Brereton CofE Primary School

Brereton CofE Primary School School Lane, Brereton Green, Sandbach, Cheshire CW11 1RN

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Good

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Personal development, behaviour and welfare Good

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Overall effectiveness at previous inspection Good

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

 Senior and middle leaders have worked tirelessly and effectively to move the school forward since a recent fall in writing standards at key stage 2. Standards are on the rise.  The quality of teaching, learning and assessment is good because teachers share best practices. There is high staff morale.  Pupils’ progress in writing is rapidly improving due to the consistently good quality of teaching, learning and assessment. Staff accept that there is more work to do to improve the independent writing skills of the more able pupils in key stage 2.  Pupils make particularly good progress in reading and problem solving in mathematics.  Senior leaders monitor the quality of teaching, learning and assessment well. They provide effective feedback to teachers to enable them to improve even further.  The good quality of leadership and management of early years provision is a strength of the school. Children make rapid

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

progress in all development areas from the time they enter the school. However, the outdoor activities are not as stimulating as those indoors.  The spiritual, moral, social and cultural development of pupils is a strength of the school’s work. The curriculum enables pupils to extend their reading, writing and mathematical skills. Leaders recognise that further work is needed to ensure a consistent system of assessment across all subjects.  Pupils’ personal development, behaviour and welfare are good. Staff develop strong relationships with the pupils.  Governors are well informed because of their effective monitoring of the school’s work.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve pupils’ outcomes by ensuring that: – all teachers develop pupils’ writing skills in all subjects, particularly for the most able pupils in key stage 2 – leaders develop and use an effective system to track and monitor pupils’ progress in all subjects.  Further extend children’s personal, social, communication and learning development in early years provision by ensuring that children have increased access to a stimulating outdoor environment.

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

 Despite the headteacher’s recent long-term absence, senior leaders have successfully improved standards at the school and reversed a fall in writing standards.  Governors and senior leaders have not been distracted from their focus upon the quality of teaching, learning and assessment to further improve pupil outcomes, especially in writing. Their next steps are rightly to ensure that most-able pupils in key stage 2 develop increasing confidence in using a wider range of styles, vocabulary and punctuation in their independent writing.  Strong leadership from the recently returned headteacher has helped further in setting the tone, ethos and direction that the school is taking. She has led from the front, for example when promoting a half-term writing project with key stage 2 pupils. This generated a wonderful display of a range of independent, creative writing.  Good procedures link teachers’ performance management objectives to pupils’

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

progress, the quality of teaching and school improvement planning. Governors provide strong support to the headteacher, for example when deciding whether or not teachers move through to the upper pay scale.  Governors oversee the judicious use of pupil premium funding towards additional teaching. Leaders have ensured that disadvantaged pupils receive targeted support to further develop their confidence and resilience as learners. Pupils receiving this funding make expected or better progress in line with their peers. Similarly, special educational needs (SEN) funding is used to great effect because of the skilled teaching and support provided by staff in meeting pupils’ needs.  The curriculum is enriching. Pupils are encouraged to complete research and writing tasks. The spiritual, moral, social and cultural development of pupils is well promoted through topic-related visits, for example musical enrichment links with nearby Clonter

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

Opera. Physical education (PE) and sport are well developed through the deployment of an external sports coach. He provides an inclusive programme for boys and girls and invaluable support and advice to the teaching staff. After-school clubs provide additional opportunities for enrichment. Every pupil attends a residential trip before they leave.  The partnership with parents is a strength of the school, despite some occasional discontent shown by a small number of parents, especially when the headteacher was absent. The school holds termly parents’ evenings to discuss pupils’ progress. The strong parent and teacher association (PTA) arranges school-based events. Parents spoken to and those who took part in the online survey praised the school overwhelmingly for keeping their children safe and free from bullying. There has been an upturn in their views about their children’s progress compared to the end of the

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

previous term.  Partnership working with other primary schools belonging to the Holmes Chapel District Community leads to the sharing of best practices, for example when conducting classroom visits to observe teaching and learning.  The school benefits from the occasional support of an external consultant employed by the diocese. He supports leaders in their school improvement planning and evaluates the impact of their work. He also provides advice and guidance to governors when they appraise the performance of the headteacher.

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Governance of the school

 Governance is good.  Governors are well informed about the work of the school. They have agreed a system of focused visits, for example when reviewing safeguarding arrangements or the quality of teaching, learning and assessment.  Governors work systematically through their committees and named governors. Information is filtered through to the full governing body. As a result, governors are sufficiently informed to ask challenging questions and hold leaders to account.  Governors make good use of additional revenue, including that for SEN, pupil premium funding and PE and sports funding. They know that these funds have been used wisely and with good impact, such as the progress made by disadvantaged pupils in their learning and the inclusive sports programme that operates at the school.  Governors are skilled and knowledgeable. They ensure that they keep up to date with local authority governor training, including safer recruitment training.

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Safeguarding

 The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.  School leaders and governors ensure that the school’s premises are maintained and made safe. The chair of governors, as the named governor for safeguarding, completes site visits accompanied by the headteacher. Risk assessments are undertaken to address any concerns. The school bursar and site manager also provide strong and practical back-up support where needed.  Procedures are effective for the recruitment of staff, and the single central record meets requirements.  Staff and governors have completed relevant up-to-date training in safeguarding and the ‘Prevent’ duty. Staff spoken to were clear about the procedures they must follow if they have a child protection concern.  Pupils spoken to were clear about how to keep safe online.  School records on behaviour incidents, accidents and educational visits are well maintained, and governors monitor any concerning patterns.

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Safeguarding

 Arrangements for admitting visitors are well managed.  The overwhelming majority of parents and pupils who responded to the questionnaire surveys say that pupils are safe in school.

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Good

 The quality of teaching, learning and assessment is consistently good. The teaching of writing is improving rapidly in all classes due to an agreed whole-school approach.  Teachers work very well together to share best practices and to address any areas for concern. They make consistent use of assessment information about pupils to provide individuals with additional support to catch up or to challenge them in mathematics and English. The headteacher rightly recognises that more work is needed to ensure that this strong system is applied to all subjects across the curriculum.  Teachers and support staff ensure that classrooms are welcoming and that there is a clear focus on celebrating pupils’ achievements. The spiritual, moral, social and cultural development of pupils is at the forefront of the school’s work. Teaching and support staff promote these qualities extremely well in all that they do in class and

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Good

beyond.  Pupils respond enthusiastically to the work they are given. They know that the daily practising of reading, spelling and grammar enables them to become independent writers. They are very responsive to staff’s requests to listen and attend when required. They are encouraged to develop independence, for example when using mathematical reasoning skills to find missing numbers in key stage 1 lessons.  Teachers pitch their lessons well to meet the individual needs of pupils. For example, reading lessons in key stage 1 and key stage 2 classes are organised exceptionally well so that pupils benefit from the right levels of support and resources.  The most able pupils are provided with tasks in mathematics to deepen and extend their reasoning and problem-solving skills when applying their knowledge of column addition. In a Year 2 class, for example, support staff had the necessary skills to support less-able pupils doing similar tasks, but broken down into small steps.

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Good

 Teachers across the school use skilled questioning techniques to deepen the learning of pupils who have SEN and/or disabilities, for example when reinforcing their knowledge and understanding of improper fractions. The most able pupils are encouraged to develop their literal and inferential reasoning skills during group reading sessions. Teachers and support staff are very good at drawing out answers from pupils through targeted questioning and follow-up explanations.  The good quality of teaching and support is epitomised by the consistency of pupils’ good attitudes and engagement in lessons. Pupils respond well to the high expectations and challenge provided by teachers. They say that they complete frequent homework tasks in reading and mathematics, which help them to become independent learners. Children in the Reception class and in Year 1 take home lists of high- frequency words which they practise with parents. Parents link well with teachers when

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Good

writing comments in the home-school reading diaries.

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Personal development and welfare

 The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare is good.  Pupils are polite and courteous in a range of contexts. They socialise well when eating together at lunchtime. Inspectors observed older pupils acting as ‘buddies’ to younger children. They would guide children away from potentially unsafe or out-of-bounds areas.  Pupils are respectful of staff and each other. They are well prepared for lessons and have a deep understanding of how they should behave as learners.  Pupils benefit from their engagement in PE lessons as well as additional activities provided through after-school clubs. They transfer their learning well when playing at breaktime. Girls and boys interact well in games on the playground.  Pupils spoken to said that they felt safe and cared for and that there was little evidence of bullying. Responses from the pupil survey confirmed views of good behaviour with

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Personal development and welfare

little bullying, which, when it occurred, was soon dealt with by staff.

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Behaviour

 The behaviour of pupils is good.  Pupils conduct themselves well when moving around school. They know the expectations of staff and take responsibility for their actions.  Occasionally, younger children have to be reminded where they can or cannot go. However, supervision levels are appropriate.  Classrooms and corridors are well maintained. Every opportunity is taken to display and celebrate pupils’ work. Pupils value their school and take care of their surroundings.  The great majority of parents responding to the online survey judged behaviour as good. Parents’ comments included, ‘I love the moral ethos of the school and the focus on community and behaviour.’ Others commented that ‘the children are all very respectful.’  Overall, attendance is in line with the national average. Any persistent absence is carefully monitored. Records show that the school engages positively with families, including those from Traveller backgrounds, to address any concerns.

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Outcomes for pupils Good

 Most pupils, including those who are disadvantaged, the most able, the most able who are disadvantaged and those who have SEN and/or disabilities, make expected or better progress from their starting points. Standards in writing are rapidly improving. Pupils’ attainments in reading, English grammar, punctuation and spelling, and mathematics are above national expectations.  Pupils develop their language, reading, writing and number skills across different subjects. For example, in mathematics, pupils explain their reasoning both verbally and in written form.  Pupils read frequently and apply these skills to wider learning. Less-able readers use their phonic skills to read and spell unfamiliar words. Most-able readers read with expression and understanding. Parents support their children well in reading through an agreed home-school recording system. Pupils respond very well to carefully pitched guided reading lessons, especially in key stage 1. They also develop their

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Outcomes for pupils Good

comprehension and writing in these lessons, deepening their understanding of the links between these different skills.  Pupils’ handwriting, spelling, grammatical and creative writing skills develop across different subjects, for example when completing historical research or evaluating science experiments. However, the most able pupils in key stage 2 have not developed the skills needed to excel in writing when, for example, researching specific topics and summarising their findings.  Lower-ability pupils make good progress in their learning. Year 6 pupils’ mathematics books show good progress in learning how to multiply fractions. At key stage 1, pupils become used to extending their number skills to problem-solving tasks. They develop a deeper awareness of how their knowledge and understanding of number can help them in everyday life.  Year 6 pupils are well prepared for their move to secondary education.

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Early years provision Good

 Early years provision at the school is a strength because of very strong leadership and management.  Most children make rapid progress in each development area, some from well-below- typical starting points on entry, to achieve good levels of development. Parents completing the free-text survey made comments such as ‘I cannot express my amazement at what a four-year-old can achieve in just one term at the school.’  There is a well-organised and stimulating classroom with a good focus on the promotion of early reading, writing and number skills. Children have opportunities to explore and experiment through role play, dressing up and working with items such as those that link to wildlife in Kenya.  Record-keeping and the tracking of children’s progress across each of the development areas are strong. Leaders use information about children’s attainment on entry to the school to determine targets and interventions to help children catch up.

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Early years provision Good

 Children quickly receive the appropriate levels of support and teaching they need. This leads to significant progress, particularly in their early reading, writing and number skills.  Children’s workbooks show rapid progress from the start of term. The most-able children begin to write short sentences with growing independence. Children receive appropriate tasks in their phonics work so that they use their phonic knowledge to develop early reading and spelling skills.  Staff in the early years manage children’s behaviour with sensitivity, care and skill so that the children settle quickly and focus on their learning.  Staff encourage children’s spiritual, moral, social and cultural development with links to a school in Kenya. Currently, their language is being stimulated by an attractive Christmas display and related activities.  Children observed demonstrated good social skills. They worked together in small

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Early years provision Good

groups and displayed their awareness of adult expectations, for example when sensibly correcting each other in their behaviour. They persevered when completing more formal work in writing.  Children are encouraged to pack away toys and resources after use to maintain a safe classroom. They are also taught to wash their hands after engaging in messy activities. Staff take every opportunity to reinforce safeguarding procedures.  Children develop their number skills through play and estimation activities. The most able pupils are able to count up in fives.  The outdoor learning environment is not sufficiently stimulating. There are limited opportunities to attract children to use resources and areas to inspire their learning. As a result, children do not extend their social, personal, communication or learning skills beyond the confines of their lively indoor classroom as well as they might.

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School details

This inspection of the school was carried out under section 5 of the Education Act 2005.

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Website www.breretonprimaryschool.org.uk

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School details

Email address admin@breretonprimary.org.uk

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School details

Date of previous inspection 20–21 November 2012

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Information about this school

 The school meets requirements on the publication of specified information on its website.  Brereton is a smaller than average-sized primary school, although its numbers are increasing.  Pupils are predominantly of White British heritage. The proportions of ethnic minority pupils and of those who speak English as an additional language are well below national averages. Occasionally, pupils are admitted to the school during the course of the academic year.  The proportion of pupils who have SEN and/or disabilities is below the national average.  The school does not meet the government’s floor standards, which are the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress.  The headteacher had a period of absence during the summer term of 2017 and has made a phased return to her duties. Her senior team covered for her absence.  The school is working towards achieving academy status by the end of this academic

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Information about this school

year.  The school has links with other primary schools within the Holmes Chapel District Community partnership.

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Information about this inspection

 The inspectors observed lessons in all of the classes. Some of these observations were completed jointly with the headteacher. Inspectors also looked at pupils’ workbooks and spoke with pupils to assist in making judgements about their progress, particularly in writing. They carried out a detailed analysis of the workbooks of different groups of pupils throughout the school.  Inspectors spoke formally and informally to pupils about their views of the school, the provision for their safety and well-being, and the teaching and support they receive. Observations were made in different contexts of the school, including in the corridors, on the playground and at lunchtime. Inspectors took account of 23 responses from Ofsted’s pupil questionnaire survey.  Meetings were held with senior leaders, five governors, including the chair of governors, and an external consultant employed by the diocese.  Inspectors looked at a range of documentation, including the school’s improvement

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Information about this inspection

plan and review of its strengths and weaknesses. Other documentation seen related to governance, attendance, behaviour, safeguarding, pupils’ progress, performance management of staff and checks on the quality of teaching, learning and assessment.  Inspectors took account of 49 responses to Parent View, including 48 free-text comments. An inspector met and spoke with nine parents on site. Inspectors took account of one response to Ofsted’s staff questionnaire survey and one written response to the inspection team. There were some unresolved difficulties in staff accessing the survey.

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Inspection team

Jon Ashley, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector

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Inspection team

Gill Burrow 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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