupils who have complex behavioural or social and emotional needs has resulted in the reduction in poor behaviour. Nevertheless, in some classes, low-level disruption is frequent.  A significant number of pupils told inspectors how unhappy they are with the limited amount of playtime and the restrictions on whom they can play with. Pupils are very keen to get out to play after the morning teaching sessions, which last for over two hours. As a result, pupils race to leave the building to make the most of their very short playtime, resulting in potentially hazardous behaviour.  The playground is generally supervised well. However, leaders acknowledged that

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Behaviour

there were some safety issues in the key stage 1 playground when too many bikes were used without a designated or ‘zoned’ area. Leaders addressed this swiftly during the inspection.

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Outcomes for pupils Inadequate

 The progress of pupils from different starting points is variable, with many pupils making inadequate progress over time. This is particularly the case for the less able pupils and those who have special educational needs and/or disabilities. Strong teaching in Year 6 has ensured that differences are diminishing between the progress and attainment of disadvantaged pupils and those of other pupils nationally. The progress that disadvantaged pupils make in reading, writing and mathematics in other year groups is variable.  The most able pupils, including those who are disadvantaged, make the same variable progress as their peers in school. Their progress is dependent on the quality and consistency of the teaching they receive. Even where teaching is at its strongest, the most able pupils do not make the progress in mathematics or writing of which they are capable.  In 2016, the proportion of pupils who met the expected standard in phonics was below

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Outcomes for pupils Inadequate

the national average. The proportion of pupils on track to achieve the expected standard this year is even lower.  The proportion of children who reached a good level of development at the end of the Reception Year in 2016 was in line with the national average for the first time in three years. However, the progress of the children in the current Reception classes is weak.  Year 6 pupils who left the school in 2016 achieved standards in reading, writing and mathematics which were just below the national average. The attainment of disadvantaged pupils was much weaker in all subjects. However, these pupils made strong progress across key stage 2 in reading and writing and average progress in mathematics. Disadvantaged pupils made progress in writing which was in line with the top 10% of all pupils nationally.  In 2016, Year 2 pupils made strong progress in all subjects.

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Early years provision Inadequate

 The early years provision is inadequate. Leadership of this phase is weak. Progress from various starting points is weak for all groups of children, particularly those who are disadvantaged. Funding to support the learning and progress of disadvantaged children has had little impact. Children are not well prepared for the demands of the Year 1 curriculum.  Leaders responsible for the early years provision have an inaccurate view of the progress children make. Leaders lack clarity in understanding past achievements in the early years in order to inform future provision. Leaders challenge teachers to improve their skills and direct teachers regarding timetables and use of the outdoor learning environment. Some of this challenge is overly harsh and negative and takes place when teachers are working with children. As a result, the culture and climate of learning in the Reception classes are not always positive.

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Early years provision Inadequate

 Staff in the Reception classes lack confidence. They frequently interrupt children’s activities or their thinking in order to comply with timetables that they have been instructed to follow by leaders. Teachers are not secure in their understanding of how to assess what children know and can do in order to provide for their next steps in learning. Progress in books is variable. ‘Learning journeys’ provide celebratory logs of activities undertaken, but they do not effectively chart the progress that children make, which is what leaders say they are designed to do.  Children are kept safe in the early years and parents are positive about the provision.  Teachers tend to prioritise learning inside the classroom. There is a sharp emphasis on early writing and number skills, but progress made by children in these areas of learning is weak overall.  The outdoor learning environment has been developed to ensure that all areas of

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Early years provision Inadequate

learning are represented. Teachers do not always stick to the school’s agreed principles of outdoor learning. Teachers have made efforts to ensure that activities and resources are interesting. For example, the dinosaur exhibition invites children to dig up dinosaur bones. Children engaged in this activity were unaware of what it was or what they were meant to be doing.  Children frequently lack focus during learning and lose interest. Sometimes they struggle to share resources and there are minor squabbles, which are often unnoticed by teachers.  Children in the Nursery class benefit from kind, supportive relationships with all adults, including the new supply teacher. As a result, these children are secure and happy.  Support staff have warm, caring relationships with children across the early years.

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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

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Executive Headteacher Head of School Seana Henry Emilie Haston

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School details

Email address info@eardley.wandsworth.sch.uk

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School details

Date of previous inspection 6–7 June 2013

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Information about this school

 Eardley School is larger than the average-sized primary school. The school roll has fallen significantly since the time of the previous inspection.  The executive headteacher has worked at the school for two and a half days a week since September 2015. She was joined in September 2016 by a full-time head of school. Both headteachers have contracts which end in the summer term. Three assistant headteachers were seconded for this academic year by the local authority. The leadership team was restructured in the spring term of 2016. A special educational needs coordinator has been appointed. Eight of the 16 teachers are temporary staff.  The proportion of disadvantaged pupils who are eligible for pupil premium funding is above average.  The majority of pupils come from a Black African, Black Caribbean, White British or White from any other background heritage.  The school has an in-house facility for pupils who have complex behavioural or social

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Information about this school

emotional needs, called ‘The Hub’.  The proportion of pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities is slightly above average.  Children in the early years are taught in two full-time Reception classes and one Nursery class. In Nursery, 10 children attend full time and another nine attend on a part-time basis.  The school meets the government’s floor standards, which set the minimum expectations for pupils’ progress and attainment.  The school meets requirements on the publication of specified information on its website.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors observed learning in all year groups at least twice. Observations were undertaken with the executive headteacher, the head of school and the assistant headteachers. There were three classes which inspectors did not observe, as they were being taught by one-day supply teachers or by recently appointed temporary staff.  Inspectors met with members of the governing body and spoke with a representative of the local authority.  Meetings were held with pupils to discuss their learning and their views on the school.  Leaders met with inspectors to discuss their roles and the impact of their work.  The subject leaders for mathematics and English carried out a book scrutiny with inspectors to identify the progress pupils are making. Books from all year groups were scrutinised.  Inspectors heard pupils read and talked to pupils in the lunch hall, in lessons, in the playground and as they moved around the building.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors examined a range of school documents, including information on pupils’ progress across the school, improvement plans and checks on the quality of teaching. They also examined school records relating to safety, behaviour and attendance.  Inspectors took account of the 16 responses to the online questionnaire, Parent View, and of information gathered from discussions with parents during the inspection.

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Inspection team

Ruth Dollner, lead inspector Her Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Helena Mills, lead inspector 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

If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk .

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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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