Brewster Avenue Infant School

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

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Miss Rebecca Thompson Headteacher Brewster Avenue Infant School Brewster Avenue Woodston Peterborough Cambridgeshire PE2 9PN

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Short inspection of Brewster Avenue Infant School

Following my visit to the school on 7 March 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 December 2013.

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Short inspection of Brewster Avenue Infant School

The leadership team has maintained the good quality of education in the school since the last inspection. You and the other leaders place a strong emphasis on teaching a broad curriculum in your belief that pupils should receive a rounded education. Consequently, pupils benefit from an enriching curriculum and take part in many stimulating and interesting activities. Pupils continue to behave well around the school and are cooperative and kind to each other when working and playing together.

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Short inspection of Brewster Avenue Infant School

You have only been in post since September 2017, but have quickly recognised that some aspects of the school could benefit from some improvement. For example, the steps that you have taken to improve the outcomes for disadvantaged pupils have been purposeful and relevant. You and the governors have made this the main priority in the school improvement plan. You sensibly informed this priority by commissioning a pupil premium review which made some helpful recommendations. You are also holding teachers to account by making the improvement in outcomes for disadvantaged pupils part of the appraisal process. The impact of this work can already be seen in the accelerated progress being made by this group.

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Short inspection of Brewster Avenue Infant School

Robust management procedures are in place to check that pupils overall continue to make good progress and that teaching and learning are of good quality. These procedures underpin the effective leadership of teaching and learning. Since the last inspection, the teaching and learning of mathematics have improved, as can be seen in the work in pupils’ books where they are demonstrating a fluency with number work. School initiatives to improve the teaching of phonics have resulted in the proportion reaching the expected standard rising to broadly average since the last inspection. This year it appears that the proportion is likely to increase further.

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Short inspection of Brewster Avenue Infant School

At the time of the last inspection, most children entered the school with development that was below that typical for their age and this was also the case for children that started in the Reception class in September 2016. This is changing, so, for example, in Reception this year more than half the children entered the school with development that is typical for their age. To raise attainment at the end of Year 2 to above average, you have rightly recognised that you need to further raise expectations of the progress that all pupils can make across the school. To do this, you plan to increase the challenge even more for pupils in lessons.

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Short inspection of Brewster Avenue Infant School

All the recruitment procedures are secure and very well managed. All necessary checks are carried out on new appointments, and you ensure that all staff complete the training to keep pupils safe.

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Short inspection of Brewster Avenue Infant School

All staff have a healthy attitude to risk, which is preparing pupils to understand how to stay safe. The excellent use of the outside environment, such as the wooded area, enables pupils to learn how to stay safe when climbing trees, building shelters and playing in the mud.

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Short inspection of Brewster Avenue Infant School

Child protection procedures are secure for vulnerable pupils. Records show regular involvement with outside agencies for these pupils, and the school has a systematic means of acting on concerns raised by staff. When pupils are subject to child protection arrangements, they are kept safe in school. Informal risk assessments are carried out on situations that may occur. The procedures for doing this could be made more formal so that this is considered as an automatic part of your procedures when new cases arise.

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Inspection findings

 Assessment information in 2017 showed that by the end of Year 2, the attainment of disadvantaged pupils in reading, writing and mathematics was lower than for other pupils both nationally and in school. You have effectively addressed this situation with targeted interventions and improved teaching, which you keep a careful check on.  Work in books and assessment information show that this group make good progress. In the Reception and Year 1 classes where starting points were higher than in the past, attainment is currently in line with that of other pupils because of accelerated progress. In Year 2, the starting points were lower for this group. While there still remains a difference between their attainment and that of the others, the gap is diminishing because of good progress.  In 2017, there was a slight fall in the proportion of pupils in Year 2 who gained the expected standard in phonics. In Year 1, the proportion who did not reach

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Inspection findings

the expected standard had low scores overall.  Teaching of phonics and additional support for the pupils who need to catch up are effective. In Year 2, from low starting points, at least half of this group are likely to reach the expected standard, which means that the proportion overall will have risen to average or above. Those I heard reading demonstrated that even though they struggled with some words, they used their phonics to help them to read successfully.  In the Reception classes, I examined whether the proportion of children that made a good level of development represented good progress. Leaders have established secure assessment procedures when children start. Last year, the results in 2017 represented good progress because the starting points of the majority of children were below those which are typical when they entered the Reception classes.  You have ensured that all subjects are covered and taught within the timetable.

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Inspection findings

All pupils take part in some interesting activities within these subjects. Teachers track what has been covered to make sure that requirements are not missed.  In some subjects such as geography and history, this coverage does not ensure that pupils develop sufficiently the skills and understanding required for the next stage in their education. Pupils have too few opportunities to record what it is they have learned to demonstrate their achievement.  You have ensured that all groups make good progress. However, in some lessons, pupils, including the most able and the disadvantaged, could be challenged more. For example, in mathematics there are not enough opportunities for pupils to use reasoning skills which would stretch them and build on their good understanding of number.

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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

 groups of pupils, including the disadvantaged and the most able, should be presented more challenge within their lessons so that progress continues to accelerate and standards rise to above average  more attention is paid to ensuring that pupils acquire the skills and understanding in history and geography so that they are better prepared in these subjects for the next stage 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 Peterborough. This letter will be published on the Ofsted website.

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Information about the inspection

During the inspection, I visited all classes to talk to pupils, observe teaching, learning and the behaviour of pupils and to examine the work in books. I carried out a short visit to the outside learning spaces. A range of school documents, including safeguarding records, the school improvement plan, assessment information and the school self-evaluation, were examined. Meetings were held with you, the deputy headteacher, the member of staff responsible for the administration of safeguarding records, some governors and a group of pupils. I scrutinised the questionnaire responses from 28 parents and carers, 26 staff and 22 pupils.

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