Ringway Primary School

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

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Miss N Forkan Headteacher Ringway Primary School Rossett Avenue Cornishway Wythenshawe Manchester M22 0WW

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Short inspection of Ringway Primary School

Following my visit to the school on 14 June 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 February 2013.

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Short inspection of Ringway Primary School

The leadership team has maintained the good quality of education in the school since the last inspection. There is a warm, friendly atmosphere when you enter your school. As headteacher, you have established a committed leadership team full of energy and drive. You are ambitious for your pupils, their families and the community you serve

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Short inspection of Ringway Primary School

Following the last inspection, you were given a number of areas to improve. These have been tackled effectively. As the school has grown in numbers you have set out clear actions to be taken in planning for improvement. Leaders regularly check the quality of teaching and learning across the school. They rigorously follow up on areas identified for improvement. As a result, outcomes for pupils are good and improving. You provide a range of activities for your pupils to enrich their learning. Staff appreciate the opportunities for professional development. They are benefiting from the sharing of good practice and working with other teachers. This is particularly helpful for those new to teaching. Teachers have high expectations and challenge pupils so that an increased number are working at a greater depth.

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Short inspection of Ringway Primary School

The vast majority of parents are very supportive. Those spoken to during the inspection praised how approachable and friendly your staff are. They said that their children settle into school quickly and families new to the area are made to feel very welcome. They appreciate the information they receive about their children’s progress and how they can support them at home. Your breakfast club is very popular. A very small number of parents commented that inappropriate behaviour is not always addressed promptly. However, this was not the view of the majority of parents and no inappropriate behaviour was seen during the inspection. Pupils I spoke to said that behaviour is managed very well and dealt with swiftly so that any falling out or inappropriate behaviour does not happen again.

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Short inspection of Ringway Primary School

Pupils enjoy coming to school and value the importance of punctuality and regular attendance. They are polite and confident. They understand that we are all different and they have respect for each other. They speak positively about how your staff help them to improve their work. They are proud of their achievements, especially in reading, and appreciate the incentives to encourage them to read every day. They enjoy the exciting variety of after-school clubs and tournaments they enter. The cooking club is very popular. They enjoy learning to cook with their parents and making omelettes with the eggs supplied by the school’s own chickens. The older pupils are looking forward to moving on to high school and have already had visits from their new teachers.

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Short inspection of Ringway Primary School

The leadership team has ensured that all safeguarding arrangements are fit for purpose, staff follow procedures appropriately and any concerns are followed up rigorously. Records are detailed and of a high quality. Pupils spoken to during the inspection say that they know how to keep themselves safe, especially when using the internet. They enjoy coming to school and feel safe and secure. They know whom to go to if they have any worries and are confident that things will be dealt with swiftly.

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Inspection findings

 You and your staff have been relentless in your drive to improve punctuality and attendance, particularly for the disadvantaged pupils in school who are persistently absent. You know your families well and work closely with them to provide the support that they need. You have introduced a number of imaginative incentives that are having a positive impact on improving attendance. There has been an improvement across the school and attendance is now just below that of other schools nationally. The attendance of disadvantaged pupils has improved and the attendance of pupils who are persistently absent is also increasing. You work closely with the school nurse and other agencies to support the most vulnerable families. Leaders robustly follow up when pupils are absent and parents are held to account. You are raising expectations and, as a result, pupils are making better progress.  The number of children joining Reception has increased over the last few years.

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Inspection findings

Most of the children who attend your Nursery stay on to join Reception. However, the majority of children join the Reception class having attended one of a variety of pre-school settings in the area. Although the proportion of children reaching a good level of development at the end of Reception is improving, it remains below that expected for children their age. You acknowledge that there is still work to do to improve progress rates further and ensure that more children are ready for Year 1.  You have been proactive in accessing appropriate training for the newly appointed leader to early years. You have identified that more-accurate assessments need to be carried out as the children start school in order to identify any gaps in children’s understanding better. The changes made to the teaching of phonics in the early years has already had a positive impact on progress. Adults effectively support learning by addressing any misconceptions

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Inspection findings

and correcting pronunciation. As a result, children are able to apply their skills effectively in their own reading and writing in a range of situations.  Within the Nursery and Reception areas the wide variety of activities provide children with the opportunity to develop their skills independently and demonstrate high levels of cooperation. For example, in the outside area a group of children were working together to build their own ‘den’. They demonstrated focus and determination as they solved the problem of how to fix the covers to the frame they had built. Adults used questions well to support children’s thinking and develop their ideas. Teachers use a range of evidence to inform assessments about the children’s progress and parents are encouraged to share information and celebrate the children’s achievements.  The results for key stage 1 pupils in 2016 were below those expected for pupils of a similar age nationally for reading and writing. The school’s own assessment

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Inspection findings

information shows that results have improved this year, especially for the disadvantaged pupils. You and your leaders have provided training for all staff and changed the way you teach phonics and reading. The actions taken by you have allowed teachers to share good examples of how to teach reading and create exciting reading areas in each classroom. Pupils are making better progress from their starting points and are becoming confident and competent readers. Pupils enjoy reading and are given opportunities to apply their skills in a range of other curriculum areas. Pupils in Year 3 are enjoying reading about the adventures of Mr Carter and his search for Tutankhamun’s tomb.  Phonics is taught consistently across early years and key stage 1. Your leaders are rigorous in the way that they monitor and assess the progress that pupils make. As a result, an increasing number of pupils are reaching the standard seen

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Inspection findings

by other pupils of a similar age nationally. This has had an impact on the progress that pupils make in their writing. Work in pupils’ books shows that pupils are challenged and extended writing is of a high quality. An increased number of pupils are on track to reach the expectations appropriate for their age by the end of the year. Pupils are eager to improve their work and they are proud of their achievements.  Teachers work together to check that their assessments of pupils’ work are accurate. They identify the barriers to success and ensure that pupils are provided with timely interventions to support their progress. A range of interventions are used to support learning and school’s own assessment information shows that they are having a positive impact on progress. Some pupils are making rapid progress towards the expectations appropriate for their age, particularly in Year 2.  The support for pupils who have special educational needs is accurate and

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Inspection findings

focused on pupils’ specific areas of need. You work effectively with a range of outside agencies commissioned directly by the school to support pupils’ needs. You are proactive in accessing advice and training for staff, which results in pupils being well supported. The strong relationships you have with parents and carers benefits the pupils and the progress that they make. Information profiles are very personalised and developed with teachers, parents and pupils. Termly progress meetings enable leaders to discuss individual pupils’ needs and assess the impact of the support they are receiving. Monitoring evidence looked at during the inspection indicates clearly that pupils are making good progress from their starting points. The governors monitor these strategies closely to ensure that they are having a direct impact on the outcomes for pupils.  Leaders ensure that information about pupils who have special educational needs

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Inspection findings

and/or disabilities is shared appropriately with staff. Transition meetings at the end of each year ensure that all relevant information is shared appropriately. Teachers are able to support pupils effectively as they move onto the next stage in their education.

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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

 they continue to develop the accuracy of the assessments on entry to Reception so that pupils receive targeted support in a timely manner to diminish the gap further and ensure that a higher proportion of pupils are ready for Year 1.  they embed the changes made to the teaching of reading and writing and improve outcomes over time, especially at key stage 1, so that pupils are well prepared for the next stages in their education.

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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 Manchester. 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 your deputy headteacher, members of your leadership team and four members of staff new to teaching. I also met three members of the governing body. I was unable able to speak to a representative from the local authority, who sent her apologies. I conducted a learning walk with you, and visited eight classes and had the opportunity to speak to pupils and see their work. I also listened to a number of pupils read. I met with a group of pupils during the day, spoke with a number of parents at the school gates and took account of seven free-text comments. There were 20 responses to Parent View, the Ofsted online questionnaire for parents. I scrutinised your assessment information, school improvement planning, the single central record and other safeguarding procedures and practices.

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