Bozeat Community Primary School

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

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Ms Gurjit Virk Headteacher Bozeat Community Primary School Harrold Road Bozeat Wellingborough Northamptonshire NN29 7LP

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Short inspection of Bozeat Community Primary School

Following my visit to the school on 22 February 2018, 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 2014.

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Short inspection of Bozeat Community Primary School

Based on the evidence gathered during this short inspection, I have identified some priorities for improvement which I advise the school to address. In light of these priorities, the school’s next inspection will be a full section 5 inspection. There is

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no change to the school’s current overall effectiveness grade of good as a

There have been a large number of changes of staff since the last inspection. Since joining the school, you have tackled a number of staffing difficulties. Although you and the governors have had a clear focus on securing the best teaching for pupils, in 2017, recruitment difficulties in upper key stage 2 led to pupils not reaching the minimum standards for attainment and progress that the government expects schools to meet.

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no change to the school’s current overall effectiveness grade of good as a

You and the governors are ambitious to ensure that pupils achieve the best possible outcomes and have maintained the focus on the recommendations to improve teaching from the last inspection. You know the strengths of the school and have accurately identified the aspects that require improvement. You ensure that governors are well informed. They are diligent in checking what is reported to them. They use their range of skills well to challenge and support you. In the early years and key stage 1, where there has been more stability, actions for improvement have successfully secured strong outcomes for pupils. Governors share your frustration that recruitment difficulties have delayed the impact for upper key stage 2 pupils.

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no change to the school’s current overall effectiveness grade of good as a

You have a strong commitment to staff development. You actively seek out opportunities for effective staff training and make good use of support from the local authority. You have involved the school in teacher training, as one way of improving recruitment. You feel you are ‘making headway this year’ across the whole school. Evidence from the inspection confirms your evaluation that teaching across the school is now good. Current assessment information and work in pupils’ books show that most pupils are making good progress, including those in upper key stage 2. However, these pupils are not making fast enough progress to make up for the slow progress they made last year. Nevertheless, a higher proportion of pupils, at least in line with the current national average, is on track to achieve the expected standards in reading, writing and mathematics.

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no change to the school’s current overall effectiveness grade of good as a

You have a thorough understanding of effective teaching and learning, and a passion for bringing learning to life. This drives a compelling vision which is shared by staff, governors and pupils. Staff feel valued, listened to and well supported by you and other leaders. They are proud to be part of the school team.

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no change to the school’s current overall effectiveness grade of good as a

Your positive approach carries through to the pupils. They appreciate the improvements and changes that you have made, including helping them to evaluate how well they are learning. Pupils who I met were keen to tell me about their interesting and enjoyable lessons. They told me about the ‘immersive room’ that allowed them to ‘get a real sense of India’. They were fascinated and respectful of the opportunities provided on a recent ‘Multi-faith Day’, telling me about the impact of talking to ‘people who actually believe’, rather than teachers just telling them.

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no change to the school’s current overall effectiveness grade of good as a

Pupils behave well and show positive attitudes and mutual respect throughout the school day, including in lessons. They are proud of their welcoming and friendly school. They relish taking on roles such as junior leaders and anti-bullying ambassadors.

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no change to the school’s current overall effectiveness grade of good as a

Leaders are using improved assessment well to secure additional support for vulnerable pupils and their families. Attendance has been at least in line with national averages over time. You continue to maintain a focus on the importance of high attendance through school targets, awards and swift follow-up of any absence.

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no change to the school’s current overall effectiveness grade of good as a

You have ensured that all safeguarding arrangements are fit for purpose. Parents and carers appreciate the caring staff. Parents have a high level of confidence that their children are safe and well looked after. Those pupils spoken with said they feel very safe because school is ‘so together as a community’. They said they trust adults to listen and help them with any problems that arise.

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no change to the school’s current overall effectiveness grade of good as a

You make sure that all staff are knowledgeable and aware of the potential risks to children’s well-being. They are kept regularly up to date through training and briefings. Any concerns raised are responded to quickly and investigated. Referrals are made in a timely manner and records are kept confidentially and securely. Your safeguarding procedures are regularly quality assured by a member of the governing body with suitable expertise. As a result, procedures and policies are thorough.

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no change to the school’s current overall effectiveness grade of good as a

Pupils are well informed, through assemblies and lessons, on how to keep themselves and others safe. The curriculum includes an ongoing focus on online safety. Older pupils are well supported to understand and develop strategies to take full advantage of secondary school.

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Inspection findings

 At the start of the inspection, you and I agreed aspects of the school’s work that we would consider closely. The first of these was how well teaching is being improved, especially in key stage 2. You have well-established monitoring procedures, including checking on teaching, looking at pupils’ books, and regular discussions about how well pupils are progressing. My visits to classrooms confirmed that you have an accurate view and know your staff well. Teachers ensure that pupils are attentive to their learning and confident to contribute their ideas in discussions. Classrooms are all well-equipped, attractive spaces. Imaginative displays heighten pupils’ interest in class topics. You have successfully implemented a range of school policies which have established, throughout the school, the use of learning prompts, questioning to check understanding and pupils reviewing their own learning. Teachers plan challenge

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Inspection findings

and extension tasks for most activities. However, in lessons and books, teachers were not moving pupils quickly on to challenging work or showing them how to tackle more complex tasks.  We looked closely at pupils’ progress in writing, as progress at the end of key stage 2 has been particularly weak. You have taken steps to revise the spelling programme and handwriting policy. This is having a positive impact across the school, with pupils’ books showing increasing accuracy and good presentation. Teachers are consistently providing purposeful writing opportunities, linked to interesting topics and quality texts. Initiatives such as ‘word of the day’ are supporting pupils to use a range of interesting vocabulary with understanding. For example, a Year 4 pupil vividly described a dormant volcano: ‘the beast lays silent, still no rumbling or movement in sight’. Teachers have started to use success criteria and checklists to raise pupils’ awareness of what features to

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Inspection findings

apply in writing tasks. However, time is lost on reminding pupils of basic features, rather than moving them swiftly on to more challenging content and showing them how to refine and improve their writing.  You have recently revised assessment processes and how pupils’ progress is tracked. This has had an immediate impact on raising teachers’ awareness of what pupils can already do. Leaders and teachers are more accurately identifying gaps in learning and pupils who are at risk of falling behind. Leaders have used this information to make sure that pupils who need support are receiving it. Better information about what pupils already know has given teachers the confidence to plan activities with the right level of challenge for their age. External checks of the assessments made by the teachers have helped them to gain a clearer understanding of what pupils need to learn next. You recognise that the full impact of these changes to assessment processes cannot be

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Inspection findings

evaluated at this early stage. However, you are right to point out that assessment information is not yet being used well enough to increase the rate of progress made by pupils.  You have carried a heavy leadership load since joining the school. Nevertheless, you have resolutely tackled the considerable challenges that have arisen. Now you have a stable staff in place, you told me that it is important to use and develop the wider leadership team.  Since September, other leaders have taken on more responsibility for monitoring and supporting colleagues. They have relished the opportunity to use the effective training and support they have received, including mutual support across the team. The mathematics and key stage 1 leader has already had a very positive impact on improving teaching by making sure that all teachers follow the revised mathematics policy. He also provides support to less experienced

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Inspection findings

members of staff. All leaders know the areas where the school needs to improve. However, other leaders have not yet got the same grasp of the results of monitoring as you. Although you share the information you gather verbally, it is not recorded in sufficient detail for other leaders to analyse and act upon.

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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

 teachers give pupils clear guidance on how to use grammar and punctuation to refine and improve their writing  teachers plan tasks that provide the right level of challenge for pupils, to show them how to tackle more complex problems in order to deepen their understanding  the information resulting from revised assessment procedures is used to inform more precise planning to accelerate pupils’ progress  information from monitoring and assessment is analysed in detail, so all leaders refine actions for improving teaching.

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

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Information about the inspection

During the inspection, I met with you and shared my lines of enquiry. I also met with senior and middle leaders with responsibility for key stages, mathematics, English and inclusion. In addition, I met with recently qualified teachers. I also met the chair of governors and four other governors. I spoke to a representative of the local authority. We jointly visited classes to observe pupils learning, speak with them and look at their books. I also jointly visited some classes with the key stage 1 and mathematics leader. I looked at samples of pupils’ work with you. I observed pupils’ behaviour in lessons and across the school day. I met with a group of pupils and talked with others around the school.

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Information about the inspection

I viewed a range of documents, including leaders’ evaluation of the school’s current performance and its plans for further improvement. I considered a number of policy documents, including those for safeguarding. I examined the school’s website and checked on the publication of specified information. I spoke to 13 parents at the start of the school day and considered the responses of 75 parents to Ofsted’s online survey, Parent View, and 28 free-text comments. I scrutinised the responses to Ofsted’s questionnaires for 16 staff and for 48 pupils.

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Information about the inspection

The school meets the Department for Education’s definition of a coasting school based on key stage 2 academic performance results in 2015, 2016 and 2017.

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