Dairy Meadow Primary School

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

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Mr Arjinder Sunner Headteacher Dairy Meadow Primary School Swift Road Southall Middlesex UB2 4RP

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Short inspection of Dairy Meadow Primary School

Following my visit to the school on 1 May 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 June 2014.

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Short inspection of Dairy Meadow Primary School

The leadership team has maintained the good quality of education in the school since the last inspection. You have worked closely with other senior leaders and members of the governing body to identify the school’s strengths and where it needs to improve. The school’s self-evaluations are sharp, and you have put in place strategies to drive improvements. You have developed a culture of support and challenge. You and your senior leaders visit classes regularly and check the quality of pupils’ work in their books to make sure that pupils are making strong progress. Your senior leaders work closely with teachers to make sure that the quality of teaching is consistently good.

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Short inspection of Dairy Meadow Primary School

At the time of the last inspection, inspectors found that phase leaders needed to play a greater part in sharing best practice with other members of staff. Inspectors also judged that phase leaders needed to link the quality of teaching with the data on pupils’ achievement. You have identified that subject leaders need to use data more effectively in order to drive improvements, and are making sure that subject leaders regularly check the quality of pupils’ work. Consequently, leaders can now accurately pinpoint where further improvement in teaching is needed. The school’s assessment information and work in pupils’ books show that these measures are having an impact on improving pupils’ progress further.

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Short inspection of Dairy Meadow Primary School

Pupils achieve well. They make strong progress in writing and mathematics. As a result, most pupils reach the standard expected for their age. They make particularly strong progress in writing. You have made sure that pupils write regularly and practise their writing skills across a range of subjects. Attractive displays of writing around the school reflect the high standards of pupils’ work. Leaders have made sure that early reading and phonics are taught well. You are now focusing on ensuring that all pupils achieve equally well in reading in key stages 1 and 2.

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Short inspection of Dairy Meadow Primary School

You have introduced initiatives to ensure that all lessons in the school are interesting and exciting. Pupils talk enthusiastically about how well they learn, for example, through experiments that they do in science lessons. They told me how much they enjoy learning a foreign language, and you ensure that pupils’ lessons teach them life skills they will need in the world of work.

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Short inspection of Dairy Meadow Primary School

Pupils typically have strong social skills. They are well behaved, friendly and polite. Relationships with staff are warm and caring. Pupils work together well and help each other in lessons.

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Short inspection of Dairy Meadow Primary School

The leadership team has ensured that all safeguarding arrangements are fit for purpose. As a result of having attended recent training, staff know what to do should any safeguarding concerns arise. This includes being able to recognise possible warning signs that a pupil may be at risk of female genital mutilation.

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Short inspection of Dairy Meadow Primary School

Leaders make sure that pupils understand how to keep themselves safe. In lessons and assemblies, pupils learn about healthy relationships and resisting inappropriate peer pressure. They know how to keep themselves safe online. Leaders have fostered an open culture where pupils can talk to adults if something is worrying them.

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Inspection findings

 Senior leaders and governors have rightly identified that standards in reading need to improve further. You aim to ensure that more pupils achieve above- average standards in reading by the end of Year 6. We agreed to explore how well pupils, particularly high-attaining pupils, make progress in reading.  You have been quick to introduce changes to the way you teach reading. Leaders have organised reading lessons differently, making more efficient use of lesson time. Teachers make sure that pupils read books that will interest and excite them. They place a greater focus on encouraging pupils to adopt a more searching approach to the books that they read. Consequently, pupils spend more time exploring difficult words so that they can understand more- challenging books. As a result of the increased level of challenge, pupils are more able to ‘read between the lines’ and comprehend better the essence of

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Inspection findings

what they are reading. For example, pupils understand why an author chooses to use certain words. This is leading to improvements in pupils’ reading.  Pupils speak with enthusiasm about reading. They enjoy choosing books from the school library and they practise their reading at home. Pupils are motivated to read a wide range of books. This means that they are practising the reading skills that they learn in school. As a result, their progress is improving.  Following the recent changes to reading lessons, senior leaders have worked closely with teachers to share good practice. This has resulted in improvements in the quality of teaching. Although it is early days, the school’s assessment information shows that the proportion of pupils reading at a high standard has increased.  We agreed that we would explore the progress made by disadvantaged pupils. As they make very strong progress in writing, we wanted to check that they

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Inspection findings

achieve equally well in reading and mathematics. Leaders and governors have made sure that the pupil premium funding is used to provide a variety of appropriate support for disadvantaged pupils, for example through extra reading lessons. Younger pupils receive good-quality extra help in phonics, and pupils who need additional help in mathematics lessons are supported effectively by teaching assistants so that they are able to complete their work. Subject leaders do not always check the progress information about groups of pupils in the school as systematically or thoroughly as they should. However, the school’s performance information for pupils currently on roll shows that disadvantaged pupils in the school make similar progress compared with other pupils at the school.

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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

 the most able pupils are routinely challenged in reading  subject leaders regularly check information about progress to ensure that all pupils make strong progress.

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

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Information about the inspection

During the inspection, I held meetings with you and the deputy headteacher. I met with an assistant headteacher and with two subject leaders. I met with two governors, including the chair of the governing body. We visited classes together, from Year 1 to Year 6, to observe teaching and to look at pupils’ work. I spoke to pupils in lessons and informally at breaktime and I also met with a group of key stage 1 and key stage 2 pupils. I spoke to members of staff around the school. I evaluated recent information about pupils’ progress and attainment. I looked at records and documentation relating to safeguarding. I checked the school website and documentation available to parents. I considered the views of 11 parents from Parent View, the online Ofsted survey tool. I also took into account six comments received from parents by Ofsted as well as one letter that was handed to me during the inspection.

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