Muschamp Primary School and Language Opportunity Base

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

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Miss Heidi Westley Headteacher Muschamp Primary School and Language Opportunity Base Muschamp Road Carshalton Surrey SM5 2SE

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Following my visit to the school on 12 December 2017 with Clementina Aina, Ofsted Inspector, 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 March 2013.

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The leadership team has maintained the good quality of education in the school since the last inspection. Together with senior leaders and governors, you have created a friendly and calm environment. Your determined and focused leadership has ensured that all adults are fully supportive of your vision and staff morale is high. Parents praised the school’s work. They felt their children were well looked after and effectively taught. Parents also valued the inclusive nature of the school, particularly the way pupils attending the specialist provision are also part of mainstream classes.

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You have rectified the areas identified at the last inspection by ensuring that pupils are clear about what they need to do to improve their work. Teachers now make expectations clear to pupils, so they know what they should have achieved by the end of a lesson or a unit of work. Teaching assistants have received well-considered training to support pupils’ learning. The school’s information shows that this has had a positive impact in enabling pupils to achieve well.

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At the time of the last inspection, you were also asked to improve achievement in writing. Teachers now plan activities so that pupils can edit and improve their work. Pupils can assess their own work and older pupils speak confidently about their next steps. Good practice has been shared and opportunities to write have been extended across subjects. The strong focus on ensuring that pupils learn how to spell accurately has resulted in pupils at Muschamp outperforming their peers nationally in the Year 1 phonics screening test. The emphasis on grammar, spelling and punctuation across the school has had a positive impact on outcomes for current pupils. Their writing is improving, more are producing work of the standard and quality that would be expected nationally for pupils of the same age. Leaders rightly continue to prioritise writing and are aspirational in their efforts to improve outcomes for pupils still further.

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The school benefits from a strong team of knowledgeable and effective governors, who together with senior leaders routinely demonstrate high expectations. Governors know the school well and regularly visit to monitor the school’s work against agreed priorities. They ask challenging questions and hold leaders to account for pupils’ progress. They are clear about their purpose and determined to ensure that the school secures the best outcomes for its pupils. Governors regularly audit their own skills and actively recruit other governors with specific expertise to strengthen governance. As a result, they are having a significant strong impact on school development.

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You have ensured that all safeguarding arrangements are in place and are fit for purpose. Records are detailed and of a very high quality. Pupils report they feel safe at school and parents support this view. Pupils demonstrated good knowledge of issues such as road safety, ‘stranger danger’ and how to protect themselves online. They understand what to do if they or their friends are bullied. They said that, although there is very little bullying in school, they feel confident that they could report it and that the adults around them would deal with it effectively.

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All staff have received the required safeguarding training to support their understanding and knowledge of the government’s current statutory guidance. Clear procedures are in place and staff know how to report concerns. Leaders work very effectively with external agencies to help safeguard pupils. Swift action is taken where there are concerns relating to pupils’ safety and well-being. Leaders are relentless and demanding of other agencies to help ensure that pupils are kept safe.

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Inspection findings

 At the start of the inspection we agreed upon key lines of enquiry. The first was around the absence of 2017 writing data for pupils at the end of key stage 2. The school was able to demonstrate that they had submitted results, but it had been after the national deadline. The school’s own analysis showed that progress in writing was not as strong as it had been for reading and mathematics, at both key stages 1 and 2. We therefore decided to explore how effective leader’s actions have been in improving progress and outcomes in writing across the school.  Writing skills are taught daily through skills-based English lessons. Pupils learn how to use a range of grammatical structures which help them improve their writing. Younger pupils use the strategies they have been taught well to sound and spell words. The teaching of English, grammar and punctuation is a strength across the school. As a result, more pupils are starting to work at greater depth.

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Inspection findings

However, teacher expectations vary across subjects and, as a result, the standard of writing in English books is better than in other subjects. This is because pupils are more careful with their handwriting, spelling, punctuation, grammar and sentence structures when writing in their English books. In addition, the most able pupils are not always given opportunities to write at length to achieve the highest standards.  The next area we explored was around the achievement of disadvantaged pupils. Progress and outcomes for these pupils were not as good as other pupils nationally. This was both at the expected standard in early years and key stage 1, and at the higher standard across the school. We therefore considered how effective leader’s actions were in identifying the barriers to learning faced by these pupils and accelerating their progress. We found that the school knows the needs of this group of pupils, and their families, very well. Close monitoring by

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Inspection findings

governors shows that you have used additional funding very effectively and developed an approach that supports both the academic and social challenges faced by pupils. Drama therapy has supported pupils’ confidence to participate and try new things together with target teaching which has improved learning skills. Progress is closely monitored through regular meetings that focus on the next steps needed to improve learning. Senior leaders have an accurate view of what pupils need to learn and ensure that effective strategies and interventions are put in place to support learning. Targets are set and although gaps still exist, particularly lower down the school, this is having a positive impact on pupil outcomes. Workbooks reflect the improvements identified in the school’s own progress data, which are rapid in upper key stage 2.  Leaders have started to identify the most able disadvantaged pupils and target

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Inspection findings

resources and interventions to challenge them more effectively. Trips and visits from outside speakers inspire pupils to understand the skills needed to be a scientist, artist, historian, musician or geographer. Pupils report they enjoy these activities and the topics they learn about. You have ensured that the effective curriculum engages and motivates learners well. You and governors ensure that additional funding is spent wisely to ensure that all pupils have access to enrichment opportunities. Pupils see the link between subjects and their futures. For example, one pupil reported how important mathematics was to him as he wanted to become a mechanical or aircraft engineer.  Reading skills and phonics are taught effectively at all key stages. The focused approach to the teaching of reading skills has resulted in rapid progress. The school has created an inviting and enticing reading area where pupils can relax

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Inspection findings

and read daily. Pupils read books from a range of subject areas and texts are well matched to their comprehension skills. Pupils enjoy reading. They read for pleasure. Older pupils read with fluency and can confidently discuss the texts they are reading. Younger pupils use their phonics skills well to help them sound out unfamiliar words.  More pupils now have opportunities to develop their understanding by working at greater depth in mathematics. The curriculum has improved because leaders have ensured that pupils develop fast recall of key facts such as multiplication tables, number bonds and place value. Emphasis has been given to the application of mathematical knowledge to problem-solving. As a result, pupils are developing a range of helpful methods to show and check their understanding, including mental and written calculation methods. In upper key stage 2, there is a strong focus on reasoning and explaining mathematics. As a result, pupils can

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Inspection findings

generalise, spot patterns and apply their knowledge in a range of contexts. However, this is not as well established in all year groups. Work in books shows that sometimes pupils are moved on too quickly before they have time to consolidate their learning, particularly at key stage 1. In addition, some of the most able pupils, across the school, spend too long working on things they already know or can easily do.  In the early years, children work and play together well. There is a strong focus on developing language skills. Children enjoy talking to each other and the adults around them and have many opportunities to develop independence by making choices about their learning. Recent data shows disadvantaged pupils and boys do less well than other pupils. Leaders have ensured that the curriculum is as interesting to boys as it is to girls, and as a result gaps are diminishing. Children in the early years spoke enthusiastically about their activities. It was clear that

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Inspection findings

boys had a preference for working in the outside classroom. They demonstrated high levels of concentration and were able to play cooperatively, taking turns and sharing. However, it was notable that there were few opportunities for boys or girls to engage in reading, writing and number activities outdoors.  Finally, we considered how effective leaders’ actions have been to ensure that pupils attend regularly and that persistent absence is reducing. You have worked very effectively in this area. Every absence is followed up on and governors have a zero-tolerance policy towards term-time holiday absence. You encourage, recognise and reward good attendance and support parents in improving and maintaining good attendance for their children. As a result, overall attendance is now in line with national figures and persistent absence is significantly reduced.

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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

 children in the early years have more opportunities to read, write, count and use number, particularly in the outdoor learning environment  in mathematics, the most and least able are moved on in their learning at a more appropriate pace in order to reach their full potential  pupils improve their writing across all subjects by applying more effectively the skills learned during their English lessons.

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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 Sutton. This letter will be published on the Ofsted website.

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Information about the inspection

We held meetings with you, your senior and middle leaders, governors and a representative from the local authority. We listened to pupils reading both in lessons and in small groups. We visited classrooms across the school to observe learning. We scrutinised pupils’ work in English, mathematics and topic books. We talked to pupils about their learning, both at formal and informal times throughout the day. We met with parents at the start of the school day and analysed responses to Parent View, Ofsted’s online questionnaire. We scrutinised documentation, including the school’s self-evaluation and improvement plans, information on pupils’ attendance and documentation related to safeguarding, as well as the school’s assessment and behaviour information.

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