Hemington Primary School

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

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Mrs Jane Siddons Headteacher Hemington Primary School Main Street Hemington Derby Derbyshire DE74 2RB

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Short inspection of Hemington Primary School

Following my visit to the school on 6 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 September 2014.

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Short inspection of Hemington Primary School

The leadership team has maintained the good quality of education in the school since the last inspection. You carry out regular checks on the quality of teaching and learning. You make sure that you assess the impact of teaching on pupils’ progress. This has strengthened teaching and enables you to provide accurate reports to the governing body.

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Short inspection of Hemington Primary School

Pupils are making good progress. The most able pupils are given work that challenges their thinking effectively. Published data shows that, in 2017, the number of pupils achieving at greater depth in writing and mathematics at the end of key stage 1 increased from the previous year. Pupils in Year 6 are on track to achieve well in the assessments at the end of key stage 2.

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Short inspection of Hemington Primary School

You have successfully implemented a thorough system for teachers to assess pupils’ attainment and progress at key points through the year. Your latest assessment figures show that the majority of pupils in each year group are currently achieving at least in line with age-related expectations in reading, writing and mathematics. When pupils are working below the expected standard, teachers meet with you regularly to agree how best to provide the additional support being given.

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Short inspection of Hemington Primary School

Pupils said that they were very proud of their school, describing it as ‘caring, safe, healthy and creative’. They told me about some memorable experiences, such as the residential trips to Sherwood Forest and an outdoor education centre. One pupil commented, with mature perception, that such trips outside of school, ‘help me to build up my courage’ to be comfortable with larger groups beyond the village environment. Within school, pupils said that they value lessons which inspire their writing. They mentioned those in which they can write stories about an imaginary planet or involve learning about the myths of ancient Greece. Another spoke enthusiastically about a special ‘maths afternoon’ held at the end of term.

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Short inspection of Hemington Primary School

Pupils, parents and carers deeply value the benefits of a very small village school. A number of parents cited this as the reason for their choice of school, describing it as ‘small and friendly’. Pupils say that they appreciate knowing everyone in the school. They feel playtimes are positive, because there is plenty of space and they are not overcrowded.

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Short inspection of Hemington Primary School

You and the other staff know the pupils and their individual needs very well. This enables you to make sure that the additional funding for disadvantaged pupils is used to tailor the provision to pupils’ specific needs. This includes provision for those disadvantaged pupils who also have special educational needs (SEN) and/or disabilities. The school’s pupil premium strategy document for 2017/18, however, has not been formally written and does not reflect the current provision in school. The strategy is not published on the school’s website, as is required, to show accountability for the effective use of this additional funding.

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Short inspection of Hemington Primary School

The summary of your self-evaluation, in which leaders and the governing body set out current judgements about the school and the areas for improvement, is based on out-of-date figures. When analysing the school’s performance, you have not taken into account pupils’ achievements in 2016 and 2017, including at the end of the early years foundation stage. Consequently, the accuracy of your judgements and the basis for choosing the school’s priorities for improvement are not as robust as they might be.

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Short inspection of Hemington Primary School

Safeguarding is effective. Pupils said that they feel safe at the school because, ‘everyone is your friend’ and, as they put it, ‘a small school makes you feel safe’. Pupils also say that they feel confident that they can talk to the trusted adults around them if they have any worries or concerns. Pupils stated that bullying is rare. They are well informed about what constitutes bullying, how to avoid it and what to do if they encounter it.

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Short inspection of Hemington Primary School

A clear system is in place for reporting any concerns about a child’s well-being to the designated leader for safeguarding. Your records show that, when concerns have been raised, appropriate actions are taken, including external referrals where necessary.

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Short inspection of Hemington Primary School

Your recruitment checks on staff and volunteers meet statutory requirements. You have ensured that all safeguarding arrangements are fit for purpose and well documented.

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Inspection findings

 The school currently has its first cohort of pupils in Year 6 since it changed the age at which pupils leave. Until this school year, pupils left the school at the end of Year 5. The current teacher for Years 5 and 6 knows the pupils in Year 6 very well because she has taught them for the past two years. In addition, she has prior experience of teaching Year 6. Leaders made sure that the school was well prepared for the incorporation of Year 6 through staff training, and by adapting the curriculum and resources. Teachers checked the accuracy of their assessments of pupils’ work by working with teachers in other local schools.  You have ensured that parents are kept well informed about the changes in Years 5 and 6 by means of a ‘SATs parents evening’ as well as the usual parent–teacher consultations. Parents expressed their confidence in the school to handle the demands of Year 6, saying that they feel the school is ‘coping very well’. Parents

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Inspection findings

said that the teacher is ensuring that ‘children learn without the pressure’.  Evidence from learning in lessons and from work in their books shows that the school’s current assessments in Year 6 are accurate. Pupils in Year 6 are making good progress in reading, writing and mathematics. In particular, just over half are currently attaining at greater depth in writing.  The quality of pupils’ writing is a particular strength of the school. For example, a pupil in Year 4 had written that, ‘the poster flapped about like a trapped bird in the howling wind’. Elsewhere, pupils in Year 3 were working excitedly together to collect words to describe chocolate, coming up with examples such as ‘smooth’ and ‘sumptuous’. Children in the early years are quickly acquiring confidence and skill in their early efforts at writing. All are making good progress and some can attempt two or three short written sentences independently.

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Inspection findings

 During the inspection, we considered together how well the small number of disadvantaged pupils in school are currently achieving. It was unclear, because of the lack of published information on the school website, how the additional funding for disadvantaged pupils is being used. Evidence from your latest assessment information and pupils’ work confirms that disadvantaged pupils across the school are currently making good progress in their target areas. Those pupils who also have SEN and/or disabilities are also making good progress from their starting points.  Some aspects of leadership and management lack accuracy and attention to detail. In particular, the summary of the school’s self-evaluation is based on out- of-date information. Leaders and the governing body are not in a position, therefore, to work together to set priorities for improvement and make sure that the good standard of education is sustained. In addition, the school does not

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Inspection findings

have a written pupil premium strategy for spending the additional funding for disadvantaged pupils in the current school year. This means that the governing body is not able to hold leaders to account for the effective use of these funds.

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Next steps for the school

Leaders and those responsible for governance should ensure that:  they publish and implement clear and precisely costed strategic plans for the use of pupil premium funding to help disadvantaged pupils to make good progress from their starting points  they use up-to-date information to judge the school’s performance, so that the self-evaluation summary is accurate and they can use it to set the right priorities for school improvement. I am copying this letter to the chair of the governing body, the regional schools commissioner and the director of children’s services for Leicestershire. This letter will be published on the Ofsted website.

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Information about the inspection

During this inspection, I held a series of meetings with you. I met with the senior teacher, who also teaches pupils in Years 5 and 6. I met with the chair of the governing body and a parent governor. I visited all three classes with you to look at pupils’ learning and I spoke with a range of teaching and support staff. I spoke with pupils during a group discussion and informally during lessons. I examined pupils’ work in their books. I spoke with parents informally at the beginning of the day and considered 24 responses to Ofsted’s online survey Parent View. I examined a wide range of documents, including those relating to safeguarding, the school’s analysis of pupils’ current and past achievement, leaders’ monitoring records, external reports about the school, the spending of the school’s pupil premium funds, the school’s self- evaluation summary and its plans for improvement.

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