Brumby Junior School

Brumby Junior School Queensway, Scunthorpe, Lincolnshire DN16 2HY

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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

 Pupils make weak progress in reading, writing and mathematics from their starting points. This is the case for different groups of pupils, including the most able pupils, disadvantaged pupils and those who have special educational needs (SEN) and/or disabilities.  Assessment of pupils’ starting points is not accurate and underestimates pupils’ abilities. As such, leaders and teachers have low expectations of pupils. This negatively influences teaching and targets for pupils’ progress over time.  Pupils do not demonstrate consistently positive attitudes to learning. This is because teachers do not challenge them when they do not complete work, take pride in their learning or follow instructions in lessons. Pupils’ conduct is also not always good.  Leaders do not check on the quality of provision rigorously enough. This includes the quality of teaching and the accuracy of assessment. This means that the urgent

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

improvements required have not been understood and implemented. Leaders have an overly generous view of the quality of teaching and of pupils’ progress.  Governors are aware that the school must improve. However, they have not recognised how urgently improvement was needed or that key weaknesses, such as the accuracy of pupils’ starting points and their progress, must be addressed.

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

 The school works effectively with pupils with serious behavioural needs, helping these pupils to improve their behaviour.  The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare is good.  Pupils’ attendance is high and improving; few pupils are regularly absent. Pupils enjoy school, thanks to the varied curriculum and opportunities for visits.  Parents have a very positive view of the school and feel well informed.

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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?

 Strengthen leadership and management by: – ensuring that the checking of teaching is rigorous and regular so that it provides an accurate view of where support is urgently required and of the training needs of staff – making sure that the assessment of pupils’ starting points in Year 3 accurately identifies pupils’ abilities in reading, writing and mathematics so that their ongoing learning needs are met closely – using accurate assessment information to identify underachievement swiftly and provide the right support to meet pupils’ needs – regularly evaluating the impact of actions implemented to strengthen the provision, especially for the most able pupils, disadvantaged pupils and pupils who have SEN and/or disabilities, and making the necessary adjustments to the actions to ensure that they have a positive impact over time – ensuring that governors receive regular, detailed and accurate reports on the

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

provision so that they are well placed to challenge and question leaders to support the school’s improvement.  Improve pupils’ attitudes to learning by: – ensuring that pupils are provided with clear guidelines on how to present their work so that they can demonstrate real pride in their learning – making sure that when pupils do not do as they are told or do not do their best, they are appropriately challenged.  Urgently improve the quality of teaching and therefore the rate of progress made and the standards of attainment reached by all groups of pupils, especially the most able pupils, disadvantaged pupils, and pupils who have SEN and/or disabilities, across the school by: – making regular checks on what pupils understand and where they have misconceptions – using checks on pupils’ work to plan activities which meet their needs closely so that they reach higher standards in reading, writing and mathematics

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

– ensuring that all teachers understand and follow the school’s policies and make effective use of their checks on pupils’ work so that pupils know how to improve – raising teachers’ expectations of what pupils can and should be able to do so that learning is more engaging and encourages pupils to work hard and allows them to reach higher standards in reading, writing and mathematics.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

An external review of governance should be undertaken in order to assess 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 the use of the pupil premium funding should be undertaken in order to assess how this aspect of leadership and management may be improved.

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Inadequate

 Leaders do not have an accurate understanding of the school’s urgent need for improvement. This is because checking of the provision, including the quality of teaching, is not robust enough, and where teaching is not good enough, this is not understood by leaders. As a result, training for teachers does not meet their needs or improve their practice.  Appraisal systems are weak. Targets set are not challenging and do not promote high expectations among teachers and leaders. Furthermore, pay progression is offered when targets have not been met. Consequently, the appraisal system does not work to ensure that leaders and teachers are accountable for the impact their work has on pupils’ progress and attainment.  The leadership of the spending of the additional government funding for disadvantaged pupils in school is weak. These pupils, like their peers, make inadequate progress during their time in school. The standards they reach in reading, writing and

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Inadequate

mathematics are low.  Funding for pupils who have SEN and/or disabilities is not spent effectively because these pupils make inadequate progress. The needs of these pupils are not well understood. Senior leaders do not work effectively with the leader of special educational needs. For example, the outcomes of these pupils are not shared in a timely way and the special educational needs coordinator (SENCo) has not attended meetings to discuss these pupils’ progress.  The engagement of parents is strong and leaders have worked effectively to ensure that parents are well informed about what their children do in school. Parents have a very positive view of the school and its leaders, especially the headteacher who they report is very approachable and kind.  The curriculum is broad and balanced, although it is not consistently well taught. Teachers ensure that literacy and numeracy skills are practised by pupils in a range of

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Inadequate

subjects. However, the quality of teaching across the curriculum means that this reinforcement of key skills does not have a positive impact on pupils’ progress in reading, writing and mathematics.  The broad and balanced nature of the curriculum means that there are opportunities to enhance pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development, as well as their understanding of British values. The pupils are afforded a wide range of experiences beyond their everyday lives to enable them to understand and respect lifestyles and life choices which are different from their own. For example, pupils visit different places of worship, which links in well with their learning in school about different faiths and cultures.  Leaders have worked effectively to improve attendance in the school, which is now above average. This has also meant that the number of pupils who are regularly absent has reduced. Pupils report that they enjoy being at school, as their improved

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Inadequate

attendance demonstrates.  Leaders work effectively with pupils who find managing their behaviour very difficult. The school supports these pupils and their parents to ensure that their needs are met well, meaning that over time their behaviour improves and increasingly they take part in learning activities with their peers.  The local authority’s work with the school has not been fully effective. Some messages communicated to the school in the past year have been too positive about the quality of teaching, learning and assessment. While more recently local authority reports have accurately highlighted weaknesses in pupils’ progress, these differing communications have not been helpful in ensuring that leaders were clear about how urgently things needed to improve.  Newly qualified teachers may not be appointed.

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Governance of the school

 Governors are not fully aware of the extent of the school’s need for urgent improvement. This is especially the case concerning the inaccuracy of the assessment of pupils’ attainment and the quality of teaching.  In addition, the governors have not worked effectively with leaders in school to ensure that the appraisal system works well enough. Therefore, teachers and leaders are not sufficiently accountable for the progress pupils make, and targets set are not challenging staff appropriately.  Alongside leaders in school, governors have not ensured that the pupil premium funding is well spent and is having a positive impact on the outcomes of disadvantaged pupils in school.  Governors have worked effectively with the headteacher and other leaders to ensure that parents are more involved in the school and that the curriculum affords a more varied experience for pupils.

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Safeguarding

 The arrangements for safeguarding are effective. The school works with a variety of external agencies to support a number of pupils in school. This liaison is effective and ensures that the needs of the most vulnerable pupils in school are well understood and supported.  Governors understand the regulations around keeping children safe and they undertake training regularly. They also regularly review protocols and policies to ensure that they are working properly. Records are kept very well and are detailed, as necessary, to ensure that any issues are thoroughly understood and the response to them is immediate.  All staff are regularly trained so that they know how to keep children safe and how to identify concerns around pupils’ safety. Parents and pupils are well informed about what to do if they have concerns about their safety, or that of others.

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Inadequate

 Teaching does not meet the needs of pupils well. Assessment of pupils when they arrive in school is not accurate. It identifies pupils as working at standards in reading, writing and mathematics which are much lower than the standards expected for their age. This is not the case and therefore perpetuates very low expectations of the pupils as they move through the school.  Assessment of pupils throughout the school is also not accurate enough and the targets set for pupils are too low. As such, teachers plan work that is often too easy and does not challenge pupils to work hard enough. Over time, this also results in a decline in pupils’ standards of handwriting and presentation, and too little progress in developing their skills in reading, writing and mathematics. In part, this is due to pupils not completing work, and this going unchecked by teachers. Leaders’ checks on pupils’ books do not identify these issues, so they persist.

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Inadequate

 Teachers’ checks on pupils’ work do not help them to plan activities which help pupils with varying needs and abilities to make rapid progress. For example, pupils who have low attainment in reading are not given regular opportunities to read in school, and teachers and leaders do not ensure that these pupils’ reading skills improve.  Teachers do not use the school’s policy to feed back to pupils. Often, they do not give pupils advice on how to improve their work, as the leaders expect them to do. Furthermore, teachers sometimes mark work as correct when it is not, allowing pupils to have significant misconceptions with regard to their learning.  In some classes, teaching is more effective in securing pupils’ progress, with pupils challenged to present their work well and to always complete work. Some teaching also features better questioning where teachers challenge pupils to answer more difficult questions and to answer using full sentences. However, even these teachers

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Inadequate

do not always plan activities which move learning on rapidly for the different groups of pupils. Neither do they always ensure that pupils understand how to improve their work.  Teaching assistants’ impact on learning is variable. At times, teaching assistants work effectively to support pupils through proficient questioning and guidance, as well as giving pupils the opportunity to work independently. However, this is not always the case. Too often, teaching assistants are not given clear enough direction to enable them to work effectively with pupils.

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Personal development and welfare

 The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare is good.  The school works effectively to ensure that pupils know how to keep themselves safe in school, when using the internet and within their community. Pupils report that they feel safe and their parents are also confident about this.  Pupils and parents report that bullying is rare and is dealt with effectively when it does happen. Pupils understand the difference between bullying and having a quarrel with a fellow pupil. This is due to the effective work the school does to inform pupils about bullying and how to ensure that it does not persist. Records on bullying are detailed and show that matters of this nature are quickly and effectively dealt with.  Pupils have a lot of opportunities to develop their physical skills and to understand the importance of being fit and healthy. The sports premium funding has been spent on

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Personal development and welfare

ensuring that there is a wide variety of equipment available to pupils at breaktimes and lunchtimes. They can also take part in a very wide range of sporting activities after school, which pupils and parents say are of a high quality. Pupils also eat healthily at school.

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Behaviour

 The behaviour of pupils requires improvement.  Pupils’ attitudes to learning are not good enough. This is seen in the lack of pride in their learning, such as the declining standards of handwriting seen in many books. Furthermore, when teachers provide pupils with advice on how to improve their work, pupils often do not respond as the school policy requires. This is because teachers’ advice to pupils is not always clear enough and because teachers do not ensure that pupils make the improvements when asked to do so.  The conduct of pupils is variable. In class, pupils generally do as they are told, but at times there is some disruption to learning. Pupils themselves confirm this to be the case. Books also show that pupils do not always complete their work and, again, this largely goes unchallenged by teachers. As a result, pupils do not understand the importance and value of doing as teachers instruct.

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Behaviour

 The school supports pupils who need extra help to manage their behaviour well. There are good systems in place to work with these pupils, and their needs are well understood. This helps them to moderate their behaviour and reintegrate into lessons on a regular basis.  At breaktimes and lunchtimes, pupils behave well and are clearer about adults’ expectations of them. For example, pupils line up calmly and quickly at the end of breaktime to ensure that they go back into lessons quickly. Pupils’ punctuality at the start of the school day is also good.  Pupils and parents are increasingly aware of the importance of being in school every day, so attendance is now high.

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Outcomes for pupils Inadequate

 Pupils make inadequate progress during their time at school. This is because teaching is weak and assessment of pupils’ abilities and learning needs is inaccurate. This is the case for pupils who are currently in the school, as well as those who have left Year 6 in recent years.  As a result of poor progress over time, the attainment of pupils currently in school is low. This is reflected in pupils’ work. For some groups, such as disadvantaged pupils and pupils who have SEN and/or disabilities, attainment is significantly lower than expected nationally in reading, writing and mathematics. As a result, pupils are not being well prepared for their next stage of learning. There is too little evidence of leaders and teachers working to urgently address this and move pupils’ progress on more rapidly.  In 2017, pupils leaving Year 6 had made very weak progress during their time in school. This was the case for all pupils and for different groups of pupils, including the

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Outcomes for pupils Inadequate

most able pupils, those who are disadvantaged, as well as pupils who have SEN and/or disabilities.  Although attainment improved in 2017, it remained too low. Too many pupils left at the end of Year 6 having not reached the expected standard for their age in reading, writing and mathematics.

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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

Email address admin.brumbyjuniors@northlincs.gov.uk

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School details

Date of previous inspection 25–26 September 2013

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Information about this school

 This is a larger than average-sized junior school.  The majority of pupils are White British. The proportion of pupils who are from minority ethnic groups or who speak English as an additional language is below average.  A higher than average proportion of pupils are disadvantaged.  The proportion of pupils who have SEN and/or disabilities is below average. The proportion of pupils who have an education, health and care plan is average.  Pupils arrive in the school in Year 3.  The school meets requirements on the publication of specified information on its website. The school meets the government’s current floor standards, which are the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress in reading, writing and mathematics by the end of Year 6.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors observed teaching and learning in a range of lessons and reviewed work in pupils’ books.  Inspectors observed and spoke with pupils during lessons and at breaktime. They also met formally with groups of pupils from Year 3 to Year 6.  Inspectors listened to pupils reading from Years 3 and 6.  Meetings were held with senior and middle leaders. Meetings also took place with members of the governing body and a representative from the local authority. Inspectors also analysed reports from the local authority and spoke with a senior representative from the local authority on the telephone.  Inspectors looked at pupils’ work and a range of documents, including the school’s arrangements for safeguarding, performance management procedures and pupils’ attendance data. Inspectors also looked at information about pupils’ progress and attainment.  Inspectors considered the views of a sample of parents in person and through the 71

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Information about this inspection

parental responses to the online questionnaire, Parent View.

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Inspection team

Fiona McNally, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector

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Inspection team

Helen Atkins 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

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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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